Marcello Tridente Chronograph

INTRODUCTION

For the past 15 years Matt van Doorn, an electrical engineer with an MBA, has been working as a Product Manager for companies that produce equipment for the Telecommunications industry. Active in industry standards bodies, keynote speaker for industry events and even a holder of a US patent, only few people know his real passion, a passion that has little to do with today’s world dominated by high tech electronics; mechanical wristwatches.

Van Doorn had been collecting vintage and contemporary wristwatches for a number of years, as a hobby he even took watch-making courses. They provided him great counterbalance for the sometimes-hectic life juggling development and production schedules, quality processes and delivery dates.

Sometime in the spring of 2002, van Doorn was reading an ad for the Marcello C. “Tridente” in a watch magazine. The photo did not show much of the watch, but its rugged and classic looks did intrigue him and that is what lead him to try and gather as much information as possible on the brand and in particular the Tridente. Unfortunately there was not much available on the brand, nor could he find a source in the U.S. Later that same year, during a business trip to Germany he happened to stumble onto a retailer who carried the much sot after “Tridente”. So amazed by the apparent quality of this solid timepiece he purchased it on the spot.

So excited with his newest acquisition, once back home in Minnesota, he contacted the owner of Marcello C. and made a few suggestions on importing the watches to the US and how to maintain their value for American collectors. When they finally got the opportunity to meet in person in a Hotel bar in Duesseldorf, Germany, von Doorn got the once in a lifetime chance and dream of many watch aficionado to get a foot into the door of the watch industry. To become the official North-American distributor for Marcello C. watches.

For a little under two years, van Doorn has been importing and selling Marcello C. watches in the US and Canada. Without a large and fancy office and with the help of his wonderful wife Andrea, he is living a dream and enjoying every moment of it. “Every time a customer writes or calls to tell us how amazed and pleased they are, I know I made the right decision.” Expresses van Doorn.

And there are definite parallels between van Doorn’s first steps and the history of the Marcello C. brand.

Founded in 1993 in Wuerselen, Germany, Marcell and his lovely wife Uschi started their company to realize a dream of their own brand of high quality, affordable timepieces. And they have come a long way from assembling watches in their own apartment with the shipping department in the bathroom. It is no secret that in the past, a lot of their watches were private label products made in cooperation with other small watch brands. However, since the “Tridente” and the introduction of the award winning “Nettuno 2”, things have definitely changed and the current catalogue shows mostly the result of Marcell’s own design and their own production. Marcello C. is even adding space to their facility and will add 10 new watchmakers to the staff. No wonder, as the word about the great quality of their watches is spreading fast and these days, a lot of consumers are looking for value and affordable watches.

The test subject for this review is the all-new Tridente Chronograph. A 500m dive watch, which should be able to please even the strictest of dive watch collectors. Dubbed the Mother of all dive chronographs on the Ultimate Dive Watch Forum, let us see how it fairs.
 

HEAVY METAL

Make no mistake; this is a HUGE watch, measuring 44.2mm in diameter, 16.8mm thick and 52mm from lug to lug. A decade ago those numbers would have scarred the pants off of any collector, but today, they are almost average. Some might look at it and say it is too thick, but I believe there is an optical illusion at play here. Due to the large bezel, the dial appears to be smaller and that in turn makes the overall watch look really thick. In reality, 16.8mm is not too thick. The Sinn 203st, Omega Seamaster Professional Chronograph and Breitling Avenger Chronograph are all dive chronographs and are in reality thicker. All of this fades away once it is placed onto your wrist. The thick bracelet and curvaceous case back help disperse its opulent girth.

The top surface of the case is made of brushed stainless steel, while the sides and rear are polished. The screw-down case back however is brushed and is embellished with an embossed Tridente (3 teeth) fork. All of the pertinent information is laser etched along the case back’s edge. Water-resistant to 500m, this is another that can be included to the extremely short list of dive chronographs, whose pushers can be activated while submerged.

The pushers themselves are rectangular in shape and their surfaces are knurled for ease of operation. Instead of using regular rounded and smooth pushers, the designers at Marcello C. wanted them to be as user friendly as possible. Mission accomplished in my book. The oversized crown is of the screw-down variety with double o-rings and inner threading. It is partially engulfed by the crown guards, which contour it, yet well enough is left uncovered for ease of operation.
 

DEEP BLACK

The unidirectional bezel on a dive watch is responsible for measuring the total elapsed time when diving. Seeing as how this information is crucial, one can understand the reasoning behind its oversized design. My only complaint is that it is a tad slippery when wet, but I have seen much worse. In its defence, its thickness does help and gloved users, if careful should not have too much difficulty.

The flat sapphire crystal is coated prevent reflections and sits perfectly flush with the bezel. The dial is deep black, almost obsidian like. It just sucks you in. The latter combined with the applied steel markers; make this diver’s tool equally handsome at 20 fathoms as it is in the board room. One only has to tilt the watch at the proper angle and the sunlight will reflect off the markers and hands, a look I simply adore. It also adds to the depth of the dial, a real 3 dimensional effect.

