The Nezumi corbeau chronograph

craftmanship exceeds affordability

In the world of affordable chronographs, there’s much debate upon what can deliver and satisfy those of us who enjoy messing with pushers, seeing that seconds hand tick, and pushing again for that hopefully sweet reset. Now, I’ve had my share of chronographs and had my hands on the likes of the legendary Omega Speedmaster Professional, the Rolex Daytona Rainbow, and even my first chronograph – the Bulova Wilton. Although a cool watch in it’s own right when gifted to me, with its rose gold case and navy blue dial, the Bulova lacked that crisp sweeping-esc chronograph hand and reset, as well as a bit of a refinement, especially at the price that it cost. 

For about $200 USD less you can get, in my opinion, a watch that has a better movement, better build quality, and more versatile look and wearability. In comes the Nezumi Corbeau Chronograph, powered by the mecha-quartz Seiko VK63 that ships standard with a burnt bronze colored NATO strap, stamped case back, sapphire crystal, and beautiful brushed case finishing. 

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Now, many of us watch enthusiasts are no stranger to the microbrands in the watch industry, many of which we prefer to that of the big brand names. From brands like Christopher Ward (although can we consider them a microband anymore?), Fears, Nivada Grenchen, Brew, anOrdain, and more. But Nezumi seems to go under most people’s radar far too often, and people are surprised at the quality and craftsmanship when I present this chronograph to them. Even Worn & Wound and Hodinkee have no mention of the brand, but the awesome teams at Fratello absolutely adore Nezumi and I wholeheartedly agree with them. 

Originally started in 2011 as a denim and leather goods company, the founder David Campo shifted to watches in 2015 and has been designing and making some of the most slept-on watches for under $500 (for the most part). Taking it’s name from the ancient Japanese Nezumi Kozō who fought against the daimyō, giving back to the poor, and striving to make change and impact the world, Nezumi has flourished into the brand it is today with these same ideals. Offering automatic dive and field watches, a GMT, and a plethora of collaboration watches most notably with RUF, Anthrax, and most recently Pan Am, it still boggles the mind why more people aren’t talking about them. 

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Early in my watch journey back in 2022, I came across the brand and without much hesitation, I pulled the trigger. Upon opening the shipper box, I was pleasantly surprised at the retro design of the outer box followed by a premium feeling leather watch box, with a Nezumi branded bronze coin on top. And inside, the Corbeau Chronograph stole the show with satisfying pushers that moved the chronograph hand and when reset, snapped the hand right back to the 12 o’clock position which surprised me. Up until this point I had only experienced the aforementioned Bulova which used a Miyota movement, so this was much cooler.

Now, we mentioned affordable chronographs but of course affordability and overall price is relative. For instance, the Tag Heuer Carrera Chronograph currently priced at $6,600 USD could be affordable for one person and on the other hand, the Seiko Prospex Speedtimer at around $600 is perfect for me. Then then the next question is, what are you getting with those hundreds if not thousands of dollars you are spending? In the market of sub $1000 chronographs, there can be a lot or very little that you get for each dollar you spend and for me the Corbeau Chronograph hits all the marks. Double-domed sapphire crystal with AR-reflective coating, mecha-quartz VK63, sweeping hands, brushed case, signed crown, stamped case back, and a quality made NATO strap, it makes sense that Nezumi raised their prices slightly in recent years. 

And did I mention, this watch is a strap MONSTER! For reference, I have the Seiko SPB143 which is pretty well known for being able to rock anything, but I would say the Corbeau edges it out especially with NATOs due to its very thin case at 11.5mm. From leather straps to rubber, and Nezumi’s own jubilee style bracelet, it can easily be your everyday watch. 

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But not everything is so perfect and wonderful about this watch. Unfortunately, Nezumi has seemingly discontinued the Corbeau Chronograph and cannot be found anywhere on their website. Back when I purchased this watch in 2022, they had two or three colorwaves but the only current offering is the Limited Edition Pan Am collaboration watch that is on the base Corbeau platform. 

Nonetheless, Nezumi currently offers two chronograph options (besides the LE), the Tonnerre and Voiture, their flagship model that started it all and might just be my next chronograph priced at $419 with a strap or $514 on their new Colin 2.0 bracelet. 

Check out their full collection here.