News · Hanhart

Hanhart hardens the 36mm MAD Preventor

The compact no-date automatic uses HD12 steel rated to 1,200 HV and is limited to 200 pieces.

Hen & Mills Editorial · 4 min read · 29 August 2026

• The new 36mm Preventor uses Hanhart’s HD12 case treatment for hardness up to 1,200 HV, while the optional bracelet has a transparent PVD coating.
• A no-date Sellita SW200-1 runs at 28,800 vibrations an hour and supplies at least 38 hours of reserve behind the solid numbered back.
• The shared 200-piece edition costs €1,140 on leather or €1,340 on bracelet, with late-October 2026 deliveries and sales through official product pages.

Surface hardening usually arrives on watches that look eager to advertise their toughness. Hanhart has taken a quieter route, building a compact three-hand watch around HD12 steel and a dark green dial. Its polished bezel and mid-century dimensions remain visible instead of being overwhelmed by the treatment. A no-date Sellita movement, leather or bracelet choices and a 200-piece limit complete the distinctly compact, everyday Hanhart MAD Preventor HD12 36mm.

At 36mm wide and 10.5mm thick, the case returns to the dimensions of mid-century everyday watches without copying a particular historic reference. It measures 43mm from lug to lug and has a 20mm lug width. A slim polished bezel sits above satin-finished flanks, while the lugs and crown add small polished highlights. The proportions are restrained enough for daily wear, but the changes in finish stop the hardening treatment from becoming the only visual story.

Hardness beyond the case

HD12 is Hanhart's name for a case-hardening process that combines carbon diffusion with a transparent PVD coating and reaches as much as 1,200 HV. The point is resistance to the light scratches and desk marks that accumulate through regular wear. On the bracelet version, the links receive a transparent PVD hard coating. Hanhart does not attribute the case's carbon-diffusion process or 1,200 HV figure to the bracelet, so its protection is described separately.

The screw-down crown and back support 150 metres of water resistance, while a convex sapphire crystal is anti-reflective on the inside. Those details go beyond nominal dress-watch protection even though the compact case does not resemble a diver. The green dial uses white Arabic numerals, a minute track with small red accents and Super-LumiNova C3 on the hands and markers. A red-tipped seconds hand provides the moving accent, and the no-date layout leaves the three and six intact.

A no-date Sellita behind the solid back

Inside is the automatic Sellita SW200-1 in a no-date configuration. It runs at 28,800 vibrations an hour and provides at least 38 hours of reserve. That minimum covers a night away from the wrist, though a full weekend will require another wind or reset. A solid back carries the Hanhart winged logo and individual edition number, keeping attention on the external finishing instead of making a decorative claim for the straightforward daily movement.

The 36mm diameter also changes the balance of the familiar pilot-style numerals. They sit closer to the centre than they would on a 40mm case, while the thin bezel preserves a useful dial opening. Because the movement has no date display, Hanhart does not have to squeeze an aperture between the numerals or leave an unused crown position. The compact case therefore feels intentional rather than like a larger Preventor scaled down around the same furniture.

Buyers can choose black, dark-brown or light-brown leather, all with a pin buckle. The steel bracelet has quick release and adds a clasp with fine adjustment for tool-free changes through the day. The three leather colours leave the green dial as the watch's strongest colour. Every watch is individually numbered on the solid back, and the 200-piece limit covers both attachment types. The crystal, crown, back, dimensions and movement stay consistent across the edition, so the attachment changes the character more than the mechanical proposition on the wrist.

Hanhart MAD Preventor HD12 36mm pricing and availability

The Hanhart MAD Preventor HD12 costs €1,140 including VAT on leather and €1,340 including VAT on the PVD-coated steel bracelet. Deliveries are expected from the end of October 2026. Both configurations come from the same total run of 200 pieces rather than separate allocations. The bracelet therefore carries a €200 premium for its coated links and adjustable clasp, while the leather versions retain the same case protection and mechanical specification.

Hanhart does not publish an Australian-dollar list price on its official pages, so there is no converted figure here. Australian buyers will need to account for payment conversion, delivery and any applicable import charges separately, but those variable costs should not be folded into the fixed euro price. The distinction matters because a converted estimate would move with exchange rates, while the two published prices identify what Hanhart itself charges for each attachment.

Leather keeps the watch visually closer to a compact post-war automatic, while the bracelet extends transparent PVD protection to the attachment. Either way, the useful combination remains the same: small dimensions, 150-metre water resistance and a case intended to resist ordinary wear. The absence of a date also preserves the pilot-style numerals and removes an unused calendar setting. Hanhart has made the hardening treatment support the Preventor's daily role instead of asking it to carry the design alone.