Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. The Sattelberg Automatic By Second Hour Watches
Four contemporary, stylish and affordable new field models from the Australian watchmaker.
When talking about affordable field watches, brands like Hamilton and Seiko immediately come to mind. Of course, these are well established and a host of smaller microbrands have intriguing collections as well. Australian microbrand Second Hour is close to releasing a new collection of four field watches with rugged specs and stylish, contemporary looks. This is the brand’s fifth watch release and we were impressed with its Giant Stride Dive Watch from last year (the third release). Not many microbrands find success after one or two models, but Second Hour has defied the odds with a growing fan base and cool, affordable watches.
If you look at Second Hour’s previous collections, you’ll notice a common design thread. They share characteristics that make them familiar to the brand, but the Sattelberg Field Watch bucks this trend a bit. There’s a fresh design language that shifts gears, although not entirely. The 316L stainless steel case has the same profile shape as the earlier Mandala. It’s brushed with polished bevels and features a fixed, angled bezel. To make it tougher for field use, Second Hour gave it a surface hardening treatment, elevating the steel to 1,200 Vickers.
One of the four models has a dark DLC (Diamond Like Coating) treatment as well. A flat sapphire crystal with a bevelled edge protects the dial with six anti-reflective coatings on the underside. This helps keep the watch thin at only 10mm, while the diameter is very wearable at 40mm (lug-to-lug 47mm). The watch is named after Sattelberg in the Huon Peninsula, New Guinea, which is a large 896-metre hill that played a critical role for Australian troops in World War II. Second Hour celebrates its historical memory and Australian spirit with longitude and latitude coordinates engraved on the steel caseback. A signed, screw-down crown helps ensure a 100-metre water resistance rating.
The Sattelberg watches come in four dial colours: Service Blues (blue), Officer (black), Gun Smoke (grey) and The Beacon (white). All have a brushed finish except for The Beacon, which is the brand’s first full lume dial. The diamond-cut hour and minute hands were designed in-house and have Super-LumiNova BGW9, as do the outer hour markers and large Arabic numerals. The seconds hand has a red triangular tip with lume. The Beacon’s dial elements are black, and the entire dial glows, offering excellent contrast at night. Between the five Arabic numerals are applied triangular indices, while a colour-matching date window sits at 6 o’clock. The latter is rare for such an affordable collection as most date wheels would be white.
Powering the collection is a Miyota 9015 automatic. It has 24 jewels and beats at 28,800vph (4Hz) with a 42-hour power reserve. Introduced in 2009, this popular and attainable workhorse offers a 4Hz beat rate when many are 3Hz. Functions include central hours, minutes, hacking seconds and the date. Accuracy is rated at -10/+30 seconds per day but generally falls within those parameters in use.
As for the strap, it starts with padded canvas with a leather backing and oil-sealed edges. A second colour-matching, stretch fabric strap with a stylish pinstripe and quick-release levers will also be included. The lug width is 20mm, so aftermarket options are plentiful if you’re looking for additional straps. A two-watch travel case will be included as well. All of this comes with a very palatable price of AUD 675 / USD 455 for three models and AUD 698 / USD 475 for The Beacon (full lume dial with DLC-treated case). Discounts will be offered during pre-orders, and the collection comes with a two-year warranty. Pre-orders are expected in November, with deliveries in late 2022.
For more information and to place a pre-order in November, please visit SecondHour.com.au.
