There is no better way to signal that summer is coming than by seeing a great number of incredible dive watches point their lugs at you in the early days of Spring. Temperatures are rising for those of us living in the Northern Hemisphere and the tradition is to start making plans for what to do in July/August and where to take our water resistant timekeeping devices. The French Riviera perhaps? A beach in Mexico? A backyard pool? And though we tend to associate  dive watches with summer and sea, one could argue they make for equally great options for a Winter ski trip, a Fall stroll by the lake, and a Spring session of lawn mowing or grass hugging in a nearby park. They are, as we’ve often said here on Mainspring, the perfect watch to do about anything anywhere and this is why dive watches continue to be ever so popular and always will be. And as we’ve also often said, reinventing an old wheel which has been working for many generations isn’t an easy task and one which few brands take on and succeed in. 

One which does and has been for a while is Second Hour out of Australia in the Southern Hemisphere. We’ve reviewed quite a few of its models in the past—the Mandala MkIII, Sattelberg MkII, Fusion Petrol—including the second generation of the Gin Clear back in October of 2023. You read the title, today we’re taking a look a the third generation of the brand’s diver more than two years after the last one—which indicates that Second Hour took its darn long time to look under the hood, around the body of the Gin Clear, and to update everything about it and so in subtle ways. To us Second Hour is also a brand which offers tremendous value in all aspects of microbrand watchmaking but especially in the finishing department, and boy, the Gin Clear Mk3 Dark Rhodium is quite something let me tell you. It blows many other divers (and some which we’ve recently reviewed) and other genres of watches out of the water and into deep space in its price category ($958 USD) and above for what you get is not what you paid for.

It goes much further than that. Much, much further.

Specifications 

You know the good old tirade in which discerning watch enthusiasts explain that microbrands are better than luxury ones in the value, design, and finishing departments? I’ve partaken in spreading this gospel many times on Mainspring and elsewhere and always with, I believe, good reasons (based on my experience) since microbrands do indeed often do a better job than mainstream/legacy/luxury brands in terms of value for money, design, and creativity even though many of them got started by and still strive on homaging the big names of the Swiss industry. But yes indeed many brands do beat at the sound of their own drum and walk on a different path than most, not in the opposite direction but more so on a parallel one—they are intent on providing us watch nerds with a satisfying and wholesome horological experience of their own craft and essence whilst bankrolling our prospects for retirement. This is a fine line to walk on—to offer good value authentic watches which are well made—which Second Hour more than excels at. 

Upon opening the simple and effective package the Gin Clear Mk3 came in, removing the protective films from the dial, case, and bracelet, I was greeted by a memory: that of the superb quality every single part which makes up Second Hour watches is endowed with, and the obsessive-like attention to detail the brand puts into designing and engineering every moving element. For example, it has been a little while since the ball-bearing mechanism of a bezel assembly has sung such a loud song of precision and crispness, since a tool-less micro-adjustment mechanism has been equipped with such a sturdy construction, and a crown endowed with such a riveting grip when sliding my thumb over it. I’ve encountered equally well designed and manufactured parts before but rarely all rolled into one timekeeping device and Second Hour’s superb manufacturing and finishing quality must be experienced in the metal in order to be fully appreciated. So we start with a crisp 120-click unidirectional bezel made of ceramic and anodized aluminum. 

Not bad, uh? 

The clicks are indeed superb and audible in a way which is welcomed by us watch nerds but perhaps not as much by those around us. Poor souls. The aforementioned crown measures 6.2mm in diameter, screws-down, and alongside a massive decorated screw-down case-back endows the Gin Clear Mk3 with 300 meters of water resistance. Inside a perfectly proportioned hardened case* for a modern diver of 40mm in diameter/41mm at the bezel, 47mm lug-to-lug, 12mm thick, beats a Swiss made Sellita SW200-1 caliber (4Hz/42 hours of power reserve) regulated in four positions whilst the Mk2 had an ETA 2824. The crystal is a flat piece of sapphire complemented by six layers of inner anti-reflective coating, underneath of which the nighttime show is produced by more-than-generous quantities of BGW9 SuperLuminova also present on all bezel markings. Lastly, the 20mm bracelet is a superb assembly of five links held together with superbly machined screws, equipped with quick-release spring-bars and a tool-less micro-adjustment clasp. Nothing is missing. 

*In fact the case, bracelet, and clasp were hardened to 1,200 Hv on Vicker’s scale. 

Design 

You know when people say that you can feel the quality of a well-made object? Well I can feel it with the Second Hour Gin Clear Mk3 and also see it wherever my eyes land on this wristworn machine. Not only does it permeates through the manufacturing side of what makes up the watch—the fine polishing touches which seamlessly weave in and out of the intense brushed sections of the case for example—but also in the elements which I cannot touch however can see up-close through the barrel of my macro lens as well as from a distance—the perfectly shaped and applied hour markers for example jump out of the dial as if they were levitating above it. This is not magic, just good manufacturing and superior quality control. And knowing what technically makes up the Gin Clear Mk3 which I know we agree is very good for the asking price of $958 USD, then the design of it, whether or not it floats your boat, will also perhaps convince you that there is a lot going here as is it supported—again—by the excellent manufacturing and finishing. 

