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Timeless watches remain a core accessory for men, but how they’re used has changed over time. Like divers and field watches, the average pilot watch likely won’t be used for its original purpose, but that doesn’t mean its features don’t come in handy for day-to-day use. Designed for the cockpit, many pilot watches have large, legible numerals and features like lume that make them easy to read, like this popular under-$300 Citizen watch that’s now even more affordable.
The Citizen Eco-Drive 3-Hand Avion Watch is on a limited-time sale on Amazon for just $159—36% off the typical $250 price. Citizen’s watches are trusted yet affordable, and the Avion watch is no different. This stylishly rugged timepiece has earned over 2,400 five-star ratings from shoppers who love it for its refined intricacies and wear-anytime style.
Citizen Eco-Drive 3-Hand Avion Watch, $159 (was $250) on Amazon
The face is handsome yet detail-rich, featuring numbers for minutes and hours in both 12- and 24-hour formats. A three-hand design lets you keep time to the second, and there’s also a date window at the 3 o’clock position. The case is a hefty 45mm, so it may not suit the most slender wrists, but the relatively thin case keeps it from feeling too bulky. It comes with a substantial leather strap with contrasting stitching for a rugged look. Citizen’s solar-powered Eco-Drive tech recharges the battery with light, but it doesn’t necessarily need to sit in the sun; it can recharge using indoor lighting, too. The hands have lume, although the numerals don’t, so it may not be the top pick for low-light settings.
Shoppers were impressed with the aesthetics of the watch. One shopper called it the “perfect mix of ruggedness and elegance,” adding that it’s “very refined.” Another shopper dubbed it “classy and timeless” and appreciated the “clean lines” and lack of “garish” details.
Other shoppers appreciated the functionality of the Eco-Drive tech and the watch’s timekeeping ability. One shopper said it’s “as accurate as any quartz watch I have ever owned.” They noted, “You don’t have to worry about changing batteries every year or two,” and added, “Wearing this watch outside for one day a week is enough to keep it ‘charged’ up and ready to go.”
Despite the prevalence of smartwatches and phones, a wristwatch is arguably the best distraction-free way to keep time. For under $200, Citizen’s Eco-Drive 3-Hand Date Avion Watch marries form and function thanks to its attractive, classic look and convenient and remarkably accurate solar-powered quartz movement. As a limited-time deal, this sale won’t last long, so you’ll want to act quickly to take advantage of the savings.
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The dorky-chic look of Ironman watches might come with a dose of 80s and 90s nostalgia, but Timex’s rugged models are still getting plenty of use today. No watch better embodies Timex’s slogan “they still take a licking and keep on ticking” than the Ironman line, designed as part of Timex’s sponsorship of the Ironman triathlon in Hawaii. The grueling event combines swimming, cycling, and running, and the namesake watch is appropriately tough.
The Timex Ironman Classic 30 is on sale at Amazon for a price that’s reminiscent of the 90s, too. Typically available for around $60, Amazon has a limited-time deal on several colors of these watches, dropping the price to under $30. It’s backed by nearly 40 years of history and over 13,000 five-star ratings on Amazon. Since it’s a limited-time deal, you’ll want to act fast. Fortunately, with quick delivery, you don’t have to run (or cycle, or swim) to get it.
This watch features five buttons for easy control of the wide range of features, including the Start/Split button on the front of the face. Swimmer-friendly features include a stopwatch with 30-lap memory and 100-meter water resistance. It’s suited to swimming and surfing, though it’s not designed for scuba diving. There’s also a countdown timer and up to three alarms, and the face displays the day, date, and month. Globe-trotters will appreciate that up to three time zones can be added.
One of the best features is Indiglo, found on the brand’s digital and analog watches. While many watches only light from the corner, Indiglo lights the entire face, making it easy to read in any condition. The design is chunky but, unlike many sports watches, it’s not bulky. The 38mm design works with different wrist sizes, while the adjustable resin strap is comfortable during sweaty workouts.
