[Guybrush]

Rather than create a new thread, I thought I’d just tag onto yours with my own thoughts about this watch, which I recently purchased (in black—reverse panda). Sorry for the bad pic—negotiating file size limits from my phone.

In short, I’m loving it. On my 6.75” wrist it’s a perfect fit. Extremely comfortable and just the right size. (I’ve decided 38/39 is my sweet spot, and this one wears nice and thin too.) It has a vintage vibe, but it doesn’t feel gimmicky or like an homage piece. It’s a legit watch in its own right.

This was bought to be an inexpensive piece (about $500; inexpensive is relative, I know) that I could wear in many circumstances—sort of bridging casual and almost-formal. The bracelet it came on is nice—people rave about it—but I’m not a bracelet person, so that’s off and stored in the leather pouch that came with the watch. It looks perfect on leather. Right now it’s on a matte black strap; a brown one is en route. (I’m inspired, I guess, by the First Omega in Space, but those are a different price point—and if I were going to drop $5k on a watch right now, that wouldn’t be it.)

I’ll admit I’m superficially drawn to the fact that it’s a micro brand, and not a piece I’ll likely ever see on someone else’s wrist, at least not where I live. That didn’t influence my decision to buy it very much, but it’s a plus for me.

It feels and looks like a quality piece. Especially on the bracelet, it has a satisfying heft, and the finishing of the case is convincing. The “explorer” lugs are wonderfully executed, and I just love lug holes, both for practical and aesthetic reasons. (Removing the bracelet couldn’t have been easier, and the lugs remain unscratched.)

The domed acrylic crystal is the one thing where maybe it could be entering gimmick territory, but I like it. It reminds me of vintage Omegas I’ve owned, in a good way. Some have complained about the lack of a see-thru caseback, which for a manual wind chrono with a low depth rating would have indeed been nice, but it doesn’t bother me. It’s a mass-produced Chinese movement in there; very functional, but it’s not something I’d be inclined to drool over.

The chrono function is, well, perfectly functional so far. The stop/start has a harder touch than some I’ve operated, but it works well, and the reset is instantaneous and smooth. Winding is smooth too; setting has a bit of uneven tension, but nothing that worries me. Timekeeping is within a couple seconds per day.

The OP mentioned that it’s a noisy movement. This is true: I can hear it ticking from about 4” from my ear. But that doesn’t bother me.

I also agree that the coin edge bezel isn’t as easy to grasp and turn as what you find on a Sub or Seamaster, and there is a very tiny amount of play on the bezel, but this is a fit & finish issue that, to me, suits the price point of the watch. Everything lines up perfectly, and from a practical standpoint, it all works just fine.

The lume is a pretty blue color and glows brightly after a good charge. The chrono features are not lumed, so in a dark room this becomes an hour/minute watch only (with the lumed bezel pip allowing for a few options too, I suppose.)

To me this watch is all about the contours of the case—well proportioned, slender but still very masculine—with long tapering lugs—and about the glossy, legible, and (to my eyes) exceedingly attractive dial. I wish the hour markers were a bit shorter—I don’t love how 2&4 and 8&10 nearly touch the subdials—but on the whole I like the dial more than any chronograph I’ve seen with maybe one or two exceptions. It’s a very happy marriage of form and function, and opting for a gmt-style bezel (bidirectional!) rather than a tachymeter (which I, like most of us, would have zero use for) reinforces that.

For $500, this a A LOT of watch! If Lorier made their own movements, I suspect it would command quite a bit more attention. As it is, a very well appointed and portioned watch for those occasions when something more expensive might be inappropriate or risky.