Moser Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze Review

A week ago we took an in-depth look at the amazing Streamliner Perpetual Calendar from Moser. I was not only blow away with the insane movement inside of that watch as well as the simplified display, but I was also immensely impressed by the design of the Streamliner case and bracelet. Moser actually sent us two Streamliners to review, and today we'll be taking a look at the more straight-forward Centre Seconds model.

Before we go over the Streamliner Centre Seconds, let's first go over a brief history of Moser. While today you might link H. Moser & Cie. (Moser from now on) to the Swiss town of Schaffhausen, the brand was actually born in St. Petersburg, Russia. In 1828, Heinrich Moser, left Switzerland due to its restrictive guild laws and established his watch brand in Imperial Russia. Moser was able to create a vertically integrated manufacture before the term was known. He had his parts manufactured in Le Locle, Switzerland and then final assembly was done in Russia.



Moser and his brand found tremendous success in Russia and even had over seventy retail locations. Moser outfitted everyone from the officers of the Russian army to the Imperial Court with his timepieces. Moser timepieces were made to such quality, that the term Moser actually came to represent a quality watch in Russian.

After twenty years of outrageous success in Russia, Heinrich Moser returned to the city of his birth, Schaffhausen. Instead of enjoying his retirement as a wealthy tycoon, Moser instead set his sights on industrializing Schaffhausen and its surrounding areas. Key to this idea was creating a massive hyrdo-mechanical dam on the Rhine River which goes through the center of town.

This plan was a huge success and the energy created would go on to power factories and manufacture plants in the region. Corporations that were formed along the banks of the Rhine include SIG Group, which is one of the largest global manufactures in the packaging Industry. More in context of our watch collecting passion, the work done by Moser in Schaffhausen attracted American F.A. Jones to the area, where he would go on to found IWC. If it was not for industrialization of the area spearheaded by Moser, Jones would never have founded his watch brand in Schaffhausen.



While Moser might have had a meteoric rise, its fall was just as swift. During the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, all of Moser's assets were seized and on top of that, the entire luxury industry is Russia was instantly dead and a thing of the past. This blow to Moser was insurmountable, and the Swiss arm of the business limped on for the next few decades as a former shell of its once glorious past. The Quartz Crisis of the 1970s was the final blow to put Moser out of business. Finally in 1979, the factory in Le Locle was dissolved and with it, the Moser name vanished into obscurity.

Obviously this isn't the end of the story. In 2002 Moser was revived by Dr. Jurgen Lange and Heinrich's great-grandson Roger Nicholas Balsiger. The pair refused to use off the shelf components for Moser watches and established Precision Engineering AG as a sister company to Moser dedicated to producing such crucial components as hairsprings and regulating organs. This decision proved crucial in allowing Moser to become the truly independent manufacture that they are today. The interchangeable escapement module also came around during this period of ownership that makes servicing quicker and easier and is still a hallmark of today's Moser movements.

Although Moser was finding lots of success in their technical innovations, they weren't doing as well on the sales side of things. This led to Moser being acquired by MELB Holding, led by the Meylan family, in 2012. Sons Edouard and Bertrand Meylan, would be responsible for running Moser and with the change in leadership came shedding the stuffy image the brand had in terms of haute horology. The new direction of Moser would lean into the philosophy of minimalism and provocation.



Today's Moser is has fully embraced that design aesthetic and even offers models with dials sans any indices or even their own branding. Even though Moser offers a host of case shapes, you can still indentify a Moser from across the room by their dials, many of which use the brands signature fume look. Past their designs, Moser is also a specialist in high complications including perpetual calendars, minute repeaters and tourbillons.



Initial Thoughts

Having gone over the history of Moser we can now get into the model we will be taking a closer look at today. The watch in question is the Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze. This model of the Streamliner is intended for a much broader audience than the highly complicated Streamliner Perpetual Calendar we looked at last week. It is less expensive, less complicated and also slightly smaller than its perpetual calendar big brother.

