A high note for a perfect everyday watch - The Manston Ovlo

There are watches that can be worn on a special occasion, hour and minute only ( no seconds) is the norm when it comes to high etiquette but then we have complications and tool watches which can be worn for any specific task, the Breitling Emergency comes to mind, but it is really hard to design a watch that can be worn in almost any situation, not too loud but not too dull, sounds simple but there are many companies out there with big R&D budgets that get this wrong, very wrong. Of course, the Rolex Explorer comes to mind when we are talking about an everyday piece, but what if you want something a big bolder? Less common and of course more attainable? Well, I believe that the Manston from Ovlo can give you that, it a time and date piece that could easily be a mix of Nomos and Panerai, not bad eh? The Manston of course has its own design language and features that really made me had a good time with it. Please join me to find out more about this beauty.

Specifications

The Manston is large and it’s not trying to be small with a lug to lug of 52mm, I like that attitude, and it’s a good thing that it comes on a 45mm size as the black dial looks outstanding, the black is so deep that I could swear that it looks enameled. There is a date window at 3 which matches the dial color and a pair of white hands creating legibility from every angle with a similar texture from the ones found at the Speedmaster Moonwatch, they have this texture that avoids any reflection. As mentioned, the dial is free of clutter, only the Logo at twelve and the name at six (plus ‘Automatic’) which is highly appreciated, you could think that is simple but to restrain on adding the meters, movement name or any other unnecessary information is very uncommon these days.

The case is one of the best parts of the watch, it’s is brushed on the sides with a polished surfaces creating a very well balanced contrast, the Manston is also thin measuring 10.5mm thanks to the Miyota 9015 movement that can be seen from the back, I’ve really enjoyed watching this version of the beating heart as it has a bit of counter balance on the oscillating weight that is not only functional but looks very sharp.

On the wrist

The Manston works well on my 6.25-inch wrist, it holds firm with that aviation style strap, it’s a handsome piece with lots of legibility and you start to enjoy the details when you wear it day by day. The Manston really looks good at night, it’s elegant but I’ve also wore it for a day out on the woods and it doesn’t disappoint, its solid as a tank but also refined high speed train. As I mentioned in the beginning of the article, to create an everyday piece is not easy but for us watch aficionados it is even harder to stay with one watch per week, I’ve stayed with the watch for more than 5 days and I can tell you I am not close of getting tired of it, in fact the watch has this capability of being a strap monster, you can wear he Maston on a nato strap (thanks to its thinness) and also throw it on a mesh bracelet, it would always look good.

Conclusions

A black dial watches it’s always a winner in my books but of course not to everyone so it does comes in a variation of colors and straps, there is a beige one that really made my head turn but the blue and white are always classics, they all look great, sure I am a sucker for matching date wheels and the blue and beige currently don’t do this but you have the options of the other variants. I also want to mention that the watches received was

a prototype but under the macro shows no flaws which makes me wonder how good the final version will be.

Feel free to reach out the brand directly and make sure to grab one of these while they are at launch, it’s a unique watch that won’t be mistaken by any other, and is not that what we watch nerds want?

For more information please check www.ovlowatches.com

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