The skeleton hands are perfect for a chronograph, not completely hiding the sub dials, while at the same time offering maximum legibility. It is a real shame Omega has decided to discard this design feature in exchange for the newer sword hands. Kudos to Marcello C. for seeing the benefits and putting them to good use. I have also noticed that the hands are not flat, but are slightly bent down the middle. Adding to the 3 dimensional effect I spoke of above, but more than this, it is stunning. Definitely not a detail I was expecting on a sports watch.

The sub dials are configured in the usual Valjoux 7750 manner, constant seconds at 9, minute counter at 6 and hour counter at 12 o’clock. As much as I find stainless steel hands appealing, the fact that the sub dial hands do not have any coating or are not painted can make them difficult to read at a glance. That being said, a simple twist of the wrist and bang there they are! The markers, hands and 12 o’clock bezel marker are all coated with Super Luminova, which glows brightly for 5-6 hours on a minimal charge. The date display is at 3 o’clock and is black writing on a white background. As usual, I would have preferred white writing on a black background, but it is somewhat acceptable.
 

TRIED AND TESTED

This is yet another example of the ever-popular Valjoux/ETA 7750 in yet another sports chronograph. Is there really any wonder why this movement is so widely utilized? I mean can you name a more robust, accurate, reliable, easily serviceable and affordable chronograph movement? Neither can I…

The Valjoux/ETA 7750 houses 25 jewels, beats at a rate of 28.000 alternations per hour and has a power reserve of 44 hours. It measures 30mm in diameter and is 7.9mm thick. It also utilizes an Incablock shock protection system to help cope with everyday life’s bumps and knocks. While not ornately decorated, with only simple Geneva stripes on the rotor, what it lacks in visual stimuli it makes up for in performance. Our test subject ran at a consistent +2 seconds per day. A respectable rate indeed, something that we have come to expect from this caliber, yet should not be taken for granted.
 

COLD HARD STEEL

This has got to be one of the most impressive bracelets on the market! While not as sophisticated as the Blancpain X-71 or IWC Flieger bracelets, its hefty and solid construction will give most a run for their money. Measuring 22mm at the lugs and tapering down to 20mm at the clasp, its thickness is what really makes it a winner in my book. It is a whopping 4mm thick all the way around. For a watch this size, a matching mammoth bracelet is in order and in this respect Marcello C. delivers.

The end pieces that connect to the watch are solid and moulded to fit perfectly with the lugs. The links are adjustable via screws and not pressure pins and collars, a nice touch that allows even the novice the opportunity to size their own watch. Another great detail is the fact that Marcello C. actually offers a diver’s extension as an option. Not all dive watch wearers are actual divers, myself included, and even then, how often do you really need the extension? Having it as an option is a brilliant idea. I may be mistaken, but I think they are the only ones that offer this.

Why am I making such a big deal about the extension? Well, if you are like me, you hate it when you hear annoying rattling sounds emanating from your watch every time you twist your wrist. 9 out of 10 times, on dive watches, this sound comes from the folded diver’s extension, which is tucked underneath the clasp. It is almost like driving a new car and all of a sudden you hear something loose vibrating. Drives me nuts! On my Breitling SuperOcean I managed to sidestep the extension by passing the pushpin directly through the center of one of the links. I did the same on my Fortis B-42. When you twist your wrist while wearing the Tridente Chronograph, sans diver’s extension, all you hear is the sweat sound of solid steel. Oh and possibly the faint sound of the rotor spinning…

The clasp is likewise engraved with the Marcello C. logo and is thick, definitely not made of stamped steel. While I would have preferred seeing a more sophisticated push-button clasp like the on the Tag Heuer Aquagraph or the Omega Seamaster Professional, one cannot fault the original flip lock design. It is efficient, simple and extremely sturdy.
 

SINK OR SWIM?

The original award winning Nettuno II from Marcello C. changed the face of value among sports watches. Then came the 1000m Tridente diver’s watch and its cousin the GMT, which equally represent tremendous value in oversized, classically styled dive watches under $1,000. Enter the Tridente Chronograph, while not necessarily inexpensive at just under $2,000, yet when you consider all that is offered, it is still a bargain. Having said this, it is not for everyone; its colossal proportions could easily overwhelm most, but once you get used to them, one thing is for sure, you will have a great deal of difficulty going back to “normal” sized watches. She is definitely a swimmer for me!

The Tridente Chronograph is also available in a silver dial and bezel, as well as a blue dial and bezel combinations. For more information on Marcello C. watches you can visit their website at www.marcelloc-watches.com or you can contact Matt van Doorn directly at info@marcelloc-watches.com.
 

Thank you for reading,

Marc