I'm somewhat new to watch collecting. I have a citizen Eco drive and a Victorinox automatic and I want to reward myself for a personal accomplishment with something I've long wanted, an automatic dive watch with ISO certified waterproofing.

I was looking around and really liked the looks of the Seiko Sumo with the blue dial but some of my research suggested this might not be worth the price because of the inaccurate 6r35 movement. My 25 jewel Victorinox keeps what I consider to be excellent time at ~+8spd so I don't want to pay $700 for something that's significantly worse...

So my question to all of you is what watch would you recommend given the following requirements:
1. Automatic dive watch with ISO certification
2. Interesting colored dial that's not just black/white and steel
3. Not so busy that it can't be worn with dress clothing
4. Solidly reliable and accurate movement
5. Sub $1500 msrp

I love Squale in this price bracket.

 

Preach! 🙌

 

Are you sure you want an auto instead of quartz or at least open to quartz? You mentioned the importance of accuracy several times. Autos in that price range can vary greatly unless you are getting COSC spec.

C. Ward maybe. They have some COSC and non COSC divers.

Might be able to snag a Quartz Seamaster.

Can try checking out Scurfa Treasure Seeker, hard to get though as of late.

 

Are you sure you want an auto instead of quartz or at least open to quartz? You mentioned the importance of accuracy several times. Autos in that price range can vary greatly unless you are getting COSC spec.

C. Ward maybe. They have some COSC and non COSC divers.

Might be able to snag a Quartz Seamaster.

Can try checking out Scurfa Treasure Seeker, hard to get though as of late.

I had never heard of C. Ward before but damn, the c60 Trident pro is one handsome devil. That's the top of the list right now

 

Yeah, I'm definitely only interested in automatic. I know there is some variance to be expected within the manufacturer's stated range and for less than a couple thousand I can't expect exceptional accuracy... But I'm seeing a lot of people complain about their 6r35s running +30-+45 or even minutes per day. I don't want to buy a watch that comes with significant risk of being at or slightly over the manufacturer's already generous range.

I just checked what Citizen has on offer and their comparable auto has a stated range of 10-20spd instead of 15-25spd of the Seiko, plus the citizen is titanium

 

Not sure if this is ISO rated but I through just about every at this one and zero issues, + I find it to be a quality piece a light step into luxury that can indeed be worn dressed up or dressed down, heck you can even undress with it on 🤣

 

Please post more pictures. I like to challenge my RAM every once in a while.

 

Certina DS Action diver, green dial

 

Any watch with the Powermatic 80 movement would meet the accuracy requirement of the OP.
They’re very accurate, reliable and consistent.

 

Hello! With the given specs, I would highly recommend getting a Squale. You can check what different models and colours they offer. However, my personal choice would the Squale 1521 Full Luminous. You can easily dress it up by getting a mesh strap to it, or tool it down even further with an orange or black nato strap. Very well made watches, with msrp being around 1200$.

The Squale 1521 is everything what you have listed... expect that it isn't ISO certified. I work as a firefighter/surface rescue swimmer/paramedic, and I've found out that ISO certification is a MUST for me. ISO 6425 doesn't test the watch only against static water pressure, but also against sudden temperature changes and moisture resistance. I've destroyed two G-Shocks after moisture getting inside the watches after sudden temperature changes and working in really warm and humid environments. However, I've never had any issues with water resistance when diving with the same G-Shocks, or any other non ISO certified watches.

So... My personal experince is that ISO certification isn't necessarily needed if you are only worried about WATER PRESSURE resistance. It would be interesting to know what do you do for work or study? Do you have any hobbies that should be taken into consideration? Do you live in a place with extreme weather conditions?

If you (or anybody else) is interested about moisture resistance, I can write about the experiences and thoughts I've had, and everything that I think should be taken into consideration.

Ps. I'm currently mostly wearing the ISO certified Seiko Tune SBBN049. However, I would not recommend this for you, as it's quartz and not necessarily dressy, lol.

