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1985 Gallet Marathon GG-W-113 - US Air Force issue

Rare watch in very good condition

£875.00

The GG-W-113 specification was introduced in 1967 to provide a high quality watch for US military aircrew. It superseded the earlier Mil-W-3818B specification and like the 3818 featured higher grade movements than the more widely issued Mil-W-46374 series, as well as hacking seconds. A number of large contracts were let to Hamilton and Benrus but two other manufactures also supplied watches to this specification - Marathon and Glycine - each supplying watches for just one year- the Marathon watch in 1984/85 and the Glycine (badged 'Glycine-Altus') in 1985/86.

The Marathon watch was manufactured for them by the Swiss company Gallet, establishing a relationship with Gallet that later resulted in the Adanac and Marathon Navigators which were supplied to the US Government, as well as other watches.

The Gallet Marathon GG-W-113 is signed 'Gallet' on the inside and outside of the case back, and on the main gear train bridge of the movement. The case is almost identical to the case used for CWC G10s of the period, except it has 16mm lug width - to accommodate the standard US issue 16mm straps, instead of 18mm. This is not a coincidence, as Gallet also manufactured watches for CWC (and the Southern Clock and Watch brand Precista, including the 1982 and 1984 G10s). The case back is the same in design as the 1980-82 CWC/Precista Fatboy G10s (and the 1984 Precista 6BB G10), except with no battery hatch. This was not a requirement as the watch is powered by an ETA 2801-based mechanical movement.

The Gallet Marathon GG-W-113 in particular has a very attractive dial layout, being the only GG-W-113 to have 'US Government' signed on the dial.

This example, dated Feb 1985, is in very condition all round and has been the subject of a recent service, as detailed in the condition report, and is complete with a 16mm Maratac nylon US government-type single pass strap.

Good, but unserviced, examples of this watch have been selling in excess of £1000 in recent years, so this serviced example with original strap represents very good value for money.

The watch case is in very clean cosmetic condition with minor marks and small knocks from use. The case back is clean but has some patchy discolouration around the edge. The dial and hands are excellent with very nicely aged tritium lume. with especially good patina on the hands. The crystal is a replacement and is in perfect condition. Please refer to the images to make your own judgement about the condition of the watch.

Mechanically the watch had a full stripdown, clean and service in October 2026, including new back gasket and crown gasket. Images of the rebuild have been included in the listing.

The case parts were ultrasonically cleaned. The ETA 2801 movement was fully stripped, mechanically and ultrasonically cleaned using waterless solutions and hot air dried. The movement was rebuilt and lubricated.

The watch has been fully tested and is in full working order. It has been regulated and on the bench is running with excellent amplitude of 290°+, 0.0ms beat error and accuracy stable within a few seconds per day. An image has been included in the listing showing the timegrapher readings. Note that over time and in use accuracy may differ from this figure.

All round an excellent, fully sorted example, of a rare and desirable US Air Force issued watch.

The watch is absolutely suitable for everyday use, but it is vintage watch so is not recommended for sports or use in extreme conditions. The watch has not been pressure tested so water resistance is not guaranteed. This watch is covered by our non-waterproof 6 month guarantee.