If you’re buying an automatic watch, the most important things to consider are usually its look, feel, and mechanical movement. Let’s be honest. With today’s technology, even a cheap digital watch is more accurate than the best automatic. But a watch is about way more than telling time. It’s a statement of ones taste, and it’s got to fit your personal aesthetic. To that end, I was excited to get a look at the Szanto Officer’s Coin Cushion Automatic. There aren’t many watches on the market with its unique aesthetic, so I was excited to get my hands on one.
There are three different variants of the Officer’s Coin Cushion Automatic: the 6201, the 6202, and the 6203. The one I have is the silver dial version, the ref. 6202. All the elements, complications, and features are the same across all three variants. All three versions have the same automatic 21-jewel Japanese movement, identical hand profiles, and the same subdials. The only difference is the coloration. With that in mind, let’s take a closer look at this vintage-looking watch.
An Elegant Throwback Timepiece
Despite the Szanto 6200 Series’ bold, square profile, the dial has a standard round layout. This eliminates the need for a bunch of empty space, or for positioning the numerals in a square format. The face of the dial is silver in color, and it’s burnished in a scalloped pattern that radiates outwards from the center. This makes it glimmer a little when it catches the light.
Around the outside of the dial, you’ll see a narrow ladder index. It’s black in color, with sharp, fine hashes at the minute positions and slightly broader hashes every five minutes. Inside of this is the main index, which consists of a ring of Super Luminova Arabic numerals. The numerals are outlined in the same fine black paint as the outer index, providing a unified look.
Here’s where things get a bit different from what you’d expect on most modern watches. Instead of everything being laid out by quadrants, most of the features are offset. There’s an elegant Szanto logo at the 12 o’clock position, and a square date window at 3. The window is lined in the same black paint as the other complications. Positioned between the 5 and 6 o’clock numerals, there’s a 60-minute subdial. The subdial sports a tiny, lance-shaped hand with a lollypop on the back side. Between the 9 and 10 o’clock positions, there’s a similar subdial, but it’s a 24-hour dial instead of 60 minutes.
Just like the numerals, the hands also feature a Super Luminova finish. At first glance, they appear to be skeletonized, but that’s just a cosmetic feature. In the dark, the skeletonized pattern still shows, and the numerals glow brightly. This makes it easy to see under almost any conditions. So in addition to looking sharp, the 6200’s dial is also highly functional.
Cushion Case and Crystal
The Officer’s Coin Cushion Automatic’s most striking feature is its roughly square profile. The main profile is square, but the dial is actually ringed by a raised, round bezel. The bezel is medium-sized and elegant, with a smooth upper edge and a hashed outer edge. The overall diameter of the case is 42.5mm, so it has a medium wrist presence. That said, the extended lugs make it feel a bit larger than it is. The crystal is engineered from hardened K1 mineral glass, which is both scratch and glare-resistant. It’s also flat, so it doesn’t distort the dial.
The case is constructed from corrosion-resistant 316L stainless steel. It’s also water-resistant to 100 meters, so it’s more than suitable for swimming. This is despite the exhibition case back, which lets you see all the inner workings of the movement. The push crown is equally elegant, with an oval profile that adds a nice accent to the edge of the watch. It’s ribbed like a mace or a scepter, which lends the watch a well-earned appearance of royalty.
High-Quality Strap
The Szanto 6200 Series includes an elegant black calf leather strap that has a smooth profile. I appreciated the fact that there’s no visible stitching disrupting the appearance of the outer surface. The strap secures with a simple stainless steel buckle. It’s not fancy, but it gets the job done and it looks sharp with just about any attire.
One neat thing is the way it attaches to a set of slender, extended lugs. This leaves a wide gap between the strap and the ends of the case. If you like an ultra-tight feel to your watch, you might not like this. On the other hand, if you have wider wrists or don’t mind a looser fit, it’s no big deal. That’s just a matter of preference. Regardless, those lugs are yet another eye-catching feature of a truly unique timepiece.