Last year, I got a promotion at work, and I want to celebrate by getting a new, automatic watch.

I currently wear an Apple Watch daily.

I really like the look of diver's watches, but I won't be using it for diving.

If money were no object, I would buy a Rolex Submariner No Date and be done.

In a quick search, I see there are hundreds of brands.

Will you guys please point me in the direction of some brands/watches that have a good reputation?

My budget is less than $2000.


Thank you very much!

Many watch threads on the forum.

This thread caused me to purchase a Marathon; a decision I’ve never regretted.

https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...935/m/8230085394/p/2

In that budget, take a look at Sinn.

If you don't mind sitting on a waiting list for 2-3+ years (or buying one at a markup on the secondary market from someone who's flipping their NIB watch after the wait), Helm watches are generally considered the best "bang for the buck" value in dive watches, and would be less than a quarter of your max budget.

https://helmwatches.com/index.html

Are you looking for this as a jewelry item too or just from a more practical item?

I did the reverse sequence. Rolex Datejust from around 1980 to early 2000's then a Luminox and now an Apple watch for the last two years.

If the Apple watch was not an option, I'd wear the Luminox. I bought a nicer band for mine and the watch itself is very functional.
The Rolex just never gets worn anymore. So I guess my answer would be to buy the Luminox that catches your eye the most and spend the extra change on something else.

quote:

Originally posted by P220 Smudge:
In that budget, take a look at Sinn.

Beat me to it. Here you go.

https://www.watchbuys.com/stor...Bracelet-67p2938.htm

Tudor watch. IIRC it is a low budget look alike made by Rolex?. They have some nice models. But contact our Dave Troung and he can help/steer you in your search. That's what I did and a few weeks later, he found my Rolex. Great guy is Dave!

quote:

Originally posted by Rick Lee:

quote:

Originally posted by P220 Smudge:
In that budget, take a look at Sinn.

Beat me to it. Here you go.

https://www.watchbuys.com/stor...Bracelet-67p2938.htm

Yep. I really like the 104, even more so without Arabics.

https://www.watchbuys.com/stor...Bracelet-67p3199.htm

I think Tudors will bust the budget. Though they are a lot of bang for the buck. If the OP is going to Europe anytime soon, that's the best place to buy a new watch, as it's a little cheaper than in the US and you'll get most of the VAT refunded at the airport. I bought a Sinn 857UTC in Germany long ago and at that time I saved about $600 over what it would have cost me from Watchbuys in the US.

If you can go pre-owned, a lot of super nice watches can be had for a fraction of their new price if you know how their depreciation curves work (does not apply to Rolex). I got an IWC Aquatimer 2000 just back from full service for $3k two yrs ago. That watch slays my others and cost way less than anything you could get new from IWC or that level.

I like my Ball. With being automatic and having tritium tubes it checked my major boxes.

I have the original iteration (Oct 2001 contract) of the 300M Marathon SAR bought new (bracelet added later when made available) which continues to serve me well. The ETA mechanical movement can be serviced by any reputable watchmaker.

https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...840016394#4840016394

I also have several Sinns but none are divers. Keep in mind that many Sinn divers have humidity control features that presents service challenges if it is to be maintained. RGM or Sinn are the go to's for service $$$$ as they are the only ones with access to factory parts.


As an aside these are the diver's I've owned (older picture with original rubber SAR strap).

I still have the Marathon SAR (300M), Seiko SKX011J (200M), Aquastar Benthos I (1000M), and Zeno 485GMT (300M). I flipped the center Zeno Limited Edition orange 485.

Look at Oris.
Some of their watch MSRP is a little out of your price rang however I have had good luck negotiating the price down.
I bought an Oris Aquis Date Upcycle on my last cruise. I bought it in Tortola and was able to get the price down almost 35%. You might not be as able to do as good here in the United States but it does not hurt to try, the most they can say is no.

I do not own any Hamilton's however I hear and have read they have a great reputation. From what I have seen they make some great field watches.

