Second Hour Sattelberg MK2 Review

modern, versatile and affordable

by Don Evans

Second Hour Sattelberg

The Second Hour Sattelberg MK2 is a modern take on a field watch, honoring the Sattelberg Campaign of New Guinea in WW2. This second model upgrades the dial with new patterns and textures, adds a 7-link bracelet, and retains all of the goodies from the original such as the Miyota 9015 movement, a 1200 Vickers hard coating, and a screw-down crown. This latest model only comes in 3 colors, blue, black, and a copper dial, and comes in under $600. Sized at 40mm, it is a very versatile field-style watch that can be worn in many environments.

Second Hour Sattelberg MK2

Specifications

  • Case Material: 316L Stainless Steel with 1200 Vickers surface hardening – case, bracelet, and clasp
  • Case Diameter: 40mm
  • Lug to Lug: 47mm
  • Thickness: 10.5mm (with crystal)
  • Lug Width: 20mm
  • Weight: 160 grams (on bracelet) 64.5 grams (strap)
  • Crystal: Flat Sapphire crystal with 6 layers of internal AR coating
  • Movement: Miyota 9015 Automatic (42 hours power reserve)
  • Water Resistance: 100 meters
  • 7 link braceletย 
  • Optional leather strapsย 

Price $547 USDย 

https://www.secondhour.com.au/shop/p/sattelberg-mk2

Second Hour Sattelberg MK2

Just like dive watches, field watches are plenty in the watch world, and dare I say, they may be number 2 in terms of watches most brands produce, and probably number 2 in popularity as well. That can be argued of course, but it’s my take on it after reviewing watches for the last decade or so. So when designing one, do you go the standard route or do you try and do something a little different? The Second Hour Sattelberg MK2 takes both approaches. It combines a lot of classic style and elements of a standard field watch but gives it a fresh, stylish dial, a dual case finish with a mix of brushed and polished, and a 7-link bracelet. The original Sattelberg was more of your standard field watch, with a cross-hair dial, 24-hour time, and leather strap, so this MK2 has quite a few changes.

Second Hour Sattelberg MK2

The Second Hour Sattelberg MK2 has a 3-piece dial that all works together very well. There is a nice contrast of colors which makes it not only aesthetically pleasing but also easy to read, with large Arabic numerals, that are rasided lume blocks for lack of a better phrase, a white chapter ring, a few places of read, and course that center dial with the sunburst pattern. And while a lot of watches have been going with no-date dials, the Sattelberg does have a date at the 6 o’clock position and I love that they went with the circle cut out and its a color-matched disc, and very easy to read. All in all it’s a clean and modern dial, easy to read at a glance, and less military and more fashion-forward than its predecessor.

Keeping things thin at 10.5mm (only .5mm thicker than the original), the Sattelberg MK2 has a beautifully crafted and finished case. A sandwich of brushed and polished, the machining and polishing looks like it belongs on a watch that costs much more than $550. The lugs have a moderate curve, and they all come together to create a sleek and classic case. The crown is signed with the Second Hour logo and while not a massive crown at 5.5mm, it has a great grip to it, it digs into the fingers to get a good purchase, and I had no issues with my medium/large hands. While many may overlook this, this does have 100m of water resistance and a screw-down crown, something not always seen on a modern feel watch, yet it always should be.

Under the geo-code location engraved case back is the Miyota 9015, the workhorse movement for the microbrands. I don’t touch on this movement a lot, it’s in a lot of watches I review, it’s a basic movement, much improved on the original 8215 models, with a very smooth sweep, and a noticeably loud rotor. It’s a workhorse though because it has proven to be pretty reliable over the past decade, which is why so many brands use it.

This time the Second Hour Sattelberg MK2 comes with a 7-link bracelet as standard, it’s brushed and polished to match the case, has quick-release pins, smooth finishing, and a beautiful clasp, that yes, has a push button on the fly extension to help obtain the perfect fit. It also has the same hard coating as the case, which should keep the bracelet and clasp looking new for longer, although always remember, that nothing is scratch-proof.

I think the bracelet looks great, and you don’t always see field watches with a fancy bracelet, for those that only wear watches on bracelets, it’s great to see them offer it. That said, for an extra $40, you can get a leather strap, either in black, brown, or tan, which is the one I have here. I love the color of this strap, kind of a mustard golden brown color, which will only look better with wear further, the strap is damn nice for the $40 price tag and is very comfortable as well. Like the bracelet, it also has quick-release pins.

As you have probably surmised, I do prefer the Sattleberg on the leather strap. Nothing at all wrong with the bracelet, it’s quite attractive and I love the clasp, but it just doesn’t do it for me on this particular watch. I just love how it looks on the leather strap, and I feel the case looks a little larger on the leather strap, and a little more rugged as well, or maybe more every day, do anything on the strap, if that makes sense. Of course, all is subjective and you may prefer the bracelet, but to me, this is a strap watch. The bracelet uses screw pins for sizing and should be able to easily fit on an 8 1/4 inch (20.96cm) wrist, while the leather strap probably won’t fit on a wrist much larger than mine, which is 7 1/2 inches (19.05cm).

With those applied lume number blocks, I was very excited to see the Second Hour Sattelberg MK2 in the dark, and thankfully I was not disappointed. They are loaded up with BGW9 lume, and they glow intensely, and last for about 4-5 hours in my testing. Some field watches drop the ball when it comes to lume, and while lume is not that important to everybody, I always say, if you are going to lume something up, do it right or not at all and SH did it right.

I stated in the video that I think I prefer the original version of the Second Hour Sattleberg because of the dial layout, it had a more military vibe to it that I just dig, and I stand behind that statement. That dial appeals to me more. That being said, this dial is nicer looking, I love the lume block numbers, and it’s just more versatile as well. With the new dial, the 7-link bracelet, and the optional leather strap, this is a watch that can be your only watch or a do-almost-everything watch. Work, play, in the field, hell you can even get it moderately wet without worry because of the screw-down crown and 100m water resistance. It can easily be worn for a formal event as well, especially on the bracelet, something you can’t say about most field watches. The refreshed look is nice, it has a few upgrades and they still kept it affordable at under $600.

Check out more at the Second Hour website.

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