Some designs are definitely classic, especially when the original design that inspired other companies to produce their own interpretation. I am not talking companies that just do a blatant copy, I am talking companies that are truly inspired by a classic design and infuse their own DNA into that design while paying homage with respect to the original design. Homage watches do stir up debate within the watch community. My view on homages is that it gives people on a budget a chance to experience classic designs. Today I have the opportunity to experience of watch that pays homage to a classic design but infused with German DNA.

I have to admit something, I am a real sucker for that black and white color combo. Typically that combo is in the form of a black dial with white markers, but in this case, it is in the form of a white dial with black markers. At first glance of this dial I was impressed with how crisp the white dial looks. That crispy white dial makes the black accents hard to ignore and they make for the perfect complementary color. What I what M & S did with this dial is they took two classic designs and combined them into a simple and beautiful dial. The sandwich style dial combined with simple circular markers really works well together. Keeping the black printed text to a minimum helps keep the dial simple and crisp. I am happy with the choice of the sword style hands here as opposed to the overused “ Mercedes” style hands. The hands are bordered in gloss black with crisp white interior that is coated with lume. Even the lollipop style second hand received this same treatment. 

One thing that I would have done differently here is excluded the date window. Now the date window itself looks great, but in terms of keeping this dial more balanced it would look better with 4 applied markers. Now the other suggestion I have is to eliminate the redundancy on this watch. We all know that I don’t like the new trend of engraving/printed text on the rehaut, and at first I was ok with M&S choice of what was on the rehaut. It is definitely something different than the typical ‘helium escape valve’ gibberish. My only issue is that the same info is printed on the dial as well which would have gave the dial a more clean look. Don’t get me wrong this dial is a real beauty, but it could have been even more of a stunner. It’s definitely stunning in the dark in terms of lume as you can see in the pic below. 

There are quite a bit of details on the case of this watch that I really like and that really work in favor of overall execution/presence.  I will start with my favorite detail of this case and that would be the flat, glossy ceramic bezel. I like the generous width of the bezel which creates a very nice border for the white dial. The bezel functions perfectly, with nice tight precision. It’s a bit difficult to rotate with wet hands, but I rather have that tighter movement as opposed to extra play. The screw down crown is also a bit different to grip with wet hands as well. A bigger crown with different edges would solve that problem. I like how Marc & Sons designed the helium escape valve which matches the crown guards in how it’s incorporated into the side of the case. This adds a nice touch of detail to the non crown side of this case. 

Personally I am not a huge fan of metal bracelets on a watch. From a functional perspective they definitely hold their own. The bracelet on this piece is definitely made with quality and precision finishing. The magic with any watch is you can change it up to give a piece a whole new look. I like that the bracelet here has an easy to use micro adjustment to keep it comfortable when your wrist swells or shrinks with temperature variations. The solid case back is awesome. In my opinion a true dive watch needs a solid case back. There is something about an exhibition case back on a diver that just doesn’t make sense, it’s like a Ferrari with speedometer that only goes to 60mph. The screwdown case back on this piece features a beautiful raised engraved swordfish which in my opinion carries over the personality of this refined watch throughout all design aspects. It would be awesome to see this engraving carried over to the clasp on the bracelet.

I am quite impressed with this diver from Marc & Sons. It is a well made piece that has some features that are quite stunning. There are some areas for refinement to make this piece even more ideal for diving conditions. Considering the price and the quality these areas can certainly be overlooked, especially because they aren’t deal breakers in my opinion. Coming in at just over $600 USD, this piece definitely gives you a lot of watch for your dollar. An included rubber strap and nylon strap would sweeten this deal even more and I personally expect some extra straps at this price point. That being said, you are getting a quality watch, with a quality ETA movement that has precision finishing. This watch certainly held up during my review process, even when being knocked around by waves against rocks and in the sand. The 44mm brushed stainless steel case is proven tough in terms of material and in the 50 ATM capability.

If you are looking for a refinded diver that doesn’t break the bank and isn’t a soulless, uninspired exact copy of other well known divers, then this piece definitely deserves consideration. The dial and case completely complement each other nicely.

Thank you all for reading and as always your questions and comments are welcome below.

Thank you to Marco and the M&S team.

 

Case

• Stainless Steel 316 L, brushed
• Sapphire crystal, antireflective
• Bezel: black ceramic glossy with Swiss Superluminova BGW9
• Screwed stainless steel back with engraved logo
• Pressure tested up to 50 ATM

Movement

ETA 2824-2

•  Automatic
•  25 Jewels
•  28.800 A/h
•  Hacking: yes
•  Power Reserve: 40 hours

Functions

• Hour, minute, central second, date
• Screw down crown
• Helium valve

Dial & Hands

• Dial: white sandwich dial
• Superluminova BGW9 Luminous indexes
• Superluminova BGW9 Luminous hands
• Central second hand
• Date

Bracelet & Clasp

• Bracelet: stainless steel 22 mm to 20 mm, screwed
• Buckle : Folding clasp with fine adjustment / diver extension
• Fine adjustment by means of lateral pushers on the buckle
• Band length: 22 cm

Dimensions

• Case: 44,5 x 50 mm
• Diameter:  44,5 mm (include crown guard)
• Diameter bezel: 42,5 mm
• Height: 13,0 mm
• Width of bracelet 22 mm
• Total weight: 218g