This Rugged Titanium Tool Watch Is an Unconventional Military Mash-Up

There are countless pilot’s watches inspired by airplane instrument panels and racing chronographs based on car dashboards, but you don’t see many watches modeled after vintage boat equipment.

For the new Marine Type 3, Laventure took inspiration from 1980s marine chronometers; analog navigation equipment used before GPS was available.

Laventure

With a military-inspired dial and fixed bezel, the Marine Type 3 resembles a field watch more than an aquatic one. However, the solid titanium case has 300m water resistance, and it comes with two dive-friendly straps.

The watch’s field-ish appearance is actually a coincidence, as it is based on a piece of nautical navigation clocks found on boat bridges. It is a versatile tool watch, just as useful on land as at sea.

Laventure

Along with the white dial, which is made from a resin blended with Super-LumiNova for full luminescence, there is a black dial marked with white Super-LumiNova.

Time and space

Long before the term was a watch accuracy certification, a chronometer was a clock used on ships to track Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). For centuries, longitude was determined by comparing local time, often measured astrologically, to GMT, making an accurate shipboard clock crucial for navigation.

Laventure

Chronometers were last prevalent in the 1980s, before GPS became publicly accessible. Most examples from that time demonstrate beautiful, pragmatic industrial design.

The Marine Type 3 follows suit with a solid titanium case resembling a vintage dive weight with a clock stuck in it, similar to how vintage chronometers were fitted into metal panels.

A military-syle dial is used because, by the 1980s, most chronometers used military time. (Though the watch sticks with a 12-hour format rather than a 24-hour one.) The 60-minute track etched into the bezel and filled with black lacquer is more aesthetic than functional.

Laventure

Another feature shared with marine chronometers is the watch’s strong anti-magnetic protection. Magnetic field interference is much more of a concern at sea, and the Marine Type 3 is equipped with a soft-iron Faraday Cage beneath the dial.

More than meets the eye

While the Type 3 may look like a retro iron diving weight, it is made from the substantially lighter grade 23 titanium.

The vintage look comes from tribofinishing, a process similar to stonewashing garments. Along with the aged texture, it softens sharp edges while increasing surface hardness and corrosion resistance.

Laventure

The dial is topped with Plexiglas rather than a traditional sapphire crystal because it is far less prone to breakage and less environmentally impactful to produce. It’s of course much easier to scratch, but its scratches are easy to buff out, and it is cheaper than sapphire to replace.

Just as dependable as the titanium case, a customized Sellita caliber SW300-1 b automatic movement is ticking away inside. It has a 56-hour power reserve and, despite being hidden, a gilt finish and signed bridge plate.

By using this movement, Laventure brilliantly ensured that the Marine Type 3 meets the contemporary definition of a chronometer because it comes with a COSC certification for accuracy, antimagnetism and durability.

Laventure

The Marine Type 3 has an enigmatic but alluring appearance to casual observers. Is it a dive watch? Is it a field watch? Is it vintage or new?

Explaining the inspiration for this watch is a built-in conversation starter, and no one loves a good backstory more than a watch fan.

Availability and price

The Laventure Marine Type 3 is available now from Laventure for CHF 4,200, which is currently exchanging for $5,270.

Only 100 pieces of each dial color are to be made annually, and this year’s purchases will not ship out until October.

Each watch comes with a rubber dive strap in black, olive, sea green, white or yellow, along with a two-piece nylon strap in yellow, white, black, olive or khaki.

Laventure

Laventure Marine Type 3

Specs

Case Size	38mm
Movement	Sellita caliber SW300-1 b automatic
Water Resistance	300m

• $5,270 at Laventure

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