Watch Description
Every bomber crew in World War II had a navigator, and every navigator had one job that couldn’t go wrong: knowing exactly where the plane was. Before GPS, that came down to stars, math and time. A few seconds off meant miles off course.
That’s why every navigator had a pocket watch at his desk: the Hamilton 4992B, known as the Master Navigational Watch. Hamilton built it in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, as a military version of its famous railroad pocket watch, with 22 jewels, hacking seconds so crews could sync to the second, and a true 24-hour dial marked G.C.T. (Greenwich Civil Time). It rode in a shock-mounted case to protect it from the vibration of the plane.
Since 2019, we’ve taken these original pocket watches and rebuilt them as wristwatches, to honor the people who carried them and to support the veterans of today. Our first seven editions were 50 pieces each. This year, we could only find 40. They come from estates and auctions, and every year they get harder to find.
Pieces 01–10 contain the rarest movements, from Hamilton’s first wartime run in 1941–42, each stamped “U.S. GOVT.” These are $11,500 and include a few surprises in the box. Pieces 11–40 contain movements made from 1942 to 1945 for the same navigators. These are $11,000.
Since 2019, $500 from every Military Edition sold has gone to the Veterans Watchmaker Initiative to train U.S. veterans as certified watchmakers. With this eighth edition, our donations will surpass $200,000. Watch the national news story to learn more.
The 49mm Grade 5 titanium case has a hand-distressed black DLC finish, so no two look alike. It measures 59mm lug to lug with 24mm lugs and weighs about 146g on the strap. It’s 17.5mm thick, but 2.5mm of that is the domed sapphire crystal, so it wears closer to 15mm. The titanium crown sits at 12 o’clock, right where it was on the original pocket watch, and a sapphire exhibition caseback shows off the movement. Rated to 5 ATM and built in Fort Collins, Colorado.
Each watch comes with two handmade straps from Greg Stevens Design in Utah, one green distressed canvas and one black distressed leather, plus a screwdriver for changing them.
Every movement, dial and set of hands is original, more than 80 years old and restored by hand on our bench in Colorado, so slight variations will occur. Each watch completes final testing before shipment, and we’ll send fulfillment updates after purchase.
Learn more on our Military Edition Information page, including every edition since 2019.
Movement Manufacturer Information
The movement inside of this watch was made by Hamilton Watch Company. We call this model "The Lancaster" because the company was located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Hamilton is named after famous Pennsylvanian Alexander Hamilton and is the result of multiple re-organizations of attempted watch companies in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1892, Hamilton had a reputation for superior quality and maintained half of the railroad watch market share during some of the most prolific years of American railroad history. During World War II, Hamilton was integral to the production of accurate timepieces for the Military. Deemed "the watch that won the war," the company established an employee-run newsletter so that employees turned soldiers could keep up with life at the factory. While the original factory still stands as luxury apartments, the company stopped producing watches in the US in 1969. Hamilton now produces watches in Switzerland and is owned by the Swatch Group.
Legal Disclaimer: All product and company names, logos, brands, and other trademarks featured or referred to within Vortic's products and services are the property of their respective intellectual property rights holders, if any. Those intellectual property rights holders, other than Vortic Holding Company, LLC, are not affiliated with Vortic Holding Company, LLC, our products, or our website. They do not sponsor or endorse our materials.
Watch Specifications
- Manufacturer: Vortic Watch Company
- Model Year: 2026 Military Edition
- Warranty: Full 2-Year Warranty
- Case Dimensions:
- Diameter: 49mm
- Thickness: 16mm
- Lug to Lug: 59mm
- Lug Width: 24mm
- Case Material: Distressed DLC Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Titanium
- Water Resistance: 5 ATM
- Crystals: Domed Sapphire (front)
Flat Sapphire (back) - Case Back: DLC Titanium
- Strap:
#1: Distressed Military Canvas with Leather Backing
#2: Distressed Black Leather with Black Stitching
Movement
- Manufacturer: Hamilton Watch Company
- Serial Number: Varies
- Manufacture Year: Varies 1941 to 1945
- Function: Hour, Minute, and Hacking Sweeping Seconds
- Jewels: 22 Jewels
- Hands: Original Antiques
- Size: 16s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
Restoration of the Original Antiques
Most of the movements we find were manufactured between 1938 and 1950. They were likely used in war-time but were discarded or forgotten shortly afterward. This means the original mechanical, manually wound mechanisms have not been properly serviced or cared-for in recent years.
Vortic's team of expert watchmakers meticulously restores each movement to near factory conditions using only original parts. Thankfully, because these were built as tools for the U.S. Military, extra parts were built for field servicing. We even have access to the original field service manuals from the, now defunct, watch companies!
We do the best we can to restore and regulate each one, but "perfect" timekeeping similar to a modern wristwatch is not achievable. Each watch will be adjusted to keep excellent time on a day to day basis, but there will be variations from watch to watch.
