Reply With QuoteReally helpful pics, thanks for sharing!
So, mine has arrived, and I have been having a little play.
First observations
It is a very successful design. I mean that. It looks right.
The (HMS) hands are an exceptionally dark blue, perfectly proportioned and very legible. The GMT hand at the rear of the hand stack works well on the ivory dial in the relatively pale orange.
The is lume very effective on the hands, pretty excellent on the bezel, and least successful on the dial numerals, which are quite skinny.
The case is relatively deep for the diameter, but sitting on my 7 1/4" wrist, it is not very tall, and much of the thickness seems to be in the caseback.
Because it is not large (in diameter) and my wrist is quite wide, it sits well without feeling tall and wobbly.
The bracelet is excellent and huge as supplied (I removed 6 links).
Here are some strap options I tried (for both colour and fit).
I wanted to try a chestnut leather, this was what I had to hand, a relatively old (and thin) leather NATO.
This is my personal favourite, a CNS NATO in a pretty blue-ish grey.
Even with 2 layers of relatively thick nylon behind the case, it sits well on the wrist
I also really like this, sand canvas pull through (or RAF NATO if you prefer)
An open weave perlon (this one is black) works very well for hot weather, but looks a little odd because there is so little strap thickness in front of the springbars, and it makes the case look thick.
In terms of thickness and two-part straps, this tropic (Watchgecko version) worked very well.
This (colour-wise) was okay but less successful, a plain grey (very un-blue, this grey) Zuludiver Canvas Zulu.
And even with some thick canvas, it doesn't sit too high.
I hope this helps those considering getting one of these.
Having also got a Commando (which I like a lot), on which the Traveller's case is based, I have to say I think this is an even better design. The font (first used on the Expedition) works well at being both vintage and modern.
It is very well specified to be all you could want for a travelling, holiday or everyday watch.
The hour hacking is a great feature.
At 200m WR and 20,000 A/m antimagnetic, it is thoroughly capable, whilst looking traditional and up to date.
As such it covers so many bases.
I might have specified black print for the Smiths logo, rather than blue. I might have also have demanded a 120-click bezel, to gain the added functionality of being able to use it as a timer.
But these are very minor issues. It is a great watch.
This is not just honeymoon buyer's attitude, I believe this is Eddie's finest to date. I have been looking forward to this release for ages, and am really glad it has arrived.
Dave
Really helpful pics, thanks for sharing!
Yes super shots that really show how the watch looks in everyday life - many thanks for taking the time to take them and posting your thoughts Dave.Originally Posted by petay993
Hi Dave,
a good review, thanks.
The one caveat to it is that the lume on the dial numerals is equal of the hands and bezel, imo.
R
Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.
Nice lume shot ralphy! Trying to resist the urge as I've been wearing my baby dreadnought nonstop.
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Good shot, Ralphy.
I entirely agree, they are all very bright, immediately after a light to dark transition. But my impression was that a while later, the bezel and hands were still nice and bright, whilst the dial numerals had dimmed more, probably as they were skinnier, and as a result, thinner too.
I shall try and get a shot to illustrate.
D
I must confess that I took the photo when I was in bed and then fell asleep - so I didn't get to notice any subsequent changes!
R
Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.
That is a super looking watch
Got my shipping notice, delivery Tuesday.
Tested the lume overnight in comparison with a Smiths Commander and a Seiko skx5 diver (can’t remember its full name) which confirmed the lume on all three to be excellent. The Seiko appears better but this is because it has considerably larger lume plots, and the Traveller less good due to its narrow hands, especially the seconds one and small dial text (and therefore has less luminous). This is a 0.5 sec exposure photo taken a full 9 1/2 hours after exciting the lume on each with a white LED torch for 30 seconds. They didn’t look this bright in reality - probably some clever multiple exposures being done by the iPhone - but it shows a comparison. Left to right - Seiko, Commander, Traveller:
This is more like how they looked to my eye once it had acclimatised to the darkness:
The black areas on the bezels are probably bed clothes covering the text. It was pitch dark and I couldn’t see what was in frame!
Last edited by YCymro; 23rd July 2023 at 18:25.
So, this is kind of what I mean
You can see the timescale, these were taken by my phone after UV light excitation of the lume.
Of course, the phone compensated for the dimming lume by greater exposure, so I have attempted to darken the two later photos by selecting and darkening them until the dial has a similar hue.
