Timex Waterbury Ocean 42mm

I trust my gut when it comes to watch designs. I tend to like it or dislike it right off the bat, for better or worse. I also am a sucker for the use of interesting materials: titanium, tungsten, ceramic, bio-ceramic, graphite, etc. So when I spotted an article about this watch on Worn & Wound I was intrigued. Interesting three hand design? Recycled plastic? $99?? Sold. 

The first thing you notice about this piece after unboxing is the weight, or rather the near total lack thereof. Timex does not offer an official weight on their site, but it's light. Really light. Forget you are wearing it, light. This makes sense given the recycled plastic case and bracelet, mineral crystal, and non-date quartz movement but I was surprised all the same.  

Let's talk about that recycled material shall we? It's the second thing you notice. Timex calls it "#tide ocean material", #tide being an organization Timex partnered with which specializes in finding creative uses for plastic waste that may otherwise find its way into the ocean. Timex also goes on to tout their use of carbon neutral transportation and solar power when producing the watch, making it highly eco-friendly for those who care deeply about that kind of thing (which I do). The material itself results in a base color of either gray or blue (pink and light blue are offered in 37mm) with flecks of white throughout. The flecks are variously sized, and although I cannot be sure, I believe the pattern on every watch is unique, a bit like a fingerprint. It's very cool and fun to look at, especially on the dial.  

Design wise the watch is rather straightforward. Simple, clean case design with a push-pull black crown at 3. The fluted bezel is an interesting touch, adding a nice extra dimension to the appearance. The dial features applied markers and a simple stick handset. Lume appears on the hour markers and minute/hour hands. The lume is present, but not especially bright or long lasting. Caseback is metal with a Timex logo and 30m WR rating. Best to leave this one on the towel. The 20mm bracelet uses pushpins and tapers to probably 16 at the stamped metal (?) push button clasp with a black Timex logo. The bracelet is quick release, which is odd because a closer look reveals that the "endlinks" are actually part of the case. Removing the bracelet shows there to be very little space around the spring bars, making it basically impossible to fit anything else. Not such a big deal given that the watch really works best with the #tide material case and bracelet paired together for maximum effect, but if you are a "nato or nothing" person this one might give you trouble. 

So, conclusions? It's a great casual summer watch for when you are diving into nothing deeper than a cool beverage on the deck, and has lots of interesting tidbits to share with anyone who asks about it. If you are looking for a guilt free impulse buy for the summer, save a sea turtle and pick up one of these.