Citizen Nighthawk: This $300 TRUE GMT Is An Underrated Gem: BJ7000 Review

The sub $500 and sub $300 market has a huge amount of options these days with the likes of microbrands, Aliexpress brands, and of course the big players like Seiko and Citizen. However when it comes to a solid watch with a jumping local hour hand GMT function for less than $300, Citizen is the brand on top. The Citizen Nighthawk BJ7000 is an incredibly value packed pilot’s watch with a gmt complication all for less than $300. I have known about the watch for a long time, however, I never got around to buying it mainly because I was worried that the dial was too busy and the case was too big. But I quickly found out that neither of those things are a problem.
So in this video I will go over the dimensions of the Nighthawk and how it wears on the wrist because the numbers on paper do no do the watch justice. And then I will get into the details of the dial, hands, case, and bracelet to prove that this is easily the best pilot’s watch available at this sub $300 price point.
Additionally my watch is for sale for $200 with free shipping in the (continental) US. The watch is in perfect working condition because its pretty much brand new having worn the watch a handful of time at home. So shoot me an email [e-mail] and please include your zip code so that I can get myself a shipping quote!
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TIME STAMPS:
The Citizen Nighthawk - 00:00
Dimensions/ On The Wrist - 01:18
The Dial - 03:08
The Case And Bracelet - 06:21
The Movement - 09:06
DIMENSIONS:
Case width: 42.4mm
Lug width: 22mm
Bracelet at clasp: 18.0mm
Bracelet taper: “6mm”
Lug to lug: 47mm
Bezel width: 42.4mm
Dial width: 39mm
Case thickness: 12.4mm
Midcase thickness: 6.7mm
Bezel height: 3.7mm
Crown diameter: 6mm
Crown height: 4.3mm
Weight: with bracelet: 149 grams
Water resistance: 200m
Movement: Citizen B877
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[@zman8340]

It’s always been a hell of a lot of watch for the money , great build quality and I’ve thought the bracelet is fantastic for years. Not everyone’s style but citizen isn’t skimping here , plus screw down crown and 200m wr . A do it all piece .

[@thewatchidiot]

Yeah the specs have been great from the start! Yeah the 200m water resistance it the cherry on top that really didnt need to be there to make this is a great watch but I'm glad citizen wen the extra mile as they usually do with their watches! Like you said its good for anything

[@jeremaester1299]

For a lot of people including myself the SKX was the gateway. But if I had to recommend one watch under $200 to somebody looking to get into watches today it would be this. Screwdown crown, solid end links, milled clasp, eco drive movement, ability to track a second timezone. The value is pretty insane when you think about it.

[@younusimam-thesalamproject6340]

My wife gifted me the Blue Angels version as a wedding day present. It is undoubtedly one of my favorites. The leather strap is so well made and the watch is so beautiful

[@thewatchidiot]

Thats an awesome gift! the blue angels version is really cool i love the blue and yellow combo definitely a special watch that I would love to see in person at some point😁

[@younusimam-thesalamproject6340]

@@thewatchidiot very functional when traveling too!

[@lasermouth]

Hey, I gifted myself this same watch Blue Angels Nighthawk with blue leather strap. I bought that because I thought I could buy the metal strap later if I wanted to. But unfortunately, I can't find it anywhere.

[@younusimam-thesalamproject6340]

@@lasermouth honestly, it works better with the strap imo. My father wears it a lot now and enjoys it

[@blindriv3r]

Thanks for the good review, have had this one for quite a while and love it, put it on a Hirsch Liberty strap and that suits it very well. Marc at Long Island watch has a good video explaining the slide rule functions, I only use it to calculate mpg when filling up the car gas tank lol....I think those hour:minute markers you asked about are flight times given the amount or weight of fuel onboard and the rate you are burning that fuel

[@hanniballecter922]

Wore my Nighthawk as daily for years❤.....Ive bumped into other Nighthawk owners out in the wild (one even owned a Rollie but rated his Nighthawk too)....awesome watch (just need to upgrade to sapphire)

[@mattmcgriff5952]

Late to the nighthawk party, just got mine last week. Love it.

[@MichaelG1986]

I'd almost forgotten I own this exact model of watch. I wore it a lot when I first bought it, but has been a bit neglected. It's one of those watches that I realize how much I like wearing it. I took mine out and have it on a window ledge now to top up the power and I'm looking forward to wearing it. Thanks for the reminder. 🙂

[@thewatchidiot]

I know what you mean! The same thing happened with my BN0150, It's a weirdly great feeling bc for me rediscovering it was basically like getting a new watch that I already know I love😄 Glad that the nighthawk is back in action for you!

