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OFFICIAL MWC AUTHORISED RESELLER

GENUINE ITEMS SUPPLIED WITH 2 YEAR MANUFACTURERS WARRANTY

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Purchase with confidence, knowing we are your direct link from ebay shop to the manufacture

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MWC SKU Code: DV2001/PV/AU/GTLS

MWC first manufactured the predecessor to this 300m/1000ft water-resistant divers watch between the early 1990s and 2004, this watch is very closely based on a model which MWC introduced in 2005 and was the first watch to use tritium gas tubes. The self-luminous GTLS tubes make the watch very easy to read at night and the light sources remain consistently bright from dusk until dawn. The hour and minute hands and the hour markers each have a brightly glowing vial of Tritium gas. Whilst the vials contain radioactive gas even when they are all taken together they contain less than the personal limit of 25 millicuries. (see U.S Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulations 10 CFR 30.15). 

Military watches of this type are the easiest in the world to read in low light or total darkness thanks to the self-activated light source which are up to 100 times brighter than traditional light sources such as luminous paint. The light-emitting tubes require no battery power or any other form of charging, and never need servicing or maintenance. The life expectancy of the light sources is at least 10 years after which they would start to fade.

 Although the predecessor to this watch was originally discontinued by us in 2007 there was an interesting turn of events a few years ago when an MWC distributor in Australia told us that they had discovered 500 brand new watches in their storeroom which were the standard quartz version of this range, the watches came to light when the current owners father retired and his son upon taking control of the business carried out a detailed stock check, the 500 watches were made between 1999 and 2001, and had been supplied in batches of 500 over three years to fulfill a procurement contract, the final delivery was somehow overlooked and although his father could not recall how this happened we were offered the opportunity to buy these watches back, all of those watches are now sold but they had proved so popular we decided to remake the watches in the same design as we manufactured over 2 decades ago but at the same time carrying out significant upgrades to improve the overall specification, these improvements were possible due to advances in watch manufacturing which had taken place over the intervening years. The main improvements were the use of an automatic movement with a 60-hour power reserve which is exceptional today but unheard of over 20 years ago, the movement can also be hand wound and has hacking for synchronization, we also upgraded the crystal from hardened mineral glass to sapphire which is vastly superior due to being highly scratch and shatter resistant. One further update was the use of a 120-click bezel versus the earlier watches which were 60 or 90 clicks. In the case of this specific model which as mentioned above is closely based on our first GTLS divers watch in 2005 we also took advantage of the improvement in the performance of the Swiss Tritium GTLS tubes which has been achieved over the last two decades.

This watch case is PVD treated, the PVD finish is often specified in military contracts for special forces units as well as by anti-terrorist units and for various covert operations. In the PVD process, the steel is not black all the way through because the colour is created by a special chemical PVD plating process which is vastly superior to the painted finish used on many budget watches which can easily fade or rub off. The PVD process means that the colour of the steel is altered at a molecular level, therefore it will not deteriorate even during heavy usage although it can be compromised if the case is badly damaged by a piece of metal being gouged out or if the case is worn down by really heavy abrasion against rocks or something similar.

All of this range of watches are closely based on a case design originally made by the famous Swiss case-making firm MRP S.A, other than a few minor updates the case is much the same as in the late 1970s, MRP was named after its founders M archand, R oth and P etignat, it was founded in 1953 and bought by Georges Hauert in 1979. The entire share capital now belongs to Mr Patrick Hauert so unlike many other major companies in the watch industry this company is still independent and going strong. In addition to MWC watches other watches using this case pattern have been produced by companies such as Precista, Nilax, Elvia and Heuer who were the predecessors to Tag Heuer and made the Heuer 844-1 in 1979, Chronosport another manufacturer made the Sea Quartz 30 - worn by Tom Selleck in the Magnum PI TV show, Elvia another manufacturer from the 1970s also continues to produce watches using this case and MWC are factory authorised distributors for this brand, moving to other present manufacturers CWC also continue to use this case design as do various other companies. It's interesting that few people realise how historically significant this case pattern is nor how well it has stood the test of time having been in continuous production for well over 40 years.

The basic design of the standard version of these MWC watches goes back to the British Ministry of Defence (MOD) specification shown in the final images.

The watch measures 45mm including the crown and 40mm excluding the crown although it uses the same 20mm military nylon webbing strap as many other current MWC military divers watches which enables you to choose from a vast variety of NATO strap variants.

Dimensions and Specification:

Casing: Satin Finish Black PVD Non-Reflective Stainless Steel

Crown: Screwdown Locking

Water Resistance: 30ATM/300m/1000ft

Movement: Miyota 8315 with 60-Hour Power Reserve

Date Window

Dimensions: Width Inc Crown 45mm (Exc Crown 40mm)

Thickness: 14.4mm

Lug to Lug: 46.5mm

Crystal Diameter 31mm

Crystal Type: Sapphire with non-reflective coating *

Luminous Material: Tritium Gas Tubes

120 Click Unidirectional Bezel

Weight: 89.5g

Strap: Black 20mm Nylon Webbing Strap

Strap Bars: Spring

Guarantee: 24 Months

All MWC watches are covered by an international 24-month warranty. Please note certain restrictions apply as outlined on the MWC web site

Price Includes tracked UK shipping with DPD/Royal Mail. International flat rate shipping with Royal Mail International tracked service.

Occasionally duty may need to be paid at your destination, international buyers need to check their countries custom and tax duties. It is buyer's responsibility for any custom tax incurred.

Please Note: We do not mail to BFPO & P.O Box numbers as a signature is required for proof of receipt. If this is a problem, may we suggest that you use a work or relative's address.

Order processing time can take 1 working day due to clearance of payment, preparing & packing and posting before 17.00hrs so orders placed after 12.00hrs may not be shipped until the next day.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

The Bridge

is an Authorised UK MWC watch dealer and have full authority to sell the item(s) in this listing.

MWC items offered for sale in this listing are 100% genuine

Be aware that there are some sellers advertising MWC items marked 'As new but without tags' or 'With slight marks' etc. and saying they come with a manufacturer's warranty- This is not possible

Many manufacturers of military watches suffer problems with illegal fakes. If you are in doubt about any MWC offered for sale, please contact us.

MWC’s Head office is in Zurich Switzerland.

MWC are a leading supplier, not just to the military but also to police forces, anti terrorist units, airlines, mining companies and a diverse variety of government agencies and departments. They are one of the largest specialist manufacturers of high performance military watches and produce a wide range of models either to customers specific design requirements or by tendering for contracts where quality, reliability and durability are of primary importance.

*Water resistant does not mean Water Proof - There are industry standards for 30m, 50m 100m etc.

To be assured of excellent customer before & after sales service with a fully backed warranty always purchase from an MWC Factory Authorised Reseller