BY JOVAN KRSTEVSKI
Hamilton recently added a few new members to its Khaki Aviation family. The converter, as it is being called is a collection of automatic pilot’s watches that feature a bi-directional rotating slide rule to make on the fly calculations. There is a three handset with date, a GMT, and a Chronograph on offer. Let’s have a quick look
Being a part of the same family, the new Hamilton Khaki Converter watches have a lot in common. First and foremost is the rotating slide rule bezel. In times when a flight runs in autopilot mode for the most time, a slide rule bezel does sound a little impractical, however, it is a nifty feature that can help the wearer make all sorts of unit and currency conversions. Moving on, all watches come with stainless steel cases (PVD treated on some variations) that are water-resistant to 100 meters, are equipped with a nice grippy oversized crown, and feature sapphire crystals on both front as well as the back. The dials like the cases share the same basic layout. So, you get applied lume filled batons and a triangle at 12 for hours, a printed minute track, nicely proportioned lume filled sword-shaped hour and minute hands and a red arrow tipped second’s hand. Now let’s have a quick look at the individual references
Khaki Aviation Auto
The simplest of the lot, the Khaki aviation auto is a three-hand watch with a date complication at 3. The dial is presented in black and features a printed hour index behind the applied markers for enhanced legibility. The case measures 42mm in diameter and comes with a sapphire crystal on the front and a closed case back. Under the case back, ticks the Hamilton caliber H-10 that features an Amit-magnetic hairspring and offers an autonomy of around 80 hours. Prices begin at CHF 1,075 for the stainless-steel variant on a leather strap and go up to CHF 1,195 for the PVD variant.
Khaki Aviation Converter GMT
As the name suggests this watch enables the wearer to track an additional time zone. To do so the watch has been equipped with a fourth hand and a 24-hour chapter ring. Packed inside a 44mm case, the blue sunburst dial has looks vibrant and offers a nice contrast to the applied markers. A nice thoughtful touch is that the date window has been placed at 6 instead of 3 making the dial look more symmetrical. Powering this watch is the Hamilton H-14 caliber that like it’s three-hand cousin offers a power reserve of around 80 hours. The watch would cost CHF 1,395 on the brown leather strap and CHF 1,495 on the stainless-steel bracelet.
Khaki Aviation Converter Chrono
The most complicated amongst the new Aviation converter watches is the Converter chronograph. Presented in black, the dial on this watch features a tri-compax layout with three sub-registers at 6,9 and 12 along with a day/date display at 3. Interestingly the chronograph registers have been given a gradient effect that not only adds a ton of visual character but also helps in segregating the chronograph functions from normal timekeeping. The case once again measures 44mm in diameter and powering this watch the Hamilton H-21-Si caliber. This movement features a silicon hairspring and offers an autonomy of around 60 hours. The retail price starts at CHF 1,950 and goes up to CHF 2,095 for the PVD variant.
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