This Affordable New GMT Is the Best Way to Get Rolex Explorer II Vibes for Less

Similar looks, similar functionality, dissimilar price.

Close-up of a white watch face showing the date "18," black hour markers, and an orange arrow-shaped hand.

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Published February 11, 2026

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Introduced in 2022, Jack Mason’s Strat-o-timer GMT arguably remains the best affordable way to get the look and functionality of a Rolex GMT-Master II on your wrist, thanks to its bi-color rotating bezel, “true” GMT automatic movement and other Rolex-adjacent features.

Now, Jack Mason has aimed its bestselling model at another iconic Rolex GMT, the Explorer II, with the new Strat-o-timer GMT Frontier.

And, just like the original Strat-o-timer before it, the new Frontier is arguably the best affordable alternative to its Rolex inspiration that you can buy.

Stainless steel wristwatch with black dial, silver hour markers, orange arrow hand, and date window worn on a wrist. — Jack Mason’s bestseller now comes in a new Rolex-inspired flavor.

Frontierland

The Strat-o-timer GMT Frontier is largely identical to the standard Strat-o-timer GMT, and that’s a plus in my book because the Strat is an awesome watch for the money.

The new GMT features the same 40mm cushion-shaped case and the same seven-row bracelet, both in 316L stainless steel with scratch-resistant hard coating applied. The bracelet, as always, boasts both quick-release spring bars and an on-the-fly microadjustable clasp. The case also retains its 13mm thickness, which includes the tall, AR-coated box sapphire crystal.

Ticking away inside, as usual, is the Miyota Cal. 9075. This automatic movement brought Rolex-inspired “true” GMT capability to the masses in 2022, and the original Strat was one of the first watches to employ it.

Close-up of the back of a stainless steel automatic watch with visible Miyota movement and engraved text "Designed in Texas" and "Built in the USA. — As always, the new Strat-o-timer is powered by the Miyota Cal. 9075 “true” GMT automatic movement.

The dual-time caliber allows for independent adjustment of the local hour hand without stopping the movement, a coveted feature among travelers. Here, it features a custom rotor and has been regulated to run within +/- 5 seconds per day by Jack Mason. The movement is visible behind a sapphire caseback, a feature you won’t find on the Explorer II.

The crown screws down, and the water resistance remains a healthy 200m — twice the rating of a Rolex Explorer II. The handset and indices are also the same, and all are filled with blue-emission Super-LumiNova BGW9. The 24-hour bezel is still bidirectional and boasts its usual 48 clicks for easy tracking of a second or even third time zone.

So with so much unchanged, what’s actually different about the Frontier?

Close-up of a stainless steel wristwatch with luminous blue hour markers and hands, a 24-hour bezel, and a date window at 4 o'clock. — The Explorer II-style means the bezel is no longer lumed, but there’s still plenty of Super-LumiNova on the dial and hands.

It’s all about the design. Most obviously, the two-part ceramic or sapphire bezel of the standard Strat-o-timer has been replaced with a plain steel version featuring engraved, black-filled markers in the classic Rolex Explorer II style. This does mean the bezel is no longer lumed, but that’s a sacrifice that had to be made in order to achieve this specific Rolex look.

Next is a finishing update. The original Strat, like the GMT-Master II, contains a fair bit of polish, giving it a luxe look. The Frontier largely eschews polishing in favor of more brushing for a classic tool-watch aesthetic. The bracelet, most notably, is now entirely brushed.

Lastly, we have the dial options. Like the Explorer II, the Frontier is only available with a black or white dial, or, as Jack Mason calls them, Night and Alpine. Both are glossy with Explorer-esque orange-colored GMT hands, and both have been optimized for legibility. That means shiny silver metal hands and indices on the Night dial and black-coated dial furniture for the Alpine version.

Two stainless steel wristwatches with black and white dials and 24-hour bezels on a map and wooden surface. — Like the Explorer II, the Frontier is available with either a black or white dial, both paired with an orange GMT hand.

Availability and pricing

The Strat-o-timer Frontier GMT has a lot going for it, and I think it may steal the crown from the fan-favorite Christopher Ward Sealander GMT as the best sub-$1,500 Rolex Explorer II alternative on the market, thanks to its “true” GMT capability and slightly less-homagey design.

It also undercuts the price of the $1,460 Sealander GMT by quite a bit, and even comes in lower than the standard Strat-o-timer. The Frontier checks in with a very reasonable price tag of $1,099 — which is obviously well below the Explorer II’s $10,600 SRP. It will go on sale on Jack Mason’s website this Friday, February 13, at 9 am EST.

Stainless steel automatic GMT wristwatch with white dial, black hour markers, and orange GMT hand on brown textured surface.

Jack Mason Strat-o-timer GMT Frontier

Specs

Case Size	40mm
Movement	Miyota Cal. 9075 automatic GMT
Water Resistance	200m

$1,099 at Jack Mason

About the Author:

Johnny Brayson is an editor at Gear Patrol mostly covering watches. He enjoys watches that are packed with blink-and-you’ll-miss-’em details and believes nearly every watch could stand to be a tad smaller.

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