What makes this watch special is its audience.
This watch was developed in collaboration with a specialist branch of the British armed forces.
Having purchased Elliot Brown watches privately it became clear that operators preferred them to the watches they had previously been issued with and approached Elliot Brown to develop a new model with spring bars that would not break, a bezel that could be operated easily even wearing gloves, whose water and dust resistance would be more than up to harsh conditions, with fit for purpose straps that would be a cinch to change and be instantly readable day or night.
We asked operators to bring their current watches and discuss what worked and what didn’t, only then we were able to fully understand the requirement and create the internal brief that made sure the resulting watch would perform faultlessly.
The result is possibly the ultimate field watch whose design language echoes that of vintage military watches yet with all the trademark Elliot Brown house design cues, creating a sense of continuity and familiarity.
The Holton Professional series is the first military issue watch to be created by a British watch company in more than ten years. It is unapologetically fit for purpose and designed for use every day no matter how harsh the conditions.
It takes its name from Holton Heath in Dorset, the location of a wartime cordite factory.
* Please note, the high grip bezel is not suitable for use with cuffed shirts as prolongued contact may cause fabric to fray *
For more information get in touch by email on international@brigantes.com or for UK customers warrior@brigantes.com.
For £450.00, there are better options out there.
They look great, but the fact remains that these are Swiss Ronda calibre 715 quartz movements. They are waterproof to 200 m, and that is ok, but if you are seriously going to use this at that depth, with temps that can be at 22 C or less, you will likely want a watch with a good automatic movement regardless. A true 200m Marathon, with a top grade Swiss Auto movement can go for twice the amt they’re asking for these watches – or more, but discounts are available for 1st responders. A Hamilton Frogman (1k m) can be had for just under $1k. A good Seiko with a hackable 4R36 movement can be had for even less than that. If you want shock resistance, a $100 Casio will do the job. I’ll admit that it’s unfair to compare this to a Casio, though. A better comparison would be with the Automatic Titanium GPW Einsatzuhr – which can be had for less than $400 retail. It’s a true 200 m watch, with a quality auto movement.
If you want a tacticool SAS watch to show your friends, sure – spend $550 on it, but you’re getting a watch with a cheap Rhonda 715 quartz movement.
Hernando,
I completely agree that there are some great watches on the market and that the Holton is not the answer to all requirements.
The development of this watch has been done with a very specific group who require it for the manner in which they operate. This was one of the reasons why the Swiss Ronda caliber 715 quartz movement was chosen. It was very much seen as the Land Rover of the options available. It gets the job done and is exceptionally reliable both in terms of performance and supply. It does actually come with a five-year battery guarantee but Elliot Brown reduce this to three to take into consideration the issues of working at cold temperatures and extreme environments. There are already plans for an Automatic movement in the future.
This watch is completely steel with no plastic parts. The bezel and insert are actually hardened steel to try and increase the robustness further. In addition, there is a movement shield system which helps to protect the movement from shocks and knocks.
Fundamentally there are plenty of options for timepieces depending on your needs. This was built to a specific requirement and is now being used by the people it was intended for. This won’t be what all people want and that is absolutely cool. If you have any ideas on what would make the perfect watch or suggestions for this one then we would love to hear them.
All the best
Matt
I’ve noticed a reoccurring trend in this industry (and others) when it comes to items like watches and as of late, coffee.
Like this and currently others, a dude of some legit claimed fame and or experience decides to brand and sell a watch. This is accompanied by a write up about how its been “operator tested” and “developed based on years of operational experience and feedback from the field”.
Without fail, all of these micro brands have a list of features that purport to be up to the task of handling a “rugged” or “combat use” environment. And they all tend to command anywhere from the $300 to $500 price range, sometimes even more. But the one thing that always seems to slip by everyone is the typical CRAP movement all of these kinds of watches use.
If people took 5 minutes to Google the movement used in most of these “Operator” watches, they would soon see how inexpensive they tend to be and or unreliable/pieces of junk they are known for. As stated by the previous poster, you can buy a far superior watch for substantially less that will prove to be far more reliable as well as durable.
When it comes to the coffee, that seems to be another big branding scam. Where do you think those coffee beans come from that all the Tacti-Coffee stores sell? You are paying for someones MOTTO label on a bag basically unless it is coming from the roasters themselves.
So do yourself a favor, take 5 minutes to Google and save yourself some money.
Hi,
It is certainly a very common practice for businesses to follow bubble markets like coffee and watches. How you sift the wheat from the chaff is always going to be a challenge, particularly when it is very easy to make claims which are very difficult if not impossible to substantiate.
The “operator” tag is used across all kinds of products from clothing to equipment and quite often it appears that they are targeting the recreational user, which is absolutely fine.
I can’t talk about coffee as I don’t sell that but we have supplied good quantities of these watches into the unit that did the development work with Elliot Brown and they have had excellent reviews, which tends to come in the form of more orders.
As I mentioned to Hernando this watch is not for everyone and there are some excellently priced alternatives depending on what you want from them. Certainly, most of my mates in training bought £20 Casio wrist watches but then again they weren’t doing what the lads who wear this watch are.
Bottom line it comes down to personal preference. I know what I like and need and therefore go for that. If anyone has questions as to whether this watch would be suitable for what they are doing and aren’t sure then we are more than happy to talk it through with them.
Cheers
Matt