Marloe Watch Company Launch Solent Timer with New Dual Crown Design

I don’t think it’s possible to say the words “British Watchmaking” without immediately following up with “is known for its bright and colourful style and personality”. At this point I must sound like a broken record but it can’t be helped when British brands like the Marloe Watch Company keep releasing cool watches with vibrant colours. In particular I’m talking about the brand new Marloe Solent Timer, the latest version of their popular Solent wristwatch.

The Solent Timer is inspired by Alec Rose, a sailor who single-handedly raced across the Atlantic in 1964 prior to circumnavigating the globe. Hence the watch’s nautical leanings with 42mm diameter steel case, 100m water resistance and colourways inspired by the world’s oceans. Where the Solent Timer differs from the original Solent in that it has a dual crown construction which enables you to rotate the internal chapter ring. It also has an improved screw-down crown and updated dial.

When we’re talking about colourful expression, the eye is immediately drawn to the Marloe Solent Timer’s chapter ring, which is where all the brightest colours are presented. Another way to describe a chapter ring like this is an internal bezel, functioning the same as a typical bezel except that you can’t accidentally knock it out of position since you need to use the crown to set and lock their position. That’s why you most often see them used on watches designed for use in or around water, as you really, really, really don’t want a dive time scale to be adjusted unintentionally.

On the Cardinal model – named after the official name for a type of British buoy found on the coast – the chapter ring is bright yellow. That’s been paired with a black dial for a vivid contrast. Black and yellow also happen to be the colours of those Cardinal buoys, enhancing the nautical theme of the piece.

The second colourway is the Rescue model, which embraces the signature colour of aquatic safety and emergency equipment: orange. I’ve made no secret of the fact that orange is my favourite colour so this is easily my favourite of the designs. The combination of the orange chapter ring, dial accents and strap with the white dial is incredibly striking. If you look closely at the dial you’ll see that it’s not actually a uniform colour, as it’s instead made up of alternating stripes of bright white and cream, giving it a cool pattern that looks almost textural.

Third is the Oceanic model, which focusses heavily on the blue of the seas. The blue dial has the same diagonal stripe pattern as the Rescue as well as a blue chapter ring, blue strap and blue rings around the hour markers, all in subtly different shades that makes it look like light is reflecting through the waves. In my opinion, it’s also the model that highlights the inner steel ring between the dial and rotating chapter ring the most.

While the three models above are the standard collection, there is a fourth special edition, simply called the Black Edition. As its name suggest it has a completely black design punctuated by the lumed hour markers and high contrast white seconds hand. The golden yellow lettering on the dial gives it a cool, prestige look. The Solent Timer Black Edition falls into Marloe’s tradition of producing a Black Edition for each of their models, creating a sub-range of special edition watches that spans every collection.

Beneath the surface of the Solent Timer, Marloe have opted to keep the Miyota 9039 from the original Solent watch, since it proved popular among collectors. It’s automatic with a 40-hour power reserve and a frequency of 28,800 vph, plus an accuracy of -10/+30 seconds per day. It’s what we describe as a work horse movement, nothing too fancy but reliable and easy to maintain. Which is what you want from a relatively sporty watch like this.

I really like the Solent Timer, especially at a price of just £399. It’s accessible, fun and colourful while building on what made the original version of the watch so popular with the nautical theming. Plus, the addition of the rotating chapter ring and second crown make it completely distinct in Marloe’s range so it stands out really well.

Overall, I really love the look of this watch, however I expect the Omega faithful, like myself, would have liked it in 44mm or under. That, and for it to not cost £21,000. Innovation does however come at a price.

More details at Marloe Watch Company.

​Oracle Time 

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