Gem of a watch - I've had the quartz version for years and totally love it on my small wrist. I've taken it camping many times, and dipping in the creek, and it shows no weakness. Been contemplating getting this mechanical version for quite a while but have been baffled by conflicting blogs/reports of it being 36mm or 39mm - thanks to Teddy for clarifying that in fact it's the same great, small stainless case they've always used.
@@supersonico9364 thanks for asking that very sensitively posed question. I don't think of my wrists as big because they're in proportion to my 195cm height. I have a watch that Schwarzenegger wears, and it looks ridiculously big on me compared to him.
I own many watches from cheap to thousands. I took a punt on one of these as a beater watch. I absolutely love it. My other watches have locked away for months . It does everything I need in a watch and I don’t even know I’m wearing it. It glows up all day and night , so I can see the time no matter what.
I have this watch on my 8 in. wrist. I love it. Btw, the water resist is 5atm/50M as impressed on the caseback. The fact that the tritium is always "on" means no dying lume during the night...bonus.
this GPM model is actually reissue/"re-imagined" version of GG-W-113 from the mid 1980s. I own one of the original as well as the LE version of this the GPM Benrus. Limited edition of 600 pcs. It was the first version of this watch with brushed SS case, slightly shorter lugs, arrow tipped seconds hand, and very unique Benrus stamped 2801. Anyway, I love these new GPM. I think the new bead blasted finish looks really good. The watch is small but more you wear it, more you'll love the size. Just big enough to quickly tell time yet not so big that it gets in the way. Very comfortable watch with a very unique look
I got the U.S. Army Edition of this watch for an awesome deal on Black Friday. The ETA-2801 keeps great time. Day or night, the watch has a great look thanks to the awesome tritium tubes.
Call me a kid then, cause I believe my GP dial is identical to that one just in a different case. Nice job Teddy. I do cherish my marathon watches. Even with only 30 meters of water resistance. Never had a problem with water ingress even after kayaking and swimming.
Excellent review , l have two fibre shell quartz navigator and field versions with H3 like and as you've stated it's not too bright unless it's pitch black at night . I'll consider this mechanical movement version but as a CWC user it'll have be something special for me to part with cash !
I've had mine for about two years; it is my daily wear. I love this watch. I'll occasionally look at other watches, and there is still no other field watch I'd rather own or wear. It has a unique look, fits my small/medium-sized wrist perfectly. The only thing I would change is the strap size - 16mm is pretty small. But, other than that, it checks all the boxes for me - hand-wind/high quality movement; sapphire crystal; tridium tubes - including an different color at the 12 position and a tube on the seconds hand; simple, highly legible face; relatively affordable. I don't see myself ever daily-wearing any other watch. I initially used the ballistic nylon strap. Then I tried the Marathon leather strap for a while, but I didn't really like the way it wore on my wrist. The 16mm DEFSTAN strap is my favorite of the three. I wind it approximately 9 winds every day; I've found that is the sweet spot between winding it up all the way to the hard stop or allowing it to run out of wind. From an accuracy standpoint, mine is poor. It loses a four minutes every month; I adjust the time every few days to keep it on track. I wish it were more accurate, but, honestly, I don't care; I have a smartphone to give me the exact time. One of the hour tridium markers fell off the face; had to send it in for service. Took about a month to get it back. In fairness, I bumped it up against a granite countertop with quite a bit of force. Still, I was a bit surprised.
It should keep better time if you wind it fully to the stop every day. I've owned more than half a dozen manually wound watches including one with this movement and they are all engineered to give the best time keeping with a full wind. I feel that aside from very old vintage watches, some of the myths about 'over winding' come from either automatic watches that aren't intended to be regularly hand wound or design flaws such as with recent Hamilton movements where the mainspring is too strong to achieve a longer power reserve.and the screw for the barrel arbor shears off.
I have been looking at Marathon for quite some time, however, they were usually out of my price range. As an Army vet, Marathon has a U.S. Army version of this watch on their site for $315. A sapphire crystal, eta2801, tritium and compelling design, it was a no brainer bang for buck watch considering this watch usually exceeds $700.
😢Most useful thing about Teddy reviews is he has a skinny wrist like me so basically I look to him to try on watches for me haha...very interested in this, though I have the plastic gp, which is also tiny but tough as balls and has that great lume, so not sure I necessarily need it
Just wondering, would a CWC G10 case protector fit this thing? I have annoying friends who think its funny to pull the crown out of my watches when Im not looking.
