Best Bronze Watches – Timeless Time Tellers

Nearly 5,000 years ago, the Bronze age marked a pivotal turn in world civilization. It was a time of great upheaval coupled with incredible innovation and cultural significance. Bronze, a metallurgical blend of tin and copper, played such a large role in this period that the posthumous retelling of the age named after the metal itself. Five millennia later, and we are still constructing things from this alloy. Bronze sculptures, bronze watches, and modern construction feature the metal.

If sporting a piece of history on your wrist is something you fancy, we’re here to help you with that timeless timepiece. We’ve scoured the internet for the best bronze watches and have found some fantastic options for you. Take a look!

The Best Bronze Watch

Timex Men’s Weekender Bronze Watch (BEST CHOICE)

Established way back in 1854, Timex got its start manufacturing a $6 clock that nearly everyone could afford at the time. This approach to democratizing time played a huge role in the Industrial Revolution and the incredible growth of Timex as a brand over the next 100 years. This Men’s Weekender 40-millimeter watch under $100 is a beautiful nod to the past with a brass/bronze finish.

With a 30-meter water-resistant capability and a thick leather strap, this watch is likely to outlast you. Just make sure you’ve got someone to pass it down to once you’re gone.

MVMT Men’s Minimalist Vintage Bronze Watch

MVMT came on to the watch scene just a few short years ago with a mission to build styles that don’t break the bank. Their watches feature classic styles with modern parts and manufacturing processes. This Men’s Minimalist Vintage Watch with Analog Date is a subtle and tasteful nod to the bronze era with its bezel. Below that shiny ring is a dark grey backdrop, which creates a nice contrast to the arms’ bronze time.

In addition to the basic time functions and the 30-meter water-resistant capabilities, this Men’s Minimalist Watch also has a date window.

NIXON Japanese Quartz Bronze Watch

NIXON is another relatively new brand established for the modern businessperson looking for affordable accessories. This Men’s Stainless Steel Japanese Quartz Watch offers a classic three-hand design nestled inside a bronze ring. The sentry leather band is smooth and offers a broken-in appearance, giving the onlooker the impression that you’re wearing a time-tested hand-me-down.

You might also feel inclined to spend your money with Nixon not just for their good looks but their social responsibility. The company goes to great lengths to ensure humane and responsible manufacturing.

For more remarkable timepieces, check out our selection of the best Omega watches.

Avaner Unisex Punk Retro Bronze Watch

If you really want to go back in time with the bronze fad, a little steampunk goes a long way. In this case, the Avenger Unisex Punk Retro Bronze Round Dial Brown Wide Leather Belt Strap Cuff Bracelet Roman Numerals Analog Quartz Wristwatch wins our award for longest name and most interesting design. This timepiece’s inner workings are high-end precision quartz mechanics, so you know the time will always be accurate.

The outer strap is as wide as it is humane, considering the use of artificial leather, you won’t have to worry about harming animals for the sake of your watch.

Our guide to the top Nomos watches features more unique timepieces like this.

Carrie Hughes Steampunk Skeleton Bronze Watch

For a truly steampunk-inspired watch we’ve selected this Carrie Hughes Men’s Bronze Skeleton Watch. The 45-millimeter case exposes all of the watch’s inner workings to the world via a see through case back. Wrapped around the main dial is a bronze-like bezel with tachymeter increments stamped into it, allowing you to gauge a vehicle’s speed if you’re into old school auto racing.

A genuine leather band will keep this skeleton watch affixed to your arm, and the complicated movement patters inset in the face should encourage you to check the time consistently.

Oris Big Crown Pointer Date Men’s Bronze Watch

Oris has been manufacturing precision timepieces since 1904. This Swiss company is known for their craftsmanship and attention to detail, which is why we selected their Big Crown Pointer Date 80th Anniversary Men’s Watch for our list. This true bronze green dial watch is moderate in size, with a 40-millimeter case, and keeps things simple with a plain leather narrow band. We love the simplicity of the watch face, with its pool table green backdrop and elegant hands.

Built into the outer ring of the time signatures is a date indicator. This classy touch allows you to quickly catch the day’s date without having an additional window built into the watch face. Nice touch.