[@MichaelG1986]

@@thewatchidiot It's funny you bring that Citizen up. I bought one based on your review. I agree with you about Citizen quartz with the seconds hand that lines up. It's a pet peeve for me when a quartz doesn't line up.

[@SilojensenDK]

Good watch, had one for a couple of years. Hoewever - two issues: Crown stem too figgety and the bracelet and lugs too sharp on the edges, which made it fatigueing to wear. Sold it.

[@Dylan-zf4xh]

One thing I didn't even think about, if you still haven't gotten used to reading 24 hour time, if you look under the red hand in the afternoon, you can see the "normal" am/pm time in white

[@alessandrozuffi5068]

I got it because I wanted the opposite of the Flightmaster, same as when I got the NY0040 because I got the SKX. Citizen cares a lot, I never had any issue with them and the Nighthawk is a stunner.

[@thewatchidiot]

Yeah the flightmaster always looked a bit too busy for my taste and i just like the look of the nighthawk more and finding out that it had a gmt function was just another reason to get it! As much as I love my SKXs the NY0040 is still really great and i love that they have 20mm lugs! If only they kept the same size for this new generation

[@anthonystevens8683]

Nice one TWI. I have a few Citizen Eco Drive watches that I've had for many years and so far they have all performed very well, still ticking away for over 5 years and have not stopped. They don't get that much wrist time now as my collection has grown. I might just want to add a new one to my collection after a many year Citizen purchase hiatus and this may well be one to take a look at. As an old person who used slide rules back in the day it would be a step back in time (pun intended) but on a set it and forget it watch. I'll take a look when I'm next at an AD if I remember. My G-Shock GDB-200 seems to be getting wrist time at the moment.

[@thewatchidiot]

Thanks Anthony! Great to hear that your other eco drive watches are still going strong. Given the price point of the nighthawk it could be the right watch to scratch the citizen itch while throwing in the slide rule for good measure! I learned how to use the slide rule bezel and i must say that i still find it bewildering that effectively two pieces of plastic with marking on them can calculate so many different things with such relative ease. Also the GBD200 is a watch that ive been curious about for a long while now for the upgraded screen and smart functions especially phone notifications and heart rate. How are you liking it compared to a good ol square?

[@anthonystevens8683]

@@thewatchidiot The GDB200 has a brilliant display, easily the best from any Casio that I've seen. It may be negative but is as clear if not more so that the positive displays. It's super clear and readable. Notifications work well but you have to go through a few button presses to read them but for notifications it's fine. It doesn't have a heart rate monitor but can monitor other fitness things but I've not yet tried them. Is it better than my squares? No it isn't, it is easier to read but is a little less comfortable on my wrist and it's not solar or atomic time keeping. The squares are classics, this jut might be a classic in the making. For sure right now it gets plenty of wrist time. Prices seem to fluctuate daily as well.

[@calebknight3611]

I've had mine for a few years now. It is grown to be my favorite for the sub $500 range. I also heard they made a refresh of it a few months ago too.

[@edshamaham5719]

Oh wow I never would have imagined that it wears like an skx! I always thought that it would be too big. It's an interesting watch considering I've never owned a watch with a slide rule and given the price the old gears in my brain are turning

[@thewatchidiot]

ngl even after wearing the watch i didnt realize that it would be so close to the SKX and i couldnt believe it when i put them side by side! Slide rules are pretty fun to use once you get to learn how to use them, i like using them to convert kph to mph while watching F1 and i can use it as a timing bezel as well when i need it

[@TopTierTicker]

Great review my friend 🎉 you might have just sold me my next watch

[@bitterboar]

I have one and love it. Very comfortable on wrist and practical for me since I travel for work a lot.

[@thewatchidiot]

Ah nice thats great to hear that its being used as intended! I was surprised by how comfortable it is when i first wore it, i can see it being a great travel companion

[@jodysilvia2]

$300 bucks for a jumping hour hand is unheard of.

[@thewatchidiot]

It really took me by surprise when i saw that it was actually a gmt at all, let alone a jumping hour GMT, Citizen makes some incredible stuff!

[@jodysilvia2]

@@thewatchidiot fantastic technology

[@losdawg6265]

Great review sir! I really enjoy your content. Great points about the Nighthawk. My only complaint is I wish they made an offering with Sapphire glass. I realize for an actual pilot that mineral makes more sense, but the average person who purchases will not be a pilot. I love mine. It’s the grab and go in my collection. I have handled many watches in the sub $500 range, and it might very well be my pick for the best non digital watch under $250.

