Momentum M50 Mark II Review

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Today’s review is the Momentum M50 Mark II, model number 1M-DV52B0. I’ve previously reviewed (and quite liked) the Cobalt V, so let’s see how this one fares.

Specifications:

• According to Momentum, this “is our official police and military watch.”
• Bead-blasted 316L stainless steel case and bracelet. Also available in rubber strap version.
• Sapphire crystal with cyclops for date magnification and inner anti-reflective coating
• Quartz movement with 10-year battery life
• Superluminous hands and dial
• 120-click unidirectional bezel with lumed pip
• 44.0 by 13.4mm, 51.5 lug-to-lug, 200g
• 6 year warranty
• Signed screw-dow crown
• Water resistant to 500m (1640ft)

Please read on for the full review.

With a list price of $350, I was impressed when I opened the box. That’s an exceptional price for the quartz/sapphire/500m combination, and I was looking to see if they had to cut corners elsewhere. They didn’t, and in fact the other components are equally well done. This is a tremendous watch for the money.

I’m not a fan of the cyclops magnifier, personally, but as you can see in the first image it works well, and you can have them removed with a bit of effort. The dial underneath is fairly clean, with upright Arabic numbers in two sizes. In addition to lume on the numbers, there are also lumed dashes on the circle outside them, making for excellent nighttime legibility.

In the lume image, you can see the drawback of the cyclops: it does odd things to light coming from the hands, here refracting light from the tip of the hour hand. The bezel pip is also lumed, as is the tip of the second hand, and the watch is readable after 8 hours of darkness; unusually good in fact.

Looking at the case and bracelet, there’s a theme of facets going on. The case is made with a higher than average number of angles and faces, which surprised me as it increases the manufacturing cost. The links in the bracelet echo the theme, with a roughly triangular cross-section.

The crown has a nice level of design and execution. Screw-down, signed, with two sets of knurling for a firm grip. The four o’clock position helps keep it from digging into your wrist.

The bracelet has split pins, solid links and end links, a wetsuit extension and 4 micro adjustments. Snap-lock clasp with embossed fliplock. A good match for the watch, both in design and weight. The clasp is low-profile, which I like for comfort while on a keyboard.

The bezel is a bit different. It’s steel and some other metallic material, in a complex shape. Functionally it works well, with easily gripped edges and a firm ratchet.

Look closely at the profile image and you’ll see one of my dislikes. The bead-blasted finish is a thing of beauty, but like all steel the case and bracelet scuff easily and it shows more on satin than on a brushed finish. Not a big deal, but it’ll show the wear and tear, especially if you’re using it for police or military duties.

As the profile shows, this is not a huge or overly tall watch (44 by 13.4mm), the tapered bezel and slip clasp are actually dress shirt friendly, a nice surprise that makes the watch more versatile.

Speaking of versatility, the 500m pressure rating and wetsuit extension should make this a good dive choice. The ten-year battery removes that worry, and legibility is excellent as well.

As with the Cobalt V, the dominant impression with this watch is value. The complex case shape and machining are quite enjoyable, the lume is excellent and having sapphire + 500m at this price is great. The finish will show wear, but other than that this watch should be very durable and well suited to an active lifestyle.

 

Our thanks to Momentum for the review unit.

 

By Paul Hubbard