Marloe Watch Company Morar Beacon A Diver From Great Britain — Hands On Review

A young, indie brand from the depths of Perth, Scotland.

March 17, 2020

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I’m not the resident micro brand writer at Fratello, but every once in a while, a watch slips through the cracks and lands on my table. This is what happened with this one, the Marloe Watch Company Morar Beacon.

If you have not heard of the brand before, don’t worry. Marloe Watch Company is a very young company that hails from the UK. It started out as a Kickstarter brand but slowly and surely grew out of that group. Mind you, many watch brands that start their lives on a crowdfunding site fail to stay afloat. So kudos to Marloe Watch Company for weathering the early storms that come to all new brands. The brand has achieved early success thanks to its willingness to evolve and continuously expanding its collection.

Marloe Watch Company

Speaking of which, Marloe Watch Company offers timepieces in three collections (four if you consider its Special Editions a separate group). The Coniston family is replete with simple time-only pieces at a very affordable price. The company’s Haskell models are a bit pricier. They are still way under the €1k limit and are designed in Britain (some with a Swiss Made movement), but also time-only. In-between those collections we find the Marloe Watch Company Morar models, the topic of our review. These watches also have no complication, not even a date, which I personally like. What the first two model lines cannot bring to the table, the Morar line delivers — sporty and rugged tool watches with great features and a very competitive price.

Bead-blasted

The first thing that immediately catches the attention is the bead-blasted case with its thick bezel. The Marloe Watch Company collection consists of dive watches in steel or bronze cases. So, having a matte finish is useful. However, we don’t often see fully sandblasted housings on watches. It can add a very monolithic quality to the watch, making it appear larger on the wrist. It is particularly noticeable on the thick, 120-click unidirectional bezel. Its width optically shrinks the watch by constricting the dial. It’s also rather loud but who cares. It’s a tool watch.

The watch feels solid and well put-together.

To be honest, at first glance, it doesn’t look too promising. But that all changes the moment you hold the Morar in your hands. The watch feels solid and well put-together. Every feature that a diver should have, the Marloe Watch Company Morar possesses. It has a screw-down crown, lume in all the right places, a sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating and water resistance to 310 meters. As far as the dimensions go, we have a 40mm case that is about 12.9mm thick, and 48mm from lug-to-lug. The Morar is 102g on a strap.

Sea-bed dial

While the case is all business, the dial is a little more playful. The most obvious details of the Marloe Watch Company Morar’s face are the indexes. The drop-like shapes resemble seashells. They are surrounded by very thin white frames with blueish lume. Additionally, the 3-6-9-12 markers have a different shape from the rest of the hours. They are large and easy to read. Just like a dive watch dial should be. The dial’s base color is grained gray. This sand-like surface is a nod to the sea-bed. The contrast between the dark gray face and the bead-blasted case is great. My one criticism? I think I might have liked the 60-minute counter on the bezel to be lume-filled (at least painted) like the pip. The hands, meanwhile, are large and easy-to-read. The orange border of the minute hand is a great and useful tool watch detail. And the same is true of the lollipop seconds hand as well.

Miyota inside

The major factor in Marloe Watch Company Morar’s affordable price is its beating heart. Unlike the Haskell models, the Morar does not have a Swiss Made movement. It houses a Miyota 9039 — a trusty mechanical workhorse from Japan. We are talking about a self-winding caliber with 24 jewels, 28,800vph with hacking mechanism and 40 hours of power reserve. I’m sure most of you know this movement since many other brands trust in Miyota and use the 9039. Another thing we need to mention is the choice of straps. You can get the Marloe Watch Company Morar on a black silicon or a brown chestnut leather strap. If you fancy both there is an option to order the watch with the combo. I personally don’t go in for leather straps on dive watches. My watch came on the silicon. It is comfortable, soft, and, thankfully, not a fluff magnet like many others.

Morar

We talked about most of the Marloe Watch Company Morar’s features but not to the name. As I told you in the beginning, we have a British brand here. The name Marloe actually comes from the Buckinghamshire town of Marlow, from where Oliver (one of the founders) hails. Meanwhile, Morar is the name of a lake in Scotland (which is where Gordon, the other founder, comes from). Lake Morar is actually the deepest body of water in the UK at 310m. What’s the water-resistance of the Marloe Watch Company Morar, again? Hint — check out the bubble over 6 o’clock.

The brand has more to offer than creative naming. On the official site, you will find a Journal section, which I browsed with enjoyment. There are some really cool articles on there. The same goes for the YouTube channel. Oh, and Marloe Watch Company also has a print publication now, entitled MWCQ. I hope to be able to put my hands on one soon.

Pricing and more

I still owe you the most important feature of the watch; its price. If you’d like to get the Marloe Watch Company Morar on a silicon or leather strap the price is €530. For this, you can select your own number from the drop-down menu given that it’s available. Marloe Watch Company Morar timepieces have sequential numbering. They are not limited editions but it’s still a cool feature. Especially if you get the watch as a gift for someone. In case you fancy both the silicon and the leather straps there is a chance to get the watch with both. Then the price is €590.

…a great watch with a pleasingly fresh look.

I believe the watch has a fair price all things considered. It wears a bit smaller than 40mm, at least this was my feeling. Perhaps due to the thick bezel or the dark dial and strap. All in all, a great watch with a pleasingly fresh look. If you’d like to visit Marloe Watch Company’s site, please click here.