AVI-8 Flyboy Japanese Automatic Watch

AVI-8 is a UK-based timepiece manufacturer inspired by the cooperation and camaraderie of engineers and pilots. Military aviation is a theme built into all of their watches and the Flyboy Japanese Automatic Watch looks like it came straight out of a WWII movie. This bronze-faced watch under $500 has a simple, three-hand design with a date window to the right of center.

If you are unfamiliar with the Japanese versus Swiss movement, the main thing you need to know is that the former is typically done with machines, while the latter by hand.

Tudor Divers Black Bay Bronze Watch

Tudor is one of the many great timepiece brands to come out of Switzerland in the last 100 years. Their commitment to the Swiss way of watchmaking is evident in the Divers Black Bay watch’s build quality. This wristwatch is both designed for a life aquatic and on land and in the board room.

With a 43-millimeter case width, this watch under $5000 is on the slightly larger size for a luxury timepiece. However, when you’re dealing with bronze, it seems only fitting to have a slightly larger design, as the metal elicits the idea of tools and construction. If that’s the look you’re going for, this Tudor Divers Black Bay is an excellent choice.

Timex Men’s Quartz Bronze Watch With Leather Strap

Inspired by the original Mk1 steel chronograph watch, this updated Men’s Chronograph by Timex is an elegant nod to the past with modern build quality. The original Mk1 was a military-inspired timepiece designed for rugged durability and simplicity in use. This newer version updates the build by adding the typical three supplementary timers you’d find on a watch with chronograph functions.

Water-resistant to 150 feet (5 Bar), this timepiece is good for wet weather, and any other conditions you can throw at it. An integrated Indiglo light ensures that if you’re in a low light environment, you can easily brighten things up and see what time it is.

San Martin Men’s Bronze Automatic Watch

The final timepiece on our list is this striking San Martin Men’s Bronze Automatic Watch. This wristwatch is for those who love to dive on the weekends and need a classy way to keep track of the time during the workweek. Affixing this bronze timepiece to your wrist is a green rubber strap, which reviewers claim is durable and comfortable. The contrast between the green face and white hands makes the time easier to read.

With a 47-millimeter case, this watch will be on the bigger side of our lineup, but that does make it easier to spot the time whether you’re driving through the deep blue or just cruising through traffic.

For some styles and classy options, be sure to browse our list of the best-selling marble watches.

Bronze Watch Buying Guide

Features to Look for in Bronze Watches

Size – There are four important elements when considering what size of watch you will be buying. Case width, case thickness, lugs, and strap width are all critical elements that play into how much you’ll feel that timepiece on your wrist.

Case width is the most obvious. The case width is the measurement of the face of the watch from edge to edge. Over the past 100 years, the size of watches has grown exponentially, what was in fashion for men last century is a women’s watch now. For women, a standard case width ranges from 23-25 mm in diameter. For men, the average is 37-39 mm. Sports watches tend to be slightly bigger, ranging from 40-42 mm and then anything considered oversized now would be over 45 mm.

What’s best for you when it comes to case width really comes down to what you’ll be doing while wearing the watch. Consider all of the usage occasions and make sure that the dial is both big enough to read and small enough to not get in the way.

Case thickness is measured top to bottom, at the watches thickest part. Think of it as how high the watch will sit off your wrist. In line with the trend of glowing watches, this too has become a more prominent feature. Historically, a thin watch denoted sophistication and class, since you were able to purchase a watch that fit all those mechanics into a slim profile. Today, however, watch mechanics have become much more advanced, and while you could conceivably build an incredibly thin watch on today’s technology, the trend may be heading in the opposite direction.

Like case width, consider case thickness when thinking about what activity you’ll be tackling while wearing your new time piece. A too-thick case may obstruct the natural fall of a suit jacket’s sleeve, or it may get caught up in a long-sleeved shirt if you’re running. So, naturally, consider activities before you buy.

Lugs are those little nubs on the watch where the band attaches to the case. These small, protruding arms come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. Given that these arms actually bend down towards your wrist slightly to initiate the end of the band, you’ll want to make sure that they don’t poke into your wrist. Conversely, it is a good idea to avoid a watch case so large that the lugs hang over your wrist as well. Lugs should fall naturally in line with the curvature of your wrist, so keep that in mind when trying on your next timepiece.

