This past year I have fallen in love with quartz. As all watch enthusiasts should do, I’ve come to terms with quartz’s superiority in virtually all aspects to mechanical. In for review today is the About Vintage GMT; the specific reference is the 1954 Green Turtle edition. The 1954 here is in reference to the first ever GMT watch. About Vintage is a Danish watch brand started by two childhood friends and has piqued my interest as one of the few brands producing classically designed watches with quartz and mechanical movements.
Additionally, with this collection, About Vintage will be contributing to the safety of 20 baby turtles. If you have read my reviews or follow me on social media, you’ll know I take every opportunity possible to shout out those watch companies, and we, as enthusiasts, need to care about the oceans. With that in mind, getting a quartz GMT made for a good cause seemed like a perfect review.
The 1954 GMT is stylized from classic GMTs of the 50s. It is easy to draw comparisons between the 41mm GMT and the likes of GMT Master from Rolex of the period of even the Glycine Airman. The watch comes fitted with a Stainless-Steel Jubilee bracelet and rubber strap. The bezel is a 60-click bi-directional with 24hr marks allowing you to track an additional time zone using the orange GMT hand. 1954 comes in at $399, making it well within the sub $500 GMT category that has long captivated other enthusiasts and me.
On the Wrist
On my 7.25” wrist, the 41mm diameter of the watch is well within the range of comfortable for me. The thickness being under 12mm keeps the watch from feeling too much like a slab despite the minimal beveling on the case side. The lugs curve down, making the watch hug your wrist to aid in the comfortable wearing experience.
Although the dial is texturized, which sometimes can make the dial too busy for reading at a glance, the 1954 is very legible. The small hands work well with the understated indices to create a clean look. Some of this must be attributed to the skinny second hand and GMT hand. I preferred the jubilee over the rubber; however, I know that will not be the case for many. The male end links of the bracelet cause the lug to lug to extend out to 56mm. For many, this will create a draped appearance. This was not an issue for me, and the bracelet construction I found to be exceptional overall for this price point.
About Vintage 1954 GMT Specs | |
Case Width 41mm | Lug-to-Lug 47.5mm |
Case Thickness 12mm | Lug Width 20mm |
Water Resistance 100m | Strap Bracelet |
Crystal Sapphire | Lume Yes |
Movement Rhonda 515-24H GMT (Quartz) | Price $399 |
Dial Details
The turtle green dial works excellent with the gilt accents, providing all the contrast you may need. These textured dials have become increasingly popular in micros as of late, and at this price, I was slightly hesitant because I was unsure how well it would be executed. Once in hand, I found my concerns to be unwarranted. The patterned dial is executed without flaw, even down to the text.
The only minor complaint would be that the “GMT” text at 6 pm seems slightly off from the orange of the GMT hand, making it appear red in certain light. This very well could be a result of the thickness being different from the text to the GMT hand, creating an illusion that they are different colors despite having the same color code.
Beneath the dial is a white date wheel, date wheels on GMT can be tremendously helpful to track, so it is appreciated here. Although the date wheel does not match the green dial, at this price point, you cannot complain; there are many examples of worse dates on more expensive watches.
With the lights off, the 1954 glows that fantastic sickly green you would expect from a vintage-inspired watch. This walks the line well between faux-aged and being inspired by vintage. In the light, the indices are a cream yellow but now appear to have undergone any distressing. I am a fan of the lack of distressing with this slightly dressier variation.
Bracelet and Movement
This is my first quartz (analog) GMT watch, and using the complication is slightly different from a mechanical version. Within the 1954 is a Swiss Ronda 515-24H GMT movement. This movement allows for independent adjustment of the 24-hour hand within the watch.
Although independently adjusting the 24hr hand is like most “caller” GMTs, the difference is with a mechanical movement the hand will go in 1hr increments. In contrast, this movement will rotate the hand smoothly and modify to the correct place once the crown is pushed back in. I could see some precision issues with this, but you should have no problems when paired with a rotating bezel. The added benefit of this style of GMT is if you want to track one of those funky in-between time zones that has a half-hour difference, you should be able to.
As mentioned earlier, the bracelet does have male end links, causing the watch to wear larger on wrist, but fret not. About Vintage included quick-release spring bars with their bracelet, so swapping to a different strap does not require any tools. This is a thoughtful upgrade with a quartz watch, especially at this price. I imagine this watch as a great pickup for someone looking to get their first watch, but a mechanical watch is a bit too intimidating, or a GMT complication is cost prohibitive. All that said, for many of the buyers having a watch tool kit may be unlikely, and not needing any additional tools to swap the bracelet is empowering,
Final Thoughts
Aside from a Brew Retromatic, this is the first quartz watch I have reviewed. I do not think there will be an 18-month gap before the next quartz review. My lifestyle has always been active, and the result has been that I consistently break my mechanical watches. Whether it is a diver getting beaten up while diving, breaking against a cliff face while taking a whipper while rock climbing, or shattering my Explorer II during a summit attempt a few weeks ago, there comes a time to accept that quartz may be the best choice for me. That is not a bad thing; in fact, there is something incredibly liberating about being able to pick up a quartz watch and never think twice about it. The time is always right, and rarely is it a concern whether it can handle the beating you throw at it. The About Vintage catalog has several great-looking options in both quartz and mechanical. I could easily see myself having one of the mechanical and quartz versions of their watches. The quartz would likely hog all the wrist time.
During my time with the 1954, I wondered if this could have been my first watch. I could have skipped the dozens and dozens of watches I have had between getting into the hobby and now. Maybe, that would have been for the best (definitely for my bank account). Now that I have had one in hand and the quality of About Vintage holds up and exceeds expectations for a sub $500 watch, I would happily recommend looking through their catalog to anyone asking for recommendations for their first watch. The fact that this variant helps fund turtle saving efforts is a bonus. The only complaint that is consistent throughout the catalog, though, is the male end links on their bracelets. This is inconsequential for those with wrists large enough to accommodate the added length, but this will be a turn-off for the small wrist squad.
Check out more GMT watch reviews at The Watch Clicker here
Check out the About Vintage website here
