The dial on this example is a black glossy dial with silver toned hands, applied markers, numbers and the Ballast Logo. The date cutout is located at the 3 o’clock position and is also outlined in a silver tone metal.
The outer track of the dial has your regular time markings, while the inner circle displays military time or 24 hour time. I like the way this was done, and it does not make the dial appear smaller or busy, as 24 hour models sometimes can be.
The crystal is sapphire, which looking at other Ballast models is an upgrade as most others I saw on the website used sapphire coated mineral. While it is nice to have a sapphire crystal, there is no AR coating present, at least to my eyes, so the crystal is very reflective.
Any time I come across watches with this style, I do not expect any kind of impressive lume. This is the case here as well. The hour and minute hand do have lume paint applied, as do the tips of the hour markers. Unfortunately, I could not show a lume shot, as the line was too weak to pick up on camera. For some, this might be a disappointment, but I don’t think this is the style watch you should be buying if you are concerned about lume. Look to divers or pilot watches for that.
The included brown leather nato style strap is very well made, and has an oily suede like feeling. It is nicely stitched and has clean edges and a large stainless signed buckle, which is brushed to match the case. The strap should be long enough to fit up to an 8 ¼ inch wrist easily. Although, one thing I did not like about the strap was its placement of the patch on the back of the strap where it sits against your wrist. I just feel the patch will get dirty due to sweat and moisture and eventually wear out. Also, while like many Nato style leather straps, I think of a second leather strap, maybe something a little dressier to match up with the dial. On the supplied leather nato, the watch weighs in at just 72 grams, so the watch is a nice lightweight option for those who do not like a heavy watch.