The watch packs in plenty of features useful to athletes without the extraneous features of a smartwatch. One shopper wrote that the “durable watch” had “all the functions a runner ever needs without distractions.”
The Ironman has also been compared favorably to Casio and G-Shock, with one shopper writing, “I bought the Ironman Classic 30 and a Casio F91W. Both have their uses and I’d recommend either, but I think the Ironman is hands down a better watch.” Another shopper wrote, “Owning a number of Casio digital watches, I was pleasantly surprised by the comfort and ease of use of this Timex Ironman.”
Since this watch is likely to be used on-the-go, quick access to the features is an important requirement and one that shoppers felt the watch met. One wrote, “Easy to operate, small enough so that it doesn’t feel weighty on your wrist, and a very reasonable price.” Another said, “I use most of the functions in the course of a day,” citing the timer and stopwatch as helpful in the kitchen and the hourly chime to mark the passing of time.
If you’re looking for a functional watch for workouts and everyday wear, consider picking up Timex’s Ironman while it’s half-off. You’ll need to act fast because the limited-time deal won’t last long.
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Apple has become the dominant player in the wearables market. But there are good reasons to look elsewhere, especially if you’re looking for specific data and better battery life. Many athletes love Garmin for its in-depth health and fitness tracking.
Unsurprisingly, Garmin’s best tech comes at a steep price. But right now, Garmin’s Venu 3 is discounted to $400, a $50 savings. It’s still an investment, but for those in the market for a smartwatch who prioritize industry-leading health-tracking, convenient smartphone compatibility, and unbeatable battery life, it can be a worthwhile investment to make. Two colorways are available, and this deal ends on Feb. 16.
Garmin Venu 3 in Slate/Black, $400 (was $450) at REI
As a GPS brand with a fitness-focused approach, Garmin’s wearables are arguably less streamlined than tech-first brands like Apple or Samsung. Reviewers and customers have mentioned a learning curve with the user experience, but once you’re familiar, you can take advantage of the sheer number of health and tech features Garmin offers.
Garmin’s Venu 3 features over 30 custom workouts and sports, allowing you to track specific activities. In addition to the heart rate monitor, the watch has a pulse oximeter to measure blood oxygen, and it tracks daily steps, including those up flights of stairs. It’s designed for wheelchair users, too, and is capable of measuring arm pushes instead of steps. There are features designed specifically for cyclists and runners, and it’s suited to swimmers as well.
Garmin Venu 3 in Silver/Whitestone, $400 (was $450) at REI
A standout feature of the Venu 3 is sleep tracking. Many wearables offer sleep tracking, but Garmin monitors not only quantity but quality. In addition to hours slept, it can tell you how restful your sleep was and offer recommendations for improvement. The watch automatically starts tracking naps, too, so you get a better picture of your overall rest and recovery.
As for smartwatch features, the Venu 3 features a mic and speaker, allowing you to take calls directly from the watch. The watch can pair with wireless earbuds and is capable of saving music to the device through apps like Spotify. Plus, you can activate your voice assistant to reply to messages.
The Venu 3 offers up to 14 days of battery life on a charge. Battery life varies greatly depending on use, especially when using all of the tracking features or GPS. But compared to Apple’s stated 36 hours, Garmin’s Venu is a substantial leap.
Shoppers were impressed with the watch, including users who had come from competitors like Apple and Fitbit. One wrote, “I ditched my Apple Watch for the Venu 3 and I’m so glad I did,” adding, “I love all of the features, the style, app integration, etc!!” Another switched from Fitbit to Garmin, writing, “I decided to go with Garmin instead of Apple because the Venu 3 has 7- to 10-day battery life where the Apple watch has at most 36 hours.”
If you’re looking to take control of your health and fitness goals, Garmin’s Venu 3 makes it easier. For $50 off, it’s also easier on your financial health, but this deal ends on Feb. 16, so act fast.