 

CW Trident on a bracelet will fit your specs, and a great watch.

 

Orient Star Olympic 64

41 mm wide, 49 mm lug-to-lug, 14.5 mm thick, 20 mm lug width

Movement; F6N47 +25 / - 15 spd.

 

I second the Chris Ward idea. They make a damn fine watch.

 

Certina DS Action dive

This. Great build quality and solid as a rock.

 

I don’t remember if Glycine Combat Subs are ISO certified, or not, but maybe hop over to Ashford.com and see if there’s anything that’ll tickle your fancy. They always have several options for less than $400. I still have a couple, but all the Glycines I’ve ever owned ran within 5 sec/day. They use Sellita 200-1 movements (Glycine branded), have 200m of water resistance, well-gasketed screw-in crowns, good brand history (if you’re in to that), and are very thin (< 11mm). They have 22mm lugs, so finding additional strap options is easy. There may not be anything you like, but for the price it’s worth looking. They routinely rotate their “specials” so something on sale today may not be tomorrow, and vice versa.

My current ones:

 

you didn't say anything about size, which might be a pretty significant factor.

ISO 6425 compliance is often the province of larger companies willing to pay for it, who want that compliance as a marketing tool. (ISO doesn't inspect or certify any watches - it's a standard-setting body. manufacturers can meet the standard via certain design and testing).

In the lower price range, Citizen automatics with the NY prefix are (I believe) ISO-compliant, sturdy, reliable. commensurate with the low price, hardened mineral glass, & some of the movements don't hack. Miyota automatic movements are very good for the price, though. Ditto for a number of the Orient automatic dive watches. Seiko makes nice watches, but they're polarizing for various reasons - movement accuracy can vary a lot, and some complain about quality control, things out of alignment. Still, Seiko is worth a look, whether you prefer the Sumo or other, smaller models. I wear a SPB077, 'marine master 200,' that i really like, it's a 6R15 movement that has never given me issues.

climbing in price, some of the Swatch/ETA entry luxury brands are ISO-compliant. Certina's divers, some Tissot, Longines, Hamilton. Sizes obviously vary - Certina's traditional-look DS divers are either 38 or 43 mm cases, and the Longines Hydroconquest is sold in multiple sizes. Orient Star is worth a look too - owned by the same parent company as Seiko, a bit different/quirky sometimes in appearance, but nice watches. I would say Marathon, they make great watches, but they're not easily dressed up because they're thick and utilitarian - i'm wearing one of theirs today. The hydroconquest is a dive watch that I think looks better than most for dressing up; so do some Tag Aquaracers.

watches within your price point that may not try to be ISO 6425 compliant but are still very capable dive watches: Squale, Christopher Ward, non-ISO compliant Tissot, Mido, Hamilton divers, lower-end Doxa, used or grey market Tag Heuer, Oris, many microbrands.

a lot to choose from.

 

As someone mentioned above, based on your criteria, Certina would be the watch. Although, I never had issues with the 6R15 or 6R35 movements.

Men Automatic DS Action Diver 43mm Powermatic 80 watch by Certina

Discover the Men Automatic DS Action Diver 43mm Powermatic 80 Watch by Certina - Swiss Made watch

www.certina.com

Another suggestion is the Seiko MM200 (SPB 187). I think the dial looks great.

Seiko Watch Corporation

Seiko is one of the few fully integrated watch manufactures. We design and develop our own movements using leading-edge technology.

www.seikowatches.com

 

Hard to beat the Certina for what it offers within that price range, IMHO-

The lume is excellent as is the bracelet and the great adjust on the fly clasp, and the ceramic bezel.

The movement has been very stable and accurate as well.

I like this diver so much I have multiple color versions of it..........Not sure if that is a good or bad thing........

 

Hard to beat the Certina for what it offers within that price range, IMHO-

The lume is excellent as is the bracelet and the great adjust on the fly clasp, and the ceramic bezel.