In other words, even if you don’t like the way it looks, the Gin Clear Mk3 will stop you in your tracks for how thoughtfully put together it is. 

So what this means concretely is this: when looking at the case you will be first taken aback by the perfection of its angles and curves which are highlighted and emphasized by the finest demonstration of mirror-polished surfaces and deep horizontal brushed ones on the market today regardless of price brackets. Contrary to what you might expect to see here, the brushing is not endowed with a satin finish but with a coarse one, and you can almost see the marks of each microscopic hair of the tool left on the steel. The finishing is thus highly impressive and more so for how each technique seamlessly coexists with one another everywhere on the case: from the stubby angular crown-guards and arched case flanks to the bezel assembly and inlay and bracelet links. And the case has, I would admit, a whiff of the Christopher Ward Lightcatcher I was recently raving about when discussing the new Sealander C63 GMT 39mm PIstachio which is a compliment: the one on the Gin Clear Mk3 is more substantial on the wrist and appears better finished. 

Oopsy Daisy. 

And parallel to its superb finishing work, the case of the Second Hour is simply beautifully profiled and hugs the wrist in a muscular way. For example, the faceted and angular lugs plunge down towards my flesh-and-bone apparatus and appear to be drifting over it through the narrow polished chamfers located on top of the mid-case and the larger ones at the bottom of it, which are wider in their middle and thin out towards their edges. This gives me the impression that the case is akin to an elegant metal claw which hugs the wrist and makes its weight felt without being overbearing. This delicate balance of visual presence and physical personality characterizes everything else you see on the case: the crown made of two series of three rows of serrated teeth separated by a red ring; the concave narrow lugs which display polished inner chamfers which slim them down and accentuate their remarkable angle; the fully polished bezel assembly made of ceramic and anodized aluminum which comes with a dark grey pearlescent finish. 

But things do not stop there even if you only take but a gander at the center of the watch head: a balanced and oddly symmetrical dial the design of which is a Second Hour trademark. Tall and applied hour markers fully polished and furnitured with large real estate for lume pigment at their center, coming in various shapes and in a unique configuration: tapered triangles at the 12, 4, and 8 (read my other reviews of Second Hour watches to know the meaning of it), a trapezoidal bar below a trapezoidal date aperture composed of satin bevels with white printed numerals on a color-matched date disc, and circular markers everywhere else. Compared to the Mk2, the design of the three odd hour markers of the Mk3 was simplified to make them look more elegant, so was the counter-balance of the seconds hand shaped in the brand’s logo replaced by a hollow circle for the same effect. The hour and minute hands got the opposite treatment however: from polished reinforced batons to polished reinforced tapering obelisks with wide tips. 

Thus Second Hour adjusted the visual balance of all dial elements by making the hour markers less visible and the handset more so where it matters the most (I did not care for the massive counter-balance of the Mk2) to a perfect formula (I would dare to say) all the while applying a fine sunburst effect to a lacquered dial to make the whole pop. All of the dial elements therefore majestically dance as they respond to the light shining on them at any and various angles, and are answered by—or answer to—the superb dual-finished stubby muscular case we already drooled over. By Genta what a treat it has been to dissect the design of this diver. 

The Heart of the Matter

The subtitle to this review is “Why Bother?” Did you think I meant why bother buying the Second Hour Gin Clear Mk3? Or why bother reviewing the Second Hour Gin Clear Mk3? No, I meant why bother buying from the Swiss market, Swiss brands, or pretend Swiss made watches? Why bother buying the latest Longines Hydro Conquest if you’re looking for a good-rounded dive watch with exceptional finish? Why bother looking at the iconic Rolex Submariner if you wish to sport a diver you can flex its shiny bits with? Why bother spending many more thousands of dollars above $958 if you can get such a refined and finely manufactured dive watch from Second Hour? I know…all of this horology bullshit is entirely subjective and you will find reasons to counter every single argument I would make in favor of the Gin Clear Mk3. Hell, you may hate the way it looks but you can’t hate the way it looks if you know what I mean. Technically it is ultra sound; visually it is finished to the highest standards money can realistically buy you; and more importantly, it is different and has a shit ton of character. 

There, it has been said and I for one do not apologize for the swearing. 

Conclusion

I reckon I can get passionate once in a while (or almost always) especially when I imagine the number of times journalists and content creators and influencers make unfair comparisons between legacy and microbrands and dismiss the latter for the former just because one has been around for much longer than the other. I don’t believe Ferrari made crap cars when it got started so why would a microbrand make bad watches if it only has seven years in the industry? Anyway, I’m going to cool the jets down and share a few pieces of practical information: the Second Hour Gin Clear Mk3 is launching May 22, 2026, in four colorways: Sunburst Black, Arctic White, Emerald, and Dark Rhodium which we looked at today. 

Thanks for reading.