Men’s Journal aims to feature only the best products and services. If you buy something via one of our links, we may earn a commission.
Everyone knows that Rolex makes quality luxury watches that are lusted after and that Omega has a cool watch that once went to the moon on an astronaut. But for newbies to the watch collecting scene, or guys that want to branch out from their tried-and-true brands, it can be difficult to suss out just what watch from popular brands—across the watch spectrum from tough digitals to handsome mechanicals—will be right for your wrist. Hence our annual Watch Guide, which spans a wide range of watch brands and activities that can be enhanced with the help of a trusty watch at hand, and aims to give you the guidance and direction to buy your next favorite watch.
How to Buy a Great Watch
The first thing to know about watches is that anyone can get into them in a way that’s fulfilling at any budget level. It’s easy to get intimidated by videos of people handling watches with white gloves and using unnecessarily flowery or rigid language to talk about them. But the higher up you go seeking advice from respected collectors, the simpler their advice gets: Buy what you love.
Now, if what you love is a vintage Paul Newman Daytona, then following this advice is easier said than done. So, a better goal may be buying what you love within your budget. There are cool and interesting watches at every level, and there will always be a watch you want but can’t or don’t have, so enjoy the watch of right now.
If we had to pick a best overall watch to point you toward, it would be the classic, stylish, and high-quality Omega Speedmaster Professional. It’s an investment piece you could leave to your kids, or bribe your way out of a war zone in a pinch. For those on a smaller budget, but also enamored with watches that went to the moon, we also whole-heartedly endorse our runner-up, the Bulova Lunar Pilot. The finish and details on this watch make it able to hang with virtually any luxury Swiss sports watch out there—in every way but price.
Watch Styles
Once you’re immune to watch world pretentiousness and are ready to embrace the coolest watch in your budget, then it’s time to decide what kind of watch you’re into. Do you want the utilitarian look of a dive watch, the military aesthetic of a field watch, a racing chronograph with subdials, a pilot watch, a dress watch, or something totally different? Explore the different genres and have fun with the search.
In an era when our phones can automatically adjust to any time zone in the world with perfect accuracy, and grant us access to the knowledge of mankind, you don’t really need a watch to do anything other than tell you the time (to keep you from looking at your phone) and to feel good on your wrist. That said, know that buying fashion watches is best avoided. This category refers to any watches branded with a fashion label instead of a watch brand, and with the notable exception of Hermès watches, fashion watches are the equivalent of costume jewelry.
How to Pick a Watch Size
Once you’ve decided on the style of watch you’re looking for, determine what sizes will look best on your wrist—36mm was once a standard men’s watch size but would now be considered the smallest that most men would wear. A 45mm watch, meanwhile, will dwarf a smaller wrist and look awkward. For most men’s wrists, 38mm to 42mm is usually the sweet spot.
Go try on watches at a store, or if that’s not possible, many watch websites now have virtual try-ons so you can take a picture of your wrist with your phone and then see the watch on your arm on your computer. This is not ideal, though, because the thickness of a watch is a big part of how big it feels, but at least you can see the width and the lug-to-lug distance—i.e., the distance from the lugs that hold the strap above 12 o’clock to the lugs that hold it below 6 o’clock.
Lug-to-lug is an important dimension because if a watch is narrow but has a long lug-to-lug distance, it can feel larger than you’d expect based on the width alone. Similarly, if a watch is neither wide nor long on lug-to-lug but is extremely thick, it can feel bigger than expected.
Watch Movements
You will hear a lot about movements. The movement, or caliber (often spelled calibre), is the system of gears and springs that run the hands and complications of a watch. They can be automatic or self-winding, where a weight inside the watch winds a spring that powers the movement. Or manual-winding, where the wearer winds the spring every day or every few days to keep it going. They can be quartz movements, where a battery powers the gears and you change it every few years, or solar quartz, where it gets its power from sunlight and never needs winding or a battery change. If pure functionality were the goal, then even the finest watches would probably be solar quartz, but pure functionality takes a back seat to tradition in watch collecting.
