This week, we’re taking a look at a familiar microbrand.  About a year ago, we reviewed the Goodspeed Petrol, a cool racing-inspired chronograph.   They’re back with their new model, the Sonoma, and we got our hands on it prior to release.

I’ve written about the role microbrands play in the watch industry at great lengths.  In short, microbrands are breaking away from the streamlined and affordable production model that many major brands have mastered.  Microbrands are offering products that tend to be more expensive than counterparts with similar components, but they do this at smaller scale and provide, most of the time, better quality control and customer service.  One of the interesting things about this release by Goodspeed is that they’ve created a product that can go head to head against any other competitor in terms of value and affordability.  The Sonoma offers a mechanical chronograph under $300.  For me, this is a first.

The Watch 

The Somona carries the Petrol’s motor sports DNA.  The watch shares a lot of vintage chronograph aesthetics with modern day components.

• Case: 42mm Tonneau Case Shape

• Thickness: 13.7mm

• Lug Width: 20mm

• Water Resistance: 100 Meters

• Crystal: Mineral (Quartz Variant) Sapphire (Mechanical Variant)

• Movement: Seagull ST1901 or quartz Miyota 6S21 (Depending on the model you choose).

This watch is available in a variety of different colors and with different movements.  This is a great detail. If you enjoy the looks of the watch, and if you don’t care too much about the movement inside, you can go for the Miyota Quartz variant at $135: A fantastic price.  If you want to get your hands on a mechanical chronograph without dropping a lot of cash or getting an affordable vintage watch where service history is always shady, the mechanical variant is a available for $275.  Each movement variant will be available in 4 colorways:

• SS Black bezel

• SS Pepsi bezel

• Black PVD Black bezel

• Black PVD Pepsi bezel.

All variants come with a leather-racing strap. A beads of rice bracelet is available for $45.

On the Wrist

I found the watch to wear more compact than its proportions suggest.  My small 6.5’ wrist can’t take a watch above 42mm. However, this, because of the case shape, wore more wide, rather than long.  This was a nice change of pace on the wrist and wore quite well. 

The tone of lume used on the hands and indices definitely alluded to vintage designs and aesthetics; this was a nice design choice that goes a long way in furthering the vintage vibe.  Paired with the red second hand, dial had just the right amount of colors.

Finally, the color variants chosen were a great way to create entirely different looks for the same watch.  The PVD black bezel variant that’s pictured throughout this review looks entirely different from the Pepsi bezeled stainless steel variant.  The black is definitely more sleek, under the radar, and discrete, while the Pepsi variant screams vintage and pops on the wrist.  Normally, I am not a fan of PVD cases, but I found this one to be very sharp and enjoyed my time with it.

Conclusion

Goodspeed has produced not only a great looking watch, but also one that offers a value that is hard to beat by any brand.  It’s vintage design and cues are done correctly and hit their mark without being overbearing.

This project is now live on Kickstarter. It can be found here.  If you’re a fan of this style of watches check them out.

Below is a hand on video of the Somona, including some lume shots.