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Hamilton Khaki Field - Gnomon’s Collection
The adventurous touch for outdoor person
Dec 19, 2020
Introduction: Hamilton Khaki Field
There is no shortage of competent field watches out there, but the value that Hamilton is offering with its new version of the classic Khaki Field watch is worthy of attention. It’s not as attention-grabbing as the brand’s digital PSR revival, but for the buyer looking for an everyday field watch that is legible, finished well, and lightweight, while being under the $1,000 mark — this piece should be on the short list. That simple combination of classic, traditional style with contemporary materials and movement is a defining characteristic of Hamilton, and it’s not hard to see why it does so well.
Measuring 42mm-wide, the case of the Hamilton Field Khaki is a pretty ideal size, though most people will be yearning for something closer to 40mm. That said, the light weight of the case here makes it pretty easy to forget there’s even anything on the wrist (titanium plus a non-bracelet strap often has this result). The lug-to-lug measurement comes in at just about exactly 51mm, which isn’t small, by any means, but the lack of a bezel and long-ish lugs doesn’t make it wear particularly large. The rule of thumb is that a watch shouldn’t excessively hang over or under the wrist when you look down at it, and the Khaki Field is a snug fit on my 7.5 inch wrist.
The case is clean and simple. Aesthetics aside, it’s resilient, weighs basically nothing, and has a robust 100M water resistance. Hard to complain about much, frankly.
There are two dial variants, with the gray/silver dial model seen here. The other version is black PVD-coated with a matching black dial.
The dials appear to be simple at first glance, but Hamilton did some nice work on the dial. Between the outermost seconds track and innermost 24-hour track is a guilloché ring housing the large, legible, and lumed hour numerals. It’s nothing flashy but adds just enough visual variety and a bit of texture. Let’s also not forget the removal of the date window from previous iterations, which awkwardly cut into the 3 o’clock hour marker, as well as making the “15” on the 24-hour track off-center with the other numerals.
Easy to read and contrasting well against the dial, the syringe-shaped hour and minute hands could probably stand to be a smidgen longer, though they nailed the arrow-tipped seconds hand. Having good anti-reflective coating over the sapphire crystal goes a long way in helping legibility, as well.
Through the exhibition caseback, you can see that tried and tested H-10 movement (essentially a modified ETA 2824) made possible by Hamilton’s owner, the Swatch Group. We can see how the 42mm case of the watch is nearing the upper limit for the H-10 movement by the size of the sapphire on the caseback, but it’s a decently finished movement and it’s hard to argue with an 80-hour power reserve.
Below is the Gnomon’s recommendation for Hamilton Khaki Field series
Hamilton Khaki Field King Auto Silver - Leather Ref. H64455523
Today, we would like to offer outdoor Khaki collection- a timeless epoch under their belt since 1914, a continuation of their military history in the design of form follows function. This Khaki collection is the epitome of best value Swiss manufacturing timepieces today. Strong history known that radiates robustness and reliability, no wonder even from elite collectors to those starting their watch collecting journey, would still favor and appreciate a solidly built all-rounder watch that Khaki watch provides.
The Khaki Field King Automatic Silver Ref. H64455523 sets forth as a perfect example of what we just mentioned above. The Khaki Field King is a tribute to its military pedigree, much like their MIL-W-46374 spec watch produced specifically for use by navigators in the U.S. Air Force during the 60s and 70s, while their field watch dates back even earlier during World War 2 in the 1940s.
This particular version sets forth where it is designed to be the perfect combination of a vintage piece with modern technology. Measuring wittily at 40mm wide and 11.15mm in height, a combination of both brushed and polished stainless steel throughout the case mimics the typical sporty yet with beautiful contrast. Further, at 40mm, the Khaki Field King Auto bears 50m water resistant and wears exceptionally well and versatile from most of our wrists, both for men and women.
Further, the case features a domed sapphire crystal accentuating above the thick polished bezel. Paired on the opposite side with a screw-in exhibition case back with essentials specifications engraved onto it. The flanged crown has knurling on it, done with the right size for one to wind the watch up with ease.