Broadly speaking, the best watch movements are made in Switzerland and Japan. As mentioned above, mechanical watches are more coveted by collectors than quartz watches. But often this preference is overblown by people just getting into watches and wanting to appear savvy by affecting a disdain for anything that isn’t mechanical. Even serious watch collectors respect quartz when it’s the right movement in the right watch. Here’s what else to look for:
Manufacture Caliber or In-house Movement These are movements made by the watch companies themselves. These are generally found on higher-end watches like Rolex and Omega, but more affordable in-house movements can be found with a handful of brands, such as Oris, Seiko, and Yema.
Third-party movements made by Sellita from Switzerland or Miyota from Japan are very common, and typically less expensive while still being respected and reliable. A primary benefit of an in-house movement is the freedom of a custom fit. Whereas, if you’re a watchmaker using a third-party movement, certain specs of your watch case have to match to specs of the movement or else it won’t fit.
Master Chronometer
This is a certification of the accuracy of a watch. Phonically this is easy to confuse with the word “chronograph”—a type of watch usually designed for racing that has subdials that act as a stopwatch for measuring minutes, seconds, and fractions of seconds while the main watch hands continue to function as normal.
Some chronograph watches are certified master chronometers, but any watch can be a master chronometer if it passes the certification. That said, this certification is primarily a sales tool for luxury watch companies, because a far less expensive watch with a radio-connected solar quartz movement would still put any master chronometer automatic to shame.
Why Get Into Watch Collecting?
Watches can be a good investment, but passion should be the driving force behind your choice of watch, not social status or potential ROI. Watches are the closest thing to jewelry most men will wear on a daily basis other than their wedding rings, so why not make a meal of it?
Watch history is human history because time has always been the most valuable asset we have. Through watches you can learn about wars, sporting triumphs, trips to the moon and to the depths of the ocean. Just don’t get caught up in obsessing over specs to sound smart or to find a way to justify a large purchase—and always remember that the most important thing is to buy what you love, within the budget that you can afford. Focus on the value that you give a watch through the way it makes you feel, and the journeys and experiences you have while wearing it. In the eyes of the beholder, a Timex passed down from a father can be worth more than a Rolex in the window of a boutique.
Why You Should Trust Us
To build this year’s Watch Guide, we assembled the best of our longtime writers who’ve covered luxury, style and adventure for Men’s Journal. Plus, these writers—Stinson Carter, Nicholas McClelland, Christopher Friedmann, and Justin Park—have a particular and long-standing love and obsession for those handy timepieces that attach snugly to your wrist.
Watches—digital or analog or even smart—are true miniature marvels of engineering that any of us can acquire and wear and lust over, no matter the price. Our top watch writers took on the impressive task to bring you this year’s Watch Guide, and we hope that their many years of experience writing about men’s lifestyle products and pursuits shine through thoroughout this buyer’s guide.
Read on and enjoy, your next watch obsession may just lurk behind these links.
Bulova continues to make superb contemporary watches and vintage inspired pieces worthy of admiration for their high quality and relative affordability. We especially love our best overall pick, the Oceanographer “Devil Diver,”a fun and funky cushion-case dive watch they recently revived from their archives.
We gathered up the best Citizen watches, from entry level timepieces that cost a few hundred bucks to stunners that cost a few thousand dollars. And our best overall pick, the “Tsuyosa” Automatic, is sure get a few looks from strangers.
The G-Shock watch is a tough cult classic. For the best out there, we give the nod to the light, tough, and titanium Full Metal GMW-B500. But it doesn’t stop there. We rounded up six more of the most trustworthy options that will stand the test of time.
While Movado watches skew toward the more affordable and entry-level, they have more than a few fans out there. That includes us, especially of the Movado Alta Se Automatic Chronograph, our best overall pick of the Movado watches.
