Orient Bambino Killer! - Finally, The Perfect 38mm Alternative?

In this video, I showcase a new Orient Bambino alternative that is sure to be an Orient Bambino killer for small wrists, at just over 38mm. This one also features improved specifications including sapphire crystal and more water resistance. Given the sizing, this could oust the 5s as the best smaller men's dress watch. The full code for this model is FAG03001D0.

Straps:

Thanks to Jomashop for covering the cost of the watch being reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own, Jomashop maintained no editorial control over the content produced.

Ben's Watch Club tends to cover affordable watches like Seiko, Timex, Casio, Citizen, MVMT, Vincero, Bulova, Orient, Hamilton, and more. We rarely feature luxury watches like Rolex, Patek Philippe, Breitling, Tag Heuer, Tudor, Grand Seiko, Cartier, Omega, Audemars Piguet, or Hublot due to their price.

[BensWatchClub]

I've covered too many great watches recently! Any of you know of one that is overpriced or garbage? (or both?) Leave your suggestions below.

[vizuz]

The QC is terrible though, the dial has a huge hole in it.

[bit-]

bro this video is gonna skyrocket the price

[hugohugo]

I have an Orient Star Classic (white dial, blue hands, power reserve indicator) which also comes in at 38mm. It was more expensive than this but it's absolutely one of my favorite watches. I'm a huge fan of Orient. As Seiko creeps upward in price, let's hope Orient keeps making affordable gems.

[mharto]

Good find. We need more 36 to 38mm watches

[seybertooth]

I've owned this watch since before x-mas last year and it's excellent. Looks better in real life than even in this video. I'm very happy with it but I do have a few small gripes, chief among them is that there is no day-glo of any kind and there is very little contrast between the hands and dial making it very hard to make out in low light conditions. I have the white clock face and this problem may be smaller with the blue one. That said, great watch and I do recommend it.

[zackgoldsmith]

Was browsing Jomashop yesterday and ordered this exact watch, about 12 hours before this video went live! It looks awesome! Glad to have Ben's stamp of approval :P The model is called the "Golden Eye 2" and some other stores have a white variant, and black with gold accents.

[legendsend]

Same as you I'm not usually into open heart watches but I've got to admit this piece is actually quite stunning. Shout out to Orient, always looking out for their new models im never disappointed.

[kylenicholas]

Its no spaghetti scametti, but still a nice watch. 40mm is kind of my perfect size, so I like the bambino, but I also really like the Maestro. It’s nice that there’s a smaller alternative though.

[andrei-cosmin.popa]

While I'm not a fan of open heart watches, this one looks amazing as a whole. If I was new in the game, I'd instantly jump on it.

[chromeboy]

I like how anchor fork is clearly visible. Usually it is mostly hidden even in sceletonized watch. For me watching escapement working is very satisfactory.

[pcolmenaresg]

Finally a review of a watch I bought before it got mainstream! I got this model in early 2019, after comparing it with many others. Got it from Jomashop though Amazon, and paid $130ish. For the price is way better value than a Bambino, with sapphire crystal. The movement may not be the prettiest, but it works very well, and I would say the hand winding feels better than a Swiss made ETA I own. The size is great for my 15.5cm wrist, lug-to-lug is only 43mm, and it looks great on a teju lizard strap. It takes a little to get used to the open heat, but soon one learns to appreciate that feature.

[Noke]

I just recently got my hands on a 36mm white/gold bambino. Absolutely love it.

[onbswoe]

Hey man i recently stumbled upon your videos and from there i bacame obsessed, love the channel, love the watches, keep up the good work man.

[zeusfreedom]

I really like the open heart and the overall looks of the watch! In fact I even bought an Orient Star which also has an open heart. Astounding quality and attention to details by Orient!

[KNM]

A great watch indeed. As for the "funny" reference number, the watch may be sold as FAG03001D or just AG03001D. They're the same watch. The "F" is - from what I have read - a factory code. "AG" indicates the movement, which is the same as the second generation Orient Esteem, the reference codes of which also start with (F)AG. "03" indicates the case, "001" indicates dial, hands and band, and "D" indicated dial colour. "D" stands for blue for some reason, "B" for black, and "W" for white or silver(ish). Letters or digits after the D/B/W (or whatever colour it is) are distributor codes, and not part of the reference "proper".

[timgore]

That watch looks fantastic on that tan leather strap! Overall, it's a beautiful watch. I love Orient.

[fungus]

This is an exceptionally well made piece which came out some years ago but I reckon quite rare at this price range for Orient. I would say this is almost Orient Star quality.

[tonywong]

I bought a similar watch from Orient: FDB05001D

It has a sapphire crystal and has an open window to the stem that changes the time. It's not as clean but it's around the same dimensions: 38mm and 20mm lug width.

[Faenwolf]

Nice! If they now would skip the open heart, put some lume on hands and markers and improve the water resistance, this could even be an affordable contender for the upcoming (and quite expensive) Seiko Laurel Alpinist revival watches (for example the Seiko SPB243). But since Orient is part of Seiko, they never would do that. But for THAT money, this dresser still is a great find! Thanks!