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The Watches

Blancpain Adds Gold and Titanium to 42mm Fifty Fathoms 

Blancpain adds new models to its Fifty Fathoms Automatique collection, which the manufacture first launched in its new 42.3mm by 14.2mm size last year as a limited edition in steel.

The newest models of this famed dive watch, which debuted in 1953 to usher in the modern dive watch era, now include Automatique series examples in red gold and titanium in addition to the steel-cased version now included within the ongoing Fifty Fathoms Automatique collection. 

Caliber 1315

You might recall that in 2007 Blancpain launched the first 45mm Fifty Fathoms Automatique, which was equipped with specially developed Caliber 1315 with a five-day power reserve.

The newest Fifty Fathoms series adds the smaller diameter option to the full collection and makes it  available in three case metals.

In red gold, the watches are a bit more luxurious than a standard dive model, but equally functional and still highly legible.

In Grade 23 titanium, the watches are sportier looking, with the added bonus of offering a lightweight and highly scratch-resistant case, as well as superior anti-corrosion and anti-allergenic attributes.

All retain the collection’s characteristic sapphire-topped bezel and serious dive-ready specifications (including 300-meters of water resistance.) 

Available with a blue or black dial, the new red gold and titanium models are offered with an alluring choice of color-matched straps, including sail-canvas, NATO straps and textured rubber iteration inspired by the first model from 1953. For the titanium debut, Blancpain also offers a sharp-looking titanium bracelet.

Prices start at $15,700 in steel and $17,000 in titanium. Red gold model starts at $34,100. 

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The Watches

Bell & Ross Adds Green to Bronze Diver

Bell & Ross expands its bronze-cased offerings with the new BR 03-92 Diver Black & Green Bronze, the latest model in the watchmaker’s dive collection.

The new Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Diver Black & Green Bronze.

Boasting a color that might recall recent green-dial additions to the above-ground BR 05 collection, the new watch’s dial appears as a subdued matte green rather than the glossy green of those earlier land-based examples.

Bell & Ross teams the green dial with a bronze case that fits perfectly within  existing bronze-cased offerings in this collection. Last year the watchmaker  launched one new model in bronze, and a year earlier we saw the debut of two bronze-cased BR 03 Dive models.

Bronze cases are valued by many collectors for their ability to display the results of oxidation, a process that creates an individualized brownish, reddish or green patina pattern on each watch. Bronze is also an alloy of choice on sailing boat fittings. As Bell & Ross notes, “bronze gives watches extra soul and puts the wearer in touch with nature.”

As with all Bell & Ross dive watches, the new BR 03-92 Diver Black & Green Bronze is built to meet international standard ISO-6425, which states that a “diving watch” is a watch that must withstand immersion in water to a depth of at least 100 meters and have a highly visible time control system, among many other dive-ready specs.

Bell & Ross employs its automatic BR-CAL.302 movement (based on Sellita SW300-1) that beats at a frequency of 28,800 vibrations/hour and guarantees a 54-hour power reserve.

Protecting the movement, the solid steel caseback has been engraved with an image of a vintage bronze diver’s helmet. Bell & Ross attached the case to a black rubber strap with ‘ultra-resilient’ black synthetic fabric. 

Price: $4,900 (limited edition of 999 pieces).

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The Watches

Citizen Celebrates Godzilla 

Citizen marks Godzilla’s 70th birthday with a limited-edition 48.2mm steel-cased Godzilla collaboration watch featuring a design based on the watchmaker’s Promaster Professional Diver 300m.

The new Citizen Eco-Drive Professional Diver Godzilla Collaboration Models.

Already nicknamed the ‘Ecozilla’ watch by fans, the new  Godzilla Collaboration Model features a dial, case, and bezel with a camouflage pattern inspired by Godzilla’s scaly skin. Citizen underscores the watch’s theme by including tiny images of Godzilla within the pattern.

Citizen is offering two dial variations of the new model. One features a black dial with the classic black and white image of Godzilla (model BJ8056-01E, a limited edition of 2,500).

The second release offers a dark red dial with Godzilla roaring in huff (BJ8059-03Z, a limited edition of 3,000).

