Matthew Gray
I have owned a Navigator for quite some time now, and it’s subjected to a lot of tough environments as part of use. I’ve not seen any deterioration during this time. Reports of fragility and bezel loss in first 2-4 weeks don’t match my experience at all. In fact, I got curious and tried to abuse the bezel to see if it would separate and it did not. I have to conclude that anyone who has really experienced this has probably subjected the Navigator to treatment that would damage many watches.Before you buy this watch, it’s probably important for you to decide whether you accept the DOD design parameters, which were essentially for a rugged yet ultimately disposable watch. The Navigator is not designed to be repaired but rather replaced. This is explicit in the DOD specifications. Hence the plastic case, etc. This is not unique to Marathon either — all watches produced under DOD contracts follow this same approach. If you talk with military guys, particularly infantry and armor guys, they all see equipment such as watches through this lens. It’s a consumable piece of equipment. This is at odds with how most civilian buyers think about a watch.In summary, if you knock a Marathon too hard against the side of an Abrams turret, it’s going to lose. But if you’re going to use it normally, even in rock climbing, skydiving, and other extreme sports, you’ll be fine. It’s a great watch.
