T is a watch nerd in the Army interested in the peripheral history of why people wear timepieces. He runs @ TimepieceWankers , a page dedicated to dissecting the intentional and unintentional decisions that result in wri...
BLUF:
Price: $399.99
Case: 40mm bead-blasted titanium
Movement: Seiko NH35 automatic (solar version also available)
Water Resistance: 50m
The Quick Take: A military surplus dealer built a field watch that doesn't feel like milsurp. Real titanium, real sapphire, real thought in the packaging, with a couple of rough edges that keep it authentic.
First Look:
The first thing I noticed about the AP Field Watch was how much care went into getting it into my hands.
The packaging is not just a paper box that you throw away very quickly - this isn’t a G-Shock. There is clearly thought behind the presentation. The included extra strap, spring bar tool, and even using cork instead of paper all feel like decisions made by someone who actually considered who really cared about what they made. It’s small things that people will brush by to get to the actual thing they bought, but it’s important to notice what a lot of people don’t notice
One gripe: the 3D-printed interior is cool as a first run, but I don't think it scales. If Americana Pipedream is serious about production, I'd rather see molded paper or foam down the line. Doesn't touch the watch itself, just something worth flagging.
The A-11’s Grandchild:
The first impressions of the watch are fantastic. Keeping up with the trend of the packaging, the watch itself follows the same philosophy. Americana Pipedream took the A-11 as the starting point and made sure it felt like a watch somebody designed rather than something that escaped a government warehouse. The 40mm titanium case, matte bead-blasted finish, topography design, the overall proportions make the inspiration obvious without being boring. If you wanted something that looked like a copy of the A-11, go elsewhere, but this is clearly its own field watch.
The sand-blasted titanium case is probably the first thing that stands out once it is on the wrist, or doesn’t depending on how you think of it. It feels considerably nicer than I would expect from the watches that inspired it, while still retaining that rugged character. The screw-down crown is another small detail I appreciated. It is the sort of thing that doesn’t fundamentally change what the watch is, but makes it feel like somebody was actually thinking about how it would be used.
The best way I can describe the watch overall is that people who wear watches made this watch. That may sound like a prerequisite for this field, but I’ve seen plenty without it.
The caseback's “WWW” marking, referencing the British World War II WWW specification, is a small touch, but it is exactly the kind of detail I like seeing. Passion went into the watch, not just for the product sitting on my wrist, but for the history of the product. I love to see it
On The Wrist:
The AP Field Watch is easy to forget about, which is probably the highest compliment I can give it (AP is obviously Americana Pipedream but an Audemars Piguet Field Watch would possibly be the greatest recession indicator since Brown Winsor Soup). I didn’t find myself readjusting the strap or moving the case around to get comfortable. I wore it in uniform, at the gym, on runs, and while out with friends - it never felt out of place. That versatility is helped by the restrained earth-tone color palette. I think it makes a lot of sense considering AP’s product line up: military surplus. There’s a good chance that if you are purchasing this watch, you already own a piece or two of their surplus. Choosing the A-11 design helps with that even more as the people who built those watches existed at the same time as the people who made streichtarn or any other autistic camouflage pattern that fans of AP are already obsessed with.
The leather strap also surprised me. I normally have issues with wearing leather while exercising, but I took this on a few runs and had no real issues with it. My only complaint is the clasp feels a little undersized relative to the thickness of the leather. I feel that a beefier clasp would help sell the rugged feel of the watch more substantially.
LUME:
This was the actual surprise of the whole review. Normal overhead lighting in my house was enough to charge it, and a minute under a flashlight kept it legible for hours. The topography pattern faded out after about 15 minutes, but the numbers stayed readable well past the hour mark. Good lume makes a good field watch.
(initial vs 30 minutes after)
MOVEMENT:
The automatic versions use the Seiko NH35, the most common movement available. That is not necessarily a bad thing: you know what you are getting, parts are common, and there is nothing exotic here that should make servicing difficult. My particular watch is runs about 10-11 seconds slow per day, which is on the better end for the movement
Americana Pipedream also offers a solar-powered version. The automatic, however, feels like the appropriate choice for this particular watch. It keeps the mechanical character that makes the A-11, but its a compromise that we all know it’s not as accurate as quartz.