With options from high-tech divers to classy dress watches to sporty everyday options, their timepieces are known for being affordable, dependable, sturdy, and well-crafted. The Seiko Prospex Sea 1965 Diver, our best overall pick, embodies that ethos as it’s a recreation of their famous 1965 diver.
In today’s world of athlete celebrities, if you want to be considered a bona fide star, you need the watch collection to match. After all, the bigger the collection, the bigger the star, right? Here are the pro athletes with the best watch collections.
For those of us who don’t have the opportunity to throw down tens of thousands of dollars on a Rolex or the latest Richard Mille, there are still quality watches available, especially for under $500, like our overall pick, the Seiko 5 Sports SKX watch. It’s a high-quality, stainless-steel automatic that’s water resistant up to 100 meters.
You can finally find watches under $1,000 that you’ll own for a lifetime—timepieces that are their own pinnacles of watch collecting. The best watch under $1,000, the echo/neutra Averau, is our favorite as the Italian-designed, Swiss-made moon phase watch is in a class of its own.
Our favorites adventure watches are long-lasting, stylish, and pack in easy-to-use features that enhance your time outdoors instead of forcing you to focus on tech when you’re heading outside to unplug. For those reasons, the Garmin Fenix 7X Pro – Sapphire Solar Edition is our top overall pick.
For watch lovers, dive watches are an alluring way to tell the time—their simple designs look cool and are instantly legible. Plus, divers are mechanically over-engineered to take a beating, so you can knock them around a fair bit without much worry, which is why the Rolex Submariner is our top overall pick for best dive watch.
The wristwatch had become an essential piece of frontline gear by WWII and makers around the world were creating simple, functional field watches specifically for military use—a tradition that continues to this day. That’s why the Rolex Explorer is our best overall pick for the best field watch—it’s one of the most rugged and capable timepieces ever made.
While smartwatches can’t do everything your phone does, they’re close, bringing in loads of health, fitness, and safety features that make them a great complement to your phone. We found that the Google Pixel 2, which works for Apple and Android users, is the best of the bunch.
Field watches are perhaps the least understood category of tool watches, partially because there are no precise requirements. The first versions were pocket watches converted to wrist pieces by soldiers in the trenches and on the battlefield during the first World War—grunts had a hard time trying to pluck a watch from inside their jackets while aiming down a barrel.
By WWII, the wristwatch had become an essential piece of frontline gear and a number of makers around the world were creating simple, functional pieces specifically for military use, which is a tradition that continues to this day. That’s why the Rolex Explorer is our best overall pick for the best field watch—it’s one of the most rugged and capable timepieces ever made.
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What Is a Field Watch?
Field watches are essentially tough as nails and easy to read. Most examples deploy large numbers and hands coated in luminous paint for low light visibility. Another key feature is a stop-seconds function for synchronizing with others or against a reference time ala an atomic clock. Some display a 24-hour ring for tracking military (a.k.a. Zulu) time. Typically, they don’t offer delicate complications (extra functions) since they can be easily damaged and difficult to repair.
It’s that simplicity coupled with their rugged, utilitarian nature as well as their minimalist design that make field watches great for wearing day to day, whether you’re climbing a via ferrata or just hiking off to work.
So, for anyone looking for a great field watch to add to their collection, here are 10 of our favorite options to consider.
Why You Should Trust Me
I’ve been collecting watches for nearly as long as I’ve been able to tell time. Around the age of 10, I started disassembling pocket watches to see what makes them tick. Today, I feel naked if I accidentally leave the house without a watch on my wrist—so I’ll go back and get one. (Is it horology or is it OCD, only my shrink knows for sure.) Currently my cache includes a variety of vintage and contemporary pieces from micro brands to G-Shock. Most days I wear an Explorer II (Ref. 226570) but my grandmother’s Mickey Mouse watch will always be my favorite.
