[ffritz]

That sucks. I've had three watches with inner rotating bezels over the years, and none of them kept the inner bezel in place reliably. They all happened to move by accidental crown action, no matter if the bezel clicked in place slightly, or if the crown was located at 10 or 2. Something will always make contact, shirt cuff, back of the hand, whatever.

Advertising a watch with this feature as, quote..

"A reference model made for hardcore divers, tracking the elapsed minutes underwater.
We are all fascinated with the underwater world. The development of practical diving equipment allowed mere mortals to relive the adventures of Jacques Cousteau beneath the sea. Those intrepid thrill-seekers needed reliable watches that could help them to calculate when to return to the surface."
(-> 1970)

..is just bollocks.

I hope you get your money back. No matter if you dive or not. A watch that is advertise as a "reliable tool for hardcore divers" must have a bezel you can't accidentally move that easily.

 

[MichTONY]

I think most of these diver / pilot with inner rotating bezels have same issue with not keeping the position: just need to google up the "loose inner bezel" on Bulova A-15, Bulova Marine Star Chronograph, Longines Legendary Diver, etc
The inner rotating bezel is cool but it's not ratched (spring, ball) so there's practically no way to prevent it to move by itself

 

[pedro1991]

I think most of these diver / pilot with inner rotating bezels have same issue with not keeping the position: just need to google up the "loose inner bezel" on Bulova A-15, Bulova Marine Star Chronograph, Longines Legendary Diver, etc
The inner rotating bezel is cool but it's not ratched (spring, ball) so there's practically no way to prevent it to move by itself

I'm quite ignorant on the subject, but couldn't they make it a screw-down crown as the other one? Would it be that much more expensive to produce?

 

[Chris Stark]

OP, I think Dan Henry watches are more "inspired" time pieces than anything else. Plus, some of their verbiage might be lost in translation. Even though $260-$290 isn't cheap, it's certainly not expensive.

But if the inner bezel can be moved with a simple touch of the crown, it certainly should not be trusted as a dive timer.

I think with just about any bezel, some will say the action is too loose or too tight.

Sorry for your woes. Hope you find a remedy.

 

[GeorgeGordon]

@Everyone: I also feel it's very plausible that the cause of the issue might be the crown rubbing on the back of my hand but again, it's a watch we're talking about, I feel like if you design a product that's supposed to go on a wrist you should account for the hand..?

That's just the nature of wrist watches, my dude. If you wear it loose, it's going to fall down against the bend between your wrist and hand, causing it to rub and potentially turn a non-locking crown. I routinely wear a couple different vintage Seikos with inner bezels, and I definitely get some travel on them if I don't wear the watch higher on the wrist with the strap tightened down.

I have to agree with a number of people here. I think your expectations are a little too high for a watch that's not really intended to be a tool watch so much as look like a tool watch.

And more than that, even if it were a proper tool watch, you have to wear it properly to get accurate performance. As another user noted, a dive watch is meant to be worn high on the wrist and in a fairly tight fashion to prevent movement. If you aren't wearing it in that fashion, you won't get optimal performance.

Most importantly, if you aren't using the watch for actual sporting purposes, does it really actually effect your use of the watch? I'm wearing an old Seiko World Timer today, and I honestly couldn't tell you what the inner bezel is set to, but that's because I don't utilize the multi-city feature on a regular basis.

 

[ffritz]

I'm quite ignorant on the subject, but couldn't they make it a screw-down crown as the other one? Would it be that much more expensive to produce?

The crown rotates while you screw it in. So if you unscrew it, set the bezel correctly and screw it back in, you'd always misalign the bezel again.

 

[MX793]

I'm quite ignorant on the subject, but couldn't they make it a screw-down crown as the other one? Would it be that much more expensive to produce?

Screw down bezel crowns are hard to implement. There is usually a tendency for the bezel to move while you screw down the crown, which makes it very difficult to accurately set the timing bezel. Getting it to work properly requires a high-precision decoupling mechanism, which is why historical compressors didn't have screw-down bezel crowns and why most modern reinterpretations also lack the feature.

 

[pedro1991]

Most importantly, if you aren't using the watch for actual sporting purposes, does it really actually effect your use of the watch?

I know it might sound childish, but it does a lot
I bought a diver watch because I liked the look and also the feature to track time with the rotating bezel.
If that won't do, every time I look at the watch I'll see it as defective and "missing", I don't know if I'm you get what I mean
Let's put it so: even though it's cheap (because believe me, I know 300$ watches are entry level), would you spend 50$ for a watch that has the rotating bezel only painted on the dial? That's quite the same situation, what's it there for if I can't use it?

