Before the Dirty Dozen became the new standard for British military watches in 1944, the British Ministry of Defence commissioned brands to create Army Trade Pattern (ATP) watches. It was these watches that saw service during the opening salvos of World War Two. Now, one of the original brands who created ATP watches, Rotary, is celebrating that heritage with the launch of an official collaboration with the MoD, which we’ve been hands-on with. It’s the Rotary x MoD ATP Reissue.
The detail that you can’t fail to notice first is the size. The watch measures a period accurate 33.5mm in diameter with a 39mm lug-to-lug and 9.5mm thickness making it very small on the wrist. I’m unused to wearing such a petite watch but after only a short amount of time it starts to feel normal and I experience why smaller dimensions are normal for field watches.
Even when my wrist is fully bent backwards, the back of my hand comes nowhere near the crown of the watch, giving me a full range of motion completely unimpeded by the timepiece. It’s also a very lightweight watch, meaning there’s no fatigue after hours of wear. Both of which are features that would be important for a soldier in the European theatre of war in the 20th century.
However, while the size is based on the original ATP watch, the Reissue has been upgraded to modern standards of durability. It has a screw-down crown that helps to provide a 100m water resistance rating, and the glass has been upgraded to a single-dome sapphire crystal. Improving its scratch resistance and clarity compared to period accurate plexiglass or Perspex.
For the display, it uses a sandy, beige base with blocky Arabic numerals in black. The high contrast makes it easy to read, which is the same logic that the Dirty Dozen would later use in its inverted form of black with white accents. It features central hours and minutes with the seconds displayed on a subdial at 6 o’clock.
Inside is a quartz movement, which is why the seconds hand moves once per second rather than in a continuous sweep. It makes sense by modern standards because very few brands produce mechanical calibres at this size today. If you are a dedicated mechanical movement collector, they are producing an automatic edition as well at a larger 40mm sizing as part of the broader Rotary x MoD series. That series also includes a quartz, 37mm ATP, an automatic Navy Diver, quartz Pilot Chronograph, smart watch and Spitfire set.
The quartz movement is protected by a solid caseback that bears a commemorative MoD engraving. However, the picture is hidden most of the time by the NATO style strap which loops beneath the spring bar to hold the watch in place on your wrist. It’s the natural strap option for a field watch because if one of the spring bars fails, the other spring bar keeps the watch attached to your wrist, so you don’t lose the entire thing.
For pricing, it’s well and truly in impulse buy range at £149. For a smart little field watch with 100m water resistance and an authentic military lineage, which isn’t asking a lot. Perfect for wearing daily and not being afraid to give it a beating out in the field.
Price and Specs:
More details at Rotary.
