
The Khaki Field is rooted in the brand's history of making military watches in the 1960s, leading to the reference known as MIL-W-46374. One of the brand's strongest lines, the Khaki Field's popularity has soared and more variations have regularly emerged including everything from a range of dial colors to the likes of bronze or aluminum cases and chronographs. The line currently features around 60 models ranging from some with quartz movements to hand-wound and automatic mechanical ones. The Khaki Field is a varied but cohesive collection. Expect strong value and a healthy dose of personality in the brand's catalog, which we've broken down below into the primary collections and most representative models. There's just about every kind of watch for just about every kind of person in Hamilton's lineup.

They should be bought to be worn and appreciated rather than as financial investments, but with proper care and maintenance they can potentially last a lifetime and be passed on to future generations - and that's the kind of watch "investment" we can wholeheartedly get behind. The brand offers robust construction and high-quality materials despite their often affordable prices.ĭo Hamilton watches necessarily hold value like a Rolex or Patek? No. Hamilton watches represent some of the best options at the entry point to luxury or what some might term "good" watches. The avant-garde Ventura line is quite its own thing. The remaining four have either a contemporary or fashion-oriented motif: the Jazzmaster and Broadway collections are more elegant, while the American Classics is very much what it sounds like, with reissues and vintage-inspired references abounding. Broadly, however, about half of Hamilton's most notable offerings have a military theme and fall within one of three Khaki collections: Field (land), Navy (sea) and Aviation (air). Large brands with vast catalogs like Hamilton can be sliced and diced various ways. The brand also became entrenched in Hollywood, with its watches appearing in over 500 films to date. Other landmark timepieces included innovative models such as the first electric watch ( Ventura) and the first LED watch ( Pulsar). Producing its own movements, Hamilton built fine pocket watches meeting the stringent requirements of the railroads and later supplied the military with the likes of marine chronometers, field watches and even "canteen watches" for early navy divers. Incorporated in 1892, Hamilton succeeded several companies that were producing watches in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where the firm would be based until 1969 and where the original administrative and production structures still stand. In terms of history and design, almost no other surviving company better represents the era when the United States was a major force in the watch industry.


Though modern Hamilton watches are made in Switzerland, many watch enthusiasts perhaps continue to think of Hamilton as an American brand in some sense - even though they know that it's been Swiss-owned for decades.
