Hands-on + Video: Baume & Mercier Clifton Baumatic Day-Date Moon Phase

Text/image: Aleksandar Mladenovic

One of the Swiss watch manufacturer Baume & Mercier 's bestsellers is their Clifton model together with the slightly more sporty Riviera. Recently they launched their Clifton Baumatic Day-Date Moon Phase with a lovely blue dial that is hard to tear your eyes away from. We at Eqotime take a closer look at a watch that offers a lot of bang for the buck.

Complications and awesome build quality

Baume & Mercier have in recent years begun to establish themselves properly within what one could call the ”entry luxury” segment. With their Clifton model series they offer a handsome and well-built watch with their COSC-certified in-house Baumatic movement for a price tag just south of 40.000kr. Baume & Mercier's representative in Scandinavia always asks the question ”guess what it costs?” and the editorial team's spontaneous feeling was that the Clifton Baumatic Day-Date Moon Phase lay somewhere in the price span between 70-80,000kr. We were wrong. Let us tell you a little more about why we think the watch is one of the more good-value, relatively complicated, watches on the market.

Case and design

The case is made of stainless steel and measures 42mm in diameter and is just over 13mm thick (13,2mm to be exact). Despite the measurements the watch does not feel as big on the wrist, the slightly curvy case with relatively short lugs means that it ”hugs” the wrist a little. The watch's case is for the most part polished (the sides are brushed) and has a charming chamfer along the lugs. It gives a modern and elegant impression and has a fine finish that feels solid on the wrist.

On each side of the case there are small pushers for adjustment of two of the watch's complications – the moon phase and the days of the week. The date is adjusted via the crown, which is not screwed down.

The case back naturally has a sapphire crystal where they proudly show off their in-house calibre Baumatic BM14-1975A C2. The movement ticks with a frequency of 4Hz (28,800bph) and has an impressive power reserve of 120h or 5 days. The rotor has a so-called Côtes de Genève finish and also perlage. Unlike the Clifton Automatic, i.e. the ”three-hander”, this movement is not COSC-certified.

The strap is made of alligator skin and has a folding clasp with pushers on the sides that open the clasp which is adorned with a polished buckle with the brand's logotype. The strap is, like many others in the industry, fairly thick and stiff but thanks to the ”quick switch” system a fast and smooth strap change is no problem.

Magically blue dial

The model was introduced with a grey dial and since then the two most popular colours on the market have naturally made their entrance – blue and green. The editorial team's favourite is without doubt the blue one that we have taken a closer look at and it really raises the overall impression of the watch. The dial's balance is well judged and very legible, nothing feels too compressed or hard to read and they have made use of the dial's size in a good way. The dial's finish is lacquered and it goes from dark blue in the centre and fades towards black at the outer edges.

Below 12 o'clock you find the days of the week and above 6 o'clock the moon phase as well as the date indication. The lower half of the moon phase is found behind a semi-transparent disc in sapphire crystal which is a detail that gives a nice little effect at certain angles. At 3 o'clock there is the text Baumatic 5 days and at 9 o'clock the company's logotype.

The hour and minute hands are of the so-called alpha type and high-gloss polished and rhodium plated, which the dial's indices also are.

On the wrist and closing thoughts

On the wrist the Baume & Mercier Clifton Baumatic Day-Date Moon Phase gives a very exclusive impression. Despite its measurements it wears surprisingly well on a smaller wrist and these words come, after all, from someone who advocates considerably smaller watches generally. It is quite hard to tear your eyes away from the watch when you look at it on the wrist and there is something a little extra about the dial.

The watch is a handsomely packaged and well-built product with classic complications such as moon phase and date. A watch for the one who is looking for a handsome everyday watch in a slightly more elegant cut but in a modern take.

We have not forgotten the price, the thing that surprised us initially. The Swedish list price for the Baume & Mercier Clifton Baumatic Day-Date Moon Phase ref. 10593 is 54,450kr which is in no way a small sum of money, but considering what you get it feels like very much bang for the buck.

Technical specifications

Brand: Baume & Mercier
Model: Clifton Baumatic
Reference number: 10593

Diameter: 42mm
Thickness: 13,2mm
Case material: Stainless steel

Dial: Dark blue with day, date and moon phase indicator
Bracelet: Leather strap in alligator skin

Movement: BM14-1975A C2 (in-house)
Complications: day, date, moon phase
Power reserve: 120h
Winding: Automatic
Water resistance: 50m

Price: 54,450kr

Read more about the watch at Baume & Mercier's Scandinavian distributor