Rolex Explorer 36 (Ref. 124270)
Courtesy Image
Best Overall Field Watch: Rolex Explorer
Probably the most important quality in a field watch is reliability, something the Rolex Explorer has in spades. The bidirectional self-winding 3230 movement is accurate to -2 and +2 seconds per day and is protected from impact by high performance shock absorbers. The Explorer is available in both 36mm and 40mm sizes and like the other Rolex professional models, the Oystersteel case and bracelet are highly corrosion resistant. It will keep on keeping even in the toughest of environments. All in all, it’s one of the most rugged, capable timepieces ever made and perhaps the ultimate go anywhere, do anything watch.
CASE: Stainless steel
MOVEMENT: Rolex 3230
DIAL: Black
SIZE: 36mm, 40mm
STRAP: Stainless-steel bracelet
Tudor Ranger
Courtesy Image
Best Automatic Field Watch: Tudor Ranger
Sure, Tudor’s Black Bay banks more hype but don’t sleep on the Ranger. It’s a boss-level field watch from the house of Wilsdorf. Want to go swimming? No problem, it’s good for 100 meters, which is deeper than most of us will ever go. The self-winding, in-house MT5402 caliber is good for 70 hours on the nightstand and it comes with a five-year warranty, just like big brother Rolex. Trust us, it’s handy. While field watches aren’t typically worn on a bracelet, Tudor makes a great one. We’d buy it that way and throw it on a strap when we head into the great outdoors.
CASE: Stainless steel
MOVEMENT: Tudor MT5402
DIAL: Black
SIZE: 39mm
STRAP: Nylon, leather, stainless-steel bracelet
Christopher Ward C65 Sandhurst Bronze Series 2
Courtesy Image
Best Military-Style Field Watch: Christopher Ward C65 Sandhurst Bronze Series 2
The cool thing about bronze is that it will develop a unique patina over time whether you wear it hiking through the woods or camped out at your office desk. Christopher Ward got the sign off from the British Ministry of Defense for this 38mm tribute to the 1969 Smiths W10 field watch of yore. The updated piece features arrow hands coated in gold and filled with Super-LumiNova while old radium BL grade X1 lume is applied to the indexes and dots above the Arabic numerals as well as the triangle at 12 o’clock. Inside beats a Swiss-made, chronometer-certified version of the Sellita SW200-1, which means it’s good for a 0 and +5 seconds per day variance. A screw down crown helps give the watch 150 meters of water resistance and the back is stamped with the British Army’s logo.
CASE: Bronze
MOVEMENT: Sellita SW200-1
DIAL: Black
SIZE: 38mm
STRAP: Canvas
Hamilton Khaki Field Watch
Courtesy Image
Best EDC Field Watch: Hamilton Khaki Field Watch
Hamilton makes their archetypical Khaki Field Watch in both 42mm and the more traditional 38mm size. Either way it’s one of the coolest watches in the brand’s catalog. Both feature a classic dial design and hand-wound, time-only movement that is good for around 80 hours with a fully charged mainspring. The stainless-steel case and sapphire crystal combination yield 50 meters of water resistance. You get the choice of nylon NATO, leather strap or bracelet. We’d go with the bracelet, which goes against the grain with field watches. But NATO straps are cheap and good bracelets at this price point are hard to find.
CASE: Stainless steel
MOVEMENT: Hamilton H-50
DIAL: Black, white
SIZE: 38mm, 42mm
STRAP: Nylon, leather, stainless-steel bracelet
More Field Watches We Love
Best Stylish Field Watch: Seiko 5 Sports Field Watch
Courtesy Seiko
It’s shocking how much watch Seiko offers for the money. This field watch boasts an automatic movement with 41 hours of power reserve and a day-date calendar. Plus, the 39mm case is water resistant to 100 meters. On the dial, luminous hands and markers tick around Arabic numerals marking the hours in both standard and military time. It’s an affordable, stylish option that stands out in a crowded field.