How It Stacks Up:
The Praesidus wins on water resistance and the Miyota 9015 inside it is the more accurate movement on paper. The Timex is the value play if all you want is the A-11 silhouette. Neither one is putting a titanium case, sapphire crystal, or a screw-down crown against the AP at this price: that's the actual gap it's filling.
Field Notes:
This is probably the section that matters most for a field watch. I wore the AP Field Watch in uniform, during PT, on several runs, at the gym, and a few social outings. I wanted to see whether it actually disappeared on the wrist when I was doing things or whether “field watch” was just a fashion statement. Everyone has their own criteria for field watch, but the keys points of overlap are durability, legibility, reliability, and simplicity. The AP hits all of these on the head.
Durability is the hardest thing to judge without intentionally trying to destroy a watch, which I wasn’t going to do to a $400 watch I like. What I can say is that I never found myself treating it delicately. The titanium case is light enough that I didn’t feel “freed” when I took it off to shower or sleep. I wore it doing the things I would normally wear a watch for, and I never had to change what I was doing because the watch was on my wrist.
Legibility is where this design really earns its keep. The dial is simple enough that reading the time is immediate, and the topographic elements don’t get in the way of the actual purpose of the dial. I was worried at first when I bought it that the lines would jumble the numbers, but care went into making them visually separate. I never found myself needing extra time to figure out what I was reading, and even during runs there wasn’t an issue knowing I was only 8 minutes in so far.
The lume especially needs an extra note. At least for me, it’s a requirement to be a field watch, and this piece more than excels.
Reliability is a little easier to quantify. The NH35 is the standard for off-the-shelf movements, so I can’t ask for anything more. The screw-down crown is another one of those small decisions that makes sense on a field watch. It isn’t particularly exciting, but it gives me more confidence in treating the watch like a piece of equipment rather than jewelry.
Simplicity is where the AP does best. The most complicated part of this is that you need to get unscrew the crown before you use it. That’s it. The less that moves, the less that breaks.
The AP Field Watch doesn’t make me think about the watch while I’m wearing it. It makes me think about whatever I’m doing while I’m wearing the watch. Some of the other timepieces I wear have a literal shine that catches people’s eyes, and that can be a nice conversation starter. The AP isn’t that watch. It is intentionally subdued, I think maybe one or two people have asked me about it since I’ve started wearing it. This is not a conversation starter, maybe it is for fans of the A-11, but you aren’t going to get much attention for wearing this
The Verdict:
Yes, this watch costs $400. There are cheaper ways to buy an A-11-inspired watch, and if that is all you are looking for, you absolutely should buy one of those instead. That is not really what the AP Field Watch is competing on. The money is going toward the titanium case, the sapphire crystal, straps, the overall presentation, and the fact that this is being built by a small American company rather than pulled from a massive production line overseas.
I actually think the more important point is that you do not have to care about the "American-made" story to like this watch: It’s a good field watch regardless.
That is what impressed me most about Americana Pipedream. I expected a small company better known for military surplus to make something akin to surplus. I didn’t necessarily expect them to make something that felt this considered. There is a certain culture that comes with making watches well, and you can tell when someone is interested in the object itself and when someone is simply interested in selling one.
The AP Field Watch feels like it was made by people who actually like watches, and at the end of the day, that is probably why I would recommend it.
While they’re at it, there’s a really untapped market for them to make their own authentic watch straps. I remember they used to make bags out of the unserviceable surplus they received, and now that they’re making watches I see an untapped market to take all of the product they can’t use and autistically upcycle it. A flectarn strap would go hard, especially made of authentic milsurp. Please make them, I would buy so many.
About the Author:
T is a watch nerd in the Army interested in the peripheral history of why people wear timepieces. He runs @Timepiecewankers a page dedicated to discussing the intentional and unintentional decisions that result in wrist space of famous people. Do not wear an F-91W around him.
