Lorier Falcon Series II – $499
Some say there is a place where a person can own one watch and happily wear it their entire life, My grandfather knew of this place, as he owned one watch and wound it every morning — his watch is one my most treasured possessions, and I think of him often when I wind my own watch(es) in the morning. While my grandfather’s watch found its way to me, his map to the Realm Of The One Watch never did, but I still admire watches which seek to serve in an everyday capacity. A strong candidate for such a watch is Lorier’s redesign of their Falcon line, the Falcon Series II, which reinvents the company’s do-everything sports watch.
The Lorier Falcon II, with his Grandfather’s daily Tissot.
I’ve been a fan of Lorier ever since reading about the Neptune years ago, and that fandom was rewarded when I purchased my own Neptune Series II. Not long after, a Falcon Series I followed, and then a Gemini. When Lorier announced the new Falcon, I was very eager to try one in person, and they provided a loaner for this review. Clearly, I wasn’t going into my time with the Falcon with a clear mind, but being a man of science, I proclaim: let objectivity take the wheel.
Falcon I in the rear, with the Falcon II in front. The sizing down is noticeable.
Drawing yet more inspiration from classic sports watches, this Falcon is dramatically smaller than its predecessor, only 36mm in diameter and 11mm thick (compared to 39mm and 14.3mm, previously). Disregarding the barely-domed, plexiglass crystal, the Falcon’s case is only 9mm thick. Even the screw-down crown is less chunky than before. The marked reduction in thickness is thanks to a new-to-Lorier movement, the Miyota 90S5. This Miyota is a no-date movement, so that complication is gone from the dial, but in its place is clean, beautiful symmetry. The Miyota is more expensive to source than the prior generation’s Seiko NH, so the price has increased to a still-reasonable $499.
The Falcon(s).
Another big change to the dial is that the Neptune’s markers have made the jump over to the Falcon. In combination with the carryover waffle pattern, the Falcon is a looker. Even the caseback has been changed, and now is circumscribed by a continuous ring of the Lorier logo. It’s a nice touch, and still allows plenty of room for an engraving, as per Lorier’s intention. All of these changes make for super-clean, classic watch design, and it’s great.
Waffle dial with the Neptune’s markers now making the jump.
While the Neptune’s dial markers made it to the Falcon, the overall redesign means that those models no longer share a case, and the Falcon is now rated with 100m of water resistance. While not the 200m of its predecessor or the Neptune, 100m is more than enough for swimming, making this Falcon truly capable of everyday wear (something my grandfather’s watch was definitely not up for).
Everyday watch? Yes indeed.
The main question I had leading up to my time with the Falcon was how it would wear. Most of my watches are 40-42mm in diameter. Stacked on top of each other, the Falcon II isn’t even big enough to hide the crystal of the Islander ISL-01! I’m also quite comfortable with watches in the 38mm diameter size, owning several. But 36mm? *does math* That’s at least 2mm less than my regulars! And it’s no longer the mid-20th century! Good grief, Tom, will it even blend?? While the Falcon is “classically-sized” and does feel a bit small, at first, that sensation quickly disappeared. The decreased thickness helps the watch feel wonderful on the wrist, and the dial is perfectly proportioned and legible, in part thanks to the now much slimmer bezel. Going from my older Lorier watches to this new Falcon is a great example of how less really can be more.
The 36mm Lorier Falcon stacked on a 43mm Islander Diver.
So,any issues? Well, if I could change one thing about the watch, I suppose it would be the proportion of the bracelet to the case. The Lorier bracelet continues to be fantastic — I sang its praises in my review of the Neptune. But at the lugs, the 20mm bracelet width feels a bit too chunky for the watch. I think a NATO, for instance, might look a bit out of place. I’m not sure how to fix that, exactly, since shrinking the bracelet/lug width might make it too slight, and then you have a watch with 19mm lugs, and it’s mass hysteria! Again, a minor quibble, but it’s the one (and only) part of the watch that didn’t feel ‘just right’ to me.
Bracelet tapers from 20mm lugs to 16mm at the clasp.
Classic design doesn’t need to mean ‘old.’ To me, it means design that, while having origins in the good old days, yesteryear, or a long, long time ago, still feels fresh, even contemporary. The Falcon II is just that — it’s a design which pulls heavily from both the aesthetic and ethos of the past, but is a crisp, contemporary design as at home in the 21st century as it would be in the middle of the 20th. I’m looking forward to what Lorier has in store for us in the future.
About the author: Aaron K. was first brought to Dappered by his love of watches, but has found it to be a great resource for so much more. When not reading Dappered, he’s usually relishing being a dad, spending time with his family & friends, learning about most anything that can fly, or taking photographs.
