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Taking a trip into the past with this military inspired watch from Undone

When I first saw the initial pictures of the Terra from Undone watches, I must admit I was impressed with the overall aesthetic. Modelled with vintage style and with a nice mix of polished and finely brushed surfaces it’s a nice looking watch. So when Undone reached out, I had to see if the Terra Daybreak was as good in the metal as it looked in the pictures.

Undone is not new to the watch game they have been in the industry since 2014 and in that time have released a whole host of watches with vintage and very modern designs as well as some exciting collaborations and limited edition pieces that have catapulted them into the mainstream.

They also encourage you to customise your chosen model with different dial styles, handsets, colours and more. Offering watch customisation is undoubtedly not a new thing, but it is rare at this price range and with this amount of options to truly make the watch yours.

This latest offering from Undone is the Terra Daybreak and is based around military watches from the ’30s and ’40s and is a whole new design from Undone in terms of case design. The tortoise shaped case comes in at 37mm in diameter and a lug to lug of 43.3mm, which means this is a compact watch and holds to the smaller size of watches from the period. Despite the smaller size though I found this had a nice wrist presence and that’s down to that case shape. It also wears very comfortably on the wrist, so I’m pleased they used a case style we don’t see very often to help it stand out from the crowd.

The case finish features polished sides and then a very fine brushed bezel which sets it off very nicely against the slight dome to the crystal. The case also features a nicely sized crown which also benefits from being screw-down. It’s grippy and easy to operate and means the Terra has 50m of water resistance which should be fine for most day to day activities. This isn’t a divers watch, but the addition of a screw-down crown is a welcome detail.

The Crystal used in the Terra Daybreak is sapphire which I was impressed with as Undone don’t use sapphire crystals across their entire range but only in some of there unique collaboration pieces like their Batman collection and their more expensive diver watches. In reality, a nicely shaped acrylic crystal would have worked well with the overall style of the watch, but it’s nice to have the durability of sapphire and certainly needed if you were to use this as a field watch.

The dial used for the Terra Daybreak is definitely where the vintage vibes shine through. It’s far from an intricate dial and bear in mind the one in the images is somewhat sterile in terms of customisation options but I kind of like it that way. There is a subtle texture to the black dial like a very fine sand finish which adds interest and then lumed numbers for the hour markers along with lumed batons for the three, six and nine positions playing to the military theme of this piece. The hands are simple straight hands with a blunt-tipped hour hand and simple silver seconds hand. Both hours and minutes hands are lume filled in this instance but more on that later.

On the inner track of the dial are the markings for the 24-hour clock which although these are not lumed are an excellent addition to the dial. A classic lumed triangle at the noon position and the Undone wording written discreetly at the six o’clock finishes off the simple but well-executed printed dial.

Military-style watches need robust movements, and the Terra Daybreak uses a staple movement from Seiko in the NH35. Oddly enough viewed through a display case-back on the Terra. It may not be the prettiest movement, but it’s reliable, easily serviceable, automatic and offers a 42-hour power reserve. Accuracy will be +/- 15 seconds a day, and over this last week, I’d say that not far off and mine is maybe running closer to 12 seconds a day so really quite good overall. I lose track of how many brands nowadays use this movement from Seiko. I’ve seen this movement in more expensive watches, so I’m glad Undone went with something well known here that should give many years of useful wear.

The Terra Daybreak is offered in two strap options. There is a third Terra Nightfall limited edition, but the two standard steel models come on either a dark brown leather or a sandy coloured suede strap. I went for the suede, and I have to say for a standard strap it’s very nicely done. It’s supple without being flimsy, and the nice thing with this colour suede is it should age nicely and compliment the vintage styling of the watch. The hardware is very nice in stainless steel too, and the buckle is nicely etched with the Undone wording. Also, a big plus is the lug width. I'm glad Undone went with 20mm here as it opens up a lot of strap options if you like to switch things up further down the line and go for a different look.

So after a week or so with the Terra Daybreak what’s my verdict? Well, no watch is perfect, and the only criticism I can level at the Terra Daybreak is the lume applied to the hands. Mine was slightly patchy in the application, which was a shame as they use bi-coloured lume in green and blue for the numerals and hands and it’s a very nice effect. But it did need another application or two on those hands to be a bit more even.

Aside from that, I find it hard to fault the Terra Daybreak. Undone says it’s made this piece as a vintage style military watch fit for the modern metropolitan existence. And it's hard to argue with that in this case. Aesthetically and size-wise I think this will work well for both men and women who enjoy that vintage look. From a specification point of view, I think they struck an outstanding balance too. This is a casual looking watch perfect for the weekend but well made so that it would work well and be reliable on your weekend hiking trips.

The Seiko movement is excellent for a watch like this, and although I would have preferred a solid case-back on a military-style watch, this is purely personal preference. The Sapphire crystal means it won't pick up the scratches that can spoil a crystal quickly if you're not careful. And the 316L stainless steel case has nicely executed lines, and the finishing is very well done at this price point, offering something a little different in this category.

When I get a watch like this to review I try to think if I had purchased this watch, would I be pleased with it? In this instance, I had liked the initial Images of the Terra Daybreak, and in the flesh, it didn’t disappoint! If you're fond of military-style watches and want something with a more exciting case design and like a slightly smaller watch this is most definitely worth considering.

Interested in the terra ? or want to see some of the cool collaborations or other offerings from Undone check them out here.

Specifications:

Case: 316L stainless steel 37mm diameter 43.3 lug to lug 20mm lug width

Movement: Seiko NH35 42hrs power reserve Automatic hand winding

Crystal: sapphire

Strap: sand suede or brown leather

Water resistance: 50m

Dial: black textured finish with lumed markers and hands