Hamtun Kraken H2
Manufacturer: Hamtun | Price: £299 GBP ($375 USD, €345 EUR (approx))
As I stated a couple of months ago, I’ve had Hamtun Watches on my radar for absolutely ages! I originally backed their campaign on Kickstarter back in March of last year for the Kraken H2, right up until the last minute, however I decided to pull out as I didn’t fancy waiting months for a watch that I’d already paid for. Even although, I did regret it, I have since picked one up so I can review it and to obviously see what all the hype was about. I also recently purchased a Hamtun Nanok, so I guess I’m pretty much turning into a bit of a Hamtun fanboy these days. Maybe Hamtun will actually send me a press sample to review one of these days, so I don’t have to keep spending my precious beer tokens on them. 😂
Specifications
- Dimensions: Diameter – 40.8mm, Thickness – 13.2mm, Lug to Lug – 47.8mm, Lug Width – 22mm
- Movement: Seiko SII NH35, Automatic, 21,600vph (3Hz), Hackable, Self Winding, 41hr Power Reserve
- Case Material: Grade 2 Titanium, Scratch Resistant Coating
- Bracelet: 22mm Titanium, Solid Links & End Links, Screw Pins, Pressed Signed Clasp
- Crystal: Flat Sapphire, Underside Anti-Reflective Coating
- Bezel: 120 Click Unidirectional, Titanium Insert, 12hr Dual Time
- Water Resistance: 200m / 20ATM / 660ft
- Lume: Swiss Super Luminova® BGW9
- Crown: Titanium, Screw Down, Signed
- Caseback: Titanium, Screw Down, Etched Hamtun Design, Unique Serial Number
- Warranty: 2 Years Where to Buy: Hamtun
- Options: Colour – Black, Dark Blue, Light Blue, Meteorite, Yellow, White
- Movement: Seiko SII NH35 (3Hz), Swiss Sellita SW200 (4Hz)(+£100), Date/No Date
- Bezel Insert: 12hr Dual Time, 60min Dive Timer, Titanium or Ceramic
- Kraken H3 Coming Soon with Additional Colours, Including a ETA 2893-2 powered GMT Edition
Hamtun - The Brand
By FAR, the biggest request was for a GMT version of the Kraken H2. So we've made it! We've also added some new colour options to keep things interesting. The project as a whole, is known as the Kraken H3 (see what we did there...?) and we're totally blown away by the watches. They'll be launching soon, and they're likely to sell fast. If you want one, get ready!"
Case & Crown
The case of the Hamtun Kraken H2 has an overall diameter of 40.8mm. The lug to lug is 47.8mm and the overall thickness, including the sapphire crystal, albeit flat, I measured in at 13.2mm. The entire case, caseback, bezel, bezel insert, crown and bracelet are all grade 2 titanium with the addition of a very welcome scratch resistant coating. The watch doesn’t have any fancy chamfered edges or polishing anywhere, it is 100% a tool watch. Big thumbs up from me!
The Hraken H2 has a water resistance rating of 200m, thanks to the screw down caseback and crown. The proportions of the watch and the way it wears on wrist, in my opinion, are pretty much bang on for my 7″ wrist. No overhang on my wrist, no sharp edges anywhere, overall, the Hamtun Kraken H2 is very comfortable and a great choice for everyday wear.
The signed crown at the 4 o’clock position is fantastic, very nicely made, easy to grip and showcases the Hamtun logo off very well. There is zero wobble either when the crown is in use and you can also feel a nice wee pop as you unscrew it. The caseback has an etched Kraken design on it that looks great. You’ll also find the usual specs etched around the edge that you can see in the image below. You’ll also find a unique serial number just under the Kraken logo. Very nice indeed!
Strap / Bracelet
The Kraken H2 comes fitted as standard with a 22mm titanium bracelet that is at first glance, very nice indeed. It does have all the bells & whistles that you might hope for, solid links throughout and screw pins for sizing and adjusting. The clasp itself is the only negative I’ve found with the bracelet, pressed clasps just don’t do it for me and just cheapens the watch if you ask me. There are also just 3 micro-adjustment holes, which some people might find rather poor. At least the clasp is signed, which is a bonus. Hopefully, the soon to be released H3 doesn’t have the same clasp set up as the H2.
Movement
The chosen movement for this version of the Kraken H2 is the very reliable NH35 manufactured by Seiko. Hamtun do offer a movement upgrade path though, offering a Swiss made Sellita SW200, however it will set you back and extra £100 over the Kraken H2’s starting price of £299. That’s still an absolute bargain though!
Checking the accuracy after running the Kraken H2 for a good couple of weeks, mainly on my wrist and occassionally in my watch winder, I was more than happy with it showing an average of just +5.8 spd.
Dial & Bezel
As you can see in the images, the hour and minute hands are very nicely done with their quite unique appearance. The size of the hands are pretty much perfect in relation to the size of the dial. The matching seconds hand is spot on too, with it’s wee blue lollipop section and tip reaching right out to the sloped chapter ring. The indicies are all applied with a triangle shaped index at the 12, while there are slightly longer with rounded indicies at the 3, 6 & 9 o’clock positions.
For those that read my reviews regularly, you will probably be aware that I always prefer a watch with a date complication and although Hamtun do offer the H2 with one, it’s at the 4 o’clock position. Subsequently, I was glad to have found a no-date version of the Kraken H2 as I know myself, the date at 4 would just do my tits in. They aren’t colour matched either, unless you get the white version. There IS some good news though… I have been duly informed that the soon to be released Kraken H3 will have a colour matched date wheel. Oh yeah, that’s on ALL dial colours.
Lume
The lume on the Kraken H2 is very nice and I can honestly testify that it’s easily up there with the best dive watches that I’ve reviewed. The lume that’s been applied is Swiss Super Luminova® BGW9 and it has been applied 100% perfectly. Even although the bezel insert isn’t lumed on this version, apart from the triangle marker that is, the lume that’s on the dial and hands is superb. The lume is not only initially bright, it actually lasts for hours and through the majority of the night.
Conclusion
Hamtun – Another excellent watch Ross. A truly superb and massive value for money diver. Can’t wait to see the H3!
Hi Will, I ordered the light blue dial Kraken with date from the Kickstarter watch, absolutely superb watch, love it . . . Think the clasp was a stretch goal, for a titanium milled clasp, but Ross was not quite happy with it in regard to being strong enough, being made of titanium, clasp is still in the pipeline I think ? Love the reviews, always a good read.
Neil
Thanks Neil