Timex’s Affordable Retro Flagship Just Got a Handy New Feature
Timex introduces its first GMT complication to the Marlin collection.
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Timex revived its Marlin collection in 2017, marking its return to mechanical watchmaking after a decades-long hiatus.
What began as a single 34mm dress watch with a hand-wound movement has become one of the Waterbury watchmaker's headline collections.
As the name suggests, the Marlin Quartz GMT swaps manual power for a battery charge. - Credit: Timex
The first modern Marlin looked like a prop from Mad Men , which greatly contributed to its success, and Timex has continued to draw inspiration from the art and design of the 1960s.
After adding a California dial , a 24-hour sub-dial and multiple chronograph versions , the Marlin collection finally has its first GMT. It is a retro masterpiece that looks like it was pulled straight from the brand's archive.
The Marlin Quartz GMT is available with a five-link steel bracelet. - Credit: Timex
The Marlin Quartz GMT has three different dial options, one of which comes on a leather strap and the other on steel bracelets. As the name suggests, it adds another quartz movement to the formerly mechanical and automatic collection.
An odd GMT
Like many newer Marlin references, the Quartz GMT has a 40mm steel case. However, it retains the same case shape used throughout the collection since 2017.
The 24-hour track is printed in odd numbers along a two-tone ring. - Credit: Timex
The dial's most striking feature is that the GMT hand runs along a two-tone 24-hour track printed in odd numbers. Each one appears between the applied baton indices.
The GMT hand is almost identical to the one found on the beloved Q Timex GMT , tipped with a red triangle and filled with lume. A lume marker appears alongside each index like the title on a lowercase "i."
The Marlin Quartz GMT has a 40mm case. - Credit: Timex
Also like the Q Timex GMT, the quartz movement is a "Caller GMT," which sets the 24-hour hand independently rather than the local hour hand as on a "Flyer GMT."
Three options
At launch, the Marlin Quartz GMT comes in three distinct color schemes, including two bracelets. Starting with my personal favorite, there is a navy blue dial with gold hands and indices.
The black and gold reference has half of the 24-hour track faded into the dial. - Credit: Timex
The 24-hour track splits horizontally between light blue and dark blue, and the crown is gilded to match the hands and indices. This one comes on a navy blue leather pin-buckle strap.
The flashiest option has a gold-tone case and a matching five-link steel bracelet. It has a black dial with gold-tone hands and indices. The 24-hour track is half gilt and half black, fading into the dial.
The steel bracelet has a center-folding clasp. - Credit: Timex
Finally, there is another blue dial identical to the first, except that the hands and indices are steel-colored. It has a steel case, including the crown, and comes on a steel five-link bracelet with a center-folding clasp.
Once Timex started expanding the Marlin collection past small, retro dress watches, it was only a matter of time before a GMT appeared. The Marlin Quartz GMT fits the well-established 1960s tone and adds another ultra-affordable daily watch to the collection.
Availability and price
The Timex Quartz GMT is available now from Timex for $199 with the leather strap reference and $229 for the steel bracelet references.
Timex Marlin Quartz GMT
Specs
| Case Size 40mm |
|---|
| Movement Quartz |
| Water Resistance 50m |
About the Author: Brad Lanphear is an associate editor at Gear Patrol covering watches and style. Before joining the publication, he previously wrote for Heddels and Men's Health. Now, he's on a never-ending quest to find the perfect pair of Japanese denim.