Agree with the comments about the 16mm strap. However the price seems rather high. I'm getting the impression that Marathon is pushing up their prices all round. The Navigator I purchased last September for GBP240 is now selling at over GBP400 upwards. Overall, there seems to be a considerable upswing in pricing by many of the main manufacturers.
I have a question, so I know this isn't meant for "water activities" like you said earlier in the video, but if I'm out and it's pouring outside (raining hard) would I have to worry about this having some sort of leakage or something going wrong with the watch? Just wondering as I usually have watches with 100m minimum and not something with this little for the water resistance level. Thanks
Not enough water resistance for the price . Check out ! GWS HS G10 ! 40m 200M SAPHIRE TRITIUM T25 SCREW DOWN CROWN AND CASE It's a microtech traser brand in the UK. Bang for your buck !
Hi. I have a Fortis Spacematic chronograph with a bracelet . Looks somewhat like Marathon GSAR. So I think about Marathon JDD with rubber band but size wise I am lost. I think the Fortis is on the small side and I normally wear a Garmin GPS which is larger than JDD except the thickness .... Now : is JDD a better watch? Better movement? Is the Day Date increasing value long term ? My wrist is 18 cm /7 inches
At 7 inches, you should probably aim for the GSAR rather than the JDD... I mean, there's a reason that Rolex has made their sports watches around that size of 41mm... I on the other hand have an 8.5" wrist, I have a GSAR, but may sometime ad a JDD to my collection.
@@xpusostomos I like the design of the Marathon, but I can't get past the 30m. I just bought $100 Bertucci off Amazon. 100m W/R, sapphire crystal and a killer strap. There is a titanium watch with 200m of W/R and also has a great strap.
@@ralphus555 I have the titanium Bertucci. It has good water resistance because it's quartz. Name me a manual wind field watch with 100m WR. I also find the Bertucci strap questionable.. a bit stiff, and the head will drop straight off if you pick it up by the buckle. I'm thinking about replacing it with a Nick Mankey one. If you are fussed about water resistence, you should get automatic or quartz since they may have screw down crowns.
@@xpusostomos Seiko makes several field watches with manual wind and 100m of W/R. Swiss Watch Company Bunker is also a legit example. Lots of examples out there...
Mellor 72's case is quite different from the GP - but a direct competitor to the Hamilton KAPPM. All (Mara, Hamilton, CWC) are really great field watches.
"The 34mm comes off as a kids watch", you say? I think you have a lot to learn about watch sizes, watch history and as they apply to horological purpose, style and application and the English language. A 'kid' is a baby goat.
Why would anyone make a field watch that was not 100 m water resistant or better? This watch has some wonderful traits, but I can't get past the poor water resistance.
Historically field watches never had 100m... They could probably do it these days... but then again, I've never seen a manual wind watch with better than about 50m, so I don't know.
It's not the field watch status a condition for it to be 100 WR but the military purpose of it, imagine a soldier wary of jumping into a 5 feet deep canal because of ruining the watch.
Mil spec water resistance rating is different than the usual one. Of course it can handle. The mil spec test condition says on the water resistance says: (1) Complete immersion in distilled water with approximately 1 percent by weight wetting solution under one atmosphere (14.7 psi) and at room temperature (2) Complete immersion in distilled water with approximately 1 percent by weight wetting solution under three atmospheres (44.1 psi) and at room temperature Both bullet points for 5mins Water leakage: Submerged in a measured volume of distilled or deionized water, equal to approximately 10 times the volume ofthe watch, at 23 °C ± 1 °C For 24 hra
This is the first watch that I ever really lusted after but after being in the hobby for a few years I have still yet to pick one up. Its the 16mm strap and lack of water resistance that are keeping me away. I would love it if Marathon made it fit 20mm straps and used a screw down crown, but until then I'll pass. The looks are purpose, the specs... not so much.
I don't get it, I love the Navy Seals watch and other divers but who really needs a big brick to bang around? I need a readable dial that will let me check the pulse of a trauma victim at 4 am in the rain. either one does that but the the size of the Marathon, while high, is just a little less of a big heavy dangly on the wrist like some of the big diving watches are. Small'?? check out the size of full size gold watches for men from the 50's. half the size. and it's about the size of a more modern watch from the 60's. Big doesn't mean better and reasonable size doesn't mean feminine.
