Traska Commuter 38 Review - Hunter Green

After a week on the wrist, here are my views on the Traska Commuter 38, in Hunter Green. This watch was purchased with my own funds, direct from Traska's website. I decided on this watch to broaden my collection away from divers, and get something more versatile in terms of style. Outside of that statement, I'll try to remain as objective as possible during this review. Obviously, I purchased the watch, so there is some bias, but I will call out bias and faults as they come up.

Specs:

Case Size: 38.5mm

Lug to Lug: 46mm

Lug Width: 20mm

Case Thickness: 8.75mm (~10mm with crystal)

Bracelet Taper: 16mm

Water Resist: 100m

Movement: Miyota 9039

Lume: BGW9 Superluminova

Case Steel: 316L with coating

Crystal: Double Dome Box Sapphire w/ AR on underside.

Price: ~$600 depending on model/variant

TLDR: Traska's Commuter 38 is a great watch for the price. It wears extremely well and has classic OP design language while developing some of its own individual identity. The fit and finish are solid, and the coating is durable. Overall, the Traska Commuter 38 is a great options for a more refined subtle watch, that can work in a variety of scenarios and collections.

Initial Impressions: Straight from Traska's website, this watch is 'understated', and in the best way possible. From the moment you pick it up and put it on, it will disappear on the wrist, from the case design, bracelet, weight and finishing, it is extremely comfortable. The dial is the star of the show, regardless of color choice. The watch has some OP design language, but in no way does it ever try to pass as an OP (more on that later). Traska maintains an identity with their design in the Commuter.

Case: Options range from the 34, 36 and 38mm. I have ~7" wrist in the colder months, so I went with the 38mm. This is the 3rd iteration of the Commuter line, and in my opinion, Traska is beginning to really solidify their design language. The case is relatively flat case with gently curved lugs, a well sized crown, and rounded sides. From what I can tell, the rounded case sides is an update from previous iterations. Brushed top, polished sides, and a signed crown.

Dial, Hands and Bezel: The Hunter Green dial has a sunburst finish, that looks like it's directly applied to the dial baseplate, prior to finishing. The finishing is even, and the effect gives the dial a very dynamic color range in different lights. It will range from a subtle dark forest green in low light, to a fairly bright hue in the direct sun. Dial indicies are applied, with polished sides, brushed top, and applied lume. Lume is evenly applied. Minute markers are accented with orange behind each hour marker. The hands follow the same design and finishing as the hour markers. A double dome boxed sapphire sits over the dial, and ensures clear legibility, with minimal distortion around the edge of the dial. The double dome is subtle, with fairly steep boxing at the edge. The boxed sapphire has internally applied AR, which doesn't seem to have much tint or color. The boxed edge visually transitions cleanly to the fixed bezel. The bezel is finished well with sunburst brushing on the upper chamfer, and a secondary polished chamfer meeting the case body.

Movement: The Miyota 9039 does it's job, as designed. After a week of consistent wear, I'm averaging about +8 seconds a day, which is well within specifications. The movement is unidirectional winding and true no date. It does has some feedback in the crown, as you wind it, but in my experience, exists with most Miyota movements.

Bracelet: Fully articulating with solid female end links, a microadjust clasp and screw links. So far, I have had no issues with the bracelet. It is light and well finished/assembled. Some people may not like the lack of weight, as emotionally weight equals quality, but this is more preference in the same vein as titanium being used for cases. The microadjust works well, and sizing was simple.

Coating: Traska doesn't specify state what they cost the case and bracelet with, but so far it seems to hold up well. I'd describe it similar to Seikos Diashield coating, with much less tint added to the natural steel color. It is perceptible in certain lights, but overall is generally unnoticed. There is one extremely minor coating blemish on my sample, that can only be seen in direct sunlight, at the right angle, and is right near the crown. It doesn't bother me, and I'll never see it, unless I look for it. Functionally there is no compromise to the coating.

Gripes:

The brushing on the hands seem coarse to me, and don't seem to have the same brush density as the rest of the wath. It does not look poorly done, or out of place, it just has some contrast from the hour markers.

Crown threads have some stiffness/grit when sealing the crown. At no point was it concering, and will likely smooth out, but it was initially noticed.

More of an observation for me, but may effect some people, but the bracelet is sized for a telephone pole. On my ~7" wrist, I am using only 1.5 links. If you have under 6.5" wrists, you may struggle to get a good fit on the bracelet. YMMV and smaller sizes may have different bracelets.

Value: In my opinion, this watch is a winner in its category and price bracket. The quality is above a similarly priced Seiko.

If you want more photos, or have specific questions, I'd be happy to answer.