Talk to any watch enthusiast about the GMT watch and bet ya, the first thing that comes to mind is the iconic Rolex GMT Master, and rightly so.
Since Rolex introduced the GMT watch in the 1950s with its bicolored bezel, which was designed in response to a tender for Pan-American pilots.
It has had a tremendous amount of success and is probably one of the most desirable watches to this date.
Since then, several other watch manufacturers have created their own GMT variations, popular brands include: The Omega Seamaster, Planet Ocean GMT, Grand Circle, GMT, and the Tudor GMT.
Even Citizen and Seiko have their own variations of the GMP complication.
But what if there is another GMT watch that is unique in design, features a Swiss movement and is a bit understated?
The good news is there is.
Today, we’re going to look at a unique looking but relatively affordable GMT watch by Bamford London.
Bamford London Background
If you haven’t heard of Bamford London, they are a sub-brand of the Bamford watch department, which was founded by George Bamford.
A company that specialises in modifying high-end and luxury timepieces with their own unique design elements and colorways.
They give you the ability to customise watches and create something unique.
When Bamford watch departments customers were having their timepieces serviced, the company would lend them a service watch to strap onto their temporarily vacant wrist.
The problem was these watches themselves were so nicely designed, people wanted to hang on to them.
Eventually, Bamford watch department decided there was only one thing to do, to start selling their own Bamford London watches and launched the Bamford London watch sub-brand in 2017, offering their faithful service look-alike watches under the name Bamford, Mayfair.
The line has since expanded to encompass models with GMT and date complications.
Bamford London watches taps into a demographic of watch enthusiasts looking to experience the Bamford London colors and design elements at a relatively affordable price point.
Specifications
This particular Bamford GMT features a black stainless steel case with a stainless steel bracelet that is also covered in black PVD coating.
- In terms of measurements, the case measures in at 40-millimeters in diameter
- It’s got a case thickness of 11.7-millimeters
- Lug to lug is fairly short at 45-millimeters
- Strap lug width is 20-millimeters which tapers down to 18-millimeters at the clasp.
- It’s got a flat sapphire crystal with an anti-reflective coating
- 100-meters of water resistance
On the clasp, it’s got the Bamford London logo embossed, and it’s got a double push pattern folding clasp.
The case back is a stainless steel enclosed case pack, as well and it features the Bamford London logo embossed on the back
The case back also features typical specs and features.
Other Features
It’s got a date function at the 3 o’clock position, which is a quick-set function.
So basically, if you pull down the crown one notch, and you twist it clockwise, it changes the date.
If it twisted anti-clockwise, that changes the GMT hand, so you can independently set the GMT hand as well.
Movement
In terms of the movement, It’s got a Sellita SW330-1 an automatic GMT movement with a claimed power reserve of 42 hours.
It features with also features an inner rotating bezel. So that’s how you can set your second-time zone.
Pricing
Price wise, this particular Bamford, London GMT, that is the signature aqua blue, retails for 916 GBP, which is approximately $1300 USD.
They also offer this GMT complication in several variations, and they start at 916 pounds and goes all the way up to 1250 GBP, which is approximately $1750 USD.
They have done some really cool collaborations with Sesame Street and Time and Tide watches.
They even have fun designs featuring iconic cartoon characters like Popeye and Snoopy.
So, if you ever wanted to tap into your inner child, that’s a great option too.
The Lume
Now that we’ve covered the specs and measurements on this, I thought it’d be a good idea to show you what the lume on this looks like.
As you can see here, the hour hand, the minute hand, the GMT hand, and the hour markers are all loomed.
The GMT bezel, the rotating bezel has loomed as well as it will be quite hard to tell the time in the second-time zone, especially if you’re in a darker environment.
But essentially, that’s what the loom looks like—not the best in the world, but pretty functional
How does the Bamford London GMT wear?
In terms of Wearability, I think this particular Bamford London GMT is a fairly versatile watch.
Thanks to its shorter lug to lug with a 45-millimeters and its relatively slimmer profile at 11.7-millimeters in height.
The angular lugs on this watch make it hug the rest nicely and would suit smaller wrists as well.
Here’s a wrist preview to show you what it looks like on my 7.25-inch wrist.
As you can see, it sits nice and low and sits fairly flat on the wrist thanks to its angular logs. It does easily slip under the cuff.
It is a perfect watch for casual wear, the weekend, barbecues, get-togethers, and not to forget while traveling.
Here is a wrist view to show you what it looks like on a shirt with a suit on. It’s not the most perfect dress piece.
