If you are as obsessed fascinated as we are about field watches, then you’re gonna want to grab a glass/cup of your favorite drink (hot or cold, with or without a tonic) and get comfy because we’re about to explore—no excavate—the new Formex Field V2 in Basalt Gray. The second edition of a new concept for a field watch, a more complete and wholesome one, with greater finishes and a dab of elegance. That’s right, an outdoorsy watch that is up to snuff for more formal occasions should you, of course, have a flexible and modern definition of what nice can be. Because in the past few years, we’ve learned that any watch can be what you want it to be—a dress piece, an adventure machine, which can be thrown in the water, tossed around on a trail, and keep on ticking and forming smiles on your enthusiast’s face. If this Formex can be an everyday watch for you, then we can be friends. 

And Formex is an interesting brand and one which we’re big fans of here on Mainspring. We discussed the Formex of today with CEO Rafael Granito, the community around the brand with Brand Director Markus Walchli, and several of their models through numerous reviews by yours truly and Sophie. Formex innovates, explores new realms of horology, and whilst it can form new visions through $4,000 USD watches like the Stratos UTC Pilot, it can also bring about more attainable new concepts through the Field V2, an $870 USD combination of lightness, brightness, and readability. It’s also full of technological gems, some of which we’ve talked about before and which we’re going to talk about again because hey, they matter when looking at the Field V2 as a complete package. Because that’s what you get here: a complete package and frankly the only field watch you’re gonna need in the coming few years. Yes, it’s that good and you’re about to find out why. 

Specifications 

It feels like today we can categorize value in watches as follows: either in non-descript homages/heavily inspired timekeeping devices which are defined as being “spec monsters” because they come with all of the works for a few hundred dollars; or in visually singular and technically innovative timepieces which cost more than the former but not too much compared to what we find in high-end horology and coming from luxury brands. And what separates the more advanced but attainable watches from the bespoke and unattainable ones are highly subjective criteria and of course stupid budgets. For the past four years I have been developing a yet-to-be-named theory that spending more than a certain limit doesn’t do anything to positively impact our watch wearing experience. For example, dishing out four times more for a chronometer certified caliber actually doesn’t do anything to us. But dishing out twice as much for a grade 2 titanium case does. 

Which is what makes the Formex Field V2 so darn interesting to me. Because we find hardened grade 2 titanium for the case and bezel, hard-coated to 900Hv on Vicker’s Hardening Scale, which leaves a fine beadblasted finish and a subtle tactical look. Titanium is lighter than steek and hypoallergenic—a property of this material I had never been aware of before—which makes sense for a watch that you’re supposed to wear for extended periods of time and in various types of contexts and environments. A screw-down crown and case-back give us 100 meters of water resistance which is plenty for this type of watch, and a flat piece of scratch-resistance sapphire crystal gives us a forever unobstructed view of the dial. Adding comfort is the leather strap mounted on Formex’s micro-adjustable (up to 7mm) carbon composite deployant clasp and the hyper light nylon velcro strap. On the leather the Field V2 weighs 70g and on the Velcro 57g. 

The Field V2 is ridiculously lightweight and could be mistaken—in a blind test—for a G-Shock which is, calm down, the best of compliments. It feels incredible to me to be able to handle such a light and capable watch, which comes with so much good tech that makes sense. Indeed, Formex developed the technology we wanted and that we needed even though we didn’t know we did, and not those which are best encapsulated inside a watch which belongs either at a Christie’s auction or in a museum. So the Field V2 is made of pragmatic stuff, useful stuff, like a Sellita SW200-1 caliber (4Hz/41 hours of power reserve) and Christmas-tree-like applications of BGW9 on the hands, hour markers, and minute track. If you add up the case material, the crystal, strap and clasp mechanism, the movement, and water resistance, you might think that yes, for all of that you should pay $870 USD. I know, Formex should develop a titanium bracelet for the Field V2. 

