The French company, Baltic, has been on a roll and I have been eyeing their offerings for some time. They have a keen design sense and based on the website photos, excellent finishing.
While borrowing from the past, this watch is contemporary at the same time, with an interesting micro rotor movement (Chinese) and a transparent case back to view it. The movement is fancily (if not crudely) finished with all kinds of textures.
The dial is the real star, with a textured base, polished, applied Breuget-style numerals, an offset sub-dial and no date. I chose the blue but the silver and salmon are also compelling.
At 36mm diameter, you might think it is too small, but it wears larger- and unfortunately, taller, then you would think.
The strap is first-rate Italian calf leather and is very soft and pliable. I was suspicious of the bracelets, as they were only $60 more, and I don't see how you make a nice bracelet in that price range.
Ordering online was painless, and the watch arrived with very detailed tracking from DHL in about 6 days.
Here's the bad stuff.
The proportions of the watch are odd in person. The bezel is "squared off" with no beveling or rounding off, like a thick washer that you'd use with a bolt. A watch this elegant needs smoother transitions. It's also a pretty chunky and wide bezel that kind of dominates when you look at it straight on. And the high polish on top makes it really stand out as the light reflects straight off it.
The watch also sits pretty high on your wrist, despite the thin micro rotor movement. The domed plastic crystal doesn't help, as its steep sides rise straight up from the bezel, adding height, instead of a graceful curved dome.
The price is another issue. At $600 US, it's no bargain considering you can buy that movement online for $65. $399 seems more in line.
Bottom line, I returned it.