[@Mandaunusantara]

Why mineral glass be more sense than saphire for pilot?

[@losdawg6265]

@@Mandaunusantara mineral glass is used for pilots watches because although they are far less scratch resistance than sapphire glass, mineral glass is much shatter proof. So, the theory is in the event of an emergency/accident the pilot can live with some scratches as opposed to a broken watch that has now shattered.

[@Mandaunusantara]

@@losdawg6265 thanks for answering

[@brilliantradience]

This watch was $115 when I noticed the crazy fliger design and went up tp 135. Waited for the price drop but instead got raised to 160, got stubborn and didn't buy it. It got away and now discontinued but I'll keep my eye out for a bargain, maybe Havana or Atomic...

[@jazzman5598]

Seiko SNA 411 is still the best sub $300.00 USD imho. It is my favorite flying watch. Great review!

[@michaelwebster8389]

I love my skyhawk, which is very similar. Great watch.

[@jimlittle5769]

Not my kind of watch, but glad for you that you got it and nice review.

[@thewatchidiot]

Thanks man and i'm glad you enjoyed the video! Yeah not usually my type of watch either but its been surprisingly good fun!

[@michaelsisk5938]

Great video! I saw the Pro Master Blue Angles version with the blue strap at a local store and I knew that I really wanted it. It arrives tomorrow. Question-I saw a video about a plastic film that can be applied to the watch crystal to protect it from scratches. Are they any good?

[@thewatchidiot]

The blue angels version is a pretty awesome watch for sure congrats on the new watch! I've seen crystal protectors before and I'm sure they're quite effective however for me I'm not much of a fan bc the clarity of the crystal will deteriorate as time passes and dust will collect on the edges as well. But I tend to baby my watches so I've never dealt with a scratched crystal before. So if you are perhaps planning on using your watch more intensely then it could be worth it. If not then I think your crystal will be ok as citizen's crystal is quite tough and you'll then be able to see that awesome dial perfectly!

[@daviddesrosiers1300]

I’ve had a navihawk and a couple Skyhawks, but as of right now I only have the nighthawk. It is the quintessential solar pilots watch. I do miss my JY8108-53E Skyhawk tho.

[@thewatchidiot]

Now that I've experienced the nighthawk i want to try out their other "hawks" lol they look really interesting and i want to check out their extra functions. But it does say a lot that of all the various versions of citizen pilots watches youve had, the nighthawk is the last one standing!

[@eslideit]

Love mine. Has so much going on but in a good way!

[@thewatchidiot]

Agreed! Its busy but they managed to have it all make sense when its on the wrist. Super legible on top of that!

[@konstantinosdaglaroglou9339]

I've had a nighthawk. Very solid watch, but its GMT hand legibility (and its legibility in general) was well below par. I do not get all this fuss about "true" and "office" GMTs. Is it really such a big deal for so many people? I've had both in the past and never has it been a real problem for me.

[@thewatchidiot]

Yeah compared to other gmts the 24 hr time is a bit harder to read but for me i just like the way it looks! For me i actually prefer the office gmt over the "true" gmt because i dont travel through different time zones very often but yeah a lot of folks really do disregard the office gmt because it doesnt have the local hour jumping hand. For me they are simply two different types of gmts

[@abdellah4878]

Where i can find it new ?

[@roycef6632]

i got this watch from dad great watch battery died put the new one in will be good for another 10 years

[@ericroadglide9985]

There's a lot of slop in the hour hand changing action. Feels cheap. But for the cheap price that's ok.

[@texasjourneyman207]

Did u sell the nighthawk yet

[@AnchelRaphael]

Hi. What about your tudor 925?

[@thewatchidiot]

Its still here (for now)! I'm actually going to be doing a video on it for this sunday so stay tuned!

[@willeam1986]

Going on a chance you still have this for sale, I sent an email to inquire!

[@MrWhiterunGuard]

If seen these go for as low as $130.

[@thewatchidiot]

I remember those days, i wish I bought mine at that time lol!

[@TXLorenzo]

New ones are now going for $300+

[@benldr]

I've had my eye on one for years and I just got an open box for $180 which is unheard of nowadays.

[@HolidayOutdoorServicesInchunt]

Hi ... hey if you still have that watch ... I'd like to buy it from you ..... you can hit me up anytime

[@HolidayOutdoorServicesInchunt]

Hello..... hit me up I wanna buy that thang

[@ultimaetsolder]

Jomashop had them recently for $225 usd