The movement has been very stable and accurate as well.

I like this diver so much I have multiple color versions of it..........Not sure if that is a good or bad thing........

View attachment 17893410

i wear an older version of that - aluminum bezel insert, and i knocked the lume dot out, self-repaired that. if mine ever kicks the bucket, i would get one of these in a heartbeat. on the bracelet, it's a heavy watch, to the extent that's an issue for a buyer, and 21mm lug widths annoy some people. not sure why Swatch loves that so much.

 

Thanks so much for all the replies. I have a lot more research to do now that I've been introduced to a bunch of new brands I had not heard of before.

Orient makes some interesting stuff, I like the power meter on the face, I've not seen that before

Christopher Wards look amazing and have most if not all the features I'm looking for

Certina makes some beautiful watches and I really like their shock resistant feature. That might be the frontrunner

The Tissot Seastar 2000 with the powermatic 80 looks amazing but might be too big for my taste.

I still need to look more at Squale and Glycine

To answer some of the questions above
I live in the South Eastern US and work in tech but enjoy a variety of outdoor sports including scuba, whitewater kayaking, sailing, wakeboarding, backpacking, hunting, and snowboarding. I also do a lot of my own mechanic work because understanding how complex mechanical engineering works is another hobby, hence the fascination with automatic watches. The Victorinox performs very well for most of those activities but I'm not taking it diving or kayaking.

The ISO certification is really about the whitewater kayaking because I do that a lot more than scuba. On the river a wristwatch is a necessity for estimating speed and keeping track of your location. GPS doesn't work well at the bottom of a gorge but a map and watch doesn't need los satellite signal. Whitewater kayaking involves extreme temperature and pressure changes, impacts, and occasional high pressure. I don't want to get water in the Citizen or the Victorinox which both have the standard 100m rating so I use a cheap Timex for that I also use for going on the beach so I don't get sand in the bands. I'm on my third after fogging one and cracking the other. So I want something rugged with a screw down crown so I don't have to worry about water ingress, but mass produced so I'm not damaging something that can't simply be replaced.

In regards to size; I don't think I'd be interested in anything smaller than 38 or larger than 42.

Thanks again for all the tips. Keep them coming.

 

To answer some of the questions above
I live in the South Eastern US and work in tech but enjoy a variety of outdoor sports including scuba, whitewater kayaking, sailing, wakeboarding, backpacking, hunting, and snowboarding. I also do a lot of my own mechanic work because understanding how complex mechanical engineering works is another hobby, hence the fascination with automatic watches. The Victorinox performs very well for most of those activities but I'm not taking it diving or kayaking.

The ISO certification is really about the whitewater kayaking because I do that a lot more than scuba. On the river a wristwatch is a necessity for estimating speed and keeping track of your location. GPS doesn't work well at the bottom of a gorge but a map and watch doesn't need los satellite signal. Whitewater kayaking involves extreme temperature and pressure changes, impacts, and occasional high pressure. I don't want to get water in the Citizen or the Victorinox which both have the standard 100m rating so I use a cheap Timex for that I also use for going on the beach so I don't get sand in the bands. I'm on my third after fogging one and cracking the other. So I want something rugged with a screw down crown so I don't have to worry about water ingress, but mass produced so I'm not damaging something that can't simply be replaced.

Sounds like ISO is the right option for you! However, with the given price range there isn't many options that will run -+8 spd. You would basically need an ISO certified watch with a COSC certified movement under 1500$. I'm really struggling to come up with a watch that would be both. Maybe somebody wiser could help?

Seiko has a great selection of ISO certified watches, but the ones that come with the 8L35 movement, which is basically a Grand Seiko movement, cost usually more than 3000$...

There are COSC certified dive watches like Squale, Christopher Ward and DOXA to name a few, that cost less than 1500$, but unfortunately NONE of them are ISO certified.

