The New Nomos Club 38, a Fan’s Favourite Gets a Larger Variant

While the Tangente hand-wound undoubtedly remains the most emblematic watch you can get from Nomos, and one of the most accessible models too, there’s another fairly priced option from the brand that has long been a fan’s favourite: the Club. A simple, fresher, sportier take on the brand’s watchmaking and design codes, it was launched in 2007 as the reference 701, before being discontinued in 2017. Yet, it remained in the hearts of many Nomos fans, so much so that the brand relaunched it in 2023. And now, after years of being exclusively available in a 36mm case, it gets a bigger brother: the Nomos Club 38. Larger, bolder, still accessible and fun, and packed with classic Glashütte watchmaking delicacies. 

Not to be confused with the Club Campus, a colourful take on the same concept with an error-proof dial, or the Club Sport, a more robust and often more complicated variant with the same design cues, the Club (and only Club) is a classic for Nomos. Since its introduction in 2007, the Club has been the brand’s entry-level model, often priced well under EUR 1,500, yet without compromising on the mechanics, as inside was an in-house hand-wound movement – the calibre Alpha and its derivatives – the same base engine as you can find in the 35mm Tangente. Its discontinuation in 2017 caused some reaction, so much so that the brand brought it back in 2023 under the same reference number, with minor updates.

For its entire existence, the classic Club has been a fairly compact watch, designed as a unisex model, with a 36mm case (8.2mm in thickness, 44.3mm in length), a simple yet fresh design and enough comfort for daily wear, relying on a 100m water-resistance. But 36mm can be small for some, even though the current mood tends to shrink diameters. That’s why Nomos today releases a new option in the collection, the Club 38, a larger variant that comes next to the classic 36mm (I want to make it clear that this is not a replacement) and introduces an additional dial colour to a watch that has only existed in silvery-white so far.

Let’s start with the case and dimensions, the main topics of the day. As its name suggests, the Nomos Club 38 comes in a larger case measuring… 38.5mm. Still, the thickness is very much under control, with a slender profile of only 8.4mm with a closed caseback, or 8.5mm with the optional sapphire back. The case is longer now, with a lug-to-lug measurement of 46.7mm – which is fairly compact for Nomos, known to have long lugs in certain collections. The rest is classic, with a domed sapphire crystal on top and a comfortable 100m water-resistance. Like all Club models, the case is fully polished.

Two dial options are offered. The first, simply called Nomos Club 38, has the collection’s straightforward, classic look, pairing its galvanised, white silver-plated dial with blackened hands filled with red-toned Super-LumiNova. Just like the updated 36mm version, it features grey, black-outlined luminous Arabic numerals with a pleasant domed profile. The second model, the Club 38 Ruthenium, is new to the collection. Basically a mirror image of the classic version, it features a dark grey galvanised dial with ruthenium plating and rhodium-plated polished hands. Things are kept simpler in terms of colour here, as the hands and numerals are filled with white SLN. But being a Club, Nomos added a touch of fun to the numerals, which are outlined in yellow. The only downside with this larger edition is the position of the small seconds counter, which now sits even further from the edge of the dial… A marker at 6 o’clock would have helped to balance the dial.

Inside the case is the calibre DUW 4001, a modern evolution of the hand-wound Alpha movement. Originally based on the Peseux 7001 architecture, this in-house hand-wound calibre is compact, slim and now more powerful, with a solid 53-hour power reserve and a stop-seconds mechanism. Despite being used in an entry-level watch, the movement features the brand’s in-house Swing System, a blue balance spring and elegant ribbing and blued screws.

Worn on 20/18mm Horween Genuine Shell Cordovan straps, these new Nomos Club 38 models are now available from the brand’s permanent collection, and priced from EUR 1,520 in silvery-white or EUR 1,560 in ruthenium – quite an impressive value proposition. The sapphire back, which we certainly recommend, is a EUR 220 option. For more details, please visit nomos-glashuette.com.