Moving onto its silver-ish military-spec dial, it is done and conformed to look precisely like the MIL-W-46374, while let us described it like how Eminem rhymes his selective words with his instrumental bars- uncluttered, vintage, utilitarian, soldier-ly, and versatile. The dial took the ode-to-the-past aesthetic, like, for instance, the vintage looking silver colour that only bears the “Hamilton” and “Khaki Automatic” titles on the dial, keeping the sterile look with simple 12 and 24-hour military scales, syringe hands, and all of them done with luminous.
There is both day and date display done nicely at the top, resulting in the legibility of the field watch while keeping things balanced symmetrically. Strapping the Khaki Field King Auto to the wrist, one can conclude the built for function above all things and built to last like during wartime, while most of us believed only to do from desk-diving to cafe hopping to be our daily activities.
The Khaki Field King Auto Silver Ref. H64455523 is powered by its automatic Caliber H-40, which is a tweaked 25-jewel ETA day/date displays with center seconds movement. The main tweak has the power reserve pumped up to 80 hours while having the frequency of the balance slowed from 4Hz to 3Hz, or from 28,800 beats per hour to 21,600bph.
Further, the mainspring got lengthened due to the reduction of the barrel arbor’s core. This allows a longer power reserve benefiting a hand-wound movement, with the lower beat-rate reminds one of an old school hand cranker found on vintage military watches. With all this said, Hamilton truly is the few that can produce such movement upgrade on a large scale and further being well priced.
Hamilton paired the Khaki Field King Auto Silver Ref. H64455523 with a 20mm sturdy brown calf leather strap with matching brown color keepers that goes oh so well with the silver dial, making it suitable for all occasions and conditions.
The Khaki Field King Auto Silver Ref. H64455523 is a captivating reissue in terms of its back-to-the-those-days military aesthetics and dimensions. It looks so period-correct that this particular model features a throwback of their military timepiece with the practicality of both automatic winding and calendar display. Anyone looking for a sporty evergreen field-watch vibe with its impeccable build quality and upgraded movement, for the money, Hamilton made the Swiss-made Khaki Field King Auto unrivaled in its price segment and attractive for all tiers of watch-lovers.
We believe adding Hamilton Khaki Field King Auto Silver Ref. H64455523 to your collection will bring much joy and luxury value. Get yours one now in Gnomon Store!
Hamilton Khaki Field Mechanical Officer Handwinding Green 38 Ref. H69439363
The Khaki Field Mechanical Officer Handwinding Green 38 Ref. H69439363 sets forth as a perfect example of what we just mentioned above. The Khaki Field Mechanical is a tribute to its military pedigree, precisely like their MIL-W-46374 spec watch produced specifically for use by navigators in the U.S. Air Force during the 60s and 70s, while their field watch dates back even earlier during World War 2 in the 1940s. This particular version sets forth where it is designed to be the perfect combination of a vintage piece with modern technology.
Measuring wittily at 38mm wide and 9.5mm in height, the stainless steel case is done in matte sandblasted tone to mimic the original finishing during the days to minimize reflections coming from polished surfaces. Further, at 38mm, the Khaki Field Mechanical bears 50m water resistant and wears exceptionally well and versatile from most of our wrists, both for men and women.
Ok, we have to strongly emphasize the practicality of having a drilled-lug hole on-field watch’s case, and this Khaki Field Mechanical nails it through and through, this allows the wearer to swap in and out for the enjoyment of pairing new kicks (straps we meant) on it to fit one’s mood. Further, the case features a domed sapphire crystal and screw-in case back with essentials specifications engraved onto it. The crown has knurling on it, done with the right size for one to wind the watch up with ease.
Moving onto its military-spec dial, it is done and conformed to look precisely like the MIL-W-46374, while let us described it like how Eminem rhymes his selective words with his instrumental bars- uncluttered, vintage, utilitarian, soldier-ly, and versatile. Further, the “Hamilton” and “Khaki Mechanical” words are well spread on the dial, balancing with the simple 12 and 24-hour military scales, luminous syringe hands, and done in vintage khaki green color, no pun intended here.
