San Martin watches, model by model

The cheapest San Martin on the day at $188, the only bronze with a live page, and the longest watch in the range at 50 mm lug to lug. Two movements, a Seiko NH35 automatic at 11.3 mm thick or a Sea-Gull ST3621 hand-wound at 9.8 mm, and the hand-wound is 1.5 mm thinner. The 6200 bronze (SN0004BQ) and 42 mm bronze diver (SN0043Q) are in the same collection but their pages returned 404. The alternative is the 6200 diver in steel at $275, 4 mm shorter, on a bracelet; the trade is the metal and the length.

The San Martin to buy at $275 if you want a Submariner-shaped diver at 38 mm and are content to know it is one. The title names the 6200, a 1950s Submariner reference, the brand files it under Classic Design, and searchers write it as SN004. At 46 mm lug to lug it is 0.5 mm shorter than the 62mas and $31 cheaper, on a Seiko NH35 where the 62mas runs a Sea-Gull. The Islander 38 mm at $329 is the alternative, on an NH36 with a 1-year warranty against 2; the trade against it is the address.

The 62mas homage at $306, marked Limited Offer that day, and the pick over the 6200 for anyone who wants an ETA 2824 clone rather than a Seiko. The movement is a Sea-Gull PT5000 or ST2130, and the brand says batches are moving to the ST2130; the title names Seiko's 1965 diver. At 37 mm and 46.5 mm lug to lug it is the smaller dial on the slightly longer case. The 6200 is $31 less on a Seiko NH35. The $31 is the movement, and the brand has not settled which one you get.

At $321 this is $48 under the cheapest Islander on the same NH34, and the San Martin to buy if the second zone matters more than the collection it sits in, which is Classic. The NH34 is a caller, so the 24-hour hand sets independently and the local hour does not jump. The case steel grade goes unstated where 7 of the 10 lines state it. The listing is the distressed V6; the plain SN0116-G and V4 root beer pages returned 404. The Islander at $369 gives a US address for the $48.

The 300 m San Martin in steel at $323, 10% off on the day, so the struck list sits above it and this figure will move. At 48 mm lug to lug it wants a wrist near 7 inches; the 62mas at 46.5 mm does not. The Original Design index lists it, though the product page's own breadcrumb says Classic/Dive, and the movement is a Sea-Gull ST2130. The titanium SN0111-T, also 40 mm and 300 m, is $66 more and 0.5 mm shorter, and the better watch if weight matters. The $66 is the metal.

Not a diver, whatever the reference suggests. The one SN0110 the brand lists is a 37 mm dress watch at $341 and the thinnest San Martin by 0.3 mm over the SN0144, at 9.8 mm on a Sea-Gull ST1812 with a diamond-pattern enamel dial in Light Green or Salmon; no lume is stated. A searcher who expected a Submariner shape should look at the BB Diver (SN0128) and the SN0017 and SN0009 in the Classic collection. For the money the SN0149 at $399 gives an integrated bracelet and a Miyota; this gives enamel and 9.8 mm.

An Original Design diver at $371 in 2 sizes, and the size is the decision. The 42 mm SN0126GL in the table is 50 mm lug to lug, the bronze pilot's length; the 38 mm SN0126GS on the same page is 46.5 mm and 11.7 mm thick, and matches the 62mas footprint for $65 more. The $65 buys the brand's own design and a Miyota 90S5 in place of a Sea-Gull, under a 120-click ceramic bezel at 200 m. A wrist under 7 inches takes the 38.

The titanium San Martin at $389 was 30% off that day, so expect a higher number next month. Grade 5 (TC4) titanium case and bracelet with a Grade 2 fly-adjust clasp, 300 m, 47.5 mm lug to lug on a 40 mm case, on a Sea-Gull PT5000 with a Sellita SW200 also offered. The Islander Sands Point at $449 is its titanium rival at this price, on a rubber strap with no published dimensions, so this is the one you can size before buying. The steel SN0154 is $66 less for the same rating; the $66 is the metal.

The one integrated-bracelet San Martin, at $399, and the shortest in the range at 44.5 mm lug to lug on a 40 mm case, the same figure as the Islander 38 mm diver. The Original Design index lists it; its page breadcrumb says Classic/Mechanical. The bracelet attaches at 25.5 mm and tapers to 18 mm, with a butterfly clasp and hidden push-buttons, on a Miyota 90S5. The SN0144 is $29 more on a conventional 20 mm lug with the same movement, so the choice is whether you will ever want to change the strap, which here you cannot.

The top of the range at $428 and the strongest argument for buying San Martin, the brand's own design on a Miyota 90S5 at 10.1 mm thick. The SN0144CG has a Jianzhan-glaze dial; the family also lists a coin-pattern CG-2, an enamel CG7, a mother-of-pearl GX-4 and a power-reserve DG on the Miyota 9132. Against the SN0149 it is $29 more, 1 mm narrower, 2 mm longer and 0.45 mm thinner. The Traska Commuter 38 at $700 is the same Miyota family for $272 more, hardened, with a US address; the $272 is the address and the hardening.