It is well known that Swiss watch brands form a kind of pyramid. At the top level is the elite - the one that belongs to the haute horlogerie, Haute Horlogerie. As a rule, this is mechanics (although in recent years there has been attention not only to quartz, but also to cutting-edge technologies). The prices here are…
A little lower are the brands that, with more or less reason, claim to join the “major league”. In this segment, the ratio of mechanics and quartz is already noticeably shifted in favor of the latter, and watch prices, of course, are more forgiving, although not always democratic.
At the base of the pyramid are brands that do not claim to be included in the “top”. However, don't take them lightly! Switzerland remains Switzerland, it is impossible to put the “Swiss Made” label on your products just like that, so the highest quality is guaranteed! While the prices are quite reasonable.
Today, with all our attention, we are considering watches from this category: the Mathey-Tissot brand, the Edmond Moon model.
A bit of a brand
The name today is indeed not too loud, and the history is quite respectable! The Mathey-Tissot brand was founded already in 1886, in the town of Le Pont de Martel, which now belongs to the municipality of Neuchâtel. The latter itself is well known in the watch world, and not far from Le Pont de Martel is one of the world capitals of haute horlogerie, the famous Le Locle.
It so happened historically that for quite a long time the main customers of Mathey-Tissot watches were the military, and Anglo-Saxons at that. The company “armed” British forces with its ticking products during the Anglo-Boer War of the early 20th century, supplied chronometers to the Americans and the British during the First and Second World Wars.
Today, the fundamental principles of Mathey-Tissot are truly Swiss quality and reasonable pricing. The watches are assembled exclusively by hand, the materials used are the best (316L steel, sapphire crystals, etc.), and the watches cost as much as they should cost. Plus - the invariable installation on the independence of the company: Mathey-Tissot is not included in any groups and corporations.
So, Edmond Moon model.
First impression
Well, there is nothing unexpected here: a nice branded box, the name of the brand and its logo both outside and inside, with a reminder: “Swiss Made since 1886”. As it should be - a pillow, a strap is wrapped around it, the blue color of which matches well with the soft beige of the box; on the strap, of course, the watch itself, in gold and blue tones. So far so good. Let's go further.
Case, strap
Since we are talking about this, let's start with this.
The body is perfectly round, made of 316L stainless steel. Recall: due to the increased proportion of molybdenum, this steel is particularly resistant to corrosion, high temperatures and aggressive environments. It is not for nothing that in English-language sources it is often called marine steel: Marine grade stainless.
Here, this steel is provided with a rose gold-coloured PVD coating. Very high quality coating. The lugs look elegant, the end of the fluted cone-shaped crown (absolutely convenient) is again equipped with the brand's logo, in the symmetrical 9 o'clock position on the case - the date "1886". In addition, on the side surface of the case there are recessed buttons in positions "4", "8.30" and "10.30". This is for customization, we will study a little later.
Finally, the case back: it is mirror polished and, again, has a logo, as well as markings certifying that the steel of the case is stainless, the crystal is sapphire, and the water resistance is 50 meters. We did not check the latter, we believed it anyway.
Case diameter 42 mm, thickness 11 mm (good - neither too thick nor too thin). Weighing on electronic scales showed 78 g. Comfortable on the arm.
As for the strap, it is, as mentioned above, blue, and made of leather with an alligator texture. The firmware is perfectly neat, and the butterfly clasp was especially pleased. Also, by the way, with a gold PVD coating. Let's add: upon delivery, a cute rectangular keychain with embossed threads is attached to the strap - you guessed it? - the brand logo, the date "1886", and even the name "Geneve". Well, then, Geneva, so much the better... And on the back of the key fob, already without frills, the reference model is printed. Well, that might be helpful too.
Mechanism, functionality, dial
The watch is powered by a high-quality Swiss quartz caliber Ronda 706.3. The mechanism is very common for watches with a full calendar, well-proven, reliable and quite accurate: the allowable error of the course lies within -10/+20 seconds per month. The error is too small for us to be able to test it on a specific sample. But we didn’t have to hear any complaints about the work of the Ronda 706.3, regardless of what clock this mechanism is in. Well, except that leaving the watch in extreme cold is not recommended ... The battery life is indicated as 10 years; Of course they didn't check...
The functionality, as already mentioned, includes three central hands (i.e. hours, minutes and seconds) and three small hands: the date at 3 o'clock, the day of the week at 9 and the month at 12. Plus moon phases at 6 o'clock.
So, the functionality is rich, but the dial is completely impressive. Noble blue color, exquisite radial-sectoral guilloche, gilded hands, and the second hand is counterweighted in the form of (guess again?) brand logo... Everything is up to the mark!
Installation-adjustment
With the setting of the current time, everything is clear: we push the crown one click, rotate it in the right direction - voila! It should be noted that the “stop second” option is available, which is very good.
The aforementioned buttons on the side of the case are used to set the calendar. They must be pressed, each press will change the reading by one day (if you set the date using the button at “4 o’clock” or set the day of the week using the button at “8.30”) or by one month (if you set the month using the button at “ 10.30").
Attention: the instructions categorically do not recommend operating these buttons from 22.00 to 5.30!
And we’ll note from ourselves: the buttons are recessed into the case, which is good for wearing a watch (nothing extra sticks out), but it causes some difficulties when setting up (I somehow don’t want to use a needle, a carnation with an awl, so be careful, a good toothpick ...)
As for setting the moon phases, for it you need to pull out the crown by two clicks. Then everything is quite simple: the best thing is to first set the calendar on the date of some full moon, then set the phase of the moon to the full moon, and then finally correct the calendar.
A very worthy watch: truly Swiss in every respect, truly masculine, and at the same time - elegant, made not only of high quality, but also with taste. Suitable for every day and "going out".