When the Purple Haze arrived, the first thing I noticed naturally was the amazing purple fume dial. The smoked salmon dial of the Streamliner Perpetual Calendar was much more reserved than the bold purple sunray finished dial of the Purple Haze. The dial starts as a bright purple at its centered and the gradient goes towards near black at the edge of the dial. Depending on the lighting, the dial can go from that bright purple all the way down to a deep plum. The Purple Haze name is a nod to the psychedelic era of Jimi Hendrix and the dial does not let the classic song down.



The next thing I noticed about the Streamliner Centre Seconds during my initial time with the watch was the size difference between it and the Streamliner Perpetual Calendar. While the difference in dimensions doesn't sound huge on paper, in-hand there is a noticeable difference. First up is weight, the perpetual comes in at 156 grams, while the Centre Seconds weighs 142 grams. Holding both watches you can easily feel the additional heft of the Perpetual Calendar. The Perpetual Calendar is 42.4 mm in case diameter and 42 mm in lug to lug length, while the Centre Seconds is 40 mm in both case diameter and lug to lug length. On wrist this equates to the Streamline Centre Seconds wearing much smaller in my opinion. Finally since the Centre Seconds is much less complicated than the Perpetual Calendar, the case is 1.3 mm slimmer, meaning it’s a watch that is more cuff friendly. Personally I do prefer the larger dimensions of the Perpetual Calendar, but not the added weight.

The final thing that I took note of during my initial time with the Moser Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze was the amazing HMC 201 in-house automatic movement. Moser uses an extremely thin case back bezel that is fit with a huge sapphire crystal that allows you to the see the movement in all of its glory. The first thing that jumps out at you when looking at the movement is the massive super skeletonized gold winding rotor. The material removed from the rotor allows more of the movement to be seen at all times. The movement features Moser's signature double stripe finishing and is also adorned with the coat of arms for Schaffhausen. Much of the gear train, including the beating balance, is completely exposed giving a great view of the heart of the Streamliner.





Technical Specifications

Now that I've covered the history of Moser as well as my initial thought on the watch, let's now move on to the technical specifications of the watch. The Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze is crafted out of stainless steel and has a case diameter of 40 mm with an identical 40 mm lug to lug length when measuring down the center of the watch. The watch weighed in at 142 grams on our scale and at its thickest point was 12.3 mm tall. Overall the dimensions of the watch make it look very proportionate on wrist.

The Purple Haze has a flush slightly domed sapphire crystal that has an anti-reflective coating applied. The Perpetual Calendar on the other hand had a slightly raised box style crystal which kept it from looking as sleek as the Centre Seconds does. Under the crystal clear sapphire is the amazing purple fume sunray dial. Like I said earlier, the gradient effect of the dial goes from a bright purple at the center of the dial to an almost black at the outer reaches. The lighting can have a huge effect on the dial color going from vibrant purple to deep plum.



The Streamliner Perpetual Calendar had the "concept" dial where all dial markings were removed. The Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze has a more traditional dial starting out with the minute track being printed in white along the perimeter of the dial. The hash marks for the minutes alternate between long hash marks separating half length marks positioned either against the bezel or slightly off set. The hour markers are applied polished bars with 3, 6, and 9 being slightly longer and 12 getting a double bar.

There are three centrally mounted polished hands on the dial of the Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze being the hours, minutes and seconds hands. The hour and minute hands have a stepped design with the interior of the hands set with ceramic based Globolight lume which glows a bright green in low light and appears white in normal lighting. The seconds hand is slender with the middle being done in non-lumed white. Finishing off the dial is the secret signature Moser branding applied with transparent lacquer.

Moving on from the dial is the stainless steel case. The Streamliner was designed by famed watch designer Marcus Eilinger. The case is reminiscent of a cushion case but adjusted to have a lug-less integrated design. The case has an organic look to it with a slightly hollowed out mid-case. The case seamlessly flows into the bracelet which has a somewhat organic yet mechanical scale look to each link. Overall the Streamliner looks like no other integrated sports watch out there and like Moser dials, can be recognized from across the room.



