Today, I am examining two pre-production prototypes (some changes will be made before the final release) of the soon-to-be-released Dietrich SD-1 “Skindiver” watches. These two models include the SD-1 Skindiver “Suave Black” with a black dial and bezel and the SD-1 Pacific Blue with a blue bezel and dial.
What I like about every Dietrich watch I've worn so far is that Emmanuel Dietrich never feels like he is creating watches aimed at just any audience. All watches produced under his namesake brands suit some people well and are less appealing to others. Although Dietrich's subsequent models have indeed become more classic in their appeal, each piece still has a certain “target group”. This is also true of the SD-1 Skindiver; in reality, it is about creating mid-size traditional diver's watches with some elements of his aesthetic DNA. The watch fits very well into this intended form.
These are the smallest Dietrich watches I have worn, and also the most traditional in terms of design and concept. Emmanuel Dietrich drew inspiration from 1960s diving watches, including their sizes, overall readability, and wearing comfort. He then combined this with various visual elements the brand is known for. Excellent examples are the hour and minute hands, which were adapted from the Dietrich OT (organic time) collection released a few years ago. Later, Dietrich used very similar hands for the DD-1 watches, and again in a slightly different form for the Skin Diver.
Another remarkable part of Dietrich's design DNA in the SD-1 is the bracelet shape. The bracelet is actually a reworking of the Dietrich TC (Time Companion) bracelet, which used hexagonal links. In the TC watch bracelet, the links were very close together, and while they looked good, they offered relatively little articulation. The SD-1 bracelet is narrower and has links with more spacing between them, allowing the bracelet to fit more comfortably on larger wrists.
If the original Time Companion bracelet took years to develop and never became what Dietrich wanted, then in the Skindiver model, he managed to improve both the comfort and construction of the steel bracelet - although, as is proper for diver’s watches, the bracelet is equipped only with an elegant butterfly clasp mechanism. For a more sporty wear, Dietrich equips each SD-1 watch with a matching (blue or black) NBR rubber strap. A more user-friendly feature is that the bracelet and (presumably) the straps are on quick-release spring bars.
As a “mid-size” diver's watch (small size is mostly intended for women or children), the SD-1 is perfect for those who prefer more compact watches or simply have a narrow wrist that doesn't favor larger watches. The polished and matte stainless steel case of the SD-1 measures 38.5 mm in width, 12 mm in thickness, and 46.2 mm lug-to-lug. The relative thickness of the case does not create a small size impression, but the narrower overall proportions give the piece a much more modest wearing feel than even 40 mm wide diver's watches.
As a diver's watch, the SD-1 is water-resistant to 150 meters (which is quite suitable for most types of swimming, snorkeling, and shallow recreational diving) and has a sapphire crystal with AR coating over the dial. Sapphire crystal is also used for two other important components, including the bezel insert and the dial. Sapphire bezel inserts were once much more exotic and expensive, so it is very pleasing to see them in lower price categories like Zodiac, and now Dietrich. The diver-style rotating bezels look cool thanks to the mix of ergonomic sensitivity and Dietrich's modernity. The design of the bezels also fits nicely into the “classic skin diver image” that Dietrich aims to embody in this model.
The most modern part of the SD-1 model is the dial itself. Printed on a colored piece of sapphire glass, the dial is very classic in theme but modern in execution. Traditional touches like a crosshair dial and contrasting hour markers stand out against the gradient black or blue dial. Always striving for balance and symmetry, Dietrich skillfully designed an interesting date window at the “6 o'clock” position, which also draws attention as a natural hour marker.
There is no standard date disc here. Dietrich prints the date disc to order and even uses his special font. I like this attention to detail. Among other small case details are the colored insert in the crown, done in a fish scale style, and the effective use of knurling for grasping the crown and bezel.
Inside the SD-1 watches is the Swiss automatic Sellita SW200 movement, operating at 4 Hz with a power reserve of about two days. Speaking of the movement: the case backs of these watches are very simple, massive steel screw-downs. They are so simple in design that I consider them pre-production.
Very few watches have such plain case backs, and I think Deitrich could be wise to provide them with more detailed information. This is just my opinion. The rule I follow is simple. If someone finds these watches 50 years from now and wants information about them, is there enough data on the watches themselves (dial, case back, etc.) to make a proper request in a search engine? In this case, the watches only have the brand name, not even the model name, reference number, serial number, etc. Thus, the watches do not pass my test for providing a future person with enough information to easily find out what this item is.
For everyone who asked Dietrich to develop more compact, more classic watches, the SD-1 Skindiver is undoubtedly a very satisfying answer. If anything offers to the crowd of people interested in vintage-style diving watches, it's a modern choice with much more visual individuality than most vintage watches available for sale. Moreover, “in-demand” vintage diving watches often sell for such high prices that their value propositions are quite weak when it comes to being suitable for everyday wear. Dietrich SD-1 is priced similarly to other modern dive watches from boutique brands, but very few of them have the same attention to detail, not to mention originality, as these Dietrich. Moreover, the list of higher-class components such as sapphire glass helps complete this very interesting watch set.
Dietrich is often a quirky choice, but it is never a boring one. Although these watches are a little small on my wrist, I really like their design, and I know there will be plenty of happy owners of this product. The next step might be to release a related model in a larger case, but if enough people learn about the SD-1 watches, I think Dietrich will achieve great success with them. The price of the Dietrich SD-1 Skindiver watches is 1,050 USD.