Description:
The Lumtec M87 is a swiss-quartz powered wristwatch, featuring Lumtec's MDV lume technology, Viton gaskets, and is 44mm in size, with 24mm standard lug sizes which allow for a variety of popular strap choices. It is available from their website for $595.
Reason for Purchase:
Anyone who follows this page knows I enjoy Lumtec watches, in my opinion, they are essentially the best bang for buck daily EDC watch on the market for the last few years. When I saw this new M87 I knew I wanted it on my wrist. The biggest things that immediately made the M87 stand out to me were the size of 44mm and the PVD coating (black case). I don't particularly like smaller-sized watches, anything under 42mm is essentially unwearable for me as it's too small. I am also into black/dark colored watches so this one fits the bill. The other reasons for the high visibility lume and quartz were also very much positive things when I considered the purchase.
First Opinion:
The face is big and bold, very uncomplicated which I like. The date wheel is the same color as the dial and that helps not draw my eye to it when I check the time. It's there but not contrasting against the aesthetics of the dial.
The hand indicators are the same color as the hour markers and easy to read.
The pearl on the bezel is a contrasting color and that stands out in the dark.
The crystal is sapphire with their "military-grade double-sided AR coating" which is really nice and tints blue
In the Field:
Since it's a decent-sized watch and has choices of rubber or leather out of the box, I was able to enjoy the rubber strap in the summer. Rubber is a great choice for nearly all activities and cleans off very easily. I wore this watch for a good bit at some points in warm weather and had no discomfort.
The case-back held up well and did not cause any discomfort. Some watches create a pressure point but this one did not.
The rubber strap has held up really well. Some cheaper straps lose their rigidity or become very frail, even show off white signs of wear, this one is really nice. The brand name is still very crisp, the rubber is clearly of higher quality.
The crown is very large, very easy to use when setting the date and time. As you can see it has aggressive grooves and doesn't show any signs of wear.
The case and the bezel are kept their nice matte black finish. The coating is pretty tough and even with a decent amount of wear, it appears to retain its feature.
Ownership and Usage:
The Lumtec brand has had repeated successful watch models launched, and even though they are limited runs, they are very much capable designs. I have had no issues with the M87, the watch performed extremely well. There are some who would have an issue with the quartz movement, I would advise them to research the Swiss Ronda 515 movement. The watch has kept near perfect time since I have had it, at most its +-1 sec / month, maybe even less.
Final Thoughts and Recommendations:
This is not a cheap watch, in that the design pedigree and development of this watch have been ongoing through Lumtec for a while, as with all of their watches. If you have an issue paying a few hundred dollars for a quartz watch, you can check out their mechanical options, but this watch in its current configuration is pretty damn good. I have not had an issue wearing this watch and would recommend it to anyone who wants a very "tool" EDC-type watch which isn't flashy. The lume is very bright and easily visible during night-time use. It has a "tactical" appearance if that is something you want out of a watch without all the nonsense marketing of other brands, you know exactly what you are getting from Lumtec as a trusted American brand.