The Bang On 1960s Retro Vibe of the Timex Marlin Jet

US watch brand Timex is on a mission to recuperate its former glory, and one of its strategies is to resurrect winning designs from its past. Renowned for its accessibly priced mechanical and quartz watches, in the early 1960s, one in three watches sold was a Timex. The Marlin, a mechanical dress watch designed in the 1960s, was dusted off and reissued in 2017, spearheading the brand’s entry into the hot market of vintage revivals. Although the latest model, the Timex Marlin Jet, is not based on a specific historical ancestor, it captures the retro-futuristic zeitgeist of 1960s design to a tee. Compact and effortlessly stylish, the Marlin Jet has an aggressive, almost vintage price tag!

Flaunting compact dimensions in tune with yesteryear watches, the Marlin Jet has a modest 38mm diameter coupled with a thickness of 11.5mm. While the watch might be a straightforward three-hander, much thought has gone into the design of the stainless steel case.

One of the most prominent features of its identity is the grooved rounded bezel rising from the concave dial. Using a 1960s-inspired Hesalite dome, the acrylic crystal towering over the dial and bezel covers the entire top surface of the case, leaving only the brushed lugs exposed. Engraved with two black-inlaid parallel lines and the watch’s name at 6 o’clock, the bezel and protective domed crystal give the watch its domed retro vibe, evoking the rounded visors of 1960s astronaut helmets. The coherence of the design is further reflected in the continuation of the grooves onto the polished crown and caseback, reminiscent of the speed lines found in 1930s Streamline Moderne design.

Again, you can appreciate the hand of the designer on the starkly elegant silvery white dia with a neat central crosshair pattern. Nestled in an indented opening on the sloping flange, the applied hour markers feature black inlays matching those on the simple baton hour and minute hands and the grooves on the bezel. The dial is completed with an elegant tapering central seconds hand and a useful recessed 24-hour sub-dial at 9 o’clock.

To keep the price in check, the Marlin Jet is powered by a Japanese Miyota 8217 automatic movement visible through the exhibition caseback. With a frequency of 21,600, an anti-shock system and a power reserve of 42 hours, this automatic movement gets the job done seamlessly.

Price

The Timex Marlin Jet is paired with a 19mm blue woven Perlon strap with stays and a pin buckle engraved with the brand name. As we hinted in the opening paragraph, the Marlin Jet has an aggressive price tag of USD 289 or EUR 289, resulting in a well-designed, competent daily beater that delivers a lot of bang for your buck/euro.

For more information, please consult timex.eu.