I have to say none of these photos really look like the watch does with the naked eye. It is much dimmer, with dial details like the Smiths signature almost invisible, and the lume so much more contrasted against the darkness.
But I hope you can see that the thin lume on the dial numerals dims quicker than the hands and bezel, making it less visible.
D
Mine finally arrived today, originally due last Friday but UPS re-scheduled to today. Really like the look and feel of the watch, noticeably thicker than my other watches but doesn’t seem too bad on the wrist. Like the jubilee bracelet, not had one before, though clasp fairly chunky but not a problem. Went for black dial version as wasn’t keen on blue bezel or creamy dial. Last planned purchase until Eddie produces the next must have!
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Does anyone own both the Commander and the Traveller? The bezel on the traveller looks a little thicker in photos than the bezel on the commander, and I was wondering whether that was either a trick of the light or if the Traveller really does just have a smaller face
The dial opening on both watches is 30mm.
Eddie
Whole chunks of my life come under the heading "it seemed like a good idea at the time".
Looking at my Commander and Traveller, it appears that they use the same case and bezel, though the latter has a deeper case back. I’ll take measurements later.
Last edited by YCymro; 27th July 2023 at 12:48. Reason: Perhaps the bezel knurling is different, but I don’t have the Commander to hand
I received mine yesterday and on first inspection it didn't really do it for me, something to do with the ratio of case depth to diameter and I was all set to either offer it to a WTB member or return it.
Anyway after much WIS type indecision I finally decided to relax and enjoy it for what it is this morning and tried it on a few different straps but the obvious thing, for me, with this watch is that it needs to live on the supplied Jubilee which is nicely made for the price. In fact the watch feels substantially more expensive than the price our host has decided upon.
As with the Black Bay Pro, straps tend to exacerbate the tallness of the case and on my wrist the watch becomes a bit less stable.
It's now on the Jubilee, sized and wearing nicely so that's how it will be staying and the cream Joseph Bonnie Tropic I bought for it will stay with the BB54 where imho it looks surprisingly at home.
Both dials colours look great, I personally prefer the black dial....quick question, how is the bi-directional bezel action, looking at the photos it does look pretty substantial.
On mine, the ‘clicks’ in both directions are pronounced, though the bezel movement doesn’t feel like precision engineering. There’s a little play in all directions (rotational and lateral), and the movement clockwise is noticeably less smooth than anti-clockwise. It’s a 48 click bezel rather than a multiple of 60.
The movement is not as nice as on my Commander (which is uni-directional and has more clicks per rev).
Last edited by YCymro; 30th July 2023 at 14:09. Reason: Added comparison with Commander
I just learnt of these with the Miyota 9075 flyer GMT movement, I was looking at a Lorier Hydra S3 but would much rather support Eddie with the Smiths brand :)
I’m ordering mine now!
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Looks like the store is still open!
How odd, I just put a Commander in my basket.
It just allowed me to put a Traveller in my cart at 15:00hrs.
Removed it as didn't want to buy just testing.
Either there has been very little interest for the first time in yonks, or the software is playing up. Can't see it being the former, and if it's the latter there may be lots of disappointed people out there.
I wondered about that.
I think the Everest line is definitely the hottest item from a sales (and resales) point of view.
I nearly pulled the trigger on the Traveller but I’ve come to realise that 36mm watches are my preference.
Good point Graham, maybe with no Everests or Navigators available Eddie's 200 limit isn't reached so quickly.
I have to confess, if that is the case it makes me chuckle when I see those who have bought the less popular models on release day and put them on eBay with a 50% mark-up now potential stuck with a watch that they don’t want and will have to take a hit rather than make a quick buck.
Hopefully that will make them think twice about the more popular models when they are available again.
As an ideal holiday watch I tried on a few different straps, looking for something waterproof, and which wouldn’t draw too much attention which the standard Jubilee might.
As @petay993 says above, this is quite a tall watch which looks as if it’s sitting high on the wrist when worn on a strap. Looking at the photos below, this is due to the lug design, and with low-set lug holes.
On a light cream pineapple fibre strap:
On a CNS Marine National elastic strap (can’t remember the official colour name but it wasn’t beige)
A blue fabric strap which came with a Sugess chronograph
On an Oyster off a 36mm Everest. Understandably, the end links aren’t perfect but it does look good.
I think they all suit really well, and I’m tempted to create an all-brushed finish on the Jubilee.
Very helpful photos - they confirm my thoughts on the thickness when worn on anything other than the bracelet.
Which is your favourite combination?
