Scuba Diving Watches

The movie, 'Men of Honor', shows the rudimentary history of diving and the equipment that Navy divers were forced to use. Well, if you have watched the movie, don't be disheartened by the heavy gear. The modern equipment is much lighter, safer and user-friendly. Scuba is short for Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus.

Scuba diving gives you the opportunity to see the life underwater in lakes, seas and oceans. The equipment helps the diver to stay under water for a long duration of time. Professional scuba divers dive for commercial, scientific and military endeavors.

If you want to look smart, take along smarter accessories. The primary equipment for diving are fins, mask, tank, gauges and a watch. The suit which a diver wears can be wet or dry depending on the water temperature. The tank on the back of the diver provides the vital air supply for breathing underwater. Gauges display important information about the whereabouts of the diver in the water. A compass and watch also comes in handy.

One of the equipment that may help you create a style statement among fellow divers is dive watches. They come with a variety of features, looks, and price range that will suit all budgets. They are not only a timing device, but also a safety device. They help in tracking dive time, so a diver can avoid running out of air. It also helps in monitoring time decompression stages, when a diver ascends. There are three styles available - Digital, Classic and Dive computer.

Digital is the most popular style. It offers water resistance up to 200 meters. The classic range includes mechanical or quartz analog models. The pricing range varies from $100 US to $20,000 US. The dive computer is the latest computer model that is the size of a wrist watch. You can strap them on your wrist and use it as a time displaying machine.

One of the features include setting yacht timings and tide graphs. Few of them are light-powered, so they never need a battery change. They can charge themselves in any light, even under water. Few sport the electronic depth sensor and have maximum depth memory. There are exclusive watches for women as well. They are mid-sized and have a large display which helps in increased visibility under water.

The maximum water resistance for a diving watch is 200 meters, although scuba divers don't dive that deep. The screw-down crowns of an analog one is said to be more waterproof. There are few others that have push-pull crown, which too works fine.

A defining feature in an analog watch is its rotating bezel. This feature is used to track elapsed time. The time is marked by zeroing the bezel to minute hand up to 60 minutes. The hour hand can be timed up to 12 hours. The bezel should be removable for cleaning. The markings should be engraved and not printed, so that they do not wear out. The bezel should be unidirectional. It should move only in the counterclockwise direction. The elapsed time appears longer, when the watch is accidentally knocked by your body. It's safer as the diver comes up before time, than overstaying in the water. There are a few others which have the feature of lockable bezels. Built-in stop watch or countdown timer are found in digital ones.

Some devices, offer underwater illumination options. Digital devices have Light Emitting Diodes (LED) or other glowing systems. Using LED devices runs down the battery so it is better to use the solar-powered ones. Luminous paints are very popular. They are charged with light and glow in the dark. High quality paints can glow for hours, while the others have a maximum life of about 1-2 hours. The Tritium vials used in certain analogs give a better glow than luminous paints, but they fade out over the years.

There are watch straps, which are specific for wet and dry suits. The metal straps have a wet suit extension link, which expands and fits over a wet suit. The dry suits do not require any extension link. Plastic straps are fine. One can use rubber straps, but they wear out gradually. It is very difficult to find replacements for them.

One should remember that many manufacturers void their guarantees once the watch is opened to change the battery. The mechanical wind-up in automatic watches must be opened only for servicing and repairs.

Dive watches are cool style statements. They double up not only as timing devices but also as a fashion statement under water. It is your personal choice when selecting one of your choice. The basic need for all is telling the time. So whether you choose digital, classic or dive computer, remember accessibility and reliability weigh more than the style.