But I suppose if you’re traveling, you could still wear it on a suit and a shirt if you had to attend a formal event of some sort.
Due to that crown of the inner rotating bezel, it does tend to get caught on the cuff a bit, so it is not ideal for a formal environment but you could still wear it, like I said, if you had to attend a formal event of some sort of traveling.
What I like about
Design-wise, I feel like it’s a very well-designed and well-balanced watch.
The blue color on the hour hand, the minute hand, the indices, and the GMT bezel offer a really nice contrast and make it quite legible.
The date function at the 3 o’clock position is a must for a GMT complication.
This model lineup features Bamford London’s own unique colorways and is available on a number of strap options.
So, you can pick a style that suits you.
The inner rotating bezel, the GMT bezel that is, is quite a handy feature as you can prevent accidental moving from pumps, which can happen when you have an outer rotating bezel.
It’s got very nice proportions, which makes it very versatile, and it’s very comfortable to wear.
It feels nice and light even with the bracelet on, and it weighs in at 143-grams with the bracelet.
Another really cool feature that I like is quick-release spring bar, so it’s got a quick-release spring bar for the bracelet which you can just pinch together and pull out the bracelet, so make a strap-changing a breeze.
If you’re after an understated watch while traveling, then, the Bamford London GMT is quite understated and less likely to draw attention compared to, say, a Rolex or a Tudor GMT.
What don’t I like about the Bamford London GMT!
For starters, the crown to change the time and the rotated GMT bezel are quite small, which makes it harder to grip.
The inner rotating bezel on this particular watch is a bit of a pain to rotate.
Personally, having owned a Tudor GMT, I prefer the auto-rotating bezel as it makes it easier to grip and quickly set your second-time zone.
Accidental bumping is not a big deal really, especially if you have a watch that is well-made.
The movement is another thing that bothered me about this watch. The Sellita movements are meant to be very robust, solid movements.
However, when I acquired this watch, I noticed I wasn’t getting the claimed power reserve of 42 hours.
So, I reached out to Bamford London, and they replied to me very promptly, the first time, asking me to take it to their watchmaker in London.
The only problem is I’m in Australia.
So, I replied back asking them if they had a watchmaker in Australia, and I didn’t hear back for nearly 8-days.
Three emails later, I finally received a reply, which was polite, but no resolution, other than to take it to a local watchmaker at my expense, or to send it to their workshop in London.
While I was waiting for their response; however, I started doing my own research.
I found out from another watch collector that owned this watch that you have to wind it up over 70 times to get the full power reserve.
So, I tried and tested that a few times, and it seemed to work.
I was getting anywhere between 37 to close to that 42-hour power reserve.
A little disclaimer here, I’m not saying this is the solution, but it’s what I tried, and it worked for me.
So, please don’t take this as advice. I would recommend you take your watch to a qualified watchmaker if you’re facing similar issues.
Apparently, it’s a common theme with some of this Sellita movement. So, I’d be keen to know if you experienced similar issues.
Please do drop a “comment” in the comment section, and let me know if you had similar issues with your Sellita GMT watches and how you managed to resolve it.
The other thing that I’m not a big fan of is the pricing, it’s slightly on the higher side as there are a couple of other options with a Swiss movement.
If you are after watch with a Swiss movement and a GMT function like the Steinhart ocean GMT, or the Zelos horizons GMT which are just under the $1,000 mark.
Who is this watch for?
If you’re after a unique-looking GMT, that is subtle and understated, or you want to find a watch that brings out the inner child in you than the Bamford London GMT might be the watch for you.
Would I recommend it?
Personally, I’m on the fence with this one. Presentation and design-wise, I cannot fault it. I was really excited when I first bought it.
However, the ownership experience is somewhat tarnished with the power reserve issues.
I expected a better quality watch for a watch that is just over $1,000 with a Swiss movement.
The fact that it is a Bamford watch department Sobran, a company that prides itself on superior customer service and specializes in customizing high-end luxury watches.
At a minimum, I would have expected them to quality test each and every one of their watches before sending them out.
Maybe they did and maybe this is one of those ones, that was just pure bad luck.
Although the power reserve issues seem to have been resolved with extra winding, it’s something that is constantly playing at the back of my mind.
That is I’m constantly wondering if there is something wrong with the watch.
I might take it to a local watchmaker who operate on a time graph just for my peace of mind.
Once again, I’d be keen to get your thoughts and find out if you had similar issues with either the Bamford GMT, or any other Sellita movement.
So, please do drop a comment in the comment section below. I’d love to hear.