The Golby Coastal: Good Things Come in Small, Vibrant, and Handily Water-Resistant Packages

Photo by Chris Antzoulis

I’m not particularly enthusiastic about exploring dive watches. Feel free to browse through my archive. I typically don’t review dive watches because I often find their designs dull and unoriginal. That’s not a judgment, per se, just an observation that when in doubt, brands tend to rely on the diver style and often draw heavily from iconic pieces like the Submariner, the Fifty Fathoms, and the Seamaster. Before heading to London for British Watchmaker’s Day, Sarah Golby, one-half of the husband-and-wife duo behind Golby Watches, reached out to see if I wanted to borrow one of their watches when I visited. She clearly absorbed my personal style from Instagram and deduced that I like to go for vibrant colors, often designing entire outfits around eccentric watches. When reaching out to me about their new diver, the Coastal (currently on Kickstarter), she remarked that “the purple one always reminds me of your purple trainers.” 

Photo by Chris Antzoulis - Wearing said “purple trainers”

Before even writing a response, my impulse was, “oooohhhhh purple.” However, I wasn’t going against my unspoken rule for a vibrant dial alone. I spent some time looking into Golby and their watches. Their first watch, the Aquareef, featured a more subdued color palette but did something interesting. It had a 120-click unidirectional countdown bezel, which, in my opinion, should be on more dive watches, as I believe it is simply more practical and useful in real-life scenarios. Additionally, it included an inner rotating bezel to track a second time zone, and I can’t recall the last time I saw both of those features on a watch. 

The Coastal retains the countdown bezel and ditched the inner rotating bezel. However, the standout feature that compelled me to review this watch is its size. Golby’s follow-up to a 41mm dual bezel diver, which boasts 100 meters of water resistance, is a 200-meter diver with a diameter of 37mm and a lug-to-lug measurement of 44mm. This piqued my interest, as even though big brands like Tudor have made it more acceptable for people to wear smaller divers, such as the Black Bay 54 at 37mm, I still feel this trend hasn’t gained much traction in the independent world. And with the Black Bay 54’s 46mm lug-to-lug measurement, the Golby Coastal wears a smidge smaller. 

Transparency: 

Sarah and Craig from Golby Watches lent me the Coastal to write a review. I will return the watch to them after my time with it. They hadn’t read this review before I published it, nor did they have any input on what I would say about the watch.

Photo by Alexa Emma

The Review: 

Golby prides itself on watches inspired by the British coastline. Using this influence, it’s their mission to create gender-neutral pieces that are vibrant and approachable. This is evident the moment you lay eyes on the watch. While they have two models that mess around with monochromatic versions of black and white, the other four models in the Coastal’s lineup are grey, teal, orange, and the one they loaned out to me…extra purpley-purple. (They don’t call it that, I do). 

Photo by Chris Antzoulis - The Coastal visits the Cotswolds

The sapphire glass bezel, which is lumed in white BGW9 for three-quarters and purple for the final quarter, highlights the purple dial. As I mentioned, I adore the countdown bezel. It is 120 clicks and is unidirectional, with action similar to that of a comparably priced Seiko diver — slightly spongy but with little to no backplay. Along the side of the bezel are deeply cut hexagonal notches for grip. I will say that this bezel is not particularly easy to grip since the majority of the side surface area is smooth. Still, the hexagonal notches give the watch extra dimension, especially from a side view. How many of us actually dive and spin bezels with wet hands anyway? 

Once we move beyond the bezel, we find a flat sapphire crystal with five layers of anti-reflective coating on the underside. From most angles, the crystal seems to vanish, offering you front-row seats to a vibrant yet somewhat simple dial. Typically, I wouldn’t favor wave dials. As I mentioned earlier, I consider such touches to be an overly played nod to a Seamaster. However, the waves are finely and tightly patterned, adding an essential layer of intrigue to the dial, particularly since the dial is small and sparse with text and decoration. Additionally, there’s a hint of metallic shimmer to the dial when tilted, which adds another dimension. Completing the dial's look are the handset and the markers at 3, 6, 9, and 12. These custom “lighthouse” hands and markers are designed to serve as a subtle easter egg, evoking their British coastline theme. They are applied with BGW9-Super Luminova and shine brightly in low light. 

Beneath the dial lies something quite unique and unusual for a diver at this price point. Housed within the Coastal is the Miyota Caliber 90S5, considered part of Miyota’s “premium automatic” line. The 4Hz movement is reported to be accurate within -10 to +30 seconds per day. Although the Coastal lacks a display case back, the movement is nicely decorated compared to other Miyota movements. This movement is most often found in watches featuring an “open heart” on the dial, as it includes an open balance wheel visible on the dial side. The screw-down case back that holds the movement features a final flourish of personality, as it is engraved with original wave artwork created by Sarah and Craig’s niece, Caitlyn. It’s touches like this that make watches from independent brands special, as it’s a true labor of love. 

Photo by Chris Antzoulis

If I had to nitpick any component of the watch, it would be the bracelet. It’s a five-link, jubilee-style bracelet that doesn’t quite feel right to me. There’s nothing inherently wrong with it, and while it fits me well, I know some people will complain about the butterfly clasp lacking micro-adjustment, especially since we’re accustomed to seeing more modern folding clasps with “on-the-fly” micro-adjustment systems. However, Golby is also a strap company offering plenty of wicked-cool alternatives. This purple and white watch looks great on a white rubber strap and some vibrant fabric straps. 

Conclusion: 

After wearing the watch for a while, I find the Coastal to be an intriguing offering from a small independent brand, especially at the pre-order price of £349 ($450 USD). I was informed that it will be available at this price through mid-April, and afterward, it will only rise to £369. Golby’s sophomore model series presents a rare, small, and capable dive watch, featuring an exclusive movement and design elements that are both fun and personal. 

Specifications:

Dimensions - 36mm diameter, 37.4mm bezel x 10.7mm thickness x 44mm lug-to-lug

Lug Width - 20mm

Materials - 316L Stainless Steel

Crystal - Sapphire Crystal with inner anti-reflective coating

Water Resistance - 200 meters

Movement - Miyota caliber 90S5

Price - £349 ($450 USD) preorder price