The brand “Swiss Military Watch” is about as vague as they come, and the name often invokes poor brand recognition with confusion with Victorinox and Wenger among others. However, SMW (Swiss Military Watch) is known for their very rugged military watches that rival Marathon in their quality.

The SMW Commando T25 is a very nicely crafted tactical style diver, with T25 Tritium Tubes used to illuminate the dial when used in dim and low light conditions. For those unfamiliar with tritium tube illumination, it does not require “recharging” like regular superluminova or old-style tritium paint. The tubes constantly glow until they’re dead, which is approximately 25 years.

Here’s the Swiss Military Watch logo above, which is not to be confused with several of the other brands using the “Swiss Military Watch” name.

The Commando features a 44mm case, with an orange aluminum insert bezel reminiscent of the Omega Planet Ocean. While the shape and overall style do not resemble the Planet Ocean, the color combinations and materials do. The flat black dial shows the time very clearly above the beating Swiss Automatic ETA 2824-2 movement.

The watch has all the go-to features that schrewd Watch buyers always look for, and it checks all the right boxes. Sapphire Crystal, check. Swiss ETA Automatic Movement, check. T25 Tritium Tubes, Check. 44mm Larger and Current watch case, check. 200m Water Resistance, check. Swiss Made, check. Good bang for buck? Check!

Overall its a fantastic watch. There’s the shot of the rather unremarkable caseback, perhaps the weakest part of the watch. The caseback is pretty generic, with shallow laser engraving of the logo and other important information such as water resistance, etc. The other important marking is the Limited Edition Numbering, which in this case is a very low production of 200 pieces. The numbering is actually machine engraved, which makes it stand out a bit more. Anyway, the caseback is the least important part of the watch to me, so its not a big deal. Overall, a superb watch for very little money. Much better than the Hamiltons and other similarly priced Swiss Watches.

Specs:
-Diameter appx 44mm – excluding screw-down crown
-Stainless steel case
-Screw-down steel case back
-Fitted with Hirsch black padded, waterproof, leather strap with orange detail stitching – original, unused, black silicone rubber dive stap in box
-Accurate and reliable Swiss ETA 25 jewel automatic movement
-Clear black face with mb microtec H3 gas illumination to hands and markers – glows all night
-Orange sweep second hand
-Sapphire crystal
-Special edition numbered of 200
-Date window at 3-o-clock
-Unidirectional steel bezel with orange insert and lume pip
-Water resistant to 200 metres

BENTLEY LIGHT BODY MIDNIGHT CARBON

Ultra-light, ultra-sporty

Beneath its all-black exterior, the highly original Bentley Light Body Midnight Carbon issued in a 1,000-piece worldwide limited edition conceals a light and sturdy titanium chassis featuring a highly resistant carbon-based coating.

The dashboard-style dial displays two exclusive Breitling technical features highlighted by red-rimmed indications. The ingenious “30-second chronograph” system, heir to a 1926 Breitling patent, with its central hand sweeping around the dial in half a minute instead of the customary 60 seconds, provides highly accurate 1/8th of a second readings. Contrary to conventional tachometers, designed to handle observations based only on times of less than 60 seconds, the “variable tachometer” activated via the rotating pinion bezel serves to measure average speeds whatever the time elapsed, the distance covered or the speed reached. The originality and strength of the all-black design are accentuated by the hands and hour-markers also clad in matt black – enhanced by a luminescent coating ensuring optimal readability in the dark. The midnight black rubber strap is distinguished by its central raised motif echoing that of the knurled bezel – a refined nod to the famous radiator grilles gracing the prow of Bentley cars. The performances of this elegant and ultra-sporty watch are powered by a selfwinding chronograph movement chronometer-certified by the COSC (Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute) – the ultimate reference in terms of reliability and precision and the only one based on an international standard.

I mentioned that I had picked up a Tactico TC2 watch in an earlier article about Crepas, and it has landed! This is a hell of a watch, and much more interesting that I had initially thought. It came in a cool waterproof plastic tube with a screwdown top and reminded me a bit of Doxa but still kind of different.

Here’s the 42mm Tactico TC-2, mounted on the Stainless Steel bracelet. The watch also comes with two custom nylon nato-style straps, one in black and one in vintage that match the dial perfectly. The dial is very clean, and shows the hour, minutes and seconds along with the date. Lume is great, with vintage superluminova that is even in the bezel, which I thought was a very nice addition. The dial is a matte black, which goes great with the matte bezel. These are some of the small details that give this watch its unique character.

The bezel is a 120-click, unidirectional affair, that is a bit hard to turn. When you look at it from the side, it actually flares out towards the top, which is a nice touch. The bezel appears to be a plastic insert into the stainless steel ring.

Here’s a shot from the side, showing the neat shape of the Tactico TC-2’s case. Kind of a vintage style look, and it reminds me of the Glycine Airman D24 a bit in the main part, but with a dive bezel mounted on top. The caseback really sticks out a lot from the back so it sits on the wrist a bit high, but I kind of like that since it gives it a different look on the wrist than a watch that sits lower and conforms to the wrist more. The crown is signed with the Tactico logo and is screwdown.