Gem of a watch - I've had the quartz version for years and totally love it on my small wrist. I've taken it camping many times, and dipping in the creek, and it shows no weakness. Been contemplating getting this mechanical version for quite a while but have been baffled by conflicting blogs/reports of it being 36mm or 39mm - thanks to Teddy for clarifying that in fact it's the same great, small stainless case they've always used.
I don't normally wear small watches (I have a 8.5" wrist), but I own this watch, and I'm absolutely loving it.
@@supersonico9364 thanks for asking that very sensitively posed question. I don't think of my wrists as big because they're in proportion to my 195cm height. I have a watch that Schwarzenegger wears, and it looks ridiculously big on me compared to him.
I own many watches from cheap to thousands. I took a punt on one of these as a beater watch. I absolutely love it. My other watches have locked away for months . It does everything I need in a watch and I don’t even know I’m wearing it. It glows up all day and night , so I can see the time no matter what.
Out of curiosity what kind of accuracy are you getting out the movement in your watch?
Me: Googles a watch.
Hours later...
Teddy: Posts video of the watch I'm researching.
You're freaking me out, man!
I have this watch on my 8 in. wrist. I love it. Btw, the water resist is 5atm/50M as impressed on the caseback. The fact that the tritium is always "on" means no dying lume during the night...bonus.
this GPM model is actually reissue/"re-imagined" version of GG-W-113 from the mid 1980s. I own one of the original as well as the LE version of this the GPM Benrus. Limited edition of 600 pcs. It was the first version of this watch with brushed SS case, slightly shorter lugs, arrow tipped seconds hand, and very unique Benrus stamped 2801. Anyway, I love these new GPM. I think the new bead blasted finish looks really good. The watch is small but more you wear it, more you'll love the size. Just big enough to quickly tell time yet not so big that it gets in the way. Very comfortable watch with a very unique look
Love this show just for the golden hour backdrop Teddy!;) just got in a 36 mm GSAR! Love it
I got the U.S. Army Edition of this watch for an awesome deal on Black Friday. The ETA-2801 keeps great time. Day or night, the watch has a great look thanks to the awesome tritium tubes.
Call me a kid then, cause I believe my GP dial is identical to that one just in a different case. Nice job Teddy. I do cherish my marathon watches. Even with only 30 meters of water resistance. Never had a problem with water ingress even after kayaking and swimming.
For those who think it's small.... .keep in mind the dial is about the same size as the 41mm diving GSAR Marathon.
thats pretty crazy honestly
Excellent review , l have two fibre shell quartz navigator and field versions with H3 like and as you've stated it's not too bright unless it's pitch black at night . I'll consider this mechanical movement version but as a CWC user it'll have be something special for me to part with cash !
I've had mine for about two years; it is my daily wear.
I love this watch. I'll occasionally look at other watches, and there is still no other field watch I'd rather own or wear. It has a unique look, fits my small/medium-sized wrist perfectly. The only thing I would change is the strap size - 16mm is pretty small. But, other than that, it checks all the boxes for me - hand-wind/high quality movement; sapphire crystal; tridium tubes - including an different color at the 12 position and a tube on the seconds hand; simple, highly legible face; relatively affordable. I don't see myself ever daily-wearing any other watch.
I initially used the ballistic nylon strap. Then I tried the Marathon leather strap for a while, but I didn't really like the way it wore on my wrist. The 16mm DEFSTAN strap is my favorite of the three.
I wind it approximately 9 winds every day; I've found that is the sweet spot between winding it up all the way to the hard stop or allowing it to run out of wind.
From an accuracy standpoint, mine is poor. It loses a four minutes every month; I adjust the time every few days to keep it on track. I wish it were more accurate, but, honestly, I don't care; I have a smartphone to give me the exact time. One of the hour tridium markers fell off the face; had to send it in for service. Took about a month to get it back. In fairness, I bumped it up against a granite countertop with quite a bit of force. Still, I was a bit surprised.
It should keep better time if you wind it fully to the stop every day.
I've owned more than half a dozen manually wound watches including one with this movement and they are all engineered to give the best time keeping with a full wind.
