Massena LAB Release - a Uni-Compax reissue within days?

JwRosenthal

I'm not understanding who this is marketed towards at this price point. $3.5k gets you Longines heritage chrono, LNIB Tudor Heritage, both colors of Hamilton chrono's and a myriad of well respected vintage pieces. Bump up a couple grand and you're in JLC Heritage, Tag and Breitling Chrono territory.
If this were $1-1.5k, I can see that- but this just seems very ambitious for a micro-brand.

Diabolik

Nice watch. I can see it becoming a vintage ! It will drive the UG big eye price up.

Give it couple of years and you'll be able to pick 'em up at a quarter of the price, but in 50 years time, they will be worth 10 times what they are selling for. I wont even guess what a real UG big eye will be going for if there are any around!

Diabolik

Nice watch. I can see it becoming a vintage ! It will drive the UG big eye price up.

Give it couple of years and you'll be able to pick 'em up at a quarter of the price, but in 50 years time, they will be worth 10 times what they are selling for. I wont even guess what a real UG big eye will be going for if there are any around!

JwRosenthal

I appreciate your collectors enthusiasm but I don't think this is likely simply because it's not a UG- it's an "off-brand" homage.
Vintage subs are out of control, hence more modern subs or even the Tudor heritage line have come up with them- naturally, they are the same company. But I don't see Steinharts or Invictas that look like subs increasing at the same rate (if at all)- even in 100 years.
It's one thing to be a re-issue from a respected brand- you have the cache of the brand and it's own heritage to lend credibility to the reissue (even if the company has changed hands several times and doesn't resemble its former glory). But a micro-brand homage will have to be judged by its own merits over time- and not by the company or watch it is emulating. We have seen some discontinued or LE micro-brand models sky-rocket in price, but again- has to be based on the merits of the watch itself and the demand.
I have no doubt that this model may be appreciated down the road or even during its own time, but it's not a UG (despite the ambitious price tag) and won't be able to ride on its coattails.

Larry S

I suspect, based on knowing him a while, that he was kidding........😉

HeuerLoon

Meanwhile on Instagram, with the countdown continuing, it’s as if this thread never happened 😉

bgrisso

Baltic looks really nice for the price point. Although they might want QC to review the dials, check the running seconds register on this one, Image is straight off their website as of right now. yikes.

This might be a stupid question, but why does it say "Manuel" under the Bicompax? Is that french for manual? If so, doesn't really make sense, as it would be the only word in french on the entire watch front and back? unless I'm missing something.

Not to get too derailed, but my nephew was asking for inexpensive watch recommendations, and I thought Dan Henry also looked interesting, at around half price compared to Baltic. They are using mecaquartz mvmts, not mechanical, and I haven't studied either brand in depth, but I think it's cool there are interesting and more reasonably prices watches around.

WhereMadnessLies

I find that quite hard to believe when

1) The right sub dial is fine
2) The other coloured dial images don't have it (Although they don't look perfect).

Something must be up with either the dial or the hesalite.

Enzo

Counter is wrong on the website...new release is at 11:00 EST, 16:00 GMT, 17:00 CET.

I too would like to see what the white one looks like.