Review – Mitch Mason Chronicle

If you do not know by now, the Internet and Kick Starter have radically changed the watch industry for the better. A perfect example of a very cool watch, inspired by a military field watch backed up with excellent modern technology and thinking, is the first watch from Mitch Mason. This watch, known as the Mitch Mason Chronicle, has been kindly loaned to me by the company for this review. Let’s find out what makes this watch tick on so many levels.

The military field watch has been introduced by countless brands, usually with a very somber demeanor. What I have here is a relatively small (by today standards) 36.5mm three hand watch, powered by the Miyota 9039 automatic movement. This movement was introduced by Miyota only recently in 2018. It is a 24 jewel, hacking and hand winding, 42 hour reserve, 28,800 bph movement that is part of the company’s Premium Auto Line. It is rated -10 to +30 seconds per day, but will perform far better in daily use. The rest of the watch is Mitch Mason. It is 13.5mm thick with a double domed sapphire crystal with five internal layers of anti reflectant.

The case is 316 stainless steel and it hugs the wrist reasonably well with downward turned lugs and a slightly protruding case back. It measures 43.5 mm lug to lug and it is a very unique and attractive shape that combines brushed and polished surfaces in a manner that I have not seen before. The screw down, 6 mm diameter, 3 o’clock crown is polished and signed and is finished in an attractive angled pinion design. The polished and brushed screw down case back is unusually well decorated and finished.

The lug width is a standard 20mm, and it comes with a vegetable tanned, Italian leather, hand stitched strap that is of unique design for this watch. The strap tapers from 20mm to a very lean 16mm. The brushed and polished signed buckle, strap loop and strap shape were all made specifically for this watch. This strap has a quick release, making strap changes a breeze. I would use a silicone rubber strap if you are using the watch in water. The color of the leather strap is perfectly coordinated with the steel blue face of this watch. The face is a unique design, that combines eight indices, four sandwich dial numerals and a railroad track chapter ring.

The handset has needle tips and is designed just for this watch. The handset and face lume is Swiss old radium Luminova and it works perfectly with the vertically brushed steel blue face finish. The 3,6,9 and 12 portions of the railroad track chapter ring are partially filled in with extra lume, a design element that I have not seen done before. Orange is used as a great contrast color on the long needle second hand (which actually covers the railroad track chapter ring!) and also to identify the model name of the watch on the face. Brand markings and the eight small numeral indices are all printed very discretely in gray.

I have not seen a daily beater type of watch designed for small wrists that has combined so many interesting and attractive design elements with bullet proof specifications. It is currently being offered in jet black, desert sand, field gray as well as steel blue for $379 through an upcoming Kickstarter campaign. The price will change to $499 after the program has ended. MitchMason.com