The caseback is heavily engraved, and totally solid, helping with the 500m water resistance. Each watch is numbered and the number is engraved on the caseback along with some of the essential specs such as the Sapphire Crystal, Anti-magnetic properties and water resistance. As you can see, the endlinks are not solid, which is too bad, but doesn’t really bother me as much as I thought it would. Movement is a Swiss ETA 2824-2, the reliable workhorse.

And there’s the wrist shot! Looks bigger in the photo than it doesn’t in real life, but it wears more like a 40mm Submariner than it does a 42mm watch. The bezel is quite a bit smaller than the case so that’s probably why it wears a bit smaller than the specs would make you think. I think it wears great, and it actually exceeded my expectations. This is a unique watch, with a reliable Swiss Movement, and great style and attention to detail. I am very impressed with this offering from Tactico, and will be keeping my TC-2 for now.

For specs, you can check the bottom of my original Tactico TC2 post.

Crepas has been creating quite a stir amongst the Dive Watch community with their unique brand of dive watches, becoming one of the most sought after boutique dive watch brands in the industry. With the sheer amount of boutique brands congesting this market segment, its no small feat that Crepas has gained such popularity in such a short period of time competing against veterans like UTS and Ennebi and more sophomore companies like Ocean7 and Dievas. Every watch released by Crepas is a numbered, limited edition of 100 pieces.

Crepas also started up a Military division called Tactico, of which has inspired this post. While I’ve been aware of Crepas watches for a while, the difficulty in obtaining one has always been a hurdle for me. With the new Tactico release of the TC2, the watch is much easier to get, and probably won’t enjoy the ultra-high resale pricing that most Crepas watches have. The watch is incoming, and I hope to receive it soon. Here she is, and the specs below.

Specs:
Case diameter: 42mm
Bezel diameter: 40mm
Thickness: 13,70mm
Length: 50mm
Crystal thickness: 2,80mm
Crystal diameter: 30mm
Space between the lugs: 22mm
Crown diameter: 7mm

Materials:
Case, bezel, crown and case back cover: solid stainless steel 316L with a brushed and polished finished.
Crystal: Synthetic sapphire double domed.
Gaskets: Viton and Tefzel.
Stainless steel bracelet with deployant signed clasp.
Nylon NATO straps.
Vintage Tritium Superluminova at marks, hands and bezel insert.

Features:
Swiss movement manufactured by ETASA model 2824-2
Water Resistant: 50atmos/500 meters. Crown and case back cover screwed.
Anti-magnetic: 70,000 A/m. Movement protected by a soft steel cover.
Anti-scratch crystal with AR coated.
120 positions unidirectional bezel.

Breitling has released a new Transocean Chronograph 38, which is marketed to the lady crowd. This is the first Chronograph that Breitling has made for women. The watch features an automatic chronometre certified chronograph movement, the Breitling Caliber 41.

TRANSOCEAN CHRONOGRAPH 38
First-class femininity

A tribute to the spirit of travel to distant lands aboard luxurious longhaul airliners, the Breitling Transocean welcomes a brand-new chronograph for women endowed with a distinctive blend of character and elegance.

With its understated design and refined dials, the Transocean offers a resolutely contemporary stylistic interpretation of the aesthetic of 1950s and 1960s chronographs. A model of fine workmanship and excellence, it has established itself as a new classic marrying prestige and distinction. Breitling is now enriching this exceptional collection with a 38 mm-diameter ladies’ chronograph that lends a touch of character to any wrist, including the daintiest. The case with its pure lines, accentuated by a beveled bezel and slender lugs, comes in a choice of steel or 18K red gold. The meticulously crafted dials are adorned with applied hour-markers and hollowed counters featuring a spiral motif. They are available in three refined colors – deep black, glowing silver and a highly original midnight blue shade. The caseback is engraved with the two stylized planes that were a longtime Breitling symbol, as indeed was the initial B in 18K gold enhancing the dial. The Barenia or crocodile leather straps offer a broad choice of vivid or classic hues, while a steel mesh bracelet lends a touch ­of boldness and sophistication. A paragon of elegance, the Transocean Chronograph 38 also boasts outstanding performances thanks to a selfwinding chronograph movement chronometer-certified by the COSC (Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute), the highest benchmark in terms of precision and reliability. Transocean Chronograph 38: First-class femininity.

Caliber
Breitling 41

Movement
Selfwinding mechanical

Chronograph
1/4th second, 30 minutes
Vibration
28 800 v.p.h
38 jewels

Case
Steel or 18K red gold

Water resistance
100 meters (330 ft/10 bars)

Crystal
Convex sapphire crystal, glareproofed on both side

Diameter
38,00 mm

Strap/bracelet
Barenia leather, crocodile leather/Ocean Classic (steel mesh, steel version only)