Design 

Besides its marvelous and useful technology, the latest utilitarian creation from Formex indeed further explores what a field watch can be and look like in 2025. It borrows classical design elements of this genre of watches from way back when, for example a full stack of Arabic numerals but here drawn in a bespoke typeface, a modern one, the particularity of which are disconnected lines and abrupt angles. The lume is precisely applied in each recessed section that makes up the numerals whilst the V1 had a sandwich lume construction, and this new method is much cleaner in my eyes. The hour markers are also placed on a slightly recessed portion of the dial that has a matte finish, whilst the center and outer sections showcase gorgeous sunburst effects. I particularly appreciate how Formex complementalized the information, so that the brand name and typical writings are lodged within the middle, the hour markers around it in a distinct section, and the minute track outside of the latter. 

The minute track is also complex for it is both printed at an angle and that the 1-hour/5-minute increments are recessed and lume filled. So we find ourselves with a sort of sector layout constructed on two levels and showcasing an alternation of printed and recessed elements. I for one think it looks outstanding. In a more aviation-themed twist the hour and minute hands have a syringe design, organized in a way that they can accommodate ample sections of lume, and treated with a brushing effect complete with a pearlescent finish. The seconds hand has two lumed elements, one at the tip and one at the counter-balance, for I supposed superlative nighttime legibility. Although it is rare to find field or aviation watches with date apertures, should a brand go for it, then it has to be integrated into the dial design in the same way Formex did: no polished or painted frames, but rather beveled corners and a slight trapezoidal shape. 

Moreover, I would argue that the mark of a complete design can be found in the case and how well it jives with the dial. Here the Swiss brand went for angles and abrupt changes in directions, akin to how the numerals look, which creates a cohesive ensemble. More specifically, the case has a flat profile but with lugs which break off and turn down towards the wrist, a visual effect emphasized by the bevels on top of the lugs and underneath them. Even more so specifically, there is a plane on which lands the bezel and from which departs the lugs instead of having a direct transition between the two. This endows the case with a modern and muscular aspect, made more evident by the raised bars north and south of the case. Even the case-back is interesting—and I’m one who rarely lingers on the part of the watch I but rarely see—for it has a deep CNC-machined honeycomb pattern—perhaps to give the watch extra traction on the skin?—which is darn cool. 

The Heart of the Matter

I get excited when brands manage to come up with a new concept for a classic genre of watch. Not a revised version of what has been made before, with new colors or a new movement, but an entirely new vision for it. From the case layout, typeface for the numerals, case profile and fastening systems, what is created is a new package, surely modernized compared to its forefathers—which go back to World War I—and definitely better made for it could ace whatever folks put their field watches through a century ago just like it could survive contemporary battlefields and normal activities we engage in. Because more often than not, a brand that claims to have created a new type field watch generally borrows too heavily from the design codes of what preceded it—e.g., using the same typeface for the numerals but making lume blocks from them—instead of actually designing new numerals. Or beadblasting a classical case instead of creating a new shape for it. 

So the Formex Field V2 is an entirely new concept. It looks different, feels different, and works different. At least, that’s how I see it. 

Conclusion 

Do you like field watches? Do you happen to have stashed $870 USD in your watch purchasing budget? If yes, what are you waiting for? $870 USD is the price of the Formex Field V2 on a velcro nylon strap and you will have to dish out an extra $125 USD for a leather strap on a carbon fiber deployant clasp. So $995 USD in total. Whichever version you could go for, you’ll have your money worth. I guarantee it. If you appreciate bespoke design and technology, if you have an appreciation for quality watches, for dust and imperfections-free timekeeping devices, then look no further than the Field V2. This model offers tremendous value—far more than the spec monsters I mentioned earlier—for Formex creates its own tech through its sister company Dexel, whilst the brands which offer the aforementioned spec monsters simply don’t. So it’s a win-win for you. 

Should you not be as passionate about gray dials as I am, you’ll perhaps prefer the Coho Salmon or Ice Blue versions. All three iterations of the Field V2 are currently on pre-order and are scheduled to ship at the end of June 2025. 

Thanks for reading.