Introducing: The Doxa SUB 200 T.Graph Stainless Steel

August 16, 2019

Putting an end to one of the worst kept secrets in the Swiss watch industry, Doxa has announced the release of a limited edition SUB 200 T.Graph dive chronograph in stainless steel. If youll recall, at Baselworld 2019, the company, owned by the Jenny family, released a 13-piece edition of the same watch in solid gold for an eye-watering $70,000. It was met with incredulity and fascination by the watch press and public, while the Doxa faithful were miffed that there wasnt an affordable steel version. Well, we knew one was coming, and here it is: the 300-piece limited edition steel SUB 200 T.Graph Professional. The new Doxa SUB 200 T.Graph stainless steel limited edition. First, a little background. Doxa was one of the graybeard Swiss brands, dating back to 1889, known mainly for its chronographs and dashboard clocks. In the late 1960s, it teamed up with a member of Team Zissou, er... Cousteau, to develop the ultimate diving watch, complete with a patented no-deco scale bezel, oversized minute hand, gobs of tritium lume, and an innovative ratcheting bracelet clasp. Doxa went all in for dive watches and became the choice of a generation of subaquatic explorers. They even shared the patent for the gas escape valve with Rolex and, in 1969, came a diving chronograph: the T.Graph, which used a handwound column wheel movement from its Synchron stablemate, Eberhard. The T.Graph was made in extremely limited numbers C just 300 of each of each versions with an orange, silver, or black dial. The author's vintage T.Graph Searambler. I wont give the full history of Doxa, or the T.Graph, since Ive done that twice before, here and here. But fast forward to the early 2000s, post-Quartz Crisis. The Jenny family had acquired the Doxa name, selling mainly quartz watches in Eastern Europe and Asia, when an avid collector, Rick Marei, approached them about reviving the SUB line of dive watches for a new generation. The resulting two decades saw numerous iterations of the iconic Doxa SUB, in different case sizes, dial colors and co-branding partnerships. Marei had an eye for detail and his re-issued Doxa divers were evidence. In 2017 came the 50th anniversary SUB 300, which was widely regarded as one of the best re-created vintage pieces at any price. But everyone was waiting for the 50th anniversary of the legendary T.Graph. A year and a half ago, sitting in a meeting at Baselworld 2018, my own vintage T.Graph on wrist, Marei proudly pulled out a prototype steel T.Graph re-issue, essentially the watch we see in this weeks launch. It was a dead ringer for the vintage version, right down to the quaint dial font, quirky counter hands, and bulbous 43mm x 46mm x 15mm case. Inside ticked a new old stock Valjoux 7734, not an Eberhard, but close enough C handwound, with two registers. It was as perfect a re-issue as was the SUB 300 the year before. I fully expected to see it launch at the end of 2018 or, at the latest, Baselworld 2019. And then came the gold version, the horological equivalent of the mic drop. Reactions were mixed but passionate (I hated it), but regardless, it was one of the biggest talking points of the Basel fair. Hands-on with the re-issue at Baselworld 2018. In a press release from last week, Doxa announced a change in management structure, with Rick Marei no longer with the company. And then, this week, the new T.Graph was announced as a 300-piece limited edition. It represents perhaps a lingering coda and Mareis swan song as champion of these ugly duckling divers, and time will tell if it represents the end of an era for Doxa or a new beginning. The original T.Graph was sold with two versions of bezel: in feet, for the American market, or meters for, well, everywhere else. In the U.S., it cost $179, sold in dive shops that were U.S. Divers Co. retailers, the company Jacques Cousteau himself started. Today, the re-issue SUB 200 T.Graph costs $4,900, quite a bit steeper than its tool watch ancestor, and more than some competitor chronographs of today, from the likes of Tudor or Longines. That said, it is a rare piece, truly limited due to its vintage movement, that pays accurate tribute to an even rarer vintage watch that collectors covet. It also is only being sold with an orange dial (the Professional), the color most associated with Doxa dive watches. Theres no word on future black (Sharkhunter) or silver (Searambler) versions, but given the scarcity of Valjoux 7734 movements, its doubtful theyll be coming.? Faithful right down to the signed crown. The only concessions to modernity that this new T.Graph has, are a sapphire crystal, in place of the mineral glass of the original, and an updated "grains of rice" bracelet with a standard foldover clasp with dive extension. I for one would love to see Doxa re-engineer the expanding spring-loaded and ratcheting clasp that was ahead of its time in the 1960s, but the new bracelet is faithful in looks and more than adequate for regular use, even for diving.? Speaking of wet work, the re-issued T.Graph is rated for 20atm, the rough equivalent of 200 meters of water pressure, which makes it perfectly suitable for diving, even with no locking chronograph push-pieces. I have dived with one of my vintage T.Graphs after a full service and so would not hesitate to take the new one deep, should the opportunity ever present itself.? The author diving with his 1969 T.Graph Sharkhunter. The SUB 200 T.Graph is no doubt a quirky watch with polarizing aesthetics. People either love or hate Doxas. But theres no denying the incredible role the companys dive watches played in the history of underwater timekeeping. Vintage versions pop up from time to time, usually scratched and dented from years of hard use. The Doxa faithful hang on news of new editions, watches that all pretty much look alike yet are snapped up as soon as theyre announced. So even if this new T.Graph re-issue doesnt enjoy wide appeal (if youve read this far, chances are youre in the "love" camp), with only 300 pieces being sold, these surely wont last long and this leviathan will once again slip beneath the surface. A face only a Cousteau could love? The Doxa SUB 200 T.Graph stainless steel will be available for order on September 2nd on Doxas website. The Doxa SUB 200 T.Graph Stainless Steel:?case, 43mm x 46mm, thickness 15mm with screw down crown; water resistance 20 bar/200 meters; screw-down caseback with sailboat engraving. Sapphire crystal with one-way bezel. Movement, new old stock Valjoux 7734, automatic with hand winding running in 17 jewels at 2.5Hz/18,000 vph. Dial, Orange with black painted indexes and white lume. Strap, stainless steel "beads of rice" with screw attachment. Folding clasp with wetsuit extension. Price, $4,900.