![[BALTIC MR01] Downsides to the included movement](https://alien.top/pictrs/image/7da82033-9a0f-4747-b70c-09139209eec5.webp){kind=link}
I’m relatively new to the watch game and I’m picking out my next watch. I came across the Baltic MR01 and I think the dial of this watch is absolutely gorgeous and I think the movement looks really cool also.
The thing is, I couldn’t help but think why other major brands don’t use movements like this until a much higher price point. Why do other automatic movements in this price range look rather bland in comparison? The other watches I could find with a beautiful movement like this were 2 - 3 times the price. (I’m thinking of the nomos club ref #: 703.1 and Hamilton aviation pilot pioneer ref #: H76719530
TLDR: what’s the catch with this watch?
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I will say the MR01 comes up for sale very often on eBay in the last year or two, like a few new listings every day.
It’s pretty unusual in my experience for a micro-brand to have so many second-hand offerings in the wild.
It pops up for sale more often than any other Baltic, including the Aquascaphes, which have been around for forever.
Could be a red flag that buyers are satisfied
To add to the other comments, that movement isn’t really decorated well under any level of scrutiny. Chemically dyed blue screws, sloppy machined perlage, machined beveling etc. You get what you pay for.
I have experience with the MR01, bought it earlier this year, ended up returning it.
On the bright side, customer service was excellent, very clear and timely communication, definitely trying to help at every chance they get. The return also went very smoothly. Regarding the watch, the dial was mesmerizing, the case finishing was great, and the leather strap was very comfy and felt high quality.
The negatives (which obviously are quite subjective): the noise of the rotor was too much for me. I read about it before and thought I could manage, but I couldn’t. The bezel was a bit too thick for my liking, sort of messed with the formal look of the watch. Finally, 20mm lugs for a 36mm watch looked a bit disproportionate.
That bezel thickness kills me as well. Sooo close to being better proportioned.
Not about the movement, but you should know this watch doesn’t have a sapphire crystal; it has acrylic.
That means it will scratch very easily.
It’s a Chinese movement, and I’m not nearly at a point where I’m willing to pay even as much as this Baltic costs for a watch with a Chinese movement, micro-rotor or no.
These use a $70 chinese movement you can get on Alibaba…not that it’s necessarily bad, but you get what you pay for. Like most micro-brands, Baltic pretty much designs dials and pops them in 3rd party cases with ok-ish movements. Still a good value for the price.
https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/In-stock-of-Chinese-Hangzhou-5000A_1600478419946.html
These use a $70 chinese movement you can get on Alibaba…not that it’s necessarily bad, but you get what you pay for. Like most micro-brands, Baltic pretty much designs dials and pops them in 3rd party cases with poopy movements.
https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/In-stock-of-Chinese-Hangzhou-5000A_1600478419946.html
Can anyone share what it is like to purchase direct from Baltic to the US? Are the taxes, fees, shipping, customs stuff complicated?
Bought an HM002 from them. No taxes, shipped and received within a week. Shipping is free above (I think?) $80 which all their watches are over so you’ll def get free shipping.
I bought this watch and there were no extra taxes or shipping that I can recall. Only thing I’d mention is that it took about 5 months from order to wrist. I’ve owned it for about a year and it’s great. I don’t find the rotor to be noisy as others have mentioned, but maybe that’s just because I have other watches with much louder rotors, so I’m just comparing. Best dress watch for this price point imo
I can’t specifically say for Baltic but you should not have any customs or tax issues unless the value is over $800 us(check that could be $600)Then you will either get pinged by the shipper to pay before they deliver or you will get something from the state you live in to pay taxes maybe a week or months later. I have ordered from other places in their region and that’s what happened to me.
I have one and enjoy it, but as others have said, movement is loud, feels really grindy when setting time, and the hesalite-ish material scratches quite easily but is also easy to fix.
All in all, it’s a great looking watch for the price. YMMV but it’s one of my favorite casual watches
Looks great. Feels kinda cheap. Is kinda cheap. I love mine.
mine looks great but rotor is loud and the watch runs 12 minutes slow/day.
So a lot of fearmongering and brouhaha in this thread among some actually useful advice but in the small chance you read this: Baltics CS is pretty good and with a 2 year warranty, any initial QC issue should show up early and be well within its warranty period. They pay for shipping and any fixes. Also idk why people are lying and saying normal watchmakers won’t know how to fix it: it’s a simple automatic movement that happens to have a micro rotor. Any watchmaker who can’t service it should be avoided for all services.
And finally, I can’t speak to its long term durability with certainty but other micro brand watches have been using this movement for a few years now and I’ve seen very little complaint about it. This is in contrast to some other new movements such as the ETA clones form STP and LJP that have had well publicized teething issues from limited use by microbrands.
I love my mr01, but the movement is awful. Nasty, gritty grinding feel when I set the time with the hands jumping instead of moving smoothly.
Definitely wouldn’t have bought if I’d known. It just feels like it’ll break really soon.
