Generally speaking, whenever we talk about field watches we tend to think of vintage ones or recreations of old models. For example, the Dirty Dozen from World War II, the Vietnam-era models of the 1960s/70s, or the G-10’s from the 1980s. Collectors spend thousands of dollars on vintage models in good condition or buy one of the many homages which can be found on the market today. (By the way, “homage” is not a pejorative word.) Rare are the brands which made field watches during those times and which still do today. Even rarer are those which have been under the same management since their inception, that is in comparison to the numerous historical brands which disappeared during the Quartz Revolution and which were re-jolted back to life by folks who have no direct relations to the founders. (The latter is not a criticism, just an observation.) 

As we know from the recently published review on the SSNAV Steel Navigator, Marathon is one of the very few brands which today makes robust military tool watches just as it did in the 1940s. With this comes tons of heritage which the brand has been meticulously nurturing over many decades. So much so, I would argue, that Marathon has a unique thing going for itself. When I look at any of their collections I see a brand that has stayed true to its original mission of making solid and legible tool watches for professionals and, later, for amateur professionals. (Meaning: regular humans who have a healthy obsession for tough-as-nails tool watches.) And as much as I enjoyed writing about the SSNAV, my horological heart beats the strongest for today’s protagonist: the 36mm Officer’s Mechanical.

So let’s check it out. 

Specifications

Yes, I absolutely romanticize smaller field watches! They make me think of genuine war heroes from iconic movies and TV shows, or those who I picture in my head actually existed but whom the world has never spoken off. The kind, brave, and selfless soldiers who anonymously wanted to make the world a better place. And I romanticize these watches as much as I do vintage exploration watches in the likes of the Rolex Explorer 1, the Tudor Ranger, and the Nivada Grenchen Antarctic. Well-proportioned, legible, robust time-only timekeeping devices. (Though loving—because it is love and not just a fling—smaller watches does not preclude me from appreciating and wearing larger watches too.) But we must focus on the Marathon, the dimensions of which were partially given away in the title of this review: 36mm in diameter, 44mm lug-to-lug, 11mm thick, and coming with a 16mm lug width. 

As you can easily imagine, the Officer’s Mechanical fit my 6.50”/16.5cm wrist as naturally as the second shoe fits Cinderella’ foot. But this model is not visually diminutive, quite the contrary, thanks to its rectangular lugs which extend out and curve down towards the wrist which aids in keeping the watch firmly hugging the wrist. And the case shape further aids in endowing the Officer’s Mechanical with a decent wrist presence, having a somewhat futuristic profile with no visible angles on its upper sections. (But we will get back to it later on.) Being a military watch designed to be used in combat, the case was Parkerized to prevent light reflection and to strengthen stainless steel’s resistance to shocks and scratches. Parkerizing a metal is different from sand-blasting or bead-blasting as a phosphate coating is applied to the metal, provoking a chemical reaction resulting in the creation of an integral protective layer. 

By the way, welcome to Mainspring’s Science 101! 

And there is more than meets the eye with the small and nimble Marathon Officer’s Mechanical. A flat piece of sapphire sits above a legible dial where tritium tubes on the hands and hour markers make reading the time in any lighting condition literally possible. (Once you’ve experienced tritium tubes you can’t simply go back to SuperLuminova to find horological happiness. I know I can’t.) With a screw-down case-back and push/pull crown we find 50 meters of water resistance, which is good—neither meh nor wow. In terms of movement, we find a Swiss Made manual-wind Sellita SW210-1 which beats at 28,800 BPH (4Hz) and comes with roughly 45 hours of power reserve. The movement in the unit I have has been running strong gaining +1 seconds per day. A manual-wind caliber in a small field watch is my happy place. 

