Review of Wenger Swiss Army Commando Traveller GMT

Model # 7474X/T

At a Glance:

Brand/Model:  Wenger Swiss Army Commando Traveller GMT

Movement:  Swiss quartz

Material:  stainless steel case and bracelet

Complications:  date display, independently adjustable third/GMT hand

Price:  MSRP:  $275 USD; Street price about $150 USD

Plenty of photos follow the review.  Click on the pictures to enlarge.

This Wenger Swiss Army Commando Traveller GMT popped up at certain discount stores in the U.S. about a year and a half ago at a great price and many WISes jumped on the bandwagon and bought one, myself included. 

The satin finish stainless steel case measures about 42mm w/o the twin crowns, case is a bit thick at 14.3mm, lug width is 20mm.  Bracelet is solid link, satin finish stainless steel with a double locking signed clasp and standard stamped steel deployant.  Caseback is polished and screws down.

Inside this Wenger ticks a quartz Swiss Ronda movement, deemed to be accurate and reliable.  Many quartz GMT watches feature Ronda movements and they seem to do a good job with minimal backlash of the GMT hand when setting.

The bracelet is solid link stainless steel and has a bit more flex or looseness to it than some, due to the style of the links.  Some owners of this watch prefer it on a strap; the bracelet is fine with me.

The bright blue dial reminds me of the Orsa Pro Diver I had; a vivid, bright blue that aids visibility.  The red second hand and GMT hand stand out against this shade of blue.  If you like red, white and blue color themes, you will definitely enjoy this watch.

Both crowns are signed, the crown at 3:30 is the standard hands and time setting crown.  It does not screw down.  The quickset date at 3:30 and the GMT hand are set through this crown. 

The crown at 2 screws down and is used to rotate the GMT cities bezel that displays the city name in the window located at the 9 o’clock position.  I love this feature and it makes it a breeze to tell the time in the selected city, just look at the GMT hand and see where it’s pointing on the 24-hour scale (after setting the GMT hand to local time).

The mineral crystal is slightly domed and is somewhat reflective, which could be distracting to some.   The lume is decent and is present on the hour and minute hands, the GMT hand tip and the marker dots on the dial.

Overall, this is a functional, nifty watch for a killer price when caught on sale.

Pros:  functional independent GMT hand and cities bezel, Swiss cache, good fit and finish

Cons:  crystal is bit reflective, bracelet may be too ‘sloppy’ for some

Verdict:  superb deal at my purchase price, blue dial will get comments, nice twin signed crowns

Thanks for reading and enjoy the pics.

Excelsior!

-Marc

UPDATE!

I sold this watch about six months after purchasing it brand new.  It was a very well executed piece, but something else caught my eye (I can’t remember what!) and this one had to go.  Still an excellent value in a true GMT/World Time watch.

-MCV, 7-23-11