Strap width is a fairly obvious feature to consider, but don’t underweight how important it is to get this piece of the puzzle correct. Most women’s watch straps measure between 6.75-7 inches, men run from 7.5-8 inches. Leather, synthetic fabric, and non-metal bracelet straps are fairly easy to change and replace with their pre-drilled holes. However, if you buy a watch with a solid metal bracelet, you may want to meet with a jeweler to fit you appropriately as taking out links can require special tools.

The width of your strap is totally dependent on the width of your lugs. The strap itself has to match the width of the lugs; otherwise, the strap will move around too much. However, if you’re stuck with a lug width that is wider than you like, sometimes switching between leather, synthetic, and metal bracelets can offer you some variety in sizing.

Style – There’s an infinite variety of watches on the market today. From casual to luxury, there’s no shortage of ways to dress up a timepiece. There’s a lot of category blending going on as well. If you want to get specific about what watch to wear for what occasion, we’ll break it down into four simple categories.

Casual watches are very similar to your casual clothing. These watches are the most common amongst all timepieces. They are not elegant, flashy, or bright, rather they are a watch fit for everyday use. People who love casual watches do not require a wide variety of functionalities built into their timepiece. Because of this, they are the most affordable ones on the market and probably your best choice as a gift if you need something subtle and neutral this coming Christmas.

Dress watches, contrary to their casual cousin, is best suited for business and formal occasions. A great dress watch has a case thickness slim enough to slide under a suit jacket and button-down without obtrusion. This type of watch is elegant, but typically fairly simple by design as not to draw too much attention.

Fashion watches fall in a bit of a gray area in terms of categories, but we tend to think of these as dress watches with a more ornamental design. These watches need to be seen, obsessed over, and ultimately a topic of conversation. Unlike the luxury watch category, a fashion watch does not offer the level of complexity and functionality, it’s focus is purely aesthetic.

Luxury watches are the final stop in our style guide. Watchmakers with a long history of timepiece tradition typically fall into this category, though not always. Brands like Rolex, Tudor, and Hublot have been building high end watches for over a century. Not only is the build quality top-notch, but they create watches that are purpose-built with the best features for activities like sailing, motorsports, aviation, and many other expensive hobbies. A luxury watch is a fashion watch with real horsepower.

Case Material – While our goal with this buying guide is to find you the top bronze watches, that doesn’t necessarily mean they are entirely constructed from this metal. Most of the watches on this list have a stainless steel back, which is important given that this is where it will encounter the most moisture. A stainless steel back also allows a jeweler to open up the case and make adjustments and fix issues with the timepiece.

Bracelet – Bracelets come in many shapes and forms. Many of the watches featured on this list have a genuine leather or alternative leather strap. This combination of weathered leather and bronze makes for a classic look, but this list isn’t limited to those options. As mentioned previously, understanding the lug width on a watch will allow you to modify your bracelet if you’re unhappy with the one you’ve got. Just make sure to think carefully about the activities you’ll be doing with the watch on and plan accordingly. There’s nothing worse than a poor fitting watch when you’re trying to be active!

Movement – There are three primary ways watches create movement. Though there have been many attempts at creating new ways of movement, quartz, mechanical, and automatic, have stood the test of time and remain the most prominent in today’s marketplace.

Quartz is one of the most interesting developments in timekeeping. In 1969, Seiko, the Japanese watchmakers, introduced quartz into the world of watchmaking. This new technology challenged the old way of producing accurate timekeeping movement. Once the industry caught on to the concept’s benefits, everyone jumped in on the idea, and the battery-powered wristwatch category boomed.

Each quartz timepiece uses a small battery to pulse an electrical signal through a tiny piece of crystal quartz. Once this happens, the quartz vibrates 32,768 times per second, which creates a precise frequency and signal. These vibrations pass through a circuit and then converted into a pulse every single second. This consistent pattern allows the watch to keep track of time in a very reliable fashion.

Mechanical movement is much more complicated in terms of total parts. A spring-driven mechanism measures the passage of time in this realm. The “mainspring” needs occasional winding to keep track of time, but they do not require a battery. Emanating out from that spring is a long series of gears and pulleys that, with impressive accuracy, reflect the marching forward of time in a second-by-second fashion.

Automatic movement, which some call self-winding, harnesses kinetic energy from the owner’s wrist’s natural movements. The mainspring in this device functions the same as in the Mechanical setup, but no winding is required.

Sources:

History of Watches – Wikipedia

Bronze Age – History