CASE: Stainless steel
MOVEMENT: Seiko Caliber 4R36
DIAL: Gray
SIZE: 39.4mm
STRAP: Nylon
Best Titanium Field Watch on a Budget: Timex Expedition North Titanium Automatic
Courtesy Timex
It’s hard to argue against a titanium, automatic watch for under $400. And this Timex also gives the wearer a sapphire crystal, plus a screw-down crown and case back yielding 200m of water resistance. The textured, gray dial displays the time in larger numerals painted in Super LumiNova with a date window at 3 o’clock. In a nod to sustainability, Timex offers the piece on a recycled plastic strap with a titanium buckle, indisputably making it a slick daily beater.
CASE: Titanium
MOVEMENT: Miyota 8215
DIAL: Gray
SIZE: 41mm
STRAP: Nylon
Best Minimalist Field Watch: Unimatic U2 Classic
Courtesy Unimatic
Anyone who loves minimalist, reductive design, will find Unimatic’s U2 Classic a beguiling addition to their everyday carry. Assembled in Italy, the watch, a.k.a. “Modello Due,” offers a simple, signed dial with sword-style hands and round indexes painted in lume. Inside the time-only piece is powered by a reliable Seiko sourced NH35A automatic movement with a 41-hour power reserve. The 316 solid stainless-steel case lends the watch a diver level of 300 meters water resistance and reaches a svelte 38.5mm in diameter and 12.7mm thick. But the double-domed, anti-reflective sapphire crystal tacks on an additional 2.7mm of girth and the lugs aren’t curved, so it will wear a bit bigger than other watches of similar stature. That won’t fit everyone, but for some it will be just right.
CASE: Stainless steel
MOVEMENT: Seiko NH35A
DIAL: Black
SIZE: 38.5mm
STRAP: Nylon
Best Outdoors Field Watch: Benrus DTU—2A/P
Courtesy Benrus
For those who eschew labels or logos, the dial on this Benrus field watch is unsigned with only numbers and lumed indexes in standard Zulu time. Originally created to serve the U.S. military’s needs, the 39.5mm, bead-blasted 316L stainless steel case houses a Swiss Sellita SW200 automatic movement with a 38-hour power reserve and 50 meters water resistance. As a bonus, the watch comes with a removable compass attached to a NATO strap as an extra tool for the field.
CASE: Stainless steel
MOVEMENT: Sellita SW200
DIAL: Black
SIZE: 39.5mm
STRAP: Nylon
Best Hybrid Field Watch: Sinn 856 UTC
Courtesy Sinn
Sporting a Sinn is a good way to show other collectors and enthusiasts you’re in the know. The German maker is renowned inside the watch community for its bulletproof construction. The 856 UTC is no different. Though technically from their pilot line it still meets all the requirements of a great field watch and then some. The 200 meter-rated case is constructed from bead-blasted, scratch resistant stainless steel. The hour numerals are painted in lume. But beyond time and date, the Sellita automatic movement powers a UTC (a.k.a. GMT hand) to track a second time zone using an interior 24-hour scale on the dial. That hand can also be used as a sort of compass. In the northern hemisphere during daylight hours, one can hold the watch horizontally and point the 12 toward the sun and the UTC hand (set to local time) will point north. That’s a great feature whether you’re flying a plane or overlanding in the wilderness.
CASE: Stainless steel
MOVEMENT: Sellita SW 330-1
DIAL: Black
SIZE: 40mm
STRAP: Leather
Best Field Watch for Flyboys: IWC Pilot’s Watch Automatic Spitfire
Courtesy IWC
Sure, it’s a pilot watch named after an airplane, but the Spitfire also looks just as cool on the ground and makes an exceptional field watch. It’s easy to read, features a ton of lume and is built for a beating. A 39mm case that’s less than 11mm thick wraps an in-house, automatic 32111 caliber with an 120-hour power reserve.