Out of the watches mentioned in this thread Tissot Seastar and Certina DS Action use the Powermatic 80 movement, which is -+15 spd. Both watches have also ISO certification. Also the Orient Star Olympic is ISO rated with a movement -15+25 spd, being a bit more accurate than your usual NH36.

Are you sure you are not interested in quartz watches? There would be great options with the given price range that are both ISO certified and accurate. Quartz gets a lot of hate due to cheap plastic non serviceable movements. However there is a world of high accuracy quartz (HAQ) watches, that have great quality and are fully serviceable. In general quartz is a lot more durable against shocks, vibration and magnetism than mechanical watches. Considering your hobbies I think getting a good serviceable ISO certified quartz watch would make a lot of sense. After fogging and destroying a couple G-Shocks as a firefighter I bought the Seiko Tuna SBBN049 exactly for the same reasons...

However, if you really want a mechanical ISO certified watch that runs around COSC certified accuracy under 1500$, I think you need to compromise with either ISO certification, accuracy or price.

Ps. Let us know if end up buying something!

 

seiko dominates this range, try the slim willard

 

 

I was going to recommend a Stowa SeaTime but geez their prices have gone up and there aren‘t many used on Chrono24.

 

Could also look at Victorinox Inox.

but I think only the diver version comes in quartz but it is ISO certified and they put them through the ringer testing wise.

 

I have been looking in to Sinn, some nice pieces!

 

Still shopping so to thanks to those that offer suggestions within my specifications... The more I look the more I think I'm fine compromising on ISO certified as long as the waterproofing has been thoroughly tested by someone. I'm also thinking that a lot of these look very similar to each other and all the other colored divers on the market and I want something just a little bit different.

I really like the crystal caseback and a domed face on the CW C65 and the minimalist look but I'm not a huge fan of any of their face colors.

Someone suggested Steinhart and I've been really drawn to the Ocean One Titanium... I like the bold thick hands and generous lume for readability. The black face with the domed sapphire and blue accents make it look almost navy blue instead of black. I also like the matte darker tone of the titanium case and band. The ETA 2892 is very reputable and is the heart of much more expensive watches. It claims a 500m waterproof rating... Even if it's only half that I don't expect pressure past 25 ATM anyway so it should be good enough. Lastly, the lower price point means I'll be much less concerned with damaging and would definitely take it kayaking or whatever.

What do you guys think?

 

The more I look the more I think I'm fine compromising on ISO certified as long as the waterproofing has been thoroughly tested by someone.

Like people have probably already mentioned in this thread, non-certified water resistance testing is most likely enough, if you are not dealing with extreme conditions. This is especially true for most people wearing their dive watches at most extreme when showering. If you want a watch more suited for everyday normal life, I think it's a great tradeoff to go for accuracy and cheaper price over ISO certification.

Since you have given up on ISO certification, and don't need to be absolutely sure about extreme water resistance, I'm going to drop a couple options for you to consider:

Orient Kamasu
-in-house movement with sightly better accuracy than basic Seiko
-less than 300$
-classic design
-200 meters of non certified water pressure resistance

Doxa SUB 200
-ETA 2824-2 movement
-1100$
-great color options
-200 meters of non certified water pressure resistance

Someone suggested Steinhart and I've been really drawn to the Ocean One Titanium... I like the bold thick hands and generous lume for readability. The black face with the domed sapphire and blue accents make it look almost navy blue instead of black. I also like the matte darker tone of the titanium case and band. The ETA 2892 is very reputable and is the heart of much more expensive watches. It claims a 500m waterproof rating... Even if it's only half that I don't expect pressure past 25 ATM anyway so it should be good enough. Lastly, the lower price point means I'll be much less concerned with damaging and would definitely take it kayaking or whatever.

What do you guys think?

