Opinion: Affordable alternatives to the Rolex Explorer.
Ever since the historic summit of Everest by Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary, the Rolex Explorer has been marketed as a no-nonsense field watch for exploring. While most of us don’t need such a robust watch for our day-to-day needs, it’s always nice to be reminded of the spirit of adventuring when glancing down at your wrist. Here are some affordable alternatives to accompany you on your adventures, carpe diem!
Smith’s Everest PRS-25
- Diameter: 36 mm
- Thickness: 11.3 mm
- Lug width: 20 mm
- Lug-to-lug: 43.5 mm
- Movement: Miyota 9039 (hand-winding, hacking, automatic)
- Water resistance: 100 m
- Crystal: Sapphire
- Price: $450
For mere mortals without obscene amounts of money, the Smiths Everest is an excellent alternative to the Rolex Explorer. The Explorer-borrowed dial is highly legible with excellent orientation as you would expect and branding is minimal, which is nice. The classic Explorer dial also allows you to dress it up for formal occasions, a trait that not many field watches can boast about. The presence of drilled lugs to facilitate quick strap changes is a nice touch as this makes for an excellent everyday watch. Probably the best and only homage of the Rolex Explorer I’d consider. My previous coverage here.
Seiko Prospex Alpinists
- Diameter: 39.5 mm
- Thickness: 13.2 mm
- Lug width: 20 mm
- Lug-to-lug: 46 mm
- Movement: 6R35 (hand-winding, hacking, automatic)
- Water resistance: 200 m
- Crystal: Sapphire
- Price: $700
A re-release of a cult favourite in 2020, the new Alpinists from Seiko come with an upgraded movement and price tag as well. Now in more dial and strap options, the Alpinists continue to be a hit with collectors for its history and versatility. Conceived as a mountaineering watch by Seiko in 1961 (interesting article on its history here), the Alpinist has gone through several iterations over the years and hit cult status with the legendary SARB017 in the early 2000s. Often dubbed as the Japanese Explorer due to its mountaineering roots, the Seiko Alpinist still manages to be worn dressed up even with the inner rotating compass bezel. I’m partial to the SPB121J1 Alpinist with its green sunburst dial — it turns to a sparkling green from a deep emerald with the light. While the value proposition may not be as evident as past Seikos due to the increased price, you can’t deny that it is still one good looking watch!
Hamilton Khaki Field Mechanical
- Diameter: 38 mm
- Thickness: 9.5 mm
- Lug width: 20 mm
- Lug-to-lug: 47 mm
- Movement: H-50 (hand-winding, hacking, manual wind)
- Water resistance: 50 m
- Crystal: Sapphire
- Price: $500
Arguably one of the most popular watches from Hamilton, the Khaki Field Mechanical that was updated in 2019 is a recreation of the 1960s classic. Its biggest upgrade comes in the form of the H-50 movement that boasts a whopping 80 hours of power reserve. The white dial (H69439511) is exceedingly handsome when paired with the black printing and brown lume plots — that’s the one I’d go for. It’s also nice to see Hamilton sticking to a conservative 38 mm diameter with this release, something that more brands can learn from (just look at the new 41 mm Submariners from Rolex). Although this is probably the least versatile watch on this list, it still makes an excellent everyday watch and provides a slice of American history on your wrist.
Interested in field watches? I’ve listed several more options here.
