Laco Atlantik MB Review

Manufacturer: Laco | Price: €980 EUR (€930 on Rubber) $1,100 USD, £880 GBP approx))

Introducing the Laco Atlantik MB Sports Watch. Given the history of Laco aviator and maritime watches, it was only a matter of time before Laco developed a sports watch, or as Laco call it, a squad watch. This entailed Laco meeting high standards especially for outdoor use. When all is said and done, the characteristics of quality, robustness, and clear design have always been the main focus of a Laco watch. In close cooperation with fire departments, the police, and the army it resulted in an uncompromising mechanical watch made in Germany. With a sports watch Laco offer a robust solution for daily use in the harshest of conditions, combined with a simple yet unique design. The names of the four models are Himalaya, Amazonas, Atlantik and Mojave.

Specifications

Dimensions: Case Diameter – 42.2mm, Thickness – 13.2mm, Lug to Lug – 50.4mm, Lug Width – 20mm
Movement: ETA 2824-2 Elaboré Automatic, 28,800vph, 25 Jewels, Hackable, Self Winding, 38hr Power Reserve
Case Material: Fully Brushed 316L Stainless Steel
Weight: 162g on Bracelet (Sized) Extras: Black Presentation Watch Box, Free Engraving
Bracelet: Fully Brushed 316L Stainless Steel, Solid End-Links, Milled & Signed Clasp
Crystal: Double Domed Sapphire, AR Coating
Bezel: 60 Click Unidirectional, Ceramic
Water Resistance: 30ATM / 300m / 990ft
Lume: Swiss Super Luminova® C3
Crown: Signed, Screw Down Caseback: Screw Down Stainless Steel, Deeply Stamped Scorpion Logo
Warranty: 2 Years Where to Buy: Laco
Options: Colour Accents: Blue, Green, Orange | Movement: ETA 2824-2 Elaboré / ETA 2824-2 Top Grade (+€130) Straps: Fully Brushed Stainless Steel Bracelet / Colour Matched Rubber NATO / Black Rubber (-€50 on Rubber)

Laco - The Company

From 1925 to Present Day - Timepieces with a Distinct Character

Authentic, passionate, precise – Laco stand for watches of the highest quality. Their claim to quality processed products with optimal functionality and timely design has always existed. This is shown by a look at their turbulent company history. They stick to their traditions although at the same time they look ahead with creating innovations that meet the current spirit of the age. With Laco there is no standstill, they stand for continuous development.

Laco can look back with pride on nearly 100 years of dynamic company history, they are still driven by the ambition that the founders of Lacher & Co. displayed many years ago; to produce watches that stand out for their quality and reliability. For this reason, Laco still rely on precise craftsmanship rather than on the industry for all the categories of their watches – from the originals to their elegant classic models.

As a link between the technology hub of Karlsruhe and the metropolitan area of Stuttgart, Pforzheim plays an important role. Just like the whole region, the city stands for high-quality products. The success of these products relies on innovative strength. Laco also strive to be forward-thinking and combine history with innovative ‘Made in Germany’ technology in all of their watches.

The Case

The case of the Atlantik has a diameter of 42.2mm. The lug to lug is 50.4mm and the overall thickness, including the double domed sapphire crystal I measured at 13.2mm. The entire case, bezel, caseback, crown and bracelet are all brushed 316L stainless steel. The Atlantik also has a water resistance rating of 300m / 30 ATM, thanks to the screw-down caseback & crown.

The finish of the case is entirely brushed and very nicely it’s been done too. The proportions are, in my opinion, a little bit large but still wears nicely, even on my 7″ wrist. Although it’s 42mm, I’d say it wears much more like a 43 or 44mm watch due to the overall lug to lug length of 50.4mm. This surprisingly, isn’t a negative of the watch, it just gives the watch great wrist presence. The entire watch is built like a tank, and you can feel that German engineering on wrist. Oh yeah, the caseback! What a caseback… it has a deeply (and I mean deeply) stamped scorpion on there and the attention to detail is outstanding!

Bracelet

The bracelet of the Atlantik is extremely well made and has all the features that you could possibly want; solid end links, push pin links for resizing and a signed milled clasp. The links are entirely brushed and match the case perfectly. The milled clasp has a fold-over locking mechanism as well as the twin push-button release on the sides. There are also three micro-adjustment holes to make sure you get a great fit.

As previously mentioned, the entire watch is built like a tank and the bracelet matches, the fit & finish on the Atlantik is up there with the best I’ve seen. If you are thinking of buying this watch, and to be honest you should be, I’d recommend that you buy it with the bracelet. It’s definitely worth it.

Movement

The chosen movement for the Laco Atlantik MB is the Swiss Made ETA 2824-2 Elaboré Automatic. The 2824-2 is a 28,800vph, 25 jewel movement. Checking the accuracy after running the Atlantik for around a week, mainly on my wrist and occasionally in my Barrington Watch Winder, I was extremely happy with the results, with it showing an average of +5.5spd, just outside of Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres (COSC) spec.

Dial & Bezel

The Laco Atlantik has a 60 click unidirectional bezel with a lumed brushed ceramic insert. It is of exceptional quality and everything lines up spot on. The bezel action is fantastic, with a nice solid feel with absolutely zero backplay.

The dial is printed in its entirety and it is done exceptionally well. Even under a macro lens I struggled to find any discrepancies what so ever. The markers on the bezel from 0 – 15 are done in a contrasting colour as well as the markers at 12 and at 6. Additionally, the minute hand and the lollipop circle of the seconds hand are also done in the contrasting colour. The rest of the dial markers are printed in white. Contrasting colour options are blue, orange or green.

Last but not least, the dial features a date complication at the 3 o’clock position. And thank Christ, it’s colour matched to the dial! Woop, woop!

Negatives of the dial, the lume is rather poor. The choice of the actual lume is great, it’s just not applied with enough layers to make any kind of good impression in low light or at night. It didn’t bother me that much but I did think it was worth mentioning in this review.

Conclusion

An excellent sports watch from Laco. It is absolutely, without question, built like a friggin’ tank! You can really feel the difference between this Laco and say, your run of the mill $450 microbrand. The tolerances, fit & finish are just outstanding.

If I could change anything, it would be the minute hand, I would’ve kept it white to match the hour hand, just to make it more legible especially in low light. I would also increase the quality of the lume. If these 2 minor discrepancies were addressed I would certainly give this watch 10 out of 10.

Laco – Excellent job, I do love this watch. I just wish I could keep it and not send it back as I’ve found I’m wearing this watch a lot more than expected whilst in my watch rotation.

 9/10

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED – 9 / 10

A huge thank you to Sarah from Laco for sending out the Atlantik MB for review so quickly.

To view the Laco website, or to join their mailing list to be informed of updates or new models, visit Laco.

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Laco Atlantik MB