If you are going on a cruise any time soon you can always look in the islands at the many Authorized watch dealers.

If Tudor ends up being too much, I've always loved the Oris Aquis divers. They're a solid, dependable choice with a lot of color options.

https://teddybaldassarre.com/blogs/watches/oris-aquis

Seiko Prospex 140th Anniversary SLA047
A step above the regular Seiko Prospex watches and a step below the Grand Seiko divers. It has an 8L35 movement which is an undecorated 9S55 Grand Seiko movement. It isn’t adjust to the Grand Seiko specs either.

Link to Seiko’s site

There’s a lot of good looking Seiko Prospex dive watches for $500 to $1,200, but the SLA ones are a step up with better finishing and movements.

I like a lot of Oris models, but haven't priced any in a while.

Love my 4 o'clock crown Seiko, wearing on my L wrist, it definitely helps.

2nd the advice to talk to Dave, even if he doesn't carry it, he may be able to point you to some options.

Sorry, I'm no help. I wear this a lot. Simplicity

One of my favorite divers falls well within your budget. A year or two ago Seiko released a vintage reissue of the highly sought after Seiko Reference 6105 aka the Apocalypse Now or Capt’n Willard diver named after the watch the character played by Martin Sheen wore in the film.

The new watch reference SPB183 gets a 70 hour power reserve and is placed about mid tier in the Seiko diver range. Seiko divers can range from $400 to around $7-8,000 so there is ehh quite a bit of price variation depending on the model as well as some substantial price jumps between certain movements/models.

At $1300 MSRP it’s priced closer to the original Willard than Seiko’s more expensive 6105 reissue that Seiko also made around the same time as my watch. That one might be a little outside your budget.

Seiko also makes this diver in Green and Black if Blue isn’t your thing.

Mine has settled to running about +1 second a day and is one of my most accurate automatic watches. It’s also one of the most comfortable watches I own.








As others have mentioned Sinn is a brand that is certainly worth looking into.

I would also recommend:

Hamilton & Tissot while not known for their divers per se they do have some interesting offerings
Steinhart - a German watch company who makes superb Rolex Sub style divers
Christopher Ward- UK based watch company with fantastic build quality, quality Swiss movements and arguably the best customer service and warranty in the business.

Also look at Seiko’s prospex line of dive watches. You won’t find another manufacturer (except maybe at Swatch group) who has more variety, chances are you will find something you fancy.

quote:

Originally posted by Rick Lee:

quote:

Originally posted by P220 Smudge:
In that budget, take a look at Sinn.

Beat me to it. Here you go.

I'll pile onto Sinn. Hands down the nicest Dive/Tool watch out there. The Marathon's are nice, I own a TSAR on bracelet. I have an Oris Aquis Date Relief on my short list and they are nice watches but they won't hold value like the Sinn will. Besides any "watch person" will recognize it and mention it.

I'd think about ditching my plans for the Oris if the right deal on an IWC Aquatimer came along. And I'll probably sell off most of my watches if I ever find the right deal on a Polar Explorer after I retire and make that my EDW.

Go scroll through the watch thread, lots of great watches pictured there.

In my rotation I’ve got 3 for the most part. 1st is a Ball Spacemaster Hydrocarbon Chrono however they are now 3k+, Marathon GSAR (although I had to send it in for repair last year) and the other in my rotation is a Doxa Sub 200, which are comparatively cheap. Doxas name is well known in the diving community and have plenty of history behind their pieces. A Sub 200 can be had for around 1k, or so. I’d love to score a Sinn U1 one of these days. Good luck.

With all the mentions I’m surprised there are not more pics of Sinn watches.

Suppose I’ll fix that.

You can find a first Gen Sinn Arktis for close to $2000. There are plenty of offerings from Sinn for under and around $2k.

From Sinn my personal fav is the extreme temperature resistant Arktis II which has a gas mixture inside the watch to protect it from extremely cold temps. It’s a tool watch that’s also a little flashy and IMO it is the perfect go anywhere do anything watch.