You know Sylvester Stallone as the Oscar-winning writer-director-star of Rocky, a fixture of schlocky ’90s action movies like Demolition Man and Cliffhanger, and a mafioso-turned-weed baron on Tulsa King, but his cultural contributions arenât limited to the screen. In addition to being something of an artiste, Stallone is also a big watch guy (as in, heâs really into watchesâespecially big ones.) Stalloneâs penchant for wearing burly Panerai divers onscreen is credited with helping the brand soar to international fame in the aughts, and earlier this year he made headlines when he auctioned off his factory-sealed Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime 6300 for a cool $5.4 million.
If you share Stalloneâs taste in tough-guy tickers but not his budget, the new Momentum UDT Eclipse offers a more affordable way to add a Sly-approved timepiece to your collection. Based on the Chronosport UDT worn by John Rambo in the 1982 anti-war classic First Blood, the Momentum UDT Eclipse combines a vintage ana-digi look with a host of military-grade specs for just $369.
A close cousin to the Seiko famously worn by fellow ’80s action star Arnold Schwarzenegger in Commando, the original UDT (or Underwater Demolition Team, a WWII frogman unit) was used by special forces including the Navy SEALs, and featured a movement made by famed Swiss brand Breitling. This helps to explain how the watch earned the approval of John Rambo, a grizzled former Green Beret whose infamous survival skillsâalong with a set of rippled biceps, a giant knife, and a sweet bandanaâmade him an icon of 20th-century cinema.
If youâve heard of Momentum, itâs likely thanks to the brandâs Sea Quartz 30, a reboot of the dive watch Tom Selleck wore in the first season of Magnum PI. The UDT Eclipse is a similar idea, with an early-’80s look drawn straight from the Chronosport archives, and updated specs including an ion-plated stainless steel case, a scratch-proof sapphire crystal, and a ceramic bezel. In addition to a slightly larger digital display than the original, the new Momentum UDT Eclipse adds a solar-powered quartz movement to the mix along with a generous coating of C3 Swiss SuperLuminova on its hands and hour markers. Better still, thanks to its 42mm case, you donât need Sylvester Stallone-sized arms to wear it.
