These New Blacked-Out Mil-Spec Watches Mean Business
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It’s still early in 2026 and famed mil-spec watchmaker Marathon has come out swinging for the fences with three new killer watches in all black. Inspired by anthracite, a.k.a. coal in its hardest form and known for its lustrous black hue, the 36mm Anthracite MSAR, the 41mm Anthracite GSAR, and the 46mm Anthracite JDD watches are all stealthed-out and ready for action.
For those not familiar with Marathon’s lineup, these new watches build on the brand’s highly capable and intensely rugged SAR (Search and Rescue) dive watch collection, which was developed to meet Canadian Government specifications in the early 1990s and are still in service with U.S. and Canadian forces.
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Each of the trio’s 316L stainless steel cases are black ion-plated to give them an anti-reflective quality and bolster durability. The three watches all offer a unidirectional diving bezel, 300 meters of water resistance, and Sellita automatic movements. Their dials deploy white painted Arabic numerals for easy legibility as well as fully hashed bezels with 60‑minute scales for tracking dives. Tritium tubes and MaraGlo luminescent material allow for time telling in low-light situations. Both the GSAR (Government Search and Rescue) and the MSAR offer a smaller internal 24 hour scale and a date window between four and five o’clock, while the JDD (Jumbo Day Date) displays the day of the week and the date at three o’clock.
Both the GSAR and MSAR are powered by the Selita’s mainstay SW200-1, while the JDD uses a SW220 to run its day complication. Each is fitted with Incabloc shock absorbers to prevent impact damage and coated with the same ion plating as the watches’ exterior for added durability. The MSAR and JDD come on rubber straps with matching ion-plated pin buckles. The GSAR is available either on rubber or an IP stainless steel bracelet.
The Anthracite collection is available exclusively at marathonwatch.com. The MSAR retails for $1,900, the JDD for $3,250, and the the GSAR goes for $2,500 on rubber or $3,000 with the steel bracelet.