The Marlin for people who don't want to wind
By Dave Kowalski, Chicago ยท
So this one's the bigger Marlin. 40 mm by 11 mm with 20 mm lugs, silver dial, leather. Miyota 8215 automatic with 42 hours. Open back, which is a nice touch at this price. $250 to $280.
The Miyota 8215 is a tractor. It'll run for years. It doesn't hack (the seconds hand won't stop when you pull the crown), so setting it to the second is a pain, and the rotor's a bit noisy. Not a big deal for a dress watch.
My issues. Acrylic crystal on a dress watch is fine, until you scratch it on your car door. 30 m water resistance. And at 40 mm, it's lost some of the old-school charm of the 34 mm hand-wound. It looks more like a modern watch now.
Still, for under $300, it's a legit automatic dress watch from an American brand with real history. Hard to argue.