 

[LosAngelesTimer]

I think it may be unfair to single out DH in this regard, as this is a (somewhat) known common issue for watches with internal rotating bezels that do not screw down or otherwise lock or click into place. My guess is that's one of the reasons they were phased out as true dive tools.

I had the same issue with my 1970. I found the inner rotating bezel to be sloppy and imprecise - not even close to the positive feel given off by even the cheapest diver or dive-style watch with an external clicky bezel. I wore it on one backcountry trip to time stops between waypoints on a map and that was enough - at least half the time I looked down at the watch, the bezel had moved and threw off the timing.

 

[Newnice]

It's an inevitable compromise: if it's too stiff, you can't move it with your fingers. If it's not stiff enough, it moves through accidental contact with your wrist. And that will be different for every person depending on the strength of their fingers and shape of their wrist, so it is impossible to find a compromise that works for everyone.

I don't see how this changes your day to day use and enjoyment of the watch. All compressor style crowns have this potential problem unless there is some sort of lock on them. This was a flaw of the original design, not Dan Henry's, who just copied it so watch enthusiasts can enjoy the original design, including it's advantages and disadvantages.

I think you've discovered the reason why no serious diver uses vintage-style dive watches for diving, except as a backup to their modern digital dive instrument, or purely for nostalgic reasons (or perhaps to post cool pictures of themselves diving with their Rolex on Instagram, why not). There are better solutions.

Dan Henry is not trying to create the ultimate marine watch. He is trying to create a reference to the ultimate marine watches of the 1960's and 70's, flaws and all. Panarai makes references to 1940's-style dive watches that don't have any sort of timing mechanism at all - not even minute markers! But at the time, they were among the best you could buy and used by professional divers. Today, with watches like this, you're buying a style first, and functionality second.

 

[ffritz]

As another user noted, a dive watch is meant to be worn high on the wrist and in a fairly tight fashion to prevent movement.

If it matters how you wear it, it's just not a serious diver's watch. Of course divers today use dive computers, but at least according to ISO 6425 the timing bezel is a fundamental safety feature. Accidentally knocking against the crown or bezel should never put a diver in danger. That's why diver's bezels are unidirectional.

A watch marketed that aggressively as a proper diving tool shouldn't fail that badly on a safety feature.

 

[pedro1991]

The crown rotates while you screw it in. So if you unscrew it, set the bezel correctly and screw it back in, you'd always misalign the bezel again.

Screw down bezel crowns are hard to implement. There is usually a tendency for the bezel to move while you screw down the crown, which makes it very difficult to accurately set the timing bezel. Getting it to work properly requires a high-precision decoupling mechanism, which is why historical compressors didn't have screw-down bezel crowns and why most modern reinterpretations also lack the feature.

That's what I meant when I said I knew very little, thanks for the explanation!

I think it may be unfair to single out DH in this regard, as this is a (somewhat) known common issue for watches with internal rotating bezels that do not screw down or otherwise lock or click into place. My guess is that's one of the reason they were phased out as true dive tools.

I'm not (only) mad because the bezel is inaccurate, but the answers given to me by the customer support were quite delusional: "It'll fix by itself" are we serious?

I had the same issue with my 1970. I found the inner rotating bezel to be sloppy and imprecise - not even close to the positive feel given off by even the cheapest diver or dive-style watch with an external clicky bezel.

If I only knew, I would have definitely leaned toward a regular diver watch, I stupidly fall in love with the supercompressor feature (it's actually one of the reasons it made me pick this model) and to find out it won't work it's disappointing

 

[Urs Haenggi]

I have to agree with a number of people here. I think your expectations are a little too high for a watch that's not really intended to be a tool watch so much as look like a tool watch.

"A reference model made for hardcore divers, tracking the elapsed minutes underwater.
We are all fascinated with the underwater world. The development of practical diving equipment allowed mere mortals to relive the adventures of Jacques Cousteau beneath the sea. Those intrepid thrill-seekers needed reliable watches that could help them to calculate when to return to the surface."
(-> 1970)

..is just bollocks.

I hope you get your money back. No matter if you dive or not. A watch that is advertise as a "reliable tool for hardcore divers" must have a bezel you can't accidentally move that easily.

@GeorgeGordon, seriously? Expectations are too high for a watch that is described as a model "made for hardcore divers"? I heartily disagree.

OP, you're right that the inner bezel shouldn't move so easily, even if it happens to brush the back of your hand. That's something that should have been thought of in the design process. If just brushing your hand can turn it, any number of actual dive situations would turn it as well, and that's not ok. I hope you get this resolved - DH is in the wrong here.