I feel that aside from very old vintage watches, some of the myths about 'over winding' come from either automatic watches that aren't intended to be regularly hand wound or design flaws such as with recent Hamilton movements where the mainspring is too strong to achieve a longer power reserve.and the screw for the barrel arbor shears off.
@antonylaing2499 I've tried full-stop winding, too - didn't make any difference.
I just love the shape case on this Marathon! It looks so different but really cool! The best looking Marathon for me
I need one of those in my collection!
I just picked one up, been wearing non stop for weeks! Beadblast is nice for not worrying about any scratches
brushed is better for scratches... a bit of fine wet and dry paper to repair. Harder to repair a beadblast.
It’s a field watch
Crazy! I was just looking at these watches a couple of hours before this video dropped.
I have been looking at Marathon for quite some time, however, they were usually out of my price range. As an Army vet, Marathon has a U.S. Army version of this watch on their site for $315. A sapphire crystal, eta2801, tritium and compelling design, it was a no brainer bang for buck watch considering this watch usually exceeds $700.
Own one. Great watch to wear if you don't care what happens to your watch.
😢Most useful thing about Teddy reviews is he has a skinny wrist like me so basically I look to him to try on watches for me haha...very interested in this, though I have the plastic gp, which is also tiny but tough as balls and has that great lume, so not sure I necessarily need it
Key word "suitable". A Casio F-91W is also "suitable".
No mention of "H3" on the dial, inside the "9" and "21" text. H3 refers to Tritium.
Just wondering, would a CWC G10 case protector fit this thing? I have annoying friends who think its funny to pull the crown out of my watches when Im not looking.
Agree with the comments about the 16mm strap.
However the price seems rather high. I'm getting the impression that Marathon is pushing up their prices all round. The Navigator I purchased last September for GBP240 is now selling at over GBP400 upwards. Overall, there seems to be a considerable upswing in pricing by many of the main manufacturers.
If anyone knows how to widen it’s lug, please let me know. It should at least be at 18mm.
I have a question, so I know this isn't meant for "water activities" like you said earlier in the video, but if I'm out and it's pouring outside (raining hard) would I have to worry about this having some sort of leakage or something going wrong with the watch?
Just wondering as I usually have watches with 100m minimum and not something with this little for the water resistance level. Thanks
Not enough water resistance for the price .
Check out ! GWS HS G10 !
40m
200M
SAPHIRE
TRITIUM T25
SCREW DOWN CROWN AND CASE
It's a microtech traser brand in the UK.
Bang for your buck !
I looked it up and they looked like shit im looking for one with tritium tubes like this in the video
Good evening Teddy, for a 17 cm diameter wrist, what size marathon watch would be the most appropriate: 34, 36 or 41 mm?
So what ref nbr is the automatic version?
My favorite field
My wrist size is 17.5cm. I feel the Tudor bb58 as my size. Would this one too small for me?
Anyone know how much this watch weighs?
Need this 😍
Hi. I have a Fortis Spacematic chronograph with a bracelet . Looks somewhat like Marathon GSAR.
So I think about Marathon JDD with rubber band but size wise I am lost.
I think the Fortis is on the small side and I normally wear a Garmin GPS which is larger than JDD except the thickness ....
Now : is JDD a better watch? Better movement? Is the Day Date increasing value long term ?
My wrist is 18 cm /7 inches
At 7 inches, you should probably aim for the GSAR rather than the JDD... I mean, there's a reason that Rolex has made their sports watches around that size of 41mm... I on the other hand have an 8.5" wrist, I have a GSAR, but may sometime ad a JDD to my collection.
And forget about resale and "better watch", buy what speaks to you.
Great review as always. Cool watch and heritage but the 30m of w/r is a deal breaker for me. Get a Bertucci Field Watch for a fraction of the price...
Do what I did and get both. Only the higher end Bertuccis are comparable in quality.
@@xpusostomos I like the design of the Marathon, but I can't get past the 30m. I just bought $100 Bertucci off Amazon. 100m W/R, sapphire crystal and a killer strap. There is a titanium watch with 200m of W/R and also has a great strap.
@@ralphus555 I have the titanium Bertucci. It has good water resistance because it's quartz. Name me a manual wind field watch with 100m WR. I also find the Bertucci strap questionable.. a bit stiff, and the head will drop straight off if you pick it up by the buckle. I'm thinking about replacing it with a Nick Mankey one. If you are fussed about water resistence, you should get automatic or quartz since they may have screw down crowns.
