While Marathon has been successful in selling to the civilian market, much of that success has been fueled by being a very well-established supplier to the military. While the brand has made some classy timepieces in the past, now their line-up consists entirely of purposely built watches that can take a beating and some more. There is something about being able to purchase gear that is good enough for different branches of the military, as you know that the performance requirements go beyond what is custom in the civilian market. This is also the case with the Desert Tan Pilot’s Navigator.

To see the true value of this Marathon, you need to switch to a different gear. Unlike the vast majority of watches we feature here on WatchTime, this is not a luxury item, nor was it intended to be. It’s a tool. See it as the original Willy’s Jeep, an amazing creation, fun to drive, but a far cry from a modern-day Jeep Wrangler. The Desert Tan Pilot’s Navigator is a watch created to get a job done. It was developed in 1985, in collaboration with Kelly Air Force Base and features a distinct asymmetrical case design in which the right side lobs out to form a crown protector. Why I wouldn’t call this watch beautiful, as that was most likely also not a design requirement, it has a very appealing character. The high-impact composite fibershell case in desert tan color is extremely tough an...