A date display is done on the right side for full practicality reason while the dial stays balanced symmetrically. Strapping the Khaki Mechanical Officer to the wrist, one can conclude the built for function above all things and built to last like during wartime, while most of us believed only to do from desk-diving to cafe hopping to be our daily activities.
The Khaki Field Mechanical Officer Handwinding Green 38 Ref. H69439363 is powered by its Caliber H-50, which is a tweaked 17-jewel ETA 2801-2 hand-wound center seconds movement. The main tweak has the power reserve pumped up to 80 hours while having the frequency of the balance slowed from 4Hz to 3Hz, or from 28,800 beats per hour to 21,600bph.
Further, the mainspring got lengthened due to the reduction of the barrel arbor’s core. This allows a longer power reserve benefiting a hand-wound movement, with the lower beat-rate reminds one of an old school hand cranker found on vintage military watches. With all this said, Hamilton truly is the few that can produce such movement upgrade on a large scale and further being well priced.
Hamilton Khaki Field Mechanical Officer Handwinding Green 38 Ref. H69439363 is available on Gnomon Store.
Hamilton Khaki Field Auto Chronograph Jack Ryan Edition Ref. H71626735
The revered Hamilton Khaki remains one of the finest "field style" watches with its retro military look and adaptations to the modern male aesthetic. Over the years, Hamilton has produced an endless variety of Khaki models, and the larger Hamilton Khaki collection today includes watches that you might not have traditionally incorporated into the Khaki watch family. The Hamilton Khaki Field Auto Chrono is one that is new and arguably suits the historical concept of what Hamilton Khaki should be.
This is one of the few less common, but good, versions of the Khaki chronograph. Most of the Hamilton Khaki models are three-handed. There's nothing wrong with that, but if you're adding additional complications to the mix, then a chronograph makes the most sense.
In this section, we will look at two different Hamilton Khaki Field Auto Chrono models. There's the all-black reference H71626735 with a more modern look, and the classic H71616535 reference with a nubuck-style brown strap and brown accents on the black dial.
Each watch comes in a 42mm wide steel case, but the all-black case of the model is PVD coated in black. The case is 14.5 mm thick and water resistant up to 100 meters. At the rear of the case is a display window offering views of the Hamilton-caliber H-21 automatic chronograph.
Given Hamilton's placement in the Swatch Group which also has ETA movement producers, Hamilton can get exclusive movements. The H-21 is a modified version of the Valjoux 7750 automatic chronograph, with relatively simple décor, although you can see the repeating "H" pattern on the bridge under the rotor that you will find on the movement on some Hamilton watches. The H-21 increased its power reserve to 60 hours from about 42 hours - giving the watch less power than a day's reserve, but it did help the movement stand out a little. Hamilton also decided to remove the running seconds indicator which usually stands at 9 o'clock - leaving only two chronograph subdials for the hours and minutes.
Such a design decision allows for a more symmetrical display of the dial, but reduces functionality slightly. What is actually the most unusual is that this watch displays a full day and date window, but not running seconds - which is an unusual layout to say the least. If you really want to measure seconds, then you can just use the chronograph feature.
Hamilton uses his classic Khaki hands and face, which combine Arabic hour numerals with hour markers. Some versions of Hamilton Khaki Field Auto Chrono actually give the look of a pilot's watch more, but this black and brown layout at least the H71616535 reference makes for a worthy winning design. On the dial is a flat AR-plated sapphire crystal.
Certain people really like black or all-black watches, and for them the Hamilton Khaki Field Auto Chrono H71626735 in all its dark tones (except for a hint of red on the chronograph seconds hand) is appealing for its classic aesthetics and proportions. Hamilton matches it with a textured black leather strap which definitely has a cool look, and it turns out that there is also a rubber strap in the box. More "khaki" colors certainly offer a more timeless look when it comes to the Khaki watch collection, but in an all black form this makes for a masculine and refined contemporary fashion statement.
Feel the luxury and adventurous touch on your wrist. Get Hamilton Khaki Field Auto Chrono H71626735 now on Gnomon Store!
