As a big fan of quality yet affordable microbrands, I’d say that this debut model from Melbourne, Australia’s newcomer, ‘Ocean to Orbit’ is going to be pretty hard to match.
So, who is Ocean To Orbit and why have they started up?
In December 2020 following a conversation about historical watches, the brand developers, David Dewitt and Siddhartha Kazami, had been discussing the watches they owned and would wish to own and decided that if they wanted to own a watch that was going to be near perfect, they would need to start their own brand. After trading sketches with one another, they decided that they could and should do this, and a few months later Ocean to Orbit was born.
From the outset, they decided that every watch they designed would have a story, with influences from those worn by explorers and pioneers of the early to mid-20th century, such as watches like the Omega CK2287, Rolex Oyster Perpetual and the Smiths A409, all understood to have been worn on the expedition to Mt. Everest in 1953. For Avid and Siddhartha, it made sense that their first model would be an everyday tool watch inspired by these great historical timepieces that would be designed and engineered to withstand the harsh conditions faced during expeditions like Mt. Everest, when Edmund Hilary and Tenzing Norgay reached the summit in May 1953. Starting with their debut watch, ‘Lhotse’ (named after the fourth highest mountain peak, in the Himalayas) their vision was to create a range of purpose-built watches that speak to the passion of enthusiasts worldwide.
And to put the Lhotse to the test, what better than to have it worn, on a true expedition by a real mountaineer. Purnima Shrestha, a Nepalese born and bred adventurer and photojournalist, was gifted a prototype of the Lhotse to wear on her ascent to (and descent from) the summit of the mountain of the same name. The watch was worn daily, at significant altitude, during her adventure and clearly survived intact. An interview with Purnima about her expedition can be read here.
Ocean to Orbit’s mission is to offer exceptional quality Swiss made watches at a price that is accessible with an unparalleled attention to detail. As car designers, and mechanical watch enthusiasts, David and Siddhartha wanted to bring their creativity, passion and sense of refinement to the world of watch making and watch design. Their goal is to share their vision of Ocean to Orbit with the world, and as their brand name suggests, their watches are designed to be worn from the Ocean To Orbit, and everywhere in-between.
So, let’s take a look at the Lhotse.
Ocean to Orbit Lhotse
The overall design is what can be described as a classic sports, “GADA: Go anywhere, Do Anything” watch. It is constructed of 316K stainless steel with a predominantly brushed casing and polished chamfered edging along the caseline, giving a subtle yet stylish effect finish. Pleasingly, the ideally sized 20mm lugs are drilled which is ideal for the swift changing of straps, and at 20mm there will be a plethora of alternative straps to swap out if the wearer wishes to alter appearance.
Central to the solid caseback is a stunning, deeply etched and polished brand logo with printed co-ordinates around the outside, along with the model name. The large, and easy to use/grip, screw-down crown is deeply signed, again with the brand logo.
The dial comes in three different colourways as standard: ‘Classic’ (black/grey), blue or green and with an option to having the black dial variant with gilt coloured hands, hour markings and minute track markings (known as the ‘Heritage’). What I love about the dial is the vertically brushed slate effect (similar to that on the Omega Railmaster range). There is also a limited edition option (for the Watch Enthusiasts of Melbourne, WEM group) that is of a ‘tuxedo’ design showcasing a stunning opaline white dial and blue chapter ring.
All of the standard colourways have SSL lume-filled, polished and raised hour markings adorning the dial, with each of the four cardinal hours having a slightly larger ‘block’. An applied and polished logo is featured below the 12 hour marking with the usual references outlining the model name, movement type and water resistance rating, indicating 100m, printed.
The hands are what, arguably, makes this watch stand out – the hour hand resembles a rocket, the seconds hand a re-entry capsule and the minute hand, that of a booster, all in keeping with the ‘orbit’ aspect of the brand name. The tip of the seconds hand’s arrow is either red or white (depending on the dial colour chosen).
Covering the dial is a boxed sapphire crystal with an anti-reflective coating on the inside.
The watch comes as standard on either a ribbed, military style nylon strap or, for a few extra dollars, an oyster-style brushed and tapering bracelet, with screwed links to aid adjustment more easily. There is as yet no ‘on the fly’ quick adjustment to the clasp but it does come with 5 micro-adjustments possible. The deployant clasp is signed with the brand logo and model name.
Movement wise, Ocean to Orbit’s Lhotse utilises the Swiss made STP1-21 hi-beat automatic movement.
In summary: I love this watch! It’s simple, yet effective and could even be seen as a one-watch-collection that lives up to its ‘GADAness’. The brand owners have certainly reached the summit successfully with this design.
Technical Specifications -
- Brand: Ocean to Orbit
- Model: Lhotse
- Style: Sports, GADA
- Price: £695
- Material: Stainless steel
- Movement: Swiss made STP1-21 automatic
- Complications: Hours, minutes, seconds
- Crystal: Sapphire
- Case size: 38.5 mm
- Lug/strap width: 20mm
- Lug to lug length: 47mm
- Height: 11.5mm
- When the reviewer would personally wear it: Anytime, Anywhere – especially up a mountain!
- A friend we’d recommend it to first: Anyone, with a good taste in watches
- Best characteristics of the watch: The dial and hour hand design; deeply etched logo on caseback
- The worst characteristics of the watch: There is nothing to dislike; in a world full of GADA watches, there will be competition to contend with
