Dive Watch Weekend 2021

September 04, 2021

Welcome to HODINKEE's Dive Watch Weekend, where 15 of the best stories we've ever published about dive watches will be resurfaced for your reading enjoyment. We'll republish five greatest hits each day of this long weekend, in hopes of inspiring you to submerge. We absolutely love dive watches C and we think even old-school readers will find a few pieces they missed the first time around. "It was used as a tool, and a diver's life depended on it" is a popular refrain in HODINKEE stories about dive watches. And it's not an exaggeration C there was a time, from the '50s to the late '80s, before dive computers became ubiquitous when a properly functioning dive watch kept divers safe from an untimely demise. A dive watch could accurately time critical elements of a dive, like bottom time, decompression stops, and even surface intervals. Jason Heaton testing out the Sinn U1 Professional with the Prins Willem V, a 258-foot Dutch freighter, in the background. Functionality made dive watches useful. Design made dive watches beautiful. They became (and remain) powerful symbols of adventure, exploration, and bravery. They're both tools and totems. They represent journeys into the unknown. They hold a fascination that belongs to no other type of watch. Divers in front of theTektite I Undersea Habitat in Great Lameshur Bay, Saint John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Dive watches attract genuine characters. In the following stories you'll get to know Dr. Sylvia A. Earle, known as the "Queen of the Deep." Then theres Brett Gilliam, a man with over 17,000 dives to his name C all conducted wearing a solid gold Submariner. You'll also read in-depth technical coverage about some of the greatest dive watches, like the Omega Ploprof and the Seiko SKX007. You'll also meet a fantastic collector, Reza Rashidian, who has done important scholarship in the dive watch space. By the end of the weekend, you'll want to leave the topside world behind, strap on your dive watch C whatever it is C?and join us under the sea. Hero illustration by Andy Gottschalk Featured Stories: Saturday, 9/4:A Week On The Wrist:?The Rolex Sea-Dweller Reference 126600?A Week On The Wrist:?The Tudor Heritage Black Bay Black Reference 79220NHands-On:?The Seiko Prospex SRPC44, A Healthy Dose Of Golden NostalgiaThe Desk Diver's Guide To Dive WatchesThe Man With The Golden Sub Sunday, 9/5:A Week On The Wrist:?The Rolex Submariner Ref. 124060Editorial?The (Almost) Inexplicable Popularity Of The Diver's WatchIn-Depth:?Diving With The Omega Seamaster Professional 300MTalking Watches?With Reza Ali RashidianTechnical Perspective:?A Tale Of Two ISOs, Or What Water Resistance Ratings Really Mean Monday, 9/6:A Week On The Wrist:?The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore DiverDispatches:?Diving With Her Deepness, Dr. Sylvia EarleIn-Depth:?Getting To The Bottom Of The Omega PloprofReference Points: Understanding The Rolex SubmarinerThe Value Proposition:?The Seiko SKX007 Diver's Watch