Lōcī supports local action with the trio of Pacific Coast Highway models
Time+Tide
Donating profits from the sales of goods to support nonprofit organisations is not a new concept. All kinds of businesses have done it, including watch brands. From what I know, and generally speaking, brands donate to large and popular causes to, for example, cure a disease or support disaster relief in economically deprived areas of the globe. Rarely do we hear of people supporting local organizations that would allow them to affect change in their own backyard. Lōcī, founded in California by a U.S. Navy veteran, is different, as it was created to support the protection of local natural ecosystems as exemplified through its first collection, the Pacific Coast Highway. Lōcī donates 10% of each sale to a California-based nonprofit called the Surfrider Foundation. From a horological standpoint, the PCH can be best described as a do-it-all, affordable, everyday sports watch that’s offered in both quartz and mechanical variants.
The case
The Lōcī Pacific Coast Highway is endowed with a charm of its own, both in the ways in which the case and dials were designed, and what it is made of. The case comes with a design that commands attention given its large polished lugs which are connected to one another by horizontal lips of brushed stainless steel, as well as polished chamfers that run continuously from one end of the case to the other. The fully brushed, slab-sided case flanks and the conical screw-down crown complete the look, especially since the latter comes with deeply slanted, CNC-machined grooves that make it easy to unscrew and operate. Surprisingly, however, the Pacific Coast Highway comes with reasonable dimensions: 39.5mm in diameter, 48mm lug-to-lug, 10.8mm thick, and with a 20mm lug width.
The Lōcī PCF will fit well on wrists of various sizes thanks to having a thin profile and a flat caseback. Its everyday looks come from the fixed bezel and large dial opening, and its everyday capabilities from the fact that the crystal is a flat piece of sapphire and the case-back screws-down – combined with a screw-down crown, this endows this model with 100 metres of water-resistance.
The dial
The Pacific Coast Highway collection comes in three dial variants, each designed and named according to the natural ecosystem that the profits from their sales support. Regardless of which variant you look at, they all come with the same dial layout: large and lumed applied hour markers, polished sword-style hands, and an unframed date aperture at the six. Moreover, a narrow and circular section of the dial is recessed, therefore separating the minute track from the main section of the dial. Being a capable everyday watch, the PCH comes with a generous application of X1-Grade Super-LumiNova for nighttime legibility.
The blue dial Monterey Bay was designed and named after the exceptional and fragile sanctuary that is home to rich flora and fauna, as well as underwater canyons with depths that reach 12,000 feet. The black dial Big Sur refers to the wild, inaccessible, and beautiful area of the same name traversed by the historical Highway 1, with the double yellow line that separates the lanes on the aforementioned road. Lastly, the brown dial Surfrider Beach is a homage to the iconic surfers’ beach that prompted the creation of the Surfrider Foundation.
The strap
Each version of the Pacific Coast Highway collection is shipped with a custom-designed, fitted FKM rubber strap that measures 20mm at the lugs, and tapers to 18mm at the buckle. However, if you don’t like rubber, know that this strap comes with quick-release spring bars and that the lugs are drilled to make swapping for another strap an easy process. Given that the PCH collection was created for outdoorsy lifestyles and not urban life, pairing this model with a robust rubber strap makes a lot of sense.
The movement
As mentioned in the introduction, the Lōcī Pacific Coast Highway can be had with either a quartz or mechanical calibre. The quartz movement is a Swiss-made Ronda 715 which comes with 5 jewels and a stated battery life of 60 months. The mechanical movement is also Swiss-made, this time courtesy of Sellita and its SW200, beating at 4Hz and with 38 hours of power reserve. So whichever type of movement you go with, you’d know that you have a robust caliber within.
Lōcī Pacific Coast Highway pricing and availability
The Lōcī Pacific Coast Highway collection comes in a total of six models (two movement options per colour) and all are readily available to purchase from the brand’s website. Price: US$645 (quartz), US$995 (automatic)
| Brand | Lōcī |
| Model | Pacific Coast Highway |
| Case Dimensions | 39.5mm (D) x 10.8mm (T) x 48mm (LTL) |
| Case Material | Stainless steel |
| Water Resistance | 100 metres, screw-down crown |
| Crystal(s) | Sapphire front |
| Dial | Smoked black, sunburst brown, wave blue |
| Lug Width | 20mm |
| Strap | Fitted FKM rubber, steel pin buckle |
| Movement | Ronda 715, quartz Sellita SW200, automatic |
| Power Reserve | 60 months (Ronda) 38 hours (Sellita) |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, seconds, date |
| Availability | Now |
| Price | US$645 (quartz) US$995 (automatic) |
Made in partnership with Lōcī. However, the opinions expressed in this article are our own in accordance with our Editorial Policy.