Many say that it cannot be done – a 1000 meter water resistant diver’s watch with an internal rotating bezel. Why? Well, it has to do with the crown that rotates the internal bezel. Unlike the crown for setting the time than can be tightly screwed into ensure high water resistance, the crown for adjusting the internal bezel needs to be functional, even deep under water. Part of this dilemma is purely academic, because people can’t even dive that deep and live. So you could theoretically have a crown for the internal bezel that does ensure water resistance to say 300 meters, and then would need to be screwed down beyond that. LUM-TEC isn’t interested in such trivialities. It wants to make a 1000m diver watch with an internal rotating bezel. I can’t wait to see how they attack the challenge.
Maybe LUM-TEC will use a sophisticated technique like the one that Breitling used for pushers. Read here to see how Breitling used magnets create ‘no contact’ pushers for its Avenger Seawolf Chronograph watch. I don’t know if this concept can be translated into a design for a crown meant to rotate an internal ring, but it might be a good start for them. Another approach would be to use one hell of a heavy duty gasket system. As the development of this watch continues, we will get a better idea of LUM-TEC’s inevitably clever solution.
The style of this new LUM-TEC watch (tentatively known at the “Super Diver” or 1000 meter diver) is really nice. It captures the essence of both classic and modern diver watch necessities and design, without getting gimmicky. The PVD cases look sublime with the black or colored faces, and dimensions of the elements on the face look just right. What do I mean? Well for example the hands are all the right length, the hour indicators are just the right size, and the crowns are large for easy manipulation, even with gloves. These are basic things, that surprisingly get messed up too often. LUM-TEC is known for not looking past important details though, and I appreciate that. Check out the gallery below for more images.
At least three versions of the LUM-TEC 1000m diver are going to be available: a standard three hand version, one with a 24 hour dial, and a chronograph. Each version will of course feature LUM-TEC’s MVD (maximum darkness visibility) technology which is a special luminant application they use. The images here are concepts, and could possibly be further refined as a production ready model is announced. One important element of the watches has not been decided yet, and that is the movements to use. I predict we will see a couple of movement variations, but up for consideration are quartz movements to make the watch more affordable (LUM-TEC watches are always a good value) or really going all out and inserting ETA 2892-A2 automatic mechanical movements. Whatever movement LUM-TEC decides to use will dictate the price. Quartz based versions will likely be around $500, while high grade mechanical movement versions could reach around $2000. Either way I know that LUM-TEC will deliver the solid values and quality that they are known for. LUM-TEC hopes for a release of the 1000m PVD diver watch late next year.
Images by artist Russ Schwenkler (“Dangeruss”).
Buy direct at the LUM-TEC website here.
See LUM-TEC watches on eBay here.
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