A wise watch collector once said that field watches are amongst the oldest types of watches we’ve ever known. They’ve been around for at least a century if not more (depending on how one would dare categorize the Cartier Tank) and over the past many decades, their essence hasn’t changed one bit although their appearance has changed…a bit. Field watches are tool watches and as such their first objective is to be very legible in any circumstance. Their second objective is to be tough in order to safely navigate battlefields, airfields, and, why not, the decks of aircraft carriers. Historically, these timekeeping devices were affordable and part of a soldier’s equipment. If I am not mistaken, in some instances soldiers had to return them at the conclusion of their military career but don’t quote me on that. 

If you too have a fascination for this type of watch, then you’ve come to the right place today as we’re going to take a look at the Redwood Standard Issue Commando GMT. Redwood is a new-ish micro/independent brand from Canada and the Standard Issue is its latest collection. As its name indicates, it could have been and could be the standard field watch militaries the world over would loan or give to their service men and women. Although there are four models in the collection—the time-only Officer, the day/date Typhoon, the 1970s GMT Kilroy, and the fusion GMT Commando—we’re only going to take a look at the latter but I do encourage you to check out the full line up. On a nylon strap the Commando GMT will set you back a reasonable $349 USD. A pretty good start.  

Specifications

Sometimes we can accurately guess what a watch is made out of based on its price. Though things do change a lot and so we must adjust our expectations. Four years ago $349 could have gotten you a Miyota 8000 series movement, a mineral crystal, and 50 meters of water resistance while today you can get a Seiko GMT caliber, sapphire crystal, and 100 meters of water resistance. But wait, we do have this here! Indeed the movement inside the Standard Issue Commando GMT is a Seiko NH34 (3Hz/41 hours of power reserve) which is the caller-type GMT where it is the GMT hand which moves forward in one-hour increments. Many enthusiasts like yours truly prefer this type of GMT over the flyer style one. In order to provide for a fully functional extra complication, Redwood cleverly decided to keep the date which some brands do away with. 

As you probably understand by now, the crystal is a piece of domed sapphire with a few layers of anti-reflective coating so that you can use the Commando GMT as a beater without breaking a sweat. With a screw-down crown and case-back, this model is endowed with a reasonable and more than sufficient 100 meters of water resistance which I do find to be very good and practical. On the hands (all four of them) as well as the printed hour markers we find good applications of green-glowing SuperLuminova (C3 perhaps?) with an over-application on the hands which is always a good thing. (I was impressed to see that the tiny triangular element of the GMT hand is lumed as well.) The case measures a standard (ha ha) 38mm in diameter, 44mm lug-to-lug, and 12.8mm in thickness so it wears perfectly on my 6.50”/16.5cm wrist. 

Design

At the risk of making cheap back-to-back puns, the Redwood Standard Issue Commando GMT does have a standard design. And that is its strength. The brand designed the fourth member of the collection purposely to blend in and fly-under-the-radar whether you’re actually serving or are an avid collector of military and tool watches (like me.) And this model has a rare, but perhaps not unique, combination of design elements of different genres of watches. For example, the geometrical configuration of the painted hour markers is reminiscent of dive watches, in other words batons at the 6 and 9, an inverted triangle at the 12, and dots everywhere else. While, generally now we find printed hour markers to appear basic and cheap, I believe this is done on purpose as their lack of elevation aids in making the dial look simple and covert.  

Though the pencil-style hour and minute hands are standard affair for a field watch, but the lollipop seconds hand is again reminiscent of dive watches. (All four models of the Standard Issue collection have the same handset.) Within a matte ensemble of visual elements the thin but long GMT hand stands out for being painted in bright red, a color we find in one word printed below the pinion. Moreover, I appreciate the way Redwood went about integrating the date aperture within the dial design by not framing it and opting for a black date wheel with numerals painted in white. Lastly, the thin minute track/GMT scale doesn’t command too much of our attention so that we can focus on reading the local time. (The GMT complication feels like a bonus.) I don’t know about you but I find the matte texture of the dial to be particularly well executed as it effectively absorbs light reflections. 

Let’s not forget the case which is also pretty much a standard affair. It’s fully brushed with a satin-like finish and an alternation of horizontal strokes on the case flanks, vertical ones on the upper sections, and circular strokes on the fixed bezel. The case has a profile I’ve seen a million times which fits the intended use and visual personality of this model. And I would say I do find the bulbous case-back quite attractive. On it we find a giant X engraved and  finished with a matte sandy texture, coordinates for the town of Oshawa in Canada (who’s there?) and the brand name and country of origin. 

The Heart of the Matter

We live in times when most micro and independent watch brands are stuck in a rat race to best one another. Who’s going to offer the latest and greatest of tech in terms of movement, case material, and dial texture? Who has come up with the latest insane color and matched it with a ridiculous name? Many of them want to be the “first” at something so that they can place this achievement front and center in their marketing campaigns and gloat over it on social media. (And make sure we journalists and content creators repeat their message ad nauseam.) I believe this approach to watch design and brand philosophy is dangerous because success and reputation trump (yikes) the brands’ willingness to make simple, robust, and good watches. Let’s be frank: people who actually get shit done want a reliable watch, not one whose dial is made out of otherworldly material. 

So doesn’t it feel nice to come across a brand that makes standard tool watches and even name them so? I for one believe it does. For $349 the Redwood Standard Issue Commando GMT—as well as the other three models from the collection—won’t win a beauty pageant or GPHG trophy for boldness in design, and that’s ok because that wasn’t their intention. Their intention was to make the type of military/field watch the militaries used and should still use today if they or us watch enthusiasts weren’t so obsessed with what is unique, rare, and generally expensive. I’m not in the military and never will be (I’m old…41) but the Commando GMT is the watch I’d throw myself onto the battlefield with. Or hike a mountain with. Or drive to get some groceries on Sunday with. But you get my point. 

In other words, a reliable, simple-looking, and straightforward tool watch and not, I repeat, not a gimmicky timekeeping device designed to win some kind of overrated award. 

Conclusion 

I’ve had my eye on Redwood for a year and some. I was eager to try out their watches because they seemed positively pedestrian and magnificently purpose-driven. They certainly have the specs and price tag to match their raison d’être and I applaud the folks at Redwood for having the vision and courage to offer some of us—discerning tool watch enthusiasts—solid and affordable options for all our adventures. If the Standard Issue collection isn’t your thing, then I suggest taking a look at their popular Tactical range and their also new Marine Engingeer collection. 

Thanks for reading.