The GG-W-113 field watch, contracted by the US Military in 1967, is arguably the most influential watch in history not created by a major watch brand.
The design codified the mil-spec field watch as we know it today, exhibited by the Hamilton Khaki Field, Timex MK-1, Benrus DTU and countless others. Within that army of like-dialed field watches, one of the best affordable examples comes from the indie brand Praesidus.
The Praesidus Jungle Field was already a faithful execution of the familiar GG-W-113 template, with a sterile dial, 34mm case and quartz movement, generously priced at $195. Now, the young American watchmaker offers a version geared toward enthusiasts with a 38mm sandblasted steel case and an automatic movement.
The new Jungle Field Automatic 38 comes in two dial options with nuanced differences. The more faithful version has a matte-black dial with all-white numerals, while the higher-resolution iteration uses a grainy popcorn-textured dial and a creamy yellow 1 through 12 track to optimize legibility.
Crucially, both dials are nearly identical to their predecessors. They have the characteristic large 1 through 12 numerical hour track underlined by a smaller 13 through 24 military time track. A dash minute track with a triangle every fifth minute frames the dial.
