The Hamilton Khaki Field Murph 38 mm watch hands-on

When Interstellar – that I consider being the most thrilling sci-fi film in ages – was awarded the Oscar, no one imagined an unexpected new iconic watch to surface soon after that: the Khaki Field Murph. I’m sure you’ll praise Christopher Nolan for releasing such a masterpiece and reviving space-and-time travelling since Kubrick’s sibling masterfully did in the ’70s. Nolan’s film also introduced a timepiece named after Murphy “Murph” Cooper (screen played by Jessica Chastain) which used to help her talk to his father via Morse-coded, cross-dimensional messages.

The first-ever Khaki Field Murph is one of the most brilliant “product placement” strategies ever. The Murph was not a wristwatch spotted on anyone’s wrist but a character and an essential piece of the whole film’s storytelling. Once out of cinemas, enthusiasts eagerly waited for Hamilton to market that watch anytime soon; the Hamilton Khaki Field Murph popped up in the brand’s e-commerce, quickly becoming a hot piece ticking all the boxes thanks to a no-date dial, cathedral hour and minute hands, and vintage cream-coloured Arabic numerals.

Was anything wrong with the newcomer? Not at all, if we exclude a piece of that audience who fell in love with the Murph but were somewhat disappointed with the hefty – according to them – 42 mm large case, despite the substantial 52 mm lug-to-lug distance that was meant to please the largest possible audience. The community asked Hamilton to introduce a 38 mm Murph through a virtual “class action” as seen across social media. Hamilton has today answered that call. Three years in the making, here is the downsized Khaki Field Murph 38.

The slight redesign and re-industrialization processes take most of the brand’s original traits, which made the 42 mm Murph so admired globally: the bezel preserves its mirror-polished finish paired with a brushed case body, whose thickness is unchanged and has stopped at 11,10 mm.

The new case size comes with significant updates to lug width, whose gap loses 2 mm (now 20 mm instead of 22), along with a downsized lug-to-lug distance of 44,7 mm instead of 52 mm. Comparing old and new, the lug-to-lug to case-diameter ratio confirms that the 38 mm Murph offers better proportions overall. You’ll rather miss the Interstellar factor, represented by the Morse-engraved “Eureka” sentence etched on the 42’s running central seconds hand.

The primary takeout is that the new Khaki Murph 38 abandons the “Interstellar factor”. Inside the smaller-sized case, the engineers housed the same H-10 calibre found on the Murph 42 mm. It runs, therefore, for 80 hours when fully wound. The self-winding mechanical movement is displayed through the case back and ranks as the most capable (high-volume) calibre in its product category.

What if the designers had gone for a solid case back? We won’t know the answer but be sure I’d give a full 5-star review, and the watch would raise its vintage-inspired pedigree further, capturing the most demanding vintage-watches die-hard fan. “Vox populi, vox Dei”, as the Latin saying goes, the icing on the cake being you’ll save on the price list too. The new Khaki Field Murph 38 retails for €945 compared to €995 you’ll pay for a 42mm Murph. Should we expect the current Khaki Murph 42 to be phased out soon?

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(Photo credit: Horbiter®)

Editorial Team @Horbiter®