 

[Chris Stark]

I think it may be unfair to single out DH in this regard, as this is a (somewhat) known common issue for watches with internal rotating bezels that do not screw down or otherwise lock or click into place. My guess is that's one of the reasons they were phased out as true dive tools.

I had the same issue with my 1970. I found the inner rotating bezel to be sloppy and imprecise - not even close to the positive feel given off by even the cheapest diver or dive-style watch with an external clicky bezel. I wore it on one backcountry trip to time stops between waypoints on a map and that was enough - at least half the time I looked down at the watch, the bezel had moved and threw off the timing.

I am now glad I didn't pull the trigger on the 1970, which I felt was the best looking of their current models. The 2 main reason I didn't get it are 1) It's almost 15mm thick, and 2) I already have a two crown Hammy.

I'm mostly happy with my 1962 although I'm still trying to get my head around their decision to go with a K1 mineral crystal while some of their other double-domed models use sapphire for the same price.

 

[MX793]

If it matters how you wear it, it's just not a serious diver's watch. Of course divers today use dive computers, but at least according to ISO 6425 the timing bezel is a fundamental safety feature. Accidentally knocking against the crown or bezel should never put a diver in danger. That's why diver's bezels are unidirectional.

A watch marketed that aggressively as a proper diving tool shouldn't fail that badly on a safety feature.

The inner bezel designs of historical compressors, as well as the external friction bezels of many other historical dive watches, would not pass muster under 6425 (which was written in the 1990s).

 

[LosAngelesTimer]

@GeorgeGordon, seriously? Expectations are too high for a watch that is described as a model "made for hardcore divers"? I heartily disagree.

OP, you're right that the inner bezel shouldn't move so easily, even if it happens to brush the back of your hand. That's something that should have been thought of in the design process. If just brushing your hand can turn it, any number of actual dive situations would turn it as well, and that's not ok. I hope you get this resolved - DH is in the wrong here.

As consumers, I'd like to think most of us can recognize marketing fluff for what it is... marketing fluff. Is Dan Henry's marketing copy completely honest and above board? Probably not. However, I'd guess that most educated consumers will take "made for hardcore divers" with a generous pinch of salt. Look at the watch in context. DH is closer to a fashion brand than a brand like Marathon. They make watches that look like period references that are purchased and worn for a little bit of fun rather than as mission timers for special operations or anything similarly hardcore.

I bet Dan Henry himself would agree with this assessment.

 

[Alallthetime]

The argument "not a big deal, it's in the nature of bezels to rotate when you wear your watch on your wrist" reminds me a joke about a plumber, who denied a warranty repair: "Of course it was your fault that the toilet broke. You said that yourself: you ****ted on it".

 

[MichTONY]

I guess this is why the original A-15 military pilot watch never made it to serial production for the USAF: vibration in cockpit would render the two bezel going out of their intended settings without the crowns even touched.
I see that Sinn has quite a number of tool watches with inner bezel. Curious to see how they fix this issue...

 

[wheelbuilder]

As consumers, I'd like to think most of us can recognize marketing fluff for what it is... marketing fluff. Is Dan Henry's marketing copy completely honest and above board? Probably not. However, I'd venture to guess that most educated consumers will take "made for hardcore divers" with a generous pinch of salt. Look at the watch in context. DH is closer to a fashion brand than a brand like Marathon. They make watches that look like period references that are purchased and worn for a little bit of fun rather than as mission timers for special operations or anything similarly hardcore.

I bet Dan Henry himself would agree with this assessment.

Good post and nice well-deserved shout out to Marathon. Don't get the recognition they are due around these parts!
That said, these "compressor style" cases seem to have gained popularity in recent years, especially among lower cost brands. Seems pretty much everyone complains about rotating inner bezels. If you like the look, great! If you are counting on it I would always choose divers bezel.

Sent from my BBB100-1 using Tapatalk

 

[leadbelly2550]

This is a known issue with some modestly-priced compressor dive watches like the Dan Henry and the Spinnaker Bradner, and the root cause is that the crown at 2 pm doesn't screw down; I'm not sure any compressor watch bezels 'click.' Daily wear jogs the crown and moves the internal bezel. In the non-diver world, the internal compass bezel in the Seiko Alpinist has a 4 pm crown that doesn't screw down.

The Longines Legend diver has a screw down crown at 2 pm, moots this issue. But, it's several times more expensive than your watch.

I imagine this issue is irritating, but it's a cool-looking and reasonably-priced watch you can take swimming or to the beach without killing it. You can try to re-sell if they won't take a return, probably at a decent price. if you really need and use the bezel to understand elapsed time, there is a universe of dive watches with clicky unidirectional bezels that do a fine job and don't have this issue.