Spending a Week with One Watch on the Wrist: A Review of the Bertucci A-2TS Classic Field Solar

Bertucci is a newer brand, having just recently celebrated their 20th anniversary of the release of the first Bertucci watch, the A-2T Original Classic. This model is still available at Bertucci.

Despite this short history, they have built a solid reputation for the quality and durability of their watches. They received multiple patents in 2007 for their designs and expanded into international sales in 2008. They developed their fiber reinforced polycarbonate case, the DX3, in 2012, and it quickly became their bestselling case.

They also offer cases in steel and aluminum. Bertucci is definitely a niche brand, only really producing quartz field watches with a heavy military theme, although they have started branching out with other case and dial designs, and just released two solar powered models last year. There are no mechanical or automatic Bertucci watches, just quartz. They produce GMT, chronograph, and small seconds models, but most of them are three hand field watches. They also offer a variety of case materials, including titanium, steel, resin (fiber reinforced polymer), and aluminum, along with a variety of case sizes, as small as 30mm and as large as 45mm, but the majority are 40mm. They also offer a variety of straps in different materials including cotton, nylon, and leather. With the fixed lugs, other strap options will be limited; pretty much Zulu and NATO straps are it.

The Bertucci A-2TS Classic Field Solar is a solar powered updated version of their first Bertucci field watch, the A-2T Field Classic released in 2004. This is a 40mm titanium case watch with a signed screw-down crown at the 4:00 position and an engraved screw-on case back.

It has been updated with a solar movement with a date function that I believe is an Epson movement, although I am having some trouble verifying that. It also has sapphire crystal, rather than the mineral in the original A-2T. It also has higher than usual water resistance for Bertucci, having standard dive watch 200M WR. It is only 11mm thick, and 49.5mm lug-to-lug, with its signature case shape and down-turned lugs. This model is one of the more expensive models, retailing at $295, but considering what you are getting, I think the price is fair. The other solar model, the A-3PS, has the fiber reinforced polycarbonate case and is $100 less at $195, but it is also slightly larger in overall size.

I have been a Bertucci fan for several years and have owned several different models, including the DX3 and the A-2RA Retroform.

Currently, I am infatuated with my new solar models, and this titanium case solar model is my current favorite Bertucci, and one of my favorites in my whole collection. I have several different straps for it, as I do prefer cotton or leather straps from Bertucci. I believe that wearing my Bertucci A-2TS for a week straight has made me appreciate it even more. This is a watch that emphasizes function and durability over form and aesthetics but wearing it for a week has demonstrated its utility as a good GADA option. It is only 11mm thick, although the original strap adds 2mm-3mm to that owing to its thickness. However, on a G-Type canvas strap, it fits easily under a long-sleeve cuff.I will say that most of the Bertucci straps are not comfortable, especially the nylon straps, which are thick and take forever to break in. They also add to the height of the watch, as most of them are 2mm-3mm thick. I swapped mine out for a cotton G-Type canvas strap that is thin and comfortable, allowing the watch to easily slip under long-sleeved cuffs.

This watch on the G-Type strap is very lightweight on the wrist and super comfortable to wear. It has a classic Bertucci field watch appearance, and has Swiss lume, although there isn’t very much of it, giving it an appearance in the dark similar to the Hamilton Khaki Mechanical, with thin hands and small lume pips. The dial is matte black and has a bit too much text; the company name and all the specifications of the watch are printed on the dial; Bertucci, solar, titanium, 200M WR, and sapphire, all on the dial. There is as much information about the watch on the dial as there is on the case back. I still find the dial to have a tasteful appearance despite the voluminous text, although the date box is white, and a black date box would be better. Finally, there are slight imperfections between the lugs on the case, but they are not very noticeable. After spending a week with this watch, I can say it fits my lifestyle and if I somehow had my collection reduced to this watch, it would serve well as a GADA watch for me.