If you have a history of tool watches, flaunt it. In the last decade, it has certainly become a must in watchmaking, and brands releasing legitimate tool watches from the past have found their buyers who want the attractive look of vintage watches with modern mechanics. Although Alpina has been producing robust tool watches for almost 140 years, it was the dive watches of the late 1960s that were chosen for a redesign in 2016. The latest model, the Seastrong Diver 300 Heritage, is a historically accurate reissue of a 1960s diver with a super compressor-style case and a dual crown. Even though the watch has the same specifications as the 2016 model, and there was already a Seastrong Heritage Diver with a black dial, the latest model is enlivened with gold elements that further highlight the vintage atmosphere. Another novelty that will please many of our readers is that the date window has been eliminated.
ALPINA 10 SEASTRONG
Founded in 1883, watchmaker Gottlieb Hauser decided to pool resources and created an alliance of colleague watchmakers known as the Alpinists. The name Alpina was chosen by the union members to designate the highest quality calibers in their production. In 1938, Alpina introduced the legendary Alpina 4 model. The number 4 represented the four essential qualities of sports watches: anti-magnetic, water-resistant, shock-resistant, and stainless steel (case). The watch was equipped with the Alpina 592 caliber with manual winding. Seven years later, the company released its first automatic watch. This led to 1967, when the company introduced its iconic Alpina 10 diver's watch (also called Alpina 10 Seastrong in 1969), a professional diving watch with 200 m water resistance and an automatic caliber.
Like many other diver's watches of the time, the Seastrong had a super compressor case with two crowns: one for adjusting the internal bezel to determine decompression time over 1-60 minutes on the rotating bezel, and the other for setting and winding the mechanism. To enable divers to easily tell the time, the watch designers used luminescent material on the dial and hands. The case, manufactured by Ervin Piquerez SA (EPSA), was water-resistant to 200 meters thanks to a patented spring mechanism built into the screw-down case back, making the watch more water-resistant the deeper it went. Increased diving depth and the growing water pressure on the case compressed the two parts of the case and the ring gasket more tightly, ensuring an increasingly higher level of water resistance.
REVIVAL, NEW SEASTRONG DIVER 300 HERITAGE
Presented in 2016 at the Baselworld exhibition, the first Seastrong Heritage Diver model repeats the original design with a dual crown and the distinctive mesh pattern on the crown associated with Ervin Piquerez's super compressor cases (Note: The case of these modern watches looks like a super compressor but is not a true super compressor in terms of architecture and construction).
Starting with the external aspects of the watch, the Seastrong Diver 300 Heritage case measures 42 mm and is 12.30 mm thick; it is by no means a massive case size by today's standards but certainly larger than the original. The bezel and the top of the lugs are polished, while the case bands are matte. The crown at the “4 o'clock” position for setting the time and winding the mechanism is engraved with the Alpina triangle, and the crown at the “2 o'clock” position for adjusting the rotating bezel features a mesh pattern characteristic of early EPSA super compressor cases.
The case back is sealed, and the watch is water-resistant to 300 meters. The internal rotating bezel, characteristic of the original, is now inclined towards the dial, giving the dial a “pie” effect, adding extra depth. As in the original rotating diver's bezel, elongated markers are interspersed with dots and Arabic numerals at the 15, 30, and 45-minute marks. Unlike the original, they are now in gold color to match the yellow gold-plated indices on the black dial. The indices are elongated to match the flange markers. A gold triangle at noon represents the Alpina logo and has a round cutout in the center aligned with the inverted triangle on the rotating bezel when not in use.
The elongated minute hand with a large arrow tip is another distinctive feature of the original design, and like the short hour hand and central seconds hand, it is treated with white luminescent material. All three hands are coated with yellow gold, and all text on the dial is in gold. The contrast between the black sunburst-finished dial and the matte gold streaks is truly impressive. The original hesalite crystal was replaced with a scratch-resistant domed sapphire crystal.
However, where the designers deviated from the original - and in the 2016 Seastrong Heritage versions - is in the omission of the date window, which is undoubtedly a positive decision for many. The watch is equipped with the automatic caliber AL-525, based on the reliable and accurate Sellita SW 200 movement, providing a 38-hour power reserve.
The Alpina Seastrong Diver 300 Heritage comes on a casual brown calfskin strap with a pin buckle and an additional black rubber strap.
AVAILABILITY AND PRICE
The retail price of the Seastrong Diver 300 Heritage is 1,495 euros, and they are currently available for order directly on the Alpina website. For more information, please visit alpinawatches.com.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS - AUTOMATIC WATCHES ALPINA SEASTRONG DIVER 300 HERITAGE
Case: Diameter 42 mm x height 12.30 mm - stainless steel, matte and polished - sealed case back with engraving - screw-down crown - scratch-resistant sapphire crystal - water resistance 300 meters
Dial: Black with sunburst finish - black internal flange with gold markings - yellow gold-plated applied indices - yellow gold hour, minute, and second hands with white lume
Movement: Caliber AL-520 (Sellita automatic SW200) - 26 jewels - 28,800 vph - 38-hour power reserve - hours, minutes, seconds
Strap: Brown calf leather - additional black rubber strap
Reference: AL-520BY4H6
Price: 1,495 EUROS