This Microbrand GMT Watch Gives Grand Seiko Vibes for Less Than $1,000

The Contrail GMT from Los Angeles-based Nodus may be the new king of the affordable GMT segment.

Published April 23, 2024

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I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: it’s a damn good time to be a GMT fan. The market has literally never been so full of so many great travel watch options, especially in the sub-$1,000 segment.

New movements released in the past two years from Seiko (NH34) and especially Citizen (Miyota 9075), the latter a “traveler’s” GMT with a jumping local hour hand, have flooded the market, creating an arms race among microbrands to create the best affordable GMT.

The latest contender comes from a familiar face out of Los Angeles: Nodus. If you’re familiar with the microbrand space, you’re no doubt familiar with Nodus. The California brand has established itself as a destination for attractive original designs, well-built tool watches and impressive innovation. The brand’s latest release — the hotly anticipated Contrail GMT — over-delivers on all three fronts.

Nodus Contrail GMT

Specs

Case Size	40.5mm
Movement	Miyota 9075 automatic GMT
Water Resistance	200m

$825 at Nodus

Grand Seiko Looks, Seiko Budget

The first thing that popped into my head when I saw the Contrail GMT was, “Damn, that looks like a Grand Seiko.” Specifically, depending on which color you choose, the new Nodus resembles a few different GMT references from GS — the Spring Drive-powered SBGE277 and the automatic SBGJ237 and SBGJ277 — thanks mainly to the sawed-off sword hands and fully-lumed, bi-color sapphire bezel inserts.

Nodus watch on wrist — Nodus seems to have taken some design inspiration from Grand Seiko, but the Contrail GMT is no carbon copy.

grand seiko gmt — The Grand Seiko SBGE277.

But here’s the thing: I personally prefer the Nodus. That’s not to say the microbrand watches are in any way better than the Grand Seikos — they most assuredly are not. But they are considerably more affordable and far better sized for my small wrist. The Contrail GMT is priced at a paltry $825 and measures 40.5mm across and just 11.8mm thick.

The Contrail GMT is priced at a paltry $825 and measures 40.5mm across and just 11.8mm thick.

The Grand Seikos, by contrast, are priced between $6,200 and $6,800 and are a massive 44.5mm across and either 14.4 or 14.7mm thick, depending on the reference. I love the Grand Seiko GMTs, but they’re just not an option for me due to their size and price. The Nodus, on the other hand? Gimme.

The Best New GMT Under $1,000?

Looking at the whole package of the Nodus Contrail GMT is rather impressive. Its three-link bracelet looks to be nicely finished, with a polished chamfer running down the edges of the links and a 4mm taper. The case has a surprising amount of polish, almost giving it a less-complex Omega lyre lug effect that I’m particularly fond of.

The caseback features a beautiful engraving of an airplane streaking across the sky and leaving contrails behind it, a signature of the Contrail line since the beginning (this is the third iteration and the first GMT). The knurled crown is another carried-over detail from previous Contrail models, but to me it feels a bit out of place within this new elevated design.

four nodus watches next to a passport and camera — At launch, the Nodus Contrail GMT is available in four colors.

The lume treatment is bonkers, with Super-LumiNova BGW9 Grade A brightly illuminating all hands, indices and everything on the bezel. The box sapphire crystal is perfectly executed and isn’t too tall; the bracelet is fitted with quick-release spring bars and the brand’s proprietary quick-adjust NodeX clasp; and the watch is water resistant to a dive-ready 200m.

It’s all rather impressive, and as an enthusiast, I’m not left wanting for anything here.

It’s all rather impressive, and as an enthusiast, I’m not left wanting for anything here. The watch reminds me of another 9075-powered GMT, and our current reigning champ in the under-$1,000 segment: The Jack Mason Strat-o-Timer. The watches have nearly identical specs with a few differences — the Jack Mason has a sapphire caseback and decorated movement, and it’s $174 more expensive — and both are assembled and regulated in America: Jack Mason in Dallas and Nodus in L.A.

As for which is better? I’ll reserve my judgment until I can see the Nodus in person, but on paper, these watches certainly look like the two to beat in the ever-increasingly competitive affordable GMT segment.

The Contrail GMT goes on sale from Nodus on April 26.

Nodus Contrail GMT

Equipped with an automatic traveler’s GMT movement, a quick-adjust clasp and gobs of strong lume — including on the bidirectional sapphire bezel — this microbrand GMT offers some of the best value in the space.