The Wristwatch Engineering System
The Military Edition is an engineering system designed to protect and preserve pieces of American history.
It has been over-built to house these extremely rare and valuable military mechanisms. Every metal component has been precision cut from blocks of solid grade 5 titanium inside a local Colorado facility. We used titanium for the case body, case back, bezel and crown in order to make these watches look as similar to the antique pocket watches as possible. We then had each case DLC-coated and individually distressed to create an authentically vintage, worn-in finish. This is our lightest Military Edition to date!
Only the best materials were sourced for this project due to the priceless nature of the timepieces being converted.
The Glass Crystals
For the front of the Military Edition, we decided to go with a domed sapphire crystal.
The domed glass creates a beautiful side profile that makes this watch stand out from all others. It also makes more room inside the watch for the very tall pinion holding the hands.
On the back, we used sapphire again just like our other watches. The scratch-resistant crystal has a clarity rating of nearly 100 meaning it's completely transparent and perfect for showing off the piece of American military history inside.
The American Made Strap
A watch this special can't have any normal wrist-band. That's why we partnered with Greg Stevens Design in Salt Lake City. Greg typically makes batches of straps for us for these Military Edition watches, but we convinced him to do these Special Edition straps too!
Each Military Edition watch will come with one military canvas strap, and one distressed style black leather strap, all made by Greg.
The Veterans Watchmaker Initiative
Since 2019, $500 from every Military Edition sold has gone to the Veterans Watchmaker Initiative to train U.S. veterans as certified watchmakers. With this eighth edition, our donations will surpass $200,000.
With the rise in popularity of vintage and mechanical wristwatches, there's an ever-growing need for skilled watchmakers to restore and service these timepieces. Every watch company from Vortic to Rolex is actively seeking trained workers and the Veterans Watchmaker Initiative is filling those skill-gaps.
The current program can only train about 20 students at a time, but there are hundreds on the waiting list. By purchasing the any watch in the Military Edition including the Sixth Edition you will be directly impacting the Past, Present, and future of American watchmaking.
Frequently Asked Questions
The 40 watches in the Eighth Edition (2026) of the Military Edition will start at $11,000 each.
The Eighth Edition of the Military Edition is available now! They go quickly, so don't miss out! Sign up for the waiting list for the next edition now!
For the Eighth Edition (2026), we plan to ship most of them within a few days. You should receive yours right away! It just depends on how quickly they sell and how quickly we can pack and ship. The first 10 customers will likely receive them in just a day or two!
The Military Edition is 49mm in diameter and 59mm lug to lug. The strap is 24mm, tapered to 20mm. The straps have been sized to fit any wrist between 6.5 and 8.5 inches (one size fits all).
The Military Edition will be exclusively available on Veterans Day each year. We do not know how many antique pocket watches we can find in the future, so subsequent sets may have fewer pieces available and will likely sell at a higher price.
Yes. Active Duty Military and all U.S. Military Veterans can receive 10% off any purchase on www.vorticwatches.com. Email us to learn more.
Just like all watches in Vortic's American Artisan Series, everything inside the watch is an original, restored antique. All internal components, including the dial (face), hands, and movement (gears and springs that tell time), are from a pocket watch built a long time ago. We restore those antique movements using only original parts and then build a custom engineering system around it. Everything you can touch, on the outside of the watch, is modern. This includes the case, glass, leather straps, crown, etc.
GCT, during World War II, meant Greenwich Civil Time, the standard European timezone. Now called UTC, or Coordinated Universal Time, it relates to the time at 0 degrees Longitude - the location of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, England. It was the standard timezone for all Allied forces during the war.
We take care to restore and regulate each one, but "perfect" timekeeping, similar to a modern wristwatch, is not achievable. Each watch will be adjusted to keep excellent time on a day-to-day basis, but there will be variations from watch to watch. We attempt to regulate timekeeping within 30 seconds per day when averaged across all positions. For day to day use, you should not notice any fault in timekeeping.
The watch industry does not use the term "waterproof." We always say "water-resistant" because every single watch is different, and all customer environments are different. The Military Edition is rated to 5 ATM of water resistance, meaning it is perfect for day to day use, but not intended for use while showering or swimming.
All Vortic watches come with a 2-year warranty. The bottom line is, if anything ever goes wrong, even after you have the watch for 2 years, we will take care of you. We pride ourselves in our customer service, and we can fix just about anything!
Check out the link below for the unboxing of the First Edition! The Eighth Edition has some slight changes but those will be a surprise.
All product and company names, logos, brands, and other trademarks featured or referred to within Vortic's products and services are the property of their respective intellectual property rights holders, if any. Those intellectual property rights holders, other than Vortic Holding Company, LLC, are not affiliated with Vortic Holding Company, LLC, our products, or our website. They do not sponsor or endorse our materials.
