Hands-On: the New BOLDR Odyssey

It isn’t a hot take to say that tool watches tend to be formulaic. Afterall, there are only so many combinations of bezel formats, dial colors and hand styles out there. With new brands borrowing familiar cues and old brands iterating on their own designs, it’s easy to feel underwhelmed by the steady stream of near-identical releases. Oftentimes, I look at a new watch and wish the brand would do something, anything, to put their own spin on even a single component to stand out from the crowd.

Well, BOLDR heard my pleas with the newest iteration of their popular Odyssey diver ($799).  And they didn’t just put their own spin on one component… they spun them all. After I unboxed the sky-blue “Horizon” variant, I spent a solid 10 minutes rolling it around in my hands, taking in all the unexpected details. I noticed the funky gear-shaped crown, the translucent dial that reveals the entire date wheel, the unique dual-stripe hands, a shaped date window, and the seemingly never ending cascading angles that make up the aggressive case shape. Just when I thought I’d taken it all in, I turned the watch over to be surprised by an embossed whale on a display caseback. We will get to all those details (including the whale) soon, but first, let’s cover the basics of this far-from-formulaic GMT.

The Watch

The bold watch with blue accents that kept surprising me is part of BOLDR’s expanded Odyssey collection. Differentiating itself from their more subdued offerings, the Odyssey collection of 300 meter water resistant automatic watches has become a staple for the brand as a playful platform to offer fun, often aggressive looking, dive watches in various materials including bronze and titanium. The four new Miyota 9075 powered models that make up the new line of updated models aren’t the first GMTs in the Odyssey collection, but they are undoubtedly the most brazen with four visually striking ocean-inspired colorways including blue, red, purple and mustard yellow.

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Hands-On: the New BOLDR Odyssey

Case
Titanium
Movement
Miyota 9075
Dial
“Horizon” Blue
Lume
Yes
Lens
Sapphire
Strap
Titanium bracelet/rubber strap
Water Resistance
300 meters
Dimensions
40 x 48mm
Thickness
13mm
Lug Width
20mm
Crown
Screw down
Warranty
Yes
Price
$799

Aside from the blue accented chapter ring and colorful GMT hand, the first thing I noticed about the Odyssey was the case, which is defined by a series of faceted angles on the broad lugs. Shaped cases are having a bit of a moment, with prominently angled cases becoming a sort of sub-genre. Fans of RZE and Islander Watch’s new King’s Point will appreciate the familiar industrial feel the aggressive cuts provide, which look ready to bat away any coral reef (or door frame) thrown their way. Matching form with function, the vertically brushed titanium case features a 1200HV coating for enhanced durability and scratch resistance.

I usually enjoy a couple days of test driving a watch before opening a press release. This lets me soak in details without sway, and also lets me play a nerdy game where I guess dimensions based on the wearing experience. My estimates are usually pretty accurate, and I’d guessed this aggressive looking tool watch had a diameter of 42, maybe even 43, millimeters. It didn’t feel big (a quality I attributed to the downward sloping lugs), but had one hell of a wrist presence. I was truly shocked to read that the watch had a real diameter of only 40mm, a moderate lug to lug of 48mm and a thickness of 13mm.

Contributing to the surprisingly comfortable wearing experience is the fact that the titanium Odyssey weighs only 128 grams on the screw-sized bracelet. For anyone out there that considers the lack of quick adjust clasps a bracelet deal-breaker (I’m with you), the comfort of the nicely articulating, and vertically brushed three link bracelet does feature on-the-fly adjustment. If you prefer straps, the Odyssey has you covered with a color matched, integrated rubber strap that provides a cohesive transition from the case thanks to an angled pattern that matches the corners of the lugs. I found myself appreciating the strap’s unique keeper, which utilizes a surprisingly effective notched locking system to secure the strap.

The case alone would be enough to stand out from the crowd, but BOLDR didn’t stop there, instead taking the opportunity to interpret every detail below the flat sapphire crystal. The watch features an ombre dial, which transitions from a black translucent perimeter that lets in just enough light to see the entire date wheel, to a mostly transparent center. This allows the wearer to enjoy a view of the dial side of the movement while also providing contrast that increases legibility of hands that feature two stripes of lume. Surrounding the dial is a raised minute track that is notched ever so slightly to accommodate the diamond shaped indices at 12:00, and the batton indices at 3, 6 and 9. I sleep with a watch on (which provides a fantastic alternative to a bright phone screen in the middle of the night and I will never understand how it isn’t the norm) and without hyperbole, I can confirm the lume on the hands and indices passed the elusive accomplishment of glowing until morning.

As unique as the aesthetic choices of this watch are, they share a theme of being rooted in practicality. The one exception to this seems to be the numeral free titanium bezel which features raised hour markers, only one of which is lumed. I’m sure someone smarter than me could use this bezel to track time zones or measure elapsed time, but opting not to add a 24 hour rotating bezel more or less makes this a dual time GMT (it has a numbered 24 hour chapter ring) for all practical purposes. Am I bothered by this choice? Not at all. For most wearers, tracking three time zones is about as necessary as the 300 meters of water resistance this watch offers. If tracking only two time zones (while still getting 300 meters of water resistance) isn’t sufficient for you, I recommend throwing your hat in the ring to be considered as the next James Bond.

And finally, as promised, the detail that caught me off guard the most on this consistently surprising watch: a humpback whale embossed on the sapphire exhibition caseback. Meant to evoke the idea of nature’s nomad, the fun image stays true to the motif of oceanic travel. And hey, I’m here for it. If you are going to offer an over-the-top watch, why not put a whale on it?

Final Thoughts

After a few days of wear, I gave up trying to decide if I would personally purchase this watch. On one hand, I appreciated the unique choices that prioritized practicality while making every possible effort to reject the trend of formulaic tool watches. On the other hand, I found myself asking if there was simply too much going on. Is it hypocritical for a guy that wishes for brands to take risks to question if a watch stands out too much? I don’t know, maybe. 

At the end of day, deciding how bold you like your watches is personal. We each draw our own lines, and each individual collector will make their own decision if the Odyssey finds that line, or swims past it one angled lug and whale at a time. If you want a subtle GMT, the market has plenty of options for you, but this isn’t one of them. But if you want a colorful and daringly bold watch that combines substantial wrist presence and robust specs with the feel of a compact 40mm titanium case, you can’t get much bolder than the new BOLDR Odyssey. BOLDR

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Nathan Schultz is a New Hampshire based writer, equally obsessed with watches and outdoor gear. He specializes in dad jokes, breaking NH35s while modifying watches, and testing the limits of recreational equipment. Micro brands hold a special place in his heart, and he aspires to stop buying and selling so many darn watches.
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