Christopher Ward C60 Trident Watch Review

Although not the first watch they released, the Christopher Ward C60 Trident is definitely the most popular. Using Google’s external keyword tool, you can see how many searches are performed on certain search terms. It is interesting to note that “Christpher Ward watches” gets 3,600 searches globally per month. “Christopher Ward C60” gets 1,000 searches per month. The next most popular watches are the C8 and C5, with approx 480 searches each. Google has spoken! The C60 is the most popular CW. But why? I believe it is the fact that the C60 offers fantastic “bang for the buck”. That meaning, it is a watch that has a surprisingly high spec and high quality of workmanship for the cost. It is also a great looker. Sure, it obviously takes design cues from Rolex, Omega and Tag, but it is not simply just a “homage”. It has something unique about it which offers its wearer something different. After all, isn’t that what every watch would want? To be able to offer something to its wearer only it itself can deliver?

Automatic divers are a very common genre of watch. Indeed, almost every watch manufacturer has a model to cater for this market. Let’s take a closer look to see if the Christopher Ward C60 Trident is a watch that stands out in this field.

The dial

Firstly, it is worth noting this watch has the original Christopher Ward logo on it. All C60s available now from Christopher Ward come with the new logo. There has been quite a debate as to which one is nicer. I personally don’t mind either way, I like them both!

The dial on the C60 Trident is beautiful in my eyes. Some people much prefer a plain matt dial. I, however, love to see texture. The waves on the dial are reminiscent of the Omega Seamaster, but they are slightly more subtle. The printing on the dial is flawless as you would expect. The logo is in the top half, and the bottom half has “Trident-Pro”, “300m | 1000ft” and “automatic”. The font used for the text on the bottom half is well chosen. It is a very masculine sans-serif font, which matches the divers criteria of the watch well. There is a small seconds track running around the very outside of the face. Between each large second marker there are 4 smaller markers. On every 5 second marker there are small lume pips.

The hour markers are stunning and also flawless. At 12 there is a double baton, at 3, 6, and 9 there are single batons, and the rest are circles. They all have a lumed centre, and a polished steel border. When the light hits them just right, they all shimmer and the watch looks stunning. The lume is pretty standard average strength. The position of the date window at 4 has caused some debate. Some people love it, some hate it. I personally think its great. Sure, it takes a bit of getting used to, but it’s nice to see something different to the usual boring date at 3. It would probably be better if it had a black date wheel with white numbers, but nevermind. The surround of the date wheel is very nicely done. This could have simply been a square cut out of the dial. But, they have not scrimped at all. The steel frame of the date window is exceptional – from the close ups you can see how complex it is. This along with the hour markers make the C60’s dial very impressive. Next, the hands. They are also complex and very well made. They are quite unique shapes- the hour hand being onion shaped and the minute hand being a large sword shape. They both have large lumed areas of the shape of the hand, and the very base of them are skeletonised. The second hand has a red tip and the counter balance is the end of a trident, which looks elegant (and cool). A real nice subtle touch which again makes the watch stand out.

The case

The stainless steel case is very well machined, with a variety of polished and brushed surfaces. The sides of the case are both brushed horizontally. The top and bottom of the case is polished. This is a wise move as the sides are the most likely to get marked and damaged, so the brushed steel will last longer than polished. The crown guards are nicely shaped around the screw in crown. They protect the bottom half of the crown. The crown itself has great grip, and has the CW logo on the end. The thread is great, no chance of threading it at all. It also pops out with a click, and feels sturdy when you are adjusting the time or date. All in all, it feels quality, and you are reassured that it won’t snap or break off in your hand. The lugs are a lovely shape. The very ends of them are at a 45 degree angle, which lead into the bracelet nicely. The bottoms of them are also polished.

The screw down caseback is polished, with a nice trident image engraved into the centre of it. It isn’t very deep though – no where near as nice as the Omega Seamaster for instance. Around the Trident image is the text “Swiss Made” at the top, and “Serial Number XXXX”.

