Timex Marlin Chatham Automatic: The First Marlin to Break the Round Habit

When Timex brought the Marlin back in 2017, it did something the brand had not done in years: it sold a mechanical watch people actually wanted. That first reissue was a faithful copy of a 1960s Marlin, a 34mm dress watch with a hand-wound movement, and it sold on nostalgia as much as on value. Since then the name has stretched across dozens of references, held together by a loose mid-century mood.

What every one of those Marlins shared was a round case. The new Marlin Chatham Automatic changes that. It is a 36mm cushion-case dress watch with applied Breguet numerals and a Miyota automatic, priced at €279 in steel and white, which puts it squarely among the watches worth buying under €300 for anyone who wants something vintage-shaped without vintage headaches.

It is the most interesting Marlin since the original, and not because of anything inside it. The shape and the dial are the whole argument here, and for once Timex has given the line a silhouette that does not look like another round reissue.

A Cushion Case Is a Bigger Change Than It Sounds

A cushion case sits between round and square: softened corners, gently bowed flanks, a shape that reads as 1960s and 1970s almost instantly. Timex quotes 36mm across, 44.5mm lug-to-lug and 12mm thick, in polished stainless steel. On paper that is compact. On the wrist, cushion cases tend to wear larger than their diameter because the corners fill more of the wrist than a circle does.

That is why 36mm makes sense here. A 40mm cushion would start to look like a sports watch; at 36mm it stays firmly in dress territory while still having presence. If you are unsure how that translates to your own wrist, the lug-to-lug figure matters more than the diameter, which is the number to check first, as covered in our practical guide to wearing a watch.

The 12mm thickness is the less flattering figure. It is not unusual for an automatic at this price, but it is noticeably chunkier than the hand-wound 2017 Marlin, and polished cushion flanks will make that height easy to see. For a dress watch I would have liked something under 12mm. Still, it stays below 13mm, which for me is the line where a watch stops slipping comfortably under a shirt cuff, so it passes, if only just.

The Breguet Numerals Do the Heavy Lifting

The dial is where Timex has spent its effort. Applied Breguet-style numerals run all the way around, framed by an open minute track and rounded baton hands, with very little text. Breguet numerals are a more decorative choice than the stick indices most affordable dress watches default to, and applying them adds real depth.

Two versions are available. The TW2Y84300 is the plain one: steel case, white dial, silver-tone numerals and hands, black leather strap, €279. The TW2Y84500 swaps in a gold-tone case, a black dial with gold-tone furniture and a brown strap, for €289.

The white version is the better watch, at least from the images. Silver numerals on white keep the look restrained and let the shape of each numeral read clearly; gold on black is more theatrical and pushes the watch toward evening wear only. Both use 20mm quick-release leather straps sourced through the Leather Working Group, so a change to suede takes seconds.

The Movement

Timex’s own product page lists a Miyota 8215, and most launch coverage has repeated it. The caseback says otherwise. The rotor visible through the exhibition window is signed NH35A and “Twenty Four Jewels”, and the 24-jewel figure in Timex’s own image captions matches the Seiko-made NH35, not the 21-jewel Miyota. Rated water resistance is 50m.

If anything, that works in the watch’s favour. The NH35 hacks and hand-winds, beats at 21,600 vph, offers around 41 hours of power reserve on Seiko’s spec, and is rated at -20/+40 seconds per day. It is also one of the most widely used automatics in the affordable segment, so parts and servicing are easy to find. It has not escaped the rising cost of affordable mechanical movements, which partly explains why an automatic Timex now sits closer to €300 than €200.

Another One Still Has the Edge

Any automatic dress watch under €300 has to answer to the Bambino. The Bambino reference I reviewed measures 38.4mm and 12mm thick, uses Orient’s in-house F6724 with a domed mineral crystal, carries 30m of water resistance and sells for around €200. I spent a month with the Bambino RA-AC0M12L30B on my wrist, and it ran close to +10 seconds a day with case finishing that felt better than the price suggested.

On those terms the Bambino is the stronger value. It costs roughly €80 less, its domed crystal does more for the vintage look than the Timex’s flat mineral, and an in-house movement is a better talking point than a Seiko. The Chatham answers with three things the Orient cannot offer: the cushion shape, the applied Breguet numerals and a smaller 36mm footprint.

That makes them less direct rivals than they first appear. The Bambino is the default; the Chatham is the alternative for someone who already finds the default too familiar. If you want one affordable automatic for dress occasions and nothing else, our three-way comparison of Seiko, Orient and Citizen still points to the Orient. If you want a shape that nobody else at this price is making, the Timex is the more distinctive pick.

The friction with this release is not the movement, it is the price creep around it. A mineral crystal on a €279 watch is acceptable but no longer generous; sapphire has become common enough under €300 that its absence is noticeable, especially on a polished dress watch where scratches show.

The name is the other point to watch. Timex has not explained “Chatham”, although it would not be surprising if it refers to Chatham on Cape Cod, given the “coastal charm” in the brand’s own copy and Timex’s New England roots. If so, it is a nice nod, but it also shows how far the Marlin label has travelled. This watch has almost nothing in common with the 1960s Marlin it borrows its name from, and the line is starting to feel like a mid-century umbrella for any mechanical Timex rather than a model family.

You are buying a new design with an old name, not a reissue. Timex has been doing the same thing with shapes elsewhere in the catalogue, as its recent run of integrated-bracelet models showed, and the Chatham feels like part of the same push to give the brand more than one silhouette.

Specs, Pricing & Availability

Who This Actually Makes Sense For

The Marlin Chatham Automatic launched in India in September and is now on sale in Europe, the UK and the US at €279, £240 and $289 respectively, with the gold-tone TW2Y84500 €10 more.

I would buy the white version, and I would buy it as a second dress watch rather than a first. If you already own a round automatic like a Bambino or a Seiko Presage, the Chatham adds a shape your collection is probably missing, at a price that does not make the experiment painful. If this would be your only dress watch, the Orient remains the safer, cheaper and slightly better-built choice.

What makes the release matter is less the watch than the direction. For years, affordable dress automatics have meant a round case, a domed crystal and stick indices. Timex has shown that a big brand can sell a cushion case with Breguet numerals at under €300, and if it sells, the round-case default in this price band will finally have some company.