@@xpusostomos Seiko makes several field watches with manual wind and 100m of W/R. Swiss Watch Company Bunker is also a legit example. Lots of examples out there...
Seiko Alpinist has 200M of W/R. Iconic field watch.
How much? 30m no wonder so many military go buy their own watches and have done since whenever.
CWC MELLOR-72 MECHANICAL is similar watch ...
Mellor 72's case is quite different from the GP - but a direct competitor to the Hamilton KAPPM. All (Mara, Hamilton, CWC) are really great field watches.
I like my radioactive watch
The water resistance and 16mm strap make this a no-go. Why they didn't beef it up with a 20mm lug width is beyond me.
Whine whine whine
@@alerojas2952 the questions are pertinent, imo. it s supposed to be a military spec inspired everyday watch....right?
They were staying true to the 1960s original... though I think moving to 18mm would have been a compromise.
you can always go cwc, 18mm
"The 34mm comes off as a kids watch", you say? I think you have a lot to learn about watch sizes, watch history and as they apply to horological purpose, style and application and the English language. A 'kid' is a baby goat.
Nice. But to tough competition from Hamilton. Marathon is noticeable for other type of watches in my view.
Hamilton lume is complete shit. Tritium is the bees knees. I have both, I would never wear the Hamilton at night.
A field watch with 30m WR?
Point me out a manual wind field watch with much better.
@@xpusostomos Serica
@@p5ychonaut but the Serica is completely dumb. Manual wind watches should never have a screw down crown.
@@xpusostomos Hamilton Khaki
I’d like them to update the WR to 100m.
You can treat the mil spec water resistant watch as those regular 100m watches
@@everydaynormalguy9901 oh, cool, but why?
Why the obsession with WR, nobody should be swimming with a manual wind watch anyway. If you want to get the Marathon GSAR
You don't need 100m on this thing.
Pricey Marathon for white collar operational tactics at the desk?
Why would anyone make a field watch that was not 100 m water resistant or better? This watch has some wonderful traits, but I can't get past the poor water resistance.
Historically field watches never had 100m... They could probably do it these days... but then again, I've never seen a manual wind watch with better than about 50m, so I don't know.
It's not the field watch status a condition for it to be 100 WR but the military purpose of it, imagine a soldier wary of jumping into a 5 feet deep canal because of ruining the watch.
@@xpusostomos Take a look at Serica watches.
"General Purpose" ...
Can't handle rain
Mil spec water resistance rating is different than the usual one. Of course it can handle.
The mil spec test condition says on the water resistance says:
(1) Complete immersion in distilled water with approximately 1 percent by weight wetting solution under one atmosphere (14.7 psi) and at room temperature
(2) Complete immersion in distilled water with approximately 1 percent by weight wetting solution under three atmospheres (44.1 psi) and at room temperature
Both bullet points for 5mins
Water leakage:
Submerged in a measured volume of distilled or deionized water, equal to approximately 10 times the volume ofthe watch, at 23 °C ± 1 °C
For 24 hra
It can handle rain fine. Don't go diving however.
This is the first watch that I ever really lusted after but after being in the hobby for a few years I have still yet to pick one up. Its the 16mm strap and lack of water resistance that are keeping me away. I would love it if Marathon made it fit 20mm straps and used a screw down crown, but until then I'll pass. The looks are purpose, the specs... not so much.
that s keeping most of us away from it, being just splash resistent is really not great.
Manual wind watches never have screw down crowns (nor should they).
@@xpusostomos Incorrect. I own a manual wind watch with a screw down crown. Never is a little extreme, no? Its not a dress watch.
Garcia William Walker Kimberly Davis Jessica
I don't get it, I love the Navy Seals watch and other divers but who really needs a big brick to bang around? I need a readable dial that will let me check the pulse of a trauma victim at 4 am in the rain. either one does that but the the size of the Marathon, while high, is just a little less of a big heavy dangly on the wrist like some of the big diving watches are. Small'?? check out the size of full size gold watches for men from the 50's. half the size. and it's about the size of a more modern watch from the 60's. Big doesn't mean better and reasonable size doesn't mean feminine.
30m WR is kidding themselves 🤦🏼♂️
A tactical mistake from Marathon at 30 meters wateristant. All field watches need to be 100 meters or better in this day and age.
16mm lugs .... No thanks, looks horrible with 16mm