OfOf all the watches that debuted at last years SIHH watch ir in Geneva, perhaps the one I least expected was a dive watch from Cartier. And it turned out to be one of the coolest new watches in recent years. In this article from my blog, Watch-Insider1
For those who are unmiliar with the ISO standard, these are the main criteria:
Unidirectional turning bezel
To prevent any accidental rotation or alteration of the dive-time indication, the bezel turns in only one direction. It has been designed with 120 notches (40 teeth and 3 points) to enable adjustment to a half-minute, with a clear sound signal during its rotation. For greater visibility, the markers signaling each five-minute period are clearly indicated.
Display in the dark
The Calibre de Cartier Diver can be clearly read deep below the suce due to the Super-LumiNova applied to its dive-time indicators, hour and minute hands, pre-selection device and small seconds counter.
Water-resistant to 300 meters
When underwater, diving watches can be subjected to very high pressures and extreme conditions (saltwater, thermal shocks, etc.). For protection, the Calibre de Cartier Diver is fitted with a thick crystal, a screwed caseback, oversized seals and a screw-down crown that ensure water-resistance to 300 meters. The watch has demonstrated its resistance to saltwater after immersion in a solution of sodium chloride (30 g/l) at 18 C 25 C for 24 hours. Furthermore, after spending 50 hours at a depth of 30 centimeters at 18 C 25 C, it continues to function perfectly underwater.
Despite its sportiness, the watch is still a Cartier. Cartier would never release a watch that was overly massive or heavy, so reducing the thickness of the case was a technical and aesthetic challenge. The manuctures watchmakers, as always, took care to maintain a balance of dimensions. They have produced an authentic divers watch, without sacrificing everyday comfort on the wrist, in a balanced case measuring just 11 mm in thickness. It features a contrast of satin and polished finishes, a turning bezel coated with ADLC and bordered with fluting that recalls the interior of the bezel of the original Calibre de Cartier watch, launched in 2010. This is a clear sign of its pedigree, just like the oversized, luminescent Roman numeral XII at the 12 oclock position.
The Calibre de Cartier Diver is available in an all-steel or rose-gold case, both on a sporty, black rubber strap. Like its predecessor, the original Calibre de Cartier, the watch contains the Cartier in-house movement 1904 MC. Specs for the steel-case version of the watch are below the photos.
Case: Stainless steel; diameter = 42 mm; thickness = 11 mm
Crown: Faceted steel set with a ceted synthetic spinel
Bezel: Unidirectional, steel coated with ADLC
Crystal: Sapphire
Water-resistance: 300 meters
Dial: Black, partially snailed, with numeral XII in Super-LumiNova
Hands: Sword-shaped, with Super-LumiNova
Strap: Rubber, with steel ardillon buckle
Price: Starting at 5,500 euro (steel)
This article was originally published on December 18, 2013, and has been updated.
Tags: Cartier, Cool Watches, Dive Watches, G-Shock, SIHH, Sports Watches, Watch Insider, Watch Tests, Watchmakers
Certainly different, although the hour and minute hands seem diminutive in relation to the other dial figures.
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