Most of the Streamliner's case is brushed in finish with the chamfers and edges being done in high polish to really catch the light. The partially hollowed out mid-case is matte as well, sitting between the polished edges of the case. The right hand side of the case has a decent sized well scalloped screw down crown which is topped with an "M" engraving. The screw down crown aids in the 120 meters of water resistance the Streamliner Centre Seconds boasts. Un-screwing the crown lets your wind the automatic movement in the resting position. There are no calendar functions for the Streamliner Centre Seconds, so there is only one additional crown position. Pulling the crown out to position one stops the seconds hand and lets you set the time. Pushing the crown back in causes no jump in the minute hand and screwing the crown back in takes no extra care for it to catch.

Flipping the watch over shows the slim case back bezel set with a large sapphire display back. Important information like the case number and water resistance is engraved around the outside of this bezel. Through the sapphire display back you can see the in-house HMC 201 automatic movement. It's awesome that Moser went with such a large sapphire on the back of the Streamliner Centre Seconds since the movement is such a treat to look at.

The most striking visual feature of the movement is the enormous gold winding rotor that has been nearly completely skeletonized. Only the bottom of the rotor is left intact which has the H. Moser & Cie. branding. Under the rotor you can see broad usage of Moser's Cotes de Moser finishing on the bridges, which is the brand's take on the traditional Geneva stripes. The gear train and the beating balance are well on display through the case back as well, giving you a real visual treat every time you turn the watch over.



The HMC 201 is manufactured in-house by Moser and beats away at 21,600 vph (3Hz). With the slightly slower beat rate, Moser is able to get 72 hours of power reserve out of the movement. On our timegrapher the HMC 201 showed an accuracy of +3 seconds per day when averaged out over several positions. This is extremely accurate and even within chronometer specifications.

Having an integrated design, the Streamliner can only accept bracelets and straps designed for it. With that being the case, the lug width is also fairly large at 24 mm. The stainless steel bracelet tapers down aggressively to 18 mm at the hidden deployant clasp. The links of the Streamliner resemble scales and somewhat overlap each other really giving the organic pattern seen with scales in nature. The finishing of the links mirror the case with the major surfaces being brushed and the edges polished. The links are added and removed using a pin and collar system, which is secure but requires a watchmaker's hammer to remove and set. Finally the clasp is marked with the coat of arms for Schaffhausen. Two pushers are required to be depressed to release the clasp. There are no micro-adjustments on the clasp, but Moser uses some very small links near the clasp, so getting a good sizing shouldn't be an issue.





On The Wrist

I'm the first to admit that I have slightly dated preferences on watch sizes. I started watch collecting in the very early 2000s and as such I tend to prefer larger watches. When having the choice between the Streamliner Perpetual Calendar and Centre Seconds I will lean more in favor of the perpetual's larger case dimensions. On my 7.25 inch wrist with a 55 mm flat area, the 40 mm lug to lug length of the Streamliner Centre Second's case seemed a little small. The integrated bracelet does make the watch appear to wear a bit larger than the lug to lug measurement suggests, but it still seemed small to me. On a strap it would seem even smaller.

What's a negative for me, is a huge positive for current collectors who favor smaller case sizes. Also the 40 mm lug to lug length means that the Streamliner can also be worn by both genders without much fuss. Moser obviously knew what they were doing with the 40 mm sizing of the Streamliner. It's actually amazing how much the extra 2 to 2.5 mm of case size changes how the Streamliner Perpetual Calendar and Centre Seconds wear. The larger Perpetual Calendar case actually fits more in line with the larger watches I typically go for personally.



