Introducing the Christopher Ward C65 Trident Automatic

We’re in the thick of new release season, and brand new for 2019 is the Christopher Ward C65 Trident Automatic. This ‘60s-inspired diver has a look that is decidedly vintage. In fact, it almost looks like one of Christopher Ward’s standard Tridents took a trip back in time and returned with a few of its favorite details. But while there’s vintage design inspiration throughout, the watch still features modern, on-brand touches like the printed logo at 9 o’clock and the debossed double flag logo at 12. The new C65 Trident Automatic is offered in two enticing colorways—black and blue, both with matching bezels.

Each of the dials is matte, which really makes the polished indices and hands pop. They’re highly polished with beveled edges and filled with “old radium” Super-LumiNova. Similar to how dive watches of the 1960s appear today, this type of lume has a distinct aged look despite being brand new.

Christopher Ward’s designers did some cleaning up of the dial and dive bezel to simplify the aesthetic. The minutes scale around the dial now has a single hash mark for each minute and the rotating bezel has an Arabic numeral every five minutes.

Pointing to the time, you’ll find stylized baton hands that are treated with the same radium-colored lume. They’re relatively straightforward, so it’s nice to see a little bit of decoration on the seconds hand, which features a trident-shaped counterbalance—a Christopher Ward signature. Overall, the C65 Trident Automatic is a handsome vintage-inspired watch that’ll look great on a variety of wrists.

But it’s not just about the dial. The new watch is built on a solid case design. Hitting a sweet spot for many wrist sizes, the stainless steel case measures in at a reasonable 41 millimeters wide with a 47.1-millimeter lug-to-lug length. At just 11.55 millimeters tall, it should wear relatively thin for a dive watch. The case is rated to 150 meters of water resistance, which is more than enough for daily activities and to swim with. I particularly like the “glass box”-style sapphire crystal that protects the dial. Instead of a dome, the crystal sticks straight up above the bezel and plateaus over the dial. 

Inside the case is a Sellita SW200-1 Swiss automatic movement that’s good for 38 hours of power on a full wind. Based on the workhorse ETA 2824 caliber, the Sellita SW200-1 is a no-brainer pick for this watch. To learn more, click here. 

The Christopher Ward C65 Trident is now available for preorder starting at $795 on a quick-release leather strap and $865 on a steel bracelet. Christopher Ward