Design

The Marathon Officer’s Mechanical is so purposely straightforward that this section will naturally be short. It was designed for maximum legibility regardless of the lighting conditions you might find yourself in, including total darkness. So we find syringes-style hour and minute hands topped with tritium tubes and a thin seconds hand also equipped with a tritium tube. (Note the large counter-balance which perhaps is so because of the tube?) The hours are indicated by sans-serif Arabic numerals painted white to powerfully contrast with the matte black dial. Each marker is accompanied by a tritium tube on the outside and in-between we find a fully-graduated minute track. (The 12 o’clock tube glows orange while the rest glow green for easy nighttime orientation.) Moreover, we find a 24-hour military scale printed in small inward from the hour markers. 

Text is minimal on the dial as it is a tool watch and that nothing should come in the way of being able to easily read the time. But there are a few things to mention. First, the brand name below the 12 o’clock marker and the radioactive symbol east of the pinion and “H3” west of it. The radioactive symbol is indeed required as tritium is a radioactive substance, although in such minimal measure that one can pass through airport security without any issues. (I did.) “H3” stands for Triatomic Hydrogen which is the isotope making up the composition of the gaseous tritium contained in the tubes. (I honestly learned a lot writing this review.) And I hope I was able to properly relate what these tubes are made out of. Regardless of that, the Marathon Officer’s Mechanical has a straight-forward, form-follows-function type of design. 

And the latter statement is also true looking at the case which I briefly mentioned earlier. I love its smooth and pebble-like appearance, the absence of angles on its upper sections which help focus on reading the time instead of gushing over its design. Remember: this watch is a tool watch in its purest form. While all of the above is true, I do appreciate the few angles we find around the crown where the case forms natural crown-guards, and the slight horizontal break at the halfway point. The standout feature of the case to me are the lugs which are long and rectangular. Moreover, the straight-cut space between them makes the single-pass strap look better and visually reinforces the purpose-driven nature of this model. 

Alright, I lied, I did have a lot to say about the design of the Marathon Officer’s Mechanical. 

The Heart of the Matter 

At the heart of the matter is the fact that Marathon sells a proper, historical, and practical field watch that would be equally at home on the wrist of an infantry man or woman as it would on the wrist of a nerdy watch journalist like myself. I’m starting to believe that some of us—enlightened watch enthusiasts—love wearing this type of watch because 1) they are darn comfortable to wear; 2) they are extremely legible; 3) more importantly, they emulate a certain spirit and lifestyle which feels home to us. (Like wearing the perfect pair of plushy loafers.) Correct me if I’m wrong but Marathon is one of the few, if not the only brand, to make this particular design of field watch today. In other words, one that comes with its own history and which is original to the brand, meaning this is Marathon’s very own interpretation of a MIL-SPEC I will mention right away. 

Indeed, Marathon created the Officer’s Mechanical following MIL- PRF-46374G* issued in 1999 which calls for a general purpose mechanical field watch with the specs this model is endowed with (so that I won’t relist them here.) Given Marathon’s history of fulfilling governmental contracts for military watches, it makes sense that they would still make watches based on such stringent criteria. And all of their models were made based on the specific needs of various branches of the military and of rescue units. What sets Marathon apart from the few other brands which do the same, is that their watches are either original or affordable or both. (Yes, looking at you Tudor and your expensive Marine Nationale divers.) This matters to me and to others who are into this kind of watch.  

*This was a follow up to MIL- GG-W-113 from 1967 which gave birth to the iconic Vietnam-era field watch Hamilton is most known for making although Marathon, as well as Benrus, produced them. 

Conclusion 

I don’t pretend to know of all field watches which exist on the market today. Nor if they come from historical brands or are homages to vintage models. But I do know that this little Marathon is an authentic field watch the likes of which we don’t see enough of today. And while oftentimes rarity begets high retail prices, I’m happy to report that the Officer’s Mechanical on the black RAF-style nylon strap will set you back $736 USD which is, to me, a fair price for a good tool watch with unique tech and legit heritage. But you should know that Marathon also offers a quartz version of it as well as a 34mm variant with a different case design. I recommend checking out the brand’s website to learn more about all of this. 

Thanks for reading.