With all that being said, the bracelet of the Streamliner Centre Seconds did a great job keeping the watch centered on my wrist. I can't stand when a smaller cased watch favors one side of my wrist over the other, which is something I didn't encounter with the Centre Seconds. The bracelet holds its shape well and was comfortable on longer wearing sessions. I also enjoyed the lower weight of the Centre Seconds over that of the Perpetual Calendar. Once again I have strange preferences when it comes to the weight of watches. I personally prefer larger watches that are lighter in weight, so I go for materials like titanium, ceramic and carbon over the traditional stainless steel. Most collectors actually enjoy the heft of stainless steel more and equate that weight with luxury and quality.

During my time with the Streamliner Centre Seconds I tried to wear the watch as much as possible. At first the size of the watch was a bit jarring for me, but over time I got more used to it. I don't wear watches all day long either, only when I leave the house. This allows me the luxury of wearing large pieces and not worrying too much about all day comfort. If I was wearing a watch all day to the office or whatever, I could see the appeal of smaller watches. With that thought in mind I can see the smaller 40 mm Streamliner case being a great daily wrist companion and it is an easier all day wearer than the larger case of the Perpetual Calendar. Just for my lifestyle the larger Streamliner case is a better fit. Also the deep purple and brushed stainless look of the Streamliner Centre Seconds went well with my typical dress of a black t-shirt, shorts and sneakers. The purple dial of the watch is bold, but I feel the watch does well in both casual and formal settings.



To test the legibility of a watch, I use a very simple test where I see how easy it is to tell the time at just a glance while driving. In this test dive watches with their high contrast dials and large markers do the best, while complicated and skeleton watches do the worst since they focus more on design than legibility. In this test I wasn't really sure how the Streamliner Centre Seconds would do. After this test I can say that the dial of the Purple Haze is much easier to make out at a glance than the Perpetual Calendar and it's marking less "concept" dial. The polished indices and hands contrast well with the gradient purple dial and make quick time telling fairly easy. Contradictory, the lack of lumed hour markers makes low light time telling a bit tricky, mostly relying on reflections or just guessing based on the lumed hand positions.

While wearing the Moser Streamliner Centre Seconds out on errands or to dinner and drinks I did notice that the watch received a decent amount of looks and also a few comments. The super unique look of the case and bracelet probably had a lot to do with this, as did the stunning purple fume dial. Not surprisingly, most people loved the look of the purple dial and were very impressed with the visible movement and gold rotor. When it came to pricing, the opinion was rather mixed. Remember most people think that a steel sports Rolex is a very expensive watch, so a much more expensive watch from a brand not really in the mainstream conscience can be a big ask for somebody to understand.





Value and Position in the Market

Speaking of price, the retail price of the Moser Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze is $27,600. For that price you're getting a drop dead gorgeous case and bracelet capped off with the amazing purple fume dial. Powering the watch is not only a very accurate in-house automatic movement, but also one that is a treat to look at. Now is the time in the review where we look at other watches with similar features and specifications to see how the Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze holds up value wise.

First up is the Antarctique Purple Storm from Czapek which has a 40.5 mm case made out of stainless steel. Like the Purple Haze, the Purple Storm also has a gradient purple dial. The Antarctique also has an integrated bracelet design and is powered by an in-house automatic movement with 60 hours of power reserve. The Purple Storm matches the Purple Haze with a full 120 meters of water resistance. The Antarctique is a bit more expensive than the Streamliner at $29,500.

Moving on is the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor from Parmigiani Fleurier which has a 40 mm case crafted out of stainless steel and platinum. The watch has a stunning golden guilloche dial and also has an integrated bracelet design. The Tonda PF is powered by an in-house automatic movement with 48 hours of power reserve. The Tonda PF has a bit less water resistance at 100 meters and cost a little more than the Streamliner at $30,000.



Next up is the Sport Auto Blue from Laurent Ferrier which has a 41.5 mm case made out of grade 5 titanium. The Sport Auto Blue has a Deep Blue dial and also has an integrated bracelet design. The watch is powered by an in-house movement with 72 hours of power reserve and has the same 120 meter water resistance as the Czapek and Moser. The Sport Auto Blue is much more expensive than the Streamliner at $59,000.

