Many times, when a watch brand espouses their deep historical roots, you have to look at things through some major rose-colored lens to see it how the brand sees it. Then you?ve got Hamilton, who actually was doing what they claim to be doing. Which makes things like this new Hamilton Khaki Field Titanium Auto calling back to their history, well, believable.
What do I mean by that? Well, let me just pop in here their own words:
Hamilton supplied watches, timepieces, timers and precision instruments to the U.S. military during the Second World War. In 1942, we halted all consumer production to ensure we could supply the huge number of watches required by troops. From 1942-1945, Hamilton delivered more than one million watches, earning five Army-Navy ?E? Awards for manufacturing excellence.
So, yeah, Hamilton probably knows a thing or two about military watches.
Now, I?m not saying they went back to the original tooling or anything like that, but there are probably designs in the archive they are able to reference, and flip into these newer designs. Of course, having something housed in titanium during WWII wouldn?t have happened, but that?s the benefit of living in the modern era – classic designs updated with the material science advances.
Not only that, with this Hamilton Khaki Field Titanium Auto you get an automatic movement that?s capable of an 80-hour power reserve. In other words, you could be lying in the foxhole for over 3 days without moving, and this watch would still be keeping the time. This drives a simple three-hander display. This fits in with the overall design theme, as field watches are tools meant to be used out in, well, the field. Legibility and functionality are paramount. Then again, these days you?re probably not putting the watch through what the WWII folks did, and that?s the concession there in a soft-touch leather strap.
For this new Hamilton Khaki Field Titanium Auto, there are two versions available – there?s one in a ?raw? finish for $945 with a silver dial and green lume, or a PVD-coated one for $995 with a black dial and beige lume. Hitting near a $1000 for a three-hander feels a touch steep to me, even for the titanium and 80-hour movement, but I?ve no doubt that these will find fans. HamiltonWatch.com
Watch Overview
- Brand & Model: Hamilton Khaki Field Titanium Auto
- Price: $945 (bare) / $995 (PVD)
- Who we think it might be for: You want a simple, lightweight watch with an actual military pedigree
- Would I buy one for myself based on what I?ve seen? Eh, probably not.
- What spoke to me the most about this watch: It hews to the classic look while silently upgrading the materials and movement
Tech Specs from Hamilton
- REFERENCE: H70545550 (bare) / H70665533 (PVD)
- STRAP REF.: H600.705.125
- STRAP MATERIAL: Brown Leather
- CALIBER
- H-10 with 80-hour power reserve
- Automatic
- CASE
- Titanium
- 42 mm (diameter)
- 11.45 mm (thickness)
- 20mm (lug width)
- WATER RESISTANCE: 10 bar / (100m)
- DIAL
- Black hour and minute hands with beige Super-LumiNova?, black second hand with red tip (PVD model)
- Black hour and minute hands with green Super-LumiNova?, black second hand with red tip (bare model)
- CRYSTAL: Sapphire
