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The Marathon Watch Company is a supplier of watches to the Canadian military, but their products are also available for use by the U.S. military, law enforcement, and other government agencies. Luckily, they are also available to the general public. The
Marathon GSAR (meaning “Government-issued, Search And Rescue”), is a stainless steel dive watch water-resistant to 300 meters, or 1,000 feet. This is a special edition watch that uses the ETA 2824 Swiss automatic movement.
Let’s start with the specifications:
- ETA 2824-A2 automatic movement with 25 jewels.
- 316L grade stainless steel case.
- Water resistant to 30 ATM, 300 meters, or about 1,000 feet.
- Case diameter of 39.5mm (excluding crown and crown guard), or 46mm including the crown.
- Case height of 13.55mm.
- 2.8mm thick sapphire crystal.
- 105g (with the rubber strap).
- Screw-down caseback and crown.
- Date display between the 4 and 5 o’clock markers.
There are two versions of the GSAR: the standard, meaning that the phrase “U.S. Government” is printed under the Marathon logo (which is what I have), and the “Sterile Version” without “U.S. Government” on the dial (as requested by some government departments).
The bad news here is that obtaining one of these is a hit or miss experience. They frequently sell out, so you will have to be patient enough to wait for stock to be replenished. The GSAR “Sterile Version” has been out of stock ever since I bought my standard version.
The hands and dial markers are accented with Tritium capsules — an illumination technology that is self-powered and glows for up to 25 years without batteries or external light sources for charging. Tritium tubes are tiny sealed glass vials that contain gas Tritium which is an isotope of Hydrogen. The inside surface of the capsules is coated with a phosphor that glows as the Tritium gas decays. Several different colors can be generated depending on the type of phosphor used.
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