Finally we have the Royal Oak from Audemars Piguet which has a 41 mm case made out of stainless steel. The Royal Oak has a very attractive green dial with the brand's grande tapisserie design on it. The Royal Oak runs on an in-house automatic movement with 70 hours of power reserve and has only 50 meters of water resistance. The Royal Oak is a bit more expensive than the Streamliner at $30,000.

As you can see from the four integrated sports watches we compared to the Moser Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze, that the Streamliner offers the lowest price and specs that match or beat most of its peers from other top watch manufactures. Besides the Laurent Ferrier, all the watches are priced in the same ballpark, so it really comes down to personal preference between them. They are all great watches, but you do get the most for your money with the Moser.





Closing Thoughts

So in the end, is the Moser Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze for me? Having both the Streamliner Perpetual Calendar and Centre Seconds on hand at the same time really illustrated that personally I prefer the Streamliner in the larger 42 mm case, like that of the Perpetual Calendar. I do however prefer the bolder dial of the Purple Haze to the more reserved smoked salmon dial of the Perpetual Calendar. So just on sizing alone, the Streamline Centre Seconds wouldn't be my choice of Streamliner.

Would I then recommend the Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze to somebody else looking for an integrated sports watch? As I've harked upon earlier in the this review, I have a dated preference for watch sizing preferring larger case diameters, the mass of the watch collecting market does prefer a case at or below 40 mm, so the Streamliner Centre Seconds definitely falls in that category. Most people will be looking for a watch this size and the Purple Haze is a great example to really consider.



I've been a huge fan of Marcus Eilinger from his time at IWC where he designed some of my favorite pieces and for Moser he really hit a homerun with the Streamliner. Just like most dive watches looking like a Submariner or Fifty Fathoms, integrated sports watches are easy to have end up looking like a Royal Oak or Nautilus, but the Streamliner completely looks like its own unique take on the category. The organic near pebble like design reminds me of the 80s Porsche Design by IWC Ocean 2000, which I own, and the scale like bracelet is really out of this world.

Adding on the stunning in-house movement which also happens to be super accurate really starts to round out a really compelling offering from Moser. Finally the brand's signature fume dial, in this instance in purple, is the cherry on top. When you're looking at watches with this level of watchmaking, they don’t come cheap. For that reason I'd really recommend checking out any watch at this point of entry in person. I do feel that after seeing the Streamliner in person that a lot of other integrated sports watches might seem a bit dull though. So yes, I would highly recommend this Moser Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze to somebody looking for a more interesting fine watchmaking integrated sports watch.



Once again, I'd really like to thank Moser for sending us both the Streamliner Perpetual Calendar and Centre Seconds Purple Haze. Although I had my first in person experience with the entire Moser collection at an event in Austin months ago, I didn't truly have the time to get to know any of the pieces. Having the two Streamliners on hand for a few weeks and wearing them as if they were my own watches has given me a great understanding of the brand. Moser is really up there at the top of watch manufactures when it comes to case and movement production and the Streamliners are beautiful rock solid examples of this. Hopefully in the upcoming weeks we can get a few more models in from Moser to continue our exploration of the brand. I'm really interested in getting some of the F1 models in as well as branching out of the Streamliner line.

For more information about the Streamliner Centre Seconds Purple Haze please visit : Moser



Technical Specifications

Reference Number: 6201-1201

Retail Price: $27,600

Case Size: 40 mm

Lug to Lug: 40 mm

Thickness: 12.3 mm

Weight: 142 grams

Case Material: Stainless Steel

Bezel: Stainless Steel

Strap: Stainless Steel

Movement: Swiss Made In-House HMC 201 Automatic Movement

Functions: Hours, Minutes and Seconds

Power Reserve: 72 Hours

Water Resistance: 120 Meters