Minuteman DLC Liberty Watch Review

The Minuteman DLC Liberty watch may have changed my mind about watches.

After making the transition from soldier to Corporate America to wandering traveler, I never cared much for wearing a watch. But I’ve been in plenty of situations in the field when I needed to know the time; looking at a mobile phone isn’t an option in many parts of the world. I was in the market for a solid watch when I came across the Minuteman company.

While wearing an expensive watch will sometimes get you negative attention when traveling, the Minuteman Liberty keeps a low profile and doesn’t demand attention. I love it. While professional, these watches aren’t full of bells and whistles; don’t expect timers or even alarms. But what you get is a high-quality, very rugged timepiece to be proud of — along with the knowledge that you helped a good cause: 25% of the company’s profits go to charities that support veterans. As a US Army veteran, that means a lot.

The Specs

• Water resistant to 200 meters (but actually tested to 300 meters)
• Sapphire crystal
• ETA 955.112 Swiss-made 7 jewel quartz movement
• A/R coating on the inside of the crystal
• Stainless steel case back, pleasantly engraved
• Screw-down crown
• Ionbond coating (this stuff is tough)
• One American-made leather band + one tactical Nato/Zulu nylon
• Luminous hands
• Padded, zippered travel case
• Free lifetime battery replacement
• Warranty for five years after purchase date for manufacturing defects

Supporting a Good Company

For starters, 25% of all profits are pledged to charities that support veterans and their families. As a veteran myself, it means the world to know that my money isn’t just making some CEO based overseas even richer. Along with the generous pledge to aid veterans, here are some other good reasons I don’t mind supporting Minuteman:

• All of the Minuteman watches are made in the USA.
• 50% of sales go back into the company for product refinement.
• 25% of sales go to pay employees a livable wage

What I Like

• Having two bands for this watch is a huge plus for travelers. And while it’s pricey enough that I would be wary of wearing this watch on climbing trips, it’s technically designed to withstand field use. The leather band looks classy and the tactical nylon band won’t soak up sweat and grime.

• Although you only see it when taking the Liberty off at the end of the day, the stainless-steel back of this watch is beautifully engraved. I also like the fact that the serial number is prominently on the back; I received #61.

What I Love

• The Minuteman Liberty watch is heavy. Under ordinary circumstances for travelers, weight isn’t a good thing. But the weightiness lends a feeling of quality and durability.

• Rather than just include some fancy display box as other watchmakers do, Minuteman watches ship with a very padded protective case. Boxes aren’t practical, but the padded case will travel well.

• The Minuteman watches, although quality, don’t necessarily look lavish. Wearing expensive-looking shiny bling while traveling is a sure way to either get higher prices while negotiating, or worse, to get attention from thieves. This darkly colored watch maintains a low profile and won’t catch the attention of unscrupulous individuals.

To get a better feel for the size, see the Minuteman DLC Liberty watch compared next to a quarter.

What I Would Change

• My MM02 DLC Liberty watch doesn’t have a date window on it. The MM01 and MM04 models do have date windows on the face. With suggested retail price about the same across models, why not opt to have the date, too?

• The luminous hands and calibration marks on my watch aren’t that luminous. The hands don’t appear to be made of tritium, so they need to be charged. A day’s worth of wear in sunlight barely yielded a low glow, however, I was able to ‘charge’ the face with a torch to make it glow brightly. Perhaps this will change over time as the face is exposed to more and more light.

Where to Get Minuteman Watches

You’ll find lots more information along with authorized dealers on the Minuteman website: http://minutemanwatches.com/.

Disclosure of Material Connection: The author received the MM02 DLC Liberty watch for free from Minuteman as coordinated by Deep Creek Public Relations in consideration for review publication.