Diving watches have made me this hobby. As a proud owner of the Tudor Black Bay 58, I can thank everyone for the charm of a good, solid dive watch. These kinds of watches are a good starting point for those who are just starting to look at watches. why? Well, that’s because it offers a good combination of capabilities, water resistance, (one expects). Moreover, dive bezels are not just fidget spinners, they are also a truly useful tool to measure the elapsed time while scuba diving, free diving, or cooking pasta with boiling water.
A brief note about diving watches
There are several legendary or extremely popular diving watches, including the Rolex Submariner, the Tudor Black Bay Series, the Blancpine Fifty Fathom and the Omega Seamaster, to name some of the major frontrunners. However, this is not an article about any of those watches. Rather, it aims to raise the profile of some lesser known options that provide excellent specifications, quality and history. This presents a list of lesser known dive watches with serious legacy.
Before we begin, I want to make it clear that this is not an exhaustive list. There are great options from brands from Germany, Japan, Switzerland, the US and the UK that didn’t fit into this story. Perhaps it’s the second feature feed… I look forward to reading reader suggestions in the comments section.
Image: Windup Watch Shop
Citizen Promaster Aqualand
The Citizen Promaster Aqualand is one of those vegemite clocks. Its eccentric design makes you a great citizen! The brand’s promaster (dive) range has plenty of quirky designs. Aqualand, a reissue of the watch that was first released in 1985, is a great example of this. Aqualand has distinctive depth gauges, diving timers, and memory that stores the depth and time of the dive. This was a very design in 1985 with a rich feature set. The latest iteration is based on its heritage and offers a 200m water resistance rating and an improvement in the original capacity. You can read the original features here.
The original was, in a sense, a computer-diving precursor. It’s a great hybrid that bridges the gap between analog diving watches and more modern technology. Today’s version of the Watch House Citizen’s Calibre C520 is located in a 47.7mm lug-to-lug and a 14.4mm thick 44mm case (50.8mm including depth gauge). This is certainly a watch that you feel tied to your wrist, but it offers incredible features. Additionally, you can choose the Lume-Dial variant. This is my choice as an incredibly funky and cool dive watch for any aquatic adventure. By picking up the Citizen Promaster Aqualand, the original 1985 heritage brings all the advantages of modern build quality and design unlike anything else.
Certina ds super ph1000m
A 1,000m rating diver by Venerable Brand Certina, the DS Super Ph1000M is an incredible watch. Originally released in the 1970s, this was the cutting edge design of the time. By then, Certina has created its own name by producing incredibly strict watches. The DS (Double Security) line went to the top of the mountain and descended Mount Everest with Japanese skiers (among many other adventures). The DS Super Ph1000M was what happened when Certina threw everything into the wall when it came to building a Top-Spec Dive Watch.
Thankfully, the modern re-editing is a faithful homage to the original. Thanks to being part of the Swatch group, the watch offers the design aesthetic of the Helium Escape Valve and the iconic 1970s cushion case. We spent time with this certificate, including including free diving in the Pacific Ocean, and it always worked fantastically. In the late 1970s, the Certina Watch was tied to the wrists of an Australian Navy (RAN) clearance diver. Certina’s DS Super Ph1000M may be the best the brand has to offer when it comes to design and heritage (I’m biased). The case is extremely wearable despite its diameter of 43.5mm and thickness of 14.15mm. Above all, you’ll be flipping the watch and returning the fantastic certificate DS turtle case, a faithful carryover from the original.
Zodiac Super Sea Wolf 53 Skin
According to the Common Lower of the Watch World, Zodiac was one of the original watch players in the dive watch arm race. As the story progressed, the Zodiac Super Sea Wolf was one of the first three dive-specific watches released along with the Rolex Submariner and the Branpaine 50 Fathom. Last year, Jose Perestroika made quite a statement on this commonly believed story, making her original debut in 1958 rather than 1953. In light of this, we can say that at least Zodiac was not very late. Today, the brand is producing faithful remakes of the original, which is also relatively achievable. A few years ago, Fratello’s managing editor Nacho won the Super Sea Wolf 53 Skin Adventuring in the seas of Spain and Portugal. This model is no longer produced, but there are some very similar models.
The modern Zodiac Super Sea Wolf (53) skin is a 200m rated diver with a 39mm stainless steel case and a fully brushed finish. The case also comes in a comfortable 12.7mm thick, including slightly domed sapphire crystal and a lug to a compact 46.5mm lug. The inside hits STP1-11 movement. Like Zodiac, STP is owned by a fossil group, so this is movement within the group, just like the ETA caliber of a Certina (Swatch Group) watch.
