Victorinox Swiss Army Base Camp Men’s Features
- Swiss-made quartz movement
- 40mm stainless steel case (316L)
- Crown protection
- Water resistant to 100M (10 ATM, 330 ft)
- Shock-resistant hardened mineral crystal
- Date calendar
The Victorinox Swiss Army Base Camp was my choice for a watch that was functional and rugged but simplistic in design. It has a conventional round dial and runs on top notch Swiss quartz movement. This of course means the battery needs replacing on an occasional basis. The dial is quite well spaced and clear to read, though the date window isn’t very convenient since it displays the preceding as well as succeeding date which can get quite confusing when viewed at an angle.
As far as the build quality goes, the watch is built in the classic Victorinox fashion with rugged and strong material. I’ve had this watch for a couple of months and it has dropped more times than I would have liked but there are hardly any marks on the surface; be it the glass, the bezel or the clasp on the strap.
The numbers are all Arabic numerals with the 12, 3, 6 and 9 larger than the rest. The date window is placed at the 4’o clock position and all the numbers are placed on a silver contrast band in the dial. It might seem trivial but it makes reading the numbers off the white dial easier when there is a distinct background. The hands are luminous with radium coating that glows in the dark.
Coming to the casing, the high quality toughened steel is a good 40mm thick and lends a solid feel to the watch. The crown for adjusting the time and date is protected on both sides by raised metal and protects the crown from physical and mechanical shocks. Having had crowns knocked off in previous watches while hiking and trekking, I’m more than thankful for this protection.
Overall, I am extremely satisfied with this watch even though it offers only simple quartz movement. There are several brands that offer a fully automatic mechanical movement for the same price but the build quality is questionable and I’ve experienced they simply doesn’t last with rugged use. An improvement I would have liked to see in the Victorinox Swiss Army Base Camp is to have the option of a perpetual calendar, since without it one has to adjust the date every month whenever the number of days is uneven.
Victorinox Swiss Army Base Camp Men’s Pros & Cons
Pros:
- Rugged build quality
- Comfortable strap
- Luminous hands for easy reading
Cons:
- No perpetual calendar
- Battery operated
