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FACTS THAT EXPLAIN WHY DIVE WATCHES ARE SO POPULAR

One family of watches that is very popular is dive watches. A dive watch is a watch designed with features that would make it very useful while diving under water. Hundreds of watch companies make them today, and there is a huge range of vintage dive watches.

Why are Dive Watches so Popular?

1. All underwater diving needs very precise timing to be safe.

Underwater diving started over a hundred years ago, but equipment that allowed the diver to control their air supply was invented early in the last century. Around same time, in 1927, Rolex invented the first fully waterproof watch, the Rolex Oyster. Since then, all divers have worn a watch, from the most luxurious, such as a gold Rolex Submariner, to the best budget models from Seiko or Casio. Keep reading to find out why dives need to be timed.

2. The origins are in military diving, and military-style watches are popular.

The first dive watches were made for a crazy purpose. The Italian Navy Commandoes had underwater torpedoes steered by a crew of two. They had to jump off just before it hit the target ship, and swim away to escape. The jump needed to be exactly timed. These watches continued to be developed right through World War II, and the famous watch brand Panerai is a huge Italian watch company still producing the same designs today. Learn more about the history of dive watches here.

3. The origins of waterproof watches

In 1927 Rolex invented, patented, and made a fortune from the Rolex Oyster, the first waterproof watch. It is still in production now. Shortly after this, Omega also invented a waterproof watch called the Omega Marine. Unfortunately for Omega, it often leaked.

Since then, watch companies have focused on increasing the water depth a watch can be used at, making them even more safe. Seiko of Japan pioneered dive watches for professional divers, with the first titanium watch case, followed by the first ceramic watch cases. These materials plus other clever innovations meant that watches would survive even under 1000 metres of water.

4. The biggest challenge for a watch underwater, apart from keeping it waterproof of course, is readability and visibility

Water blocks light, and dirty water makes it almost very hard to see through, yet you need to time your dive to the minute. You need watches with clear dials and large hands, preferably that can be self-lighting, or luminescent. These large clear dials make for unsurprisingly popular watches, both vintage and modern, as they are so easy to read.

5. In World War II, self-lighting or luminescence, required radium and lots of it, so the dials would retain their brightness for the period of the dive.

Radium is highly dangerous (radioactive), yet for decades it was widely used on watch dials all over the world. Today, watchmakers use many different substances to create “Lume”, allowing parts of the dial and hands to glow. The brightest glow is often found using a similar substance to Radium, that is safe: Tritium.

And as always have a chilled day from the Viking