Hands on with the Meccaniche Veneziane Nereide

I have been following Meccaniche Veneziane since they started and really like the look of their watches. When I found out that after January 2018 all of their watches were going to be Swiss made, I got pretty excited. The folks at Meccaniche Veneziane were kind enough to send me out a Meccaniche Veneziane Nereide to review, and I like what I see. So what does Meccaniche Veneziane mean, and what is a Neriede? Meccaniche Veneziane literally means “Mechanical devices from Venice.” The Nereide pays tribute to the Venetian submarine called Nereide which was built in the Royal Arsenale in 1913 and commissioned to the engineer De Bernardis by the Royal Navy during the First World War. Meccaniche Veneziane was founded by two brothers Alberto and Alessandro, who both share a huge passion for vintage timepieces and the desire to bring back Venetian watchmaking.

The Dial

The Meccaniche Veneziane Nereide model that I received has a matte black face with gold tone minute track, hour markers, and hands. All the text and their cross logo area also in gold. This is a simple three hand watch with date. Many three hande watches can, at times, be a little boring but that’s not the case here. That gold against the black gives this watch a more refined look. Surrounding this dial is unidirectional rotating, enameled aluminum bezel. The red bezel really pairs well with the black face. The cross which you see on the dial, crown, movement, and on the straps is their brand logo which draws inspiration from the cross on the top of Saint Mark’s Watchtower. This is considered the symbol of timekeeping in Venice.

The Case

For someone like me who obsesses over a polished case, sometimes its nice to take a break. This case, which is made from 316L stainless steel has a brushed finish. Whats great about a brushed finish is that is resists finger prints and other small blemishes. There is still enough shine to look good when getting dressed up. This watch can easily go from desk diver to real diving if you so desire. Water resistance is a respectable 200m or approx. 600 ft. The crown guards protect the majority of the screw down crown. The case back is screw down with a sapphire exhibition window which shows of a very nice looking movement.

The Movement

I really like the look of this 21 jewel Swiss Automatic CAL.MV135 hacking movement made, which Meccaniche Veneziane purchases from Depa Swiss Movements. There are so many watches out there that just throw in a generic looking movement, and while that’s ok, there is nothing special about it. This one, on the other hand, looks fantastic. By dressing this movement up with Côtes de Genève, blued screws, and a nicely decorated rotor, this movement is just so pleasing to the eye.

The Straps

I love options, and this watch comes with two of them. This Meccaniche Veneziane Nereide came on a tan color hand made vintage suede leather strap. Right out of the box this strap has a soft, yet durable feeling. There is a little red accent stitching that pairs well with the red bezel. Now, you’re not going to want to bring this suede leather strap into the pool or the ocean. If you want to do that, you can change to the black silicon strap, which is also very comfortable. This strap is water proof but still has a stylish look with its red accent stitching.

The Lume

There is a good amount of lume on this Meccaniche Veneziane Nereide. All of the hour markers, hands, and the lume dot on the bezel are painted with C1 Swiss Superluminova. The charge time is short and the glow lasts a good amount of time.

Overall Impression

To be honest, I can’t really find anything to criticize on this Meccaniche Veneziane Nereide watch. As a diver, I love that fact that its built to dive if I wanted it to. I also like that it is dressy enough for going out, or going to the office. The straps are soft and comfortable. The build quality is very good. What I really like the most is that nicely decorated movement. This watch has a lot going for it and is available at the very decent price of $739 USD. Go check them out at meccanicheveneziane.

REVIEW SUMMARY

Tech Specs from Meccaniche Veneziane

• CASE: Ø42 mm, PVD 316L Stainless Steel
• MOVEMENT: Swiss Made Automatic CAL.MV135
• CRYSTAL: Antireflective Domed Sapphire Glass
• LUME: C1 Swiss Superluminova®
• BEZEL: Unidirectional rotatable, Enamelled Aluminium
• WR: 20ATM = 200mt
• STRAP: Real vintage leather Made in Italy
• EXTRA STRAP: Silicone strap with colored seams