I’m not even sure how it started. All of a sudden, in the end of 2009 I found myself paying a lot of attention to Marvin. It’s my job to keep up with everything about watches and tennis, but unconsciously we all pay more attention to what we fancy and – through an innovative internet presence – Marvin came to my Facebook, showed up in a few blogs I read, and made me like what I was seeing. So much that, after a first contact at the Geneva Time Exhibition in January 2010, I insisted that a friend of mine who owns a distribution company in Portugal should pay the Marvin booth a visit during the Baselworld 2010. My hunch was right. It was love at first sight, and Marvin is now a great addition to Chronoswiss in his portfolio.

Last weekend, he visited me and had with him a nice chunk of the Marvin collection – He then challenged me to do a test drive with the watch of my choice. I actually had seen every Marvin model before, but could finally spend some more time with a few of them and make a proper analysis. I was particularly drawn to the Malton 160 Cushion line, not only because I immediately liked the sketches Jean-François Ruchonnet had shown me last year in Basel, but also because I’m a big fan of cushion cases. So, in spite of other available choices like the new Sebastien Loeb chronograph or the round Malton 160 series, I decided to pick one one the cushion models.

Chronograph Appeal
But which one? I am a chronograph guy. Chronographs help me detect, for example, if Rafael Nadal goes over the time limit between points when I’m commenting his matches for Eurosport.  Additionally, I like the tricompax or bicompax disposition on a dial – it doesn’t mean I like busy dials, but I sort of grew up not used to a dial inhabited by three mere hands. In spite of that, the model I thought I’d choose was the automatic 3-hands limited edition M120 13.49.64, with a nice retro-modern look and the black-orange colour combination I love so much in my TAG Heuer Autavia re-edition. I had it on my hand and on my wrist, but ended up picking up the M118 automatic chronograph… I guess the chrono appeal was stronger – that and the volume and weight: I do like to feel a watch on my wrist.

I don’t have big wrists at all, but the M118 (even if it has a contemporary size that can be considered big) fits perfectly. Actually, cushion cases, even when oversized, can fit in most wrists because they usually have small lugs – the size of the lugs is the secret for wearability, though it seems that a lot of brands do not get that. Anyway, the M118 felt good immediately and the more I wear it, the more I like it. Plus, at around 1.600 euros (ten times less than a few other chronos I have!) it has got to have one of the very best price/quality/design ratios around!

Initially, I had a beef against the red touches on the dial and the excessive second scale on the two outer rings of the dial; after two days, I am beginning to like it better. Then again, I would prefer a tachymeter scale in the fringe of the dial and could do without the red chrono hands: I’m not a ‘racing red’ fan…I always criticized the obsessive use of the red or yellow by the Swiss watch companies on their sportier models and would prefer blue or silver instead. But then again, red is part of Marvin’s corporate color scheme.

Case Study
With the M118, Marvin has a watch with strong charisma and a great base for other versions – for instance, besides the sole existing version with black dial, there was a very attractive white dial on a few prototypes. Unfortunately, that color didn’t (yet) make it to the collection! The M118 has such a great design that it could (or should!) also have a more sophisticated and dressy version (just black and silver tones on the dial, or black and charcoal) to complement the sportier black/red dial.
I already mentioned that I’d use a tachymeter scale on one of the flange rings and, personally, even though I prefer a 9-6-3 tricompax presentation on a chrono dial rather than the inevitable 12-9-6 disposition of the Valjoux 7750 powered timepieces, the aesthetic balance with the day and date windows between the Marvin logo on top and the ‘Automatic Chronograph’ inscription below is spot on. The applied polished hour markers look great as well. On the other side, I’d like the big chrono hand to be less thin and the luminous painting on the hands and indexes is not very effective.

The steel case architecture is quite interesting and enhanced by the polished and satin finishing of the surface. It features the Marvin crest on one side and the crown and pushers on the other. I like the chrono pushers format a lot, and the crown design is adequate for the case, but it needs to be reshaped in order to provide a better grip – it’s not easy to pull it off to the time and day/date adjusting positions. The case back has four screws and a see-through mineral glass (not as good as the sapphire glass over the dial, of course) shows the beast inside: the not so pretty but highly efficient Valjoux 7750 calibre, the most proven mechanical auto-winding chronograph movement ever built!

Strap Importance
My beef against the red details of the M118 also has to do with the red stitching of the smooth calf strap. Some will appreciate it, but I would prefer black stitching – a detail that can be promptly solved, not only because Marvin has the same strap with black stitching available but especially because in every single Marvin strap there is a pin on the inside that can be pushed to easily remove the strap without the use of any tool. That push-pin click on/click off is a big small detail. Several high-end brands use the same system on their straps, but Marvin is the only one in this price range.

There’s also a metal bracelet on offer for this particular model, even though I’m not particularly fond of metal bracelets on non-round cases. But it would be interesting if Marvin provided more than one strap, so the owner could change the look of the watch whenever he wanted.

Anyway, changing details here (on the dial) and adding a few things there (a deployant clasp for the strap instead of the buckle) would probably make the M118 a bit less affordable. And that’s one of its best assets: a highly reasonable price for a great watch from a brand that still is sort of niche (hence exclusive). You can’t get much better than that!

So, if you don’t have a M118 (yet), enjoy the pictures I took on a sunny winter day – walking along the Lisbon-Estoril-Cascais coastline.

Miguel Seabra