What Is a Field Watch? History, Features and How to Choose One

A field watch is the simplest serious watch you can own: easy to read at a glance, tough enough for a hard day outdoors, and small enough to forget you are wearing it. It is also one of the fastest growing watch styles in Australia and the US. Here is what actually makes a field watch, where it came from, and what to look for if you are buying one.

I'm Christophe Hoppé, founder of Bausele. We make field watches with the Australian Army and the Royal Australian Engineers, so this is a subject close to home.

What is a field watch?

A field watch is a watch designed for soldiers in the field: people who need to read the time instantly, in any light, without fuss. Everything on it serves that purpose. In practice a field watch has:

• A high-contrast dial, usually black, with large Arabic numerals.
• Luminous hands and numerals you can read at night.
• A modest case size, typically 36mm to 40mm, so it sits under a sleeve and does not catch on gear.
• A robust build: steel case, a tough crystal and enough water resistance for rain, rivers and a swim.
• A simple strap, traditionally fabric or canvas, light and quick to dry.

No bezel, no chronograph, no date if it can be avoided. The fewer things on the dial, the faster you read it.

Where the field watch comes from

Soldiers started strapping pocket watches to their wrists in the late 1800s and the First World War made the wristwatch standard kit. The modern field watch was defined in 1944, when the British Ministry of Defence issued the W.W.W. specification, short for Watch, Wristlet, Waterproof. Twelve Swiss makers built watches to it, and collectors now call them the "Dirty Dozen". Black dial, white Arabic numerals, luminous hands, small seconds, and the broad arrow mark of military property. Most field watches you can buy today still follow that brief.

Field watch vs dive watch vs pilot watch

• Field watch: built for legibility on land. Simple dial, mid-size case, no rotating bezel.
• Dive watch: built for underwater. A uni-directional rotating bezel to time a dive, 200m or more of water resistance and a screw-down crown. Usually bigger and heavier.
• Pilot watch: built for the cockpit. A large case and an oversized crown you can turn with gloves on, often with a triangle at 12 o'clock.

If you want one watch that works for everything from the office to a weekend camping, the field watch is usually the most versatile of the three.

Automatic or quartz?

Many affordable field watches run on quartz: accurate and cheap to make. An automatic field watch has a mechanical movement that winds itself as you move, needs no battery and can be serviced for generations. Two features are worth checking on an automatic: hacking, which stops the seconds hand when you pull the crown so you can set the time to the second, and hand-winding, so you can start it after a few days off the wrist.

How to choose a field watch

1. Size: 36mm to 40mm suits most wrists. Check the lug to lug length, not just the diameter.
2. Legibility: look at it in low light. If you have to search for the hands, it is not a field watch.
3. Crystal: sapphire is close to scratch proof. Domed or box sapphire gives the vintage look without the fragility.
4. Water resistance: 100m covers rain, swimming and the beach.
5. Straps: a field watch should be easy to swap from steel to fabric. Quick-release spring bars make it a ten second job.
6. Meaning: the best field watches were issued to people for a reason. If a watch carries a real story, you will wear it longer.

Our field watches

We build field watches with the people they are made for, and every one carries something real in or on the crown.

• 125 Field, Australian Army 125th Anniversary. Officially authorised by the Australian Army and limited to 125 numbered pieces. 38mm case, matte black dial with cream luminous Arabic numerals, domed sapphire, 100m water resistance, Miyota 82S5 automatic with hacking and hand-winding, and the broad arrow stamped on the crown. It comes with a steel bracelet and an olive parachute strap, and Australian soil from an Army service site is sealed in the crown.
• RAE 125, Royal Australian Engineers 125th Anniversary. Designed with the Corps after a day at the RAE museum at Holsworthy. 38mm bead-blasted case, sand-textured black dial, box sapphire, 100m, Miyota 82S5 automatic, the Corps' lazy E on the crown, a steel bracelet plus a maroon and navy parachute strap. The first 125 pieces are individually numbered.

Both use a Japanese automatic movement, chosen for reliability in the field and easy servicing. We say so plainly: they are designed in Australia, not Swiss Made.

Frequently asked questions

What size should a field watch be?

Traditionally 34mm to 38mm. Today 36mm to 40mm is the sweet spot for most wrists.

Is a field watch a good everyday watch?

Yes. It is simple, legible and tough, and it looks right with a T-shirt or a jacket. That versatility is why the style keeps growing.

Can you swim with a field watch?

With 100m water resistance and the crown pushed in or screwed down, yes. For diving, choose a dive watch.

What is the broad arrow on a field watch?

The broad arrow marked British and Commonwealth military property, from rifles to watches. It appeared on the 1944 W.W.W. watches and we put it on the crown of the 125 Field. Read more about the broad arrow mark.

Looking for a numbered piece? See all our limited edition watches or our Australian military watches.

The Australian Army emblems on the 125 Field are reproduced with the permission of the Australian Army. This authorisation does not convey endorsement by, or affiliation with, the Australian Army.