Christopher Ward Goes to Sky and Sea with the New C60 Elite GMT 1000

Christopher Ward, the British-based watchmaker known for their accessible professional dive watches, has today unveiled their latest model with the new C60 Elite GMT 1000 (referred to as the GMT 1000 in this article). The new watch is the brand’s first design with both full diving and dual time functionality and comes as the second addition to the brand’s new professional diving series released earlier this year with the non-GMT C60 Elite 1000. The C60 Elite 1000 series came as a permanent addition to Christopher Ward’s offerings following the success of the C60 Trident Elite 1000, a limited edition run of an upgraded C60 Trident Pro 600 design— the brand’s previous highest grade dive watch series.

Among the various design features Christopher Ward has become known for in their dive watches— like a curvy case with downsized crown guards, trident counterweight on its seconds hand, and 9 o’clock logo placement— the watches in the new Elite 1000 series distinctly feature their namesake 1000-meter water resistance, a brushed finished grade 2 titanium case, and a COSC-certified chronometer movement. Together, these features upgrade Christopher Ward’s original Pro 600 design into an even more functional diver, offering fans of the brand an elevated professional-grade watch like few, if any, others at its price point.

C60 Elite GMT 1000

• Case Material: Titanium
• Dial: Black or blue
• Dimensions: 42 x 49.3 x 16mm
• Crystal: Sapphire     
• Water Resistance: 1,000 meters 
• Crown: Screw down             
• Movement: Sellita SW330 (Chronometer-certified)
• Strap/bracelet: Titanium bracelet or hybrid rubber / Cordura strap
• Price: $1,705 on strap/ $1,960 on bracelet
• Expected Release: Available Now
  

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The new GMT 1000 is available in blue and black editions, with the overall look and functionality of the watch being very similar to the non-GMT edition. Among the differences, the new model noticeably features the additional center GMT arrow hand and inner 24-hour angled ring on the edge of the dial to assist in keeping the time of a second time zone. This GMT hand features the accent color of the model (either orange or red), matching the 15-minute countdown scale on the outer bezel and lollipop-tipped seconds hand. Additionally, the new watch opts for a date indicator at its 3 o’clock, as compared to the day-date window used on the previous release.

To accommodate the new functionality brought on by the watch, the GMT 1000 uses the Sellita SW330 movement, a COSC-certified caliber visible via a sapphire case back and finished with Christopher Ward’s Anglo-Swiss twin flag pattern on its rotor. This new movement is slightly larger than the Sellita SW220 used on the non-GMT model, bringing its thickness to 16mm up from 15.4mm.

Christopher Ward has previously released another GMT diver in 2019 dubbed the C60 Trident GMT 600, although this previous model opted for an outer 24-hour bezel over the traditional 60-minute diving scale— a choice which received some criticism for its unidirectional rotating mechanism rather than the traditional bi-directional functionality seen in GMT watches with outer bezels.  The GMT 1000 remedies this with its dedicated 60-minute diving bezel and inner 24-hour ring, the inner ring which intuitively avoids crowding the dial with its angled construction.

With the release of this new GMT 1000, Christopher Ward has solidified the C60 Elite 1000 series as a permanent addition among the brand’s expansive selection of dive watches and various other collections. That the new watch is also the brand’s second GMT diver speaks further to the growing popularity in this combination of features over the past couple years as consumers look for watches that can accompany them in all aspects of their lives, not only among Christopher Ward, but among a diverse crowd of other brands including Yema, Tudor, and Omega. For the growing demand, it should be noted that Christopher Ward appears to be the only brand offering a titanium, 1000m water-resistant, COSC-certified watch with these dual features at a sub-$2,000 price point.

The C60 Elite GMT 1000 is available now directly through Christopher Ward’s website, with shipping anticipated to begin shortly after orders begin. Christopher Ward