Ollech & Wajs C-1000 a
The Ollech & Wajs C-1000 A is a personal favorite of this list of quirky brands. Many may not know, but since the brand’s founding in 1956, Ollech & Wajs watches have been continuously produced by Joseph Ollech and Albert Wajs. It’s strange to think that Ollech & WAJS will continue to introduce the Caribbean 1000 just eight years later in 1964. This was a clock with a certified depth rating of 1,000 meters. This was a few years before brands like Rolex, Doxa and Omega took part in heavyweight water resistance games. The depth rating was thanks to the Reference 702 monoblock case manufactured by Jenny Watch. Jenny is also a family who currently owns Doxa.
The original Caribbean 1000 has an interesting history, including its use by Italian diving teams on their 1966 expedition to the Arctic Circle. Thankfully, Ollech & Wajs released a modern watch with their C-1000 A (A is “anniversary”). The modern watch comes with a short 45.7mm lagtoo lug and a large 39.5mm case with a 15.8mm thickness.
The crown is huge, wonderfully robust. However, the brand does a good job of hiding some of the thickness of the case, and is present thanks to its dome-shaped crystals and thick cases. The midcase offers the illusion that the watch is thinner than that. Probably 14mm or something like that. The interior hits the Soprod P092 caliber with a 44-hour power reserve and a custom O&W rotor.
Aquastar Benthos 500 Chronograph
The Aquastar Benthos 500 chronograph is a wonderful and cool watch. The original was released by Aquastar in 1970 and featured a 60-minute chronograph mounted in the center. The modern re-editing was the result of close work between Modern Aquastar (run by Doxa fame Rick Murray) and La Jou Pellet, creating a bespoke caliber. This movement, the La Joux-Perret 1MPS, is an automatic monopusher chronograph movement with manual cleaning function, 28,800 VPH frequency and 60 hours of power reserve. The pusher that operates a 60-minute chronograph function can be used underwater. The LJP caliber is housed in a 47mm lug-to-lug and a 15.4mm thick 42mm case. The watch also features a 60-minute dive bezel with 120 clicks.
The Modern Benthos 500 Chronograph is a truly distinctive product in the Dive-Watch market and comes from a revitalizing brand with a true pedigree in the genre. Aquastar had some great original designs, some of which are very elegant, like Deepstar. This is cruel in appearance, but has a sturdy charm and a bespoke caliber, and is booted. It’s no wonder my colleague’s microphone looks like a fan of a reissue Aquastar watch, as it brings both shape and functionality to the table.
Zenith handles Revival A3648
Zenith’s Defy Revival A3648 is a fantastic reissue with designs from the historic counterpart era. The colorful A3648 debuted in 1969. It was water resistant to 600 meters. Plus, the combination of orange and black elements with a angular case really made the watch stand out. In particular, the use of colour was probably intended to help with readability underwater. The modern re-edit is faithful to the original, with a 37mm case diameter and a 15.5mm profile. It is also water resistant to 600 meters, making it much deeper than any of us. The interior smacks an automatic movement with Zenith Elite 670 caliber, manual winding, 28,800 VPH frequency, 50 hours of power reserve, 27 gems and a fantastic aesthetic (hidden behind the all-steel case). The movement’s rotors feature Zenith Star.
The angular case features a 14-sided, unidirectional bezel, creating a dizzy effect related to its shape! The insert is a bright orange sapphire crystal with black markings. Both work well with matte black dials and the orange mint tracks around them. The orange phone has pencil-style time hands, fine hands in the shape of arrows, and second hands with rectangular tips. All three hands and 12 indexes have white Super Luminova. Overall, Zenith offers a wonderfully unique aesthetic and outstanding build quality with a case design that screams personality. Take it to it!
The idea of conclusion
There were many examples of people who didn’t create this particular list. There are some honorable mentions of flagging readers. The first one is the Doxa Sub 200. This is a re-editing of Doxa’s first dive watch in 1964, with a depth rating of 300 meters, reminiscent of the Omega Seamaster. Another mention should go to the CWC for the Royal Navy Dive Watch, which took over the Rolex Submariner and Omega Seamaster 300 as the official Royal Navy dive watch specs in the late 1970s and 1980s. Please note that there are no German-made watches on this list. This is a notable omission.
Fratelli, what do you think? What other diving clocks are available on this list? What is the reason? Please let me know in the comments (unless you’re an Omega Seamaster or a Rolex Submarineer). I look forward to reading your suggestions! Oh, and Omega’s Proprof and Rolex residents are a fully accepted proposal, as they represent the more technical and quirky aspects of both brands.
