For all the huge choice in dive watches, they pretty much fall into three camps: the cheapie Christmas cracker jobs, the mid-range models, and the top end, which can be anything from £700 to £70,000.
£180
For those of us who don't like wearing cheap watches, yet baulk at the prospect of spending a fortune, the choice is not as great as you may think.
If you're a proper diver, a dive watch has to look the business, not like some kid's toy (G-Shock owners take note). The face should be simple, the mechanism should be reliable, and the bezel should yield with steady clicks. Step forward London watchmaker Christopher Ward - himself a diver - who has created a range that are affordable, but feel like luxury timepieces.
For the past few months, I've been wearing a black-faced £150 Kingfisher Pro. It's been on about 50 dives, been dropped on numerous decks, subjected to the greasy horrors of washing up in my kitchen sink and generally abused, and it's still working well. The thick sapphire glass remains unscratched.
That, in itself, is not remarkable: the real test of a watch in this price range is how well it works after a couple of battery changes. Many such watches get clogged with tiny particles that somehow find their way into the mechanism and slow it down. And then, the cost of a service can be so high, you just go out and get yourself another watch. I've got a drawer full of them at home.
Anyway, back to the Kingfisher Pro. So far, it works. The Christopher Ward brand is marketed as Swiss-quality mechanisms without the inflated prices, and several prominent watch bloggers have been fulsome in their praise of its mechanism.
From a purely aesthetic perspective, I too am enthusiastic. They are simple but stylish, and can be worn under a cuff without looking out of place. This model is available with different colour faces; the rubber strap has a metal catch and seems hard-wearing. Priced at £150 for the rubber strap model, the watches are also available with stainless-steel wristbands, as shown here, for £180. SIMON ROGERSON
DIVE says...
A timely classic, sensibly priced
Value 10 Performance 8
Contact
Christopher Ward • 0844 875 1515 • www.christopherward.co.uk