On the back of each model you’ll find Godzilla’s footprint, a feature only found on this limited-edition model.

As Eco-Drive watches, both watches are powered by light and will operate for six months on a full charge (in power save mode). And as Promaster watches, both feature solid adventure-ready technical specifications, including water resistance to 300 meters, a Citizen Cal.B873 movement accurate to plus or minus fifteen seconds per month, luminous hands and indexes, a unidirectional bezel and a screw-lock left-side crown.

Price: $900. 

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The Watches

DOXA Launches Sleeker SUB 300 

Doxa slims its SUB 300 dive watch to create the new SUB 300 Beta, a contemporary edition of the technical series, but with sleeker, colorful ceramic bezels and sunburst-finished dials.  

One of the new models in the Doxa SUB 300 Beta collection.

While thinner at 11.95mm (compared to the SUB 300T’s 13.65mm thickness) and with a slimmer bezel height, the new series still retains the collection’s 42.5mm diameter size as well as its range of deep diver specs.

The look is decidedly less retro than existing models in the 300SUB series, with a contemporary black ceramic bezel, wave-motif dial and slightly longer hour markers.

Doxa maintains a screw-down crown, helium release valve, a flat sapphire crystal and a screw-in steel caseback on this high-value 300-meter dive watch.

Doxa livens up the series with colorful accents and matching rubber strap options with a white, silver, black or blue dial.

Also available on request is Doxa’s historic stainless-steel “rice grain” bracelet.

Both options come with a deployant clasp featuring a wetsuit extension and Doxa’s own fish logo.

 

Specifications: Doxa SUB 300 Beta 

Case: 316L Stainless steel, diameter: 42.50mm x 44.50mm, height: 11.95mm, helium release valve. Crystal: ‘Flat’ sapphire with anti-reflective coating, Screw-in steel caseback, black ceramic screw-down crown. Water-resistance: 300 meters.

Dial: Sunburst finish with wave pattern, colored hands, orange or tone-on-tone, highlighted with SuperLumiNova, outer minute track, painted, glossy black.

Bezel: Black ceramic, unidirectional rotation, outer ring: depth in feet (black tone-on-tone indications), SuperLumiNova dot at 12 o’clock. Inner ring: Duration in minutes (black tone-on-tone indications).

Movement: Swiss mechanical, self-winding, 3 hands, power reserve of 38 hours,Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz), Doxa decorations.

Strap/Bracelet: FKM rubber strap, tone-on-tone matching the dial (or white for ‘Caribbean’ and ‘Searambler’); black PVD-coated folding clasp with ratcheting wetsuit extension, Doxa fish symbol.

or

316L stainless steel ‘beads of rice’ bracelet; stainless steel folding clasp with ratcheting wetsuit extension, Doxa fish symbol.

Price: With stainless steel bracelet: $2,290. With rubber strap: $2,250.

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American Brands

Benrus Revisits Ultra-Deep 

Benrus revives one of its best-selling dive watches with the new Benrus Ultra-Deep, a recreation of one of the watchmaker’s historic models from the 1960s.

The new Benrus Ultra-Deep.

Originally created in response to the rise of scuba diving for sport, the Benrus Ultra-Deep retains the 36.5mm case size of the original model’s ‘compressor’ case. Such cases, built for the U.S.-based Benrus by Swiss-based Ervin Piquerez, would become more water resistant as the diver went deeper because the caseback would pressurize. Modern screw-down cases fulfill the same role in new watches.

The revived Benrus Ultra-Deep also retains the dual-crown design found on the original model.  

One crown rotates an inner timing bezel instead of an external bezel, which makes it less likely the bezel will be shifted by mistake, leading to timing errors under water.

Also note the same cathedral-style hour and minute hands and magnified date window as the original.

The new models of course benefit from numerous technical updates, including a screw-down winding crown, C3 SuperLumiNova hands and dial markers. Inside, Benrus fits a reliable Soprod P024 automatic movement. The watch arrives on a high-end Jubilee-style stainless steel bracelet and also includes a blue nylon NATO dive strap.

Price: $1,095. 

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