Hamilton Revives Its 1926 Cushion Watches As The American Classic Cushion Mechanical

Hamilton has leaned on the Khaki Field for quite some time, so it's good to see the brand not just shift to other collection, but also open its dress catalogue for a change. The new American Classic Cushion Mechanical goes back to the Cushion Plain and Cushion Engraved of 1926, and the six new references walk the fine line between classy watches and costume accessories. If these watches look familiar, you would be right, as this entire collection has been inspired by watches worn in Oppenheimer.

Cases come in 30mm or 34mm wide, a refreshingly small size these days, and both are 8.1mm thick, properly slim for a mechanical watch at this price. Steel is the base, gold PVD is available in both sizes, and the 34mm also has an option of an engraved steel case which looks wild. The lugs are short, so the cushion shape wears compact. There's a sapphire crystal on top with an anti-glare treatment, a display caseback, and you get a decent 50 meters of water resistance.

The 30mm gets either a sandblasted beige dial with Arabic numerals or a white enamel-look dial with Roman numerals. The 34mm has black, beige or a silver sunburst dial. Every version has small seconds at six and glossy black hands with lume. Good on Hamilton for not going full retro with no lume.

Inside is the H-42, Hamilton's version of the ETA 7001, itself a descendant of the Peseux 7001 from the 1970s. But it's been upgraded, with a Nivachron hairspring and a power reserve stretched from 42 to 57 hours. Appreciated on a manually wound watch. Straps are black or brown leather with quick-release spring bars and a pin buckle matching the case, 16mm or 18mm at the lugs.

The Hamilton American Classic Cushion Mechanical is priced at €995 in steel, engraved case included, and €1,095 in gold PVD, regardless of size. These watches are part of the permanent collection, available now. See more on the Hamilton website.