At Baselworld 2016, Hamilton Watch Co. made a splash — obvious pun definitely intended — with its launch of the Khaki Navy Frogman model, a dive watch inspired by the Swiss-made, American-roots brand’s history as a provider to military divers. This year, Hamilton follows it up with a less bulky, more sporty and colorful successor: the Khaki Navy Scuba.
To create a more streamlined, less military-industrial look for the Hamilton Khaki Navy Scuba, the brand dispensed with the Frogman’s chunky crown-protection device (which was an echo of the 1951 watch that inspired it) and helium-release valve, scaled the 46-mm case down to a more wrist-friendly 40 mm, and opted for stainless steel rather than titanium for the case material. The Khaki Navy Scuba’s water resistance is a more common (but still impressive) 100 meters as compared to the Frogman’s “extreme” 1,000-meter level. Elements that have been retained include the black dial with luminescent triangular hour markers, the screw-down crown, and the unidirectional rotating bezel, here available in either black with an orange-highlighted sector for the first 15 minutes of dive time (or, on one of the three new models, an all-black dial and rotating bezel). Orange is also used for dial highlights like the central seconds hand and minute track. The date appears in a window at 4:30.
Inside the watch is the same proprietary movement that powers the Khaki Navy Frogman, the automatic Caliber H-10, made by ETA, Hamilton’s sister brand within the Swatch Group and boasting a power reserve of 80 hours. The Hamilton Khaki Navy Scuba comes on either a “soft feel” bicolor NATO strap (black exterior, orange underside) with a pin buckle or on a a triple-row stainless steel bracelet with a smart-adjusting folding clasp. Prices start at just 695 Swiss francs, or about $700 — not too deep a plunge for a Swiss-made divers’ watch with a self-winding mechanical movement.
I think it’s a winner!