From an objective stand point I think the Streinhart is one of the watches that could fit your needs. Better average accuracy than your basic Seiko, price way under 1500$, and not certified 500 meters of water pressure resistance. However I must say from a totally personal stand point, that I find Steinhart to have that little boy Rolex vibe, which I find quite a bit off-putting. The Steinharts that I've handled have felt like toys compared to the Seiko I own.

If you really like something you should buy it regardless what anyone else says, as long as you understand what you are paying for. The watch you buy will be on your wrist, not mine, so eventually your opinion is the only one that matters.

We have guys at the fire department rocking watches that don't really fit the job specs-wise. They might just really like a certain design, and use the watch until it falls apart. In the end of the day they are just watches. Watches can be seen as extreme tools for the job, or as nice jewellery, or anything in between. Watches have so many aspects to them. Once again, I think it's important to understand, and be honest, where you stand. It's okay to pay for design, brand heritage or whatever if that's your thing! I'm personally really into specifications and look watches from a practical tool stand point... But it doesn't have to be that for you.

 

I might buy multiple watches since I just got phenomenally lucky in finding a brand new Arcanent 2 watch winder at an estate sale for $70

 

So there was a service outage in the test environment at work so I had time to reevaluate my entire search from the very beginning. This whole search started because I want some COLOR in my watch collection and I kind of fell back on more conservative designs and was about to settle on the Steinhart in spite of it having two things I didn't want; busy text on the face and questionable water rating. Then I also I read some stories of them failing pre dive pressure tests and then awful customer service after the failed test so I scrapped that idea too...

After reviewing the suggestions in this thread and a wider look at the brands I was unfamiliar with I finally found exactly what I was looking for and was able to order online for $1430 with shipping.

The Squale 1521 COSC in blue.

I didn't see this in my previous look at Squale and IMO the lack of the shark logo on the face, so not putting SQUALE on it twice, and the lume on the bezel make all the difference for the appearance. The lack of two logos give it the much more minimalist look I want. I also love the recessed 4oclock crown, the bright blue, and the solid diver reputation of the brand even though it's not ISO certified. The fact that it's COSC accurate is just the kicker that makes me very excited about my new timepiece.

Huge thanks to all of you who gave suggestions, especially those who recommended Squale.

I'll return to this thread and post some pictures when it arrives

 

So there was a service outage in the test environment at work so I had time to reevaluate my entire search from the very beginning. This whole search started because I want some COLOR in my watch collection and I kind of fell back on more conservative designs and was about to settle on the Steinhart in spite of it having two things I didn't want; busy text on the face and questionable water rating. Then I also I read some stories of them failing pre dive pressure tests and then awful customer service after the failed test so I scrapped that idea too...

After reviewing the suggestions in this thread and a wider look at the brands I was unfamiliar with I finally found exactly what I was looking for and was able to order online for $1430 with shipping.

View attachment 17899934

The Squale 1521 COSC in blue.

I didn't see this in my previous look at Squale and IMO the lack of the shark logo on the face, so not putting SQUALE on it twice, and the lume on the bezel make all the difference for the appearance. The lack of two logos give it the much more minimalist look I want. I also love the recessed 4oclock crown, the bright blue, and the solid diver reputation of the brand even though it's not ISO certified. The fact that it's COSC accurate is just the kicker that makes me very excited about my new timepiece.

Huge thanks to all of you who gave suggestions, especially those who recommended Squale.

I'll return to this thread and post some pictures when it arrives

Wow, what a great watch! These COSC Squales are rather hard to find where I live. Great specs for the price, classic design and great brand heritage!

Take some cool pictures for us once it arrives!

 

The Steinhart would be an excellent choice, IMHO.

I had one and found it to be very solid, accurate, and versatile for almost any occasion.

They are reasonably priced and offer great value.

Good luck with your decision.

 

The Steinhart is great. I’ve had mine for years and that’s saying something as I flip a lotta watches 😄 Titanium is great. This model still garners respect and it’s affordable and solid timekeeper. Good lume too 👍 There are a lot of great suggestions in this thread. Good luck with your quest.