TORNEK-RAYVILLE Series 3 TR-660 [no longer MIA]

Most of what I know about the Vietnam War was gleaned from Paul Hardcastle’s 1985 hit “19” and Robert Mason’s book “Chickenhawk” – oh, and movies like; Apocalypse Now, Deer Hunter, Full Metal Jacket, Hamburger Hill, Platoon, Casualties of War – the list goes on – and on – 

suffice to say the Vietnam War was one of modern history’s most infamous wars killing more than 3 million people; including more than 58,000 Americans.

With numbers like that it’s kinda’ twisted to imagine that there was possibly any kind of upside – as far as humanity was concerned there certainly wasn’t; however one thing that war does do is push innovation. Starting with weaponry and eventually filtering down to the humble wristwatch. The Vietnam War like WWII had its fair share of watch stories: the Benrus Type I, the Zodiac Seawolf, the Glycine Airman and of course the Seiko 6105; they all saw action in Vietnam.

However there was another name – a name long gone but never forgotten; no not John Rambo but another legend that is back (thanks to Bill Yao and Mk II Watches), and that name is Tornek-Rayville AKA the name stamped on the American version of the Fifty Fathoms. 

Seven years after the first advisors arrived in Vietnam and 4 years before combat units landed, the US military put out the call for its first combat dive watch.

The unknown Tornek-Rayville beat out all the major US watch companies, including Bulova, which was headed-up by the well-connected retired General Omar Bradley, to win the privilege of supplying the US Special Forces units their first purpose built combat dive watch. The first TR-900s were delivered in 1963 and served with Special Forces units including, among others, Marine Force Recon, MACV-SOG and the Navy SEALs, during the Vietnam War where it was last seen - at least in active service.

Decades on and Bill Yao much like Chuck Norris in Missing in Action has brought back the TR-900 which is no longer MIA in Nam’! In truth all remaining watches were duly decommissioned and destroyed owing to their use of radioactive lume but – 

its legacy lived in all those homage watches – and in this new Tornek-Rayville’ TR-660 a Type B self-winding wrist watch (submersible) that finally replaces the TR-900 MIL-W-22176A.

It is powered by the Japanese made NE15C movement delivering a longer power-reserve and superior accuracy to the preceding mil-spec. Water-resistance too has been improved to 660 feet and the construction enables longer service intervals. Lastly the TR-660 has an optional aluminum or acrylic timing dials and reinforced spring bars to meet current ISO standards for dive watches. MSRP is 900USD – once they are back in stock.

Thoughts? So what is the TR-660; some sort of affordable Blancpain homage watch that uses the real name but like so many TR-900 homage watches comes with a Japanese movement not Swiss like the OG watches did? I dunno’ you tell me. 

It looks super nice and it’s bona fide in that Bill Yao bought the name and put it on the dial but this is still just a T-R FF homage watch, right?

But what do I know; my youth was misspent watching Vietnam War films. Anyway, what do you think – I guess it beats tracking down one of only 30 surviving radioactive OG watches and ponying up tens of thousands of dollars. 

It’s still an interesting proposition even with a Japanese movement and even at 900USD.