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Gerald Charles Masterlink Blue 38mm Mens Watch Blue
Ref. ML1.0-A-01
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Stepping up in Gerald Charles's range
The Masterlink was drawn from a single design problem: how thin can a serious sports watch be made, and still be taken seriously? At 7.99mm including the integrated bracelet and a 100m rating, it is the answer Gerald Charles arrived at — and the movement is the reason it holds. The GCA 5401 was developed with Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier, whose calibres sit in some of the most respected independent Swiss watches made. Running at 3Hz with a micro-rotor offset to keep the stack low, it measures just 2.67mm, and the bridges are finished with Côtes de Genève and coated in anthracite grey — detail you see only through the exhibition caseback, which rewards looking. On the wrist the asymmetry reads immediately but takes time to understand fully. The case shifts geometry between six and twelve o'clock, with the signature curved lower edge hardening into a squarer upper line, and the bracelet links continue that logic rather than simply attaching to it. The sunburst blue dial deepens as the light moves, the stamped vertical stripes giving it structure that a plain sunburst would not have. At 38mm it wears closer to a dress watch in profile, which is exactly what makes 100m of water resistance feel like an unexpected surplus.
- Reference
- ML1.0-A-01
- Brand
- Gerald Charles
- Case size
- 38mm
- Case thickness
- 7.99mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Square
- Dial
- Blue
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Bezel
- Unidirectional rotating
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- GCA 5401
- Functions
- Skeleton dial
- Water resistance
- 100m
- Bracelet / strap
- Stainless steel bracelet
- Strap colour
- Silver
- Clasp
- Folding clasp
- Lume
- Super-LumiNova
- Retailer
- Mappin & Webb
Additional specifications
- Power reserve
- 50 hours
Learn more about Gerald Charles
Gérald Charles Genta designed the two watches that defined the luxury sports category — the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak in 1972 and the Patek Philippe Nautilus in 1976 — along with work for Omega, IWC, Bulgari and others. He was called the Picasso of watches, and he was not especially modest about it.
He founded his first eponymous company in 1969 and sold it to The Hour Glass in 1996. In 2000, at sixty-nine, he started again with Gerald Charles, using his first and middle names.
This was the brand he made for himself rather than for a client, and the Maestro case shows it: deliberately asymmetric, with the right side of the bezel curved differently from the left, so that it sits against the wrist rather than sitting squarely on it. No brief from a manufacture would have survived that decision.
Genta died in 2011. The company remains independent and family-owned, run by the Ziviani family, producing the Maestro in small numbers.
- 1972
- Genta designs the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak.
- 1976
- Designs the Patek Philippe Nautilus.
- 1996
- Sells his first eponymous company.
- 2000
- Founds Gerald Charles.
- 2011
- Genta dies; the family-owned company continues.
Also in 6 collections
This watch appears in Back in Stock (3,988), Stainless Steel Watches (2,814), Automatic Watches (1,546), Blue Dial Watches (778), Rectangular & Square Watches (381) and Skeleton Watches (275).
What the specifications mean
A mechanical watch for everyday wear.
Strengths
- 100m water resistance covers swimming and watersports
- 38mm suits most wrists
- 7.99mm is unusually slim for a 38mm case
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
Gerald Charles Masterlink Blue alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | ML1.0-A-01 | PdD s Salmon | pfc914-1020001-100182 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £23,160 | £24,000 | £23,800 |
| Case size | 38mm | 38.5mm | 40mm |
| Water resistance | 100m | 120m | 100m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Stainless steel bracelet | Stainless steel bracelet |
| Power reserve | 50 hours | 60 hours | 48 hours |
| This watch | Closely matched |
|
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
Yes. At 100m it is rated for swimming and snorkelling, though not for diving.
Water resistance explainedWill the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Sapphire, mineral and acrylic comparedDoes it need a battery?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
Quartz, automatic and solar comparedHow long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 50 hours fully wound — enough to survive a night off the wrist, but not a full weekend.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as men's, though at 38mm it sits in the range that suits anyone.
Cheapest place to buy
Mappin & Webb is the only UK retailer we track stocking this reference, so there is nothing to compare it against today.
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