BENRUS Type I Limited Edition Military Surface 42.5mm Automatic 1000 Pieces 300m

$1,595.00

Out of stock

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We take trades against any of our watches!!! We also buy watch packages!!

For the first time ever, the BENRUS Type I has been released to the public in a limited edition run of 1,000 pieces, and it’s first available in the HODINKEE Shop. BENRUS is donating a portion of the proceeds of each watch sold to the Boulder Crest Foundation, which supports combat veterans struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder.

WHY WE LOVE IT

For collectors of U.S. military ephemera, there are few wristwatches as revered as the BENRUS Type I. First released in 1972 to meet the U.S. military MIL-W-50717 specification, the Type I offered uncontested legibility and robustness that could meet the needs of field soldiers as well as combat divers.

The black dial featured no markings, save for hour markers painted with white luminescent material and a slight minute track running along the periphery of the dial. The cases were matte, with an asymmetrical profile that met the crown at its furthest point, giving it a strong construction that could handle shocks and impacts with ease. The Type I was tested to meet over 1,000 feet of water resistance without issue, and the case featured a top-loading construction that decreased the likelihood of water ingress. The crystal met the friction lock bidirectional 12-hour bezel with a seamless dome to ensure readability at all angles, and the hacking automatic movement inside was sourced from Switzerland.

Between 1972 and 1980, approximately 16,000 examples of the Type I (and the later Type II) were produced and issued to military personnel. They were never released to the public, and vintage examples have become highly desired and sought-after for the one-of-a-kind role they played in recent American military history. That changes with the release of the new-for-2020 BENRUS Type I, which is built to the same exacting standards of the original, with a few slight upgrades for contemporary wearability.

Those updates include the addition of a double-domed sapphire crystal that is recessed into the bezel to the same degree as the original acrylic, and an anodized aluminum bezel insert, which replaces the prior acrylic, but features identical 12-hour numerals – painstakingly recreated – that are etched in white on the black bezel; the bezel is similarly graduated for the first 20 minutes. The movement inside is a hacking automatic ETA 2681, and the steel case offers identical proportions to the original and features a bead-blasted finish that matches the appearance and quality of the vintage examples.

The caseback engraving is, once again, the same as what you’d find on a vintage example, from the font to the verbiage, except the production date is shifted to reflect today (it reads NOV 2020 on all examples) and the serial number is unique to each individual watch (0001 – 1000).

Complete Hodinkee Set purchased Nov 15 2020 and has remainder of Factory warranty! In virtually unworn condition and includes additional NATO style strap & buckle.

BRAND: Benrus

MODEL: Type I Military

MOVEMENT: Automatic – Swiss ETA Cal 2681

CASE: Military Finish Stainless Steel

CROWN: Screw Down 

SIZE: 42.5mm

LUGS: 20mm

DIAL: Black high visibility Dial 

BEZEL: Rotating Diver bezel 

CONDITION: Preowned – As-New with remainder of factory warranty 

BOXES/PAPERS: Original Complete Kit With additional strap/buckle, etc – everything you see in the pictures!

WATER RESISTANCE: – 300m

STRAP/BRACELET: – 2 NATO style straps with buckles – 1 is black with red trim & 1 is Desert Sand Color

Trades welcome!!

Let us know what you have in your collection!! I consider all watches in trade! Please upload pictures.

and include details of your trades through my Trade/Buy tab at the top of my homepage.