The crystal

The C60 has a 4mm thick sapphire crystal, with an anti-reflective coating on the underside. It is completely flat and raised above the bezel by about 1mm. So there is a chance of it getting knocked, but chances are you won’t do any damage to it due to the hardness of a sapphire crystal. The anti-reflective coating is average. Whilst it does remove some obvious reflections, by no means does it perform as well as the more expensive brands. It doesn’t stand up to the crystal on the Christopher Ward C11 either. You can find that instead of looking straight through the crystal at the dial, sometimes you can focus on the reflections you can see on the crystal. But, it still performs just as well as many other watches in this price bracket.

The bezel

Unfortunately, the bezel action is where the C60 falls short. It is extremely tough to turn, and the minimal grip around the bezel makes it even harder! It may just be my watch, but if I was going to be diving, this is not the watch I would wear to time my dive, as I wouldn’t be able to get the bezel lined up! The grip around the steel rim isn’t that great, due to fact that the notches are relatively small. As per diving specs, there are markers on the bezel up to 15 minutes, with dots per minute and dashes for every 5 minutes. The lume pip at 12 is within a triangle, and seems to be well glued in. Unfortunately the lume isn’t the best. The font of the numbers on the bezel suit the look of the watch well.

The movement

The movement of the Trident used to be an ETA 2824 automatic movement. Then, when the availability of those movements started to become less due to ETA only providing them to watch manufacturers in the Swatch group, an alternative Swiss Made automatic was phased in. Christopher Ward chose the Sellita SW-200. In many watch enthusiasts mind, this movement is just as good as the ETA, so the quality of the watch has not been compromised. Sellita actually made and assembled some parts for ETA in the past. In all the brand new C60’s with the new logo, they are all Sellita movements.

The bracelet

The stainless steel bracelet is very well made, and feels very chunky and heavy. The centre link is polished, and the two outer links are brushed. The very ends of the links are also polished. All the links are brushed on the underside. The links are held together by pins, so they can only really be removed by using a link removal tool. It would have been better if Christopher Ward had used screw pins instead, but this may have increased the price. The bracelet starts at 22mm at the lugs, and tapers down to 20mm wide at the clasp. The clasp is all brushed, another good choice – as this is always the place to get desk swirl marks. The CW logo is engraved on the top of it. To release the clasp, you press the two buttons either side simultaneously. This moves two nipples on the inside towards one another, which releases the grip they have on the arm of the clasp. This appears to be a very sturdy locking system. I have had this watch for almost a year now and I have never had it pop open on me when it shouldn’t have. However, the micro adjustment on the clasp is pointless. If you adjust it larger, then the ugly divers extension can be seen popping out from underneath it. And you can’t move it tighter as the side buttons mechanism is in the way. So although there is technically micro adjustment, you can’t really use it. But apart from this minor complaint, the bracelet is great.

The strap

The leather C60 strap is the usual story with all Christopher Wards. High quality leather with a very comfortable and soft underside. It is 22mm width the whole length. The butterfly deployant clasp is also very high quality, and has an impressive sounding click when you close it – no chance of this accidentally popping open! The outside of the clasp is polished steel with the CW logo deeply engraved on it. It does look better polished than brushed, but obviously this will most probably result in scratches and marks on it due to its position of under the wrist whilst wearing the watch. It is also nice that the lug ends of the leather strap follow the shape of the case. It comes with an alligator style stamp to the leather.

The specs

Swiss made
25/26 Jewel automatic movement
38 hr power reserve
Marine grade stainless steel case
Uni-directional bezel
Screw-in crown and back plate
30 atm (1000 feet) water resistant case
4.0mm Anti-reflective sapphire crystal
Adjustable bracelet with easy opening butterfly clasp
Super-Luminova indices, bezel marker and hands
Unique engraved individual serial number
Beautiful presentation case and owner’s handbook

Final comments

Whilst the C60 Trident takes design cues from other more famous watches, I believe it has done a great job in looking unique. Little things like the date at 4, the high specs, the great hands, a really high level of finish, and not forgetting Christopher Wards fantastic customer care really support how great this watch is for the price. It certainly backs up Christopher Ward’s motto of the “best cheap watches in the world”! Whilst I have not been able to compare the C60 side by side with other similarly priced watches, I can definitely say that it is a lovely watch for the price. I am very happy to have one, and you will be too should you decide to get it! I hope my comments and pictures have been of use to you who have taken the time to read them.