looking for ideas on a sub USD $2500, very comfortable, sub 40mm width, beads of rice or equivalent bracelet, watch i can travel with and never worry about. has to be sub 12mm in depth to not feel too bulky. i mean a dive watch or chronograph i can hike mountains with, not worry about sunscreen, sweat, etc

i have tried this with 42mm speedmasters (too big and bulky), a grand seiko (bracelet uncomfortable, too top heavy), a bb58 (bracelet not comfortable enough), and now a baltic aquascaphe, but just seems too bulky as well (very similar dimensions to the bb58)

closest i have come so far is a Rado Golden Horse 1957 LE which is incredibly comfortable to wear but feels a bit dressy for what i'm describing

i'm talking about a watch that feels on the wirst like a vintage heuer carrera or camaro which are about the most comfortable watches i own but obviously not for the environments i am describing

i am running out of good options and may have to stick with my faux steel casio worldtimer!!

there have to be better options

 

This won’t be a popular opinion but, an Apple Watch? Travel is where is actually seems to offer a benefit.

 

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 

I would agree (somewhat) however that is just another charger to have to bring. And forget.

 

Look to Yema. The Superman GMT is my travel watch; it's 39mm and has a slim case providing an awesome vintage feel. I don't wear it on the bracelet but it's not bad, and at $1500 you have $1k left in your budget to explore aftermarket BoR options



Mine is the limited-edition blue/gray which I'll have to be maybe a bit more careful with, but this new line above will not be limited in production.

https://en.yema.com/pages/dive-watches

The regular Superman Heritage or the Rallyegraph chronos might fit the bill too.

 

I was going to suggest Bell & Ross BR V2-93 GMT



I believe it can be had for under $2500

EDIT: you said 40mm or smaller.
This is 41.

 

interesting. i just sold my 2 vintage yemas. what's the depth on these ?

i have looked at Super Squale, omegas, haven't found anything that fits the bill

 

You're on vacation, you aren't supposed to care what time it is.

 

love the look on the blue/gray

13mm thickness. . not too much ?

 

Baltic Aquascaphe ....

 

Does it have to be a mechanical watch? I would say the Casio Oceanus S100 or T200. They use Casio's tough quartz movement, so you shouldn't have to worry about being rough with them. No beads of rice, but they do have oyster style bracelets. They straddle the line between dressy and sporty. But what makes them great travel watches is that they have built in radios that sync with an atomic clock wherever you go, and you can set time zones really easily.

I think the T200 has bluetooth that pairs with an app on your phone that allows it to set time automatically based on your timezone wherever you are using the GPS on your phone.

I think they are around 40mm which is a little bigger than what you're looking for, but aren't exactly dinner plates.

Also at $500, you can travel with them and if you get mugged, it might still hurt, but it's no Omega AquaTerra.

 

i literally just got one of these with the blue dial

the bracelet to me is very uncomfortable and the profile is too big and thick

i wanted to love it and i do like the brand. . but to me this is worse than a bb58 comfort wise

 

I think this is a great suggestion.

 

Did you have a look to Hamilton’s diving watch?
Some of them should be a good option, but maybe not as thin as you would like..

 

This is the best I've found. But too dressy?

 

Strange ... Most of us love the watch and the bracelet.. In fact I just bought another bracelet for my Bi Compax.

 

I think 3 of the 4 you mentioned are pretty good myself. The 4th I'm not familiar with. Oh well.

have fun

 

^ Skyfall is a wonderful choice.

I vote Oris 65. 40mm case, a little over 12mm thick--wears thinner since a large chunk of that is the bezel and crystal. $1000 used. Also available in other colorways and even in a 36mm expression if that strikes your fancy.

 

I like the Hamilton Khaki series, there's lot of options and they are pretty cheap

 

I have the no-date version of Maen Hudson on order, photo and article from hodinkee below. It is 38mm wide and 10.5mm thick (excluding the domed crystal, 12mm with). Others here own and like the watch. At less than $500 seems like it is worth a shot. The latest has 200m water resistance and STP 1-11 movement.


https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/maen-hudson-38-automatic-hands-on