I’m an insomniac, and lume is on my mind tonight!
I was wondering if there are watches out there with lume that lasts well the whole night? I mean - lume that doesn’t require specific attempts to charge it?

Seiko seems to be well-regarded for lume - is that a fair assessment?

Should I invest in a UV torch to charge up my watches to the Max, or will they shine bright but still fade long before morning?? Or in other words, shining bright is impressive but what I’m interested in is longevity


Give me your thoughts about lume! And I’ll keep on admiring the LumeShotOfTheDay thread

I use a normal, but *very* bright, torch on mine (1-2 seconds only required) before I go to bed. The UV torches I’ve tried don’t work nearly as well as that does. All lume, no matter how good, drops off rapidly over the first few minutes, reaching a stable level after 5-15 minutes. Longevity varies; for my watches it can be anywhere from a few seconds for a vintage tritium watch to all night for decent superluminova or lumibrite.

As to brands, yes, Seiko divers and a few other Seikos do very well, lasting with slowly waning light levels, easily all night. Zelos also does remarkably well, possibly better than almost any Seiko. Some Omegas like sword handed SMPs equal the Zelos longevity and brightness.

It’s important to note that when the initial brightness wears off, the lasting ability should be assessed with dark-adjusted eyes, as that’s what you’ll look at them with when you wake up in the middle of the night and check your watch for the time. It’s remarkable how many watches with “no so gifted” lume capabilities can still be read in the dark when you wake up.

Here’s a good example that many may be familiar with; most Speedys, which have bugger all lume, can be quite legible until the wee hours. Even smallish amounts of quality lume can be surprisingly good with dark adjusted eyesight… if charged before sleeping. Of course, some watches with “lume” are often just useless. I have some of those too.

I think that's a really good point regarding dark-adjusted sight - both my CWs (a C63 and C65) are quite readable all night if they've got a bit of light during the day - and the C65 has vintage lume which often gets panned.

The lume of the day thread tends to show off sexy lume -i.e. lovely bright freshly charged lume, which looks fantastic, but that's not really what matters at 2am!

Seiko is the best i have experienced.

Clearly a lot depends on the watch, the lume used and amount of, together with the level of exposure to daylight.

I don't rely on the lume from a watch in bed at night, that's what I have a bedside clock with a large digital display for.

However, I am able to recount this from around this time four years ago.

I was on a road trip holiday spending a few nights in a hotel in North Wales near Conway, and only had my C60 Trident Mk2 Chronograph with me; a watch with reasonable, but not excellent, lume.

On a day out to Llandudno I bought a Seiko Samurai, well reputed to have good lume and plenty of it.

That night, with no special preparation, I set up both watches on my bedside locker.

The following morning, around 6:00am and still dark outside, I woke for a call of nature. Returning to bed, I could see from the feint lume on the Trident Chronograph the approximate time.

However, on the Samurai, with its bright and more prolific lume and without my spectacles to provide a focused image, it simply looked like a mush of light with the position of the hands being indistinguishable, to the extent that I was not able to tell the time.

A case of less is more, perhaps?

Guy



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Stif wrote: ↑Mon Sep 12, 2022 3:00 pm The lume of the day thread tends to show off sexy lume…

Hilarious…but also very true.

I’ll add this in addition to the dark adjusted eyes - I don’t look straight on if trying to read my watch at night, but instead slightly to the side of the dial. The lume typically jumps out more. I suppose it’s all about the dispersion of rods and cones in the retina. I forget which is which when it comes to low light eyesight.

Guys point above about less is more rings true for me. All I really need lume for is to tell the time in the small hours. This is when I have to make those really difficult decisions, do I go to the toilet now, or wait until it’s time to get up anyway.

I therefore am reading the time without my glasses and quite faded lume. A quick glance at the hands and some reference point so I know where the main points are at 3,6,9, & 12 is all I need.

Fully lumed bezel, waste of time, and as guy says it can distract from just telling the time when I can’t fully focus my eyes. Lume on the logo, a gimmick. Some good contrast between hands and dial also really helps here. My IWC Mark xviii is my most legible in the dark. Lume only where it’s needed and no more, perfect. I can almost read the time without really waking up. Unless my bladder says differently of course......

iain wrote: ↑Mon Sep 12, 2022 6:58 pm Lume on the logo, a gimmick.

I hear you, but I think I’m at the stage where I haven’t really explored lume in the watches I buy. So yeah - give me lume on the logo, and the crown, and all of the bezel, and in fact the whole dial - that really appeals! I am that child of the eighties hiding under the duvet to check the orange light on a digital watch!

I’ve never understood the want or the need for lume. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a situation where it’s been so dark that I’ve struggled to see the time and that includes cave darkness. Sorry but watches with lume applied to just about every surface I find tacky.

Sounds like you really want one of these Lindsay

^^^ You know, I think I maybe do!

I think lume’s a bit magical?

missF wrote: ↑Mon Sep 12, 2022 8:57 pm ^^^ You know, I think I maybe do!

Green is all the rage at the moment.