I like the blue fabric strap and the Oyster-style bracelet, and the Oyster is becoming my favourite. Shame it hasn’t got a glide lock type easily adjustable clasp for Summer use.
Postman just delivered my Traveller!
Initial thoughts:
Lord she's thick. Though not as thick as you'd expect. But still thick.
It's comparable to the Commander but I feel like you do notice the extra height under inspection, I believe because the bezel edge doesn't sit flush with the middle of the case like it does on the PRS-60.
The lightweight Jubilee bracelet excels at both making it feel more wearable and comfortable even with the height, while also making it feel a little topheavy.
I'd agree with previous comments that the lower lugholes would make it difficult to wear on an aftermarket strap
I don't feel the bezel action is lesser in comparison to the PRS-60 as mentioned earlier in the thread - different, but not lesser.
Personally would have been happy to drop 100m water resistance for a thinner case (and I feel that way about the PRS-60 as well, although I can admire Eddie's stance to stick with what he wanted)
This is my first 'True GMT' movement although I have owned GMT watches in the past - and I found it a joy to use.
Overall - solid 8.5/10, could be slightly improved upon with a thinner case but again it's not as bad as it sounds and I understand the reasoning given for the thickness
I got mine (white) and let me give my initial thoughts:
1. Blue bezel is just gorgeous against creamy white dial. It's a very beautiful combination and IMO the perfect vacation watch to a tropical beach location.
2. It is thick but not as bad as I thought it might be. The main angle that was important was "my" angle - that is the angle that I see when I am wearing it, and it looks okay. The mid-case is a reasonable size which is the main visual aspect that gives a watch the illusion of being too thick. It's about on par with the Commander as others have mentioned.
3. I love love love that it has no date. When I adjusted the time, I was so happy not to have to bother with the date. There are going to be a million Miyota 9075 GMT variations, probably all with a date, and so it is such a joy that arguably the best version: the Smiths Traveller doesn't have one as it feels more to me to be an adventure companion when it doesn't have a date.
I would go so far as to say that the best adventure watch is one without a GMT hand, no date, independently adjustable hour and with a bi-directional 12 hour bezel (ie. like the Omega Seamaster 300 Spectre), but I don't think I will ever see that from a microbrand (you can't just take a Miyota 9075 and remove the GMT hand, as the hand stack would still have the same height).
4. Mine is an incredible 0.0 beat error, and +2s accuracy. I have never ever seen a Seiko movement perform that well. I used to be a Seiko fanboy for decades, but I think for outsourced movements, Seiko does not hold a candle to Miyotas now. My most recent Seiko an SPB297 was +27s with +1.0ms beat error - just so terrible that I had to open it up to fix the beat error and accuracy. I consider Miyotas on par with Swiss movements, but have never felt that way about outsourced Seiko movements.
5. I am very grateful that Eddie continues to maintain a standard level of excellence in his products by having the 20k A/m antimagnetic protection. I probably would not have bothered with this watch if it didn't have the extra protection. I also have a Jack Mason Stratotimer, and it is interesting to compare the 2 in terms of aesthetic execution. The Traveller however feels more like the tool watch I'd love to bring on my vacations because of that antimagnetic protection and the blue bezel, cream dial, blued hands etc. - such a perfect combination.
In summary, I think it's perfect except for it's thickness, but the thickness does not bother me enough to not love it still.
I would also like to suggest to Eddie that the white Traveller colour combination is so delicious that making an alternative colour combo for the Commander to match the white Traveller would be amazing. For this white dial blue bezel Commander, have stick markers though similar to the PRS-29 so that this version of the Commander can be more unique to Smiths (mercedes hands look too Rolexy).
Last edited by grizzlymambo; 3rd August 2023 at 05:14.
I have just read and seen PH's post on the Friday thread, an incredible looking watch.
Any new owners not 'bonding' with it and interested in other precista/smiths watches give me a shout.
Cracking watch
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My Traveller arrived yesterday (thanks, Eddie!)A blue fabric strap which came with a Sugess chronograph
I have to say that that blue fabric strap is by far my favourite from all the photos. Unfortunately I can't find any spare straps for sale on the Sugess web site, but I'll certainly keep an eye out for something similar.
The 120 click uni-directional bezels on most of my watches use a conventional click spring but to achieve a bi-derectional bezel, I had to use a ball-bearing rachet, which is not quite as precise.
Eddie
Whole chunks of my life come under the heading "it seemed like a good idea at the time".
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