Diewald Watches has just launched the Seahorse, a handsome 200m diver that features some of my favorite design elements for the almost irresistible Kickstarter early bird price of €198 (about $226 USD).
The Seahorse's case is a familiar barrel shape in brushed stainless steel. It is 43mm wide and stubby, integrated lugs keep overall length to 48mm. This should make for a large watch that can still be worn by those of us with smaller wrists. Inside, is a 24 jewel, 21.6k bph, Seiko NH35 automatic, a reliable movement well known to microbrand aficionados. It has a quiet bi-directional rotor, a power reserve of over 40 hours, hacking and hand winding capabilities, and is equipped with Seiko's Diashock protection.
As you would expect from a proper diving watch, the Seahorse has a 120 click, unidirectional bezel, a screw-down crown and case back. The crown is signed, and the case back is decorated with a fanciful illustration of the watch's namesake. The sapphire crystal is double domed and anti-reflective coated.
For me, the Seahorse's tastiest touches are its lumed ceramic bezel insert and sunray sandwich dial. I especially like the layout. The markers are outward pointing triangles, the largest of which represent the four primary hours. It is a cool, uncommon design, somewhat reminiscent of a compass. Through those ample cutaways glows a healthy layer of C3 SuperLuminova, which also grace the sword hands and bezel index. It is a good look, bold and uncluttered. My only criticism is the choice of typeface for the model name as I can't decide whether it is appealingly retro, or simply outdated. Regardless, it is hardly a deal breaker in my book, but I suspect it may be for others.
Right now, you can order black, dark gray, or blue dials, all of which are quite attractive, but the real fun will begin if the stretch goals are achieved, and the dazzling deep green and blood red dials are released.
A respectable diving watch needs a proper waterproof strap. The Seahorse will arrive on a 22mm rubber strap bearing a very 1960's waffle pattern. Stretch goals include leather and Perlon. Whatever you ultimately choose, drilled lugs will make swapping easy.
The Seahorse will retail for €299. That's a fair price to be sure, but Time Bum cheapskates will probably pounce on the 36% early bird discount. For more information or to place an order, see Diewald.Watch and the Seahorse Kickstarter page.
Photos courtesy of Diewald
