Twenty-seven grand and a second crown
By Tom Hargreaves, Falmouth, Cornwall ยท
Price first, because there's no getting round it. Somewhere between $27,000 and $29,500 for a steel diver on a rubber strap. For that I could replace the dive school's compressor, both RIBs' engines and still have change for a decent wetsuit.
Now the watch itself, which is better than I expected. The Offshore Diver uses an inner rotating bezel worked by the second crown, and I actually prefer that on a boat: nothing sticking out to get knocked off a ladder or snagged on a BCD strap. 300 metres is plenty. The calibre 4308 gives you 60 hours, so it'll survive a weekend off the wrist. The octagonal case with the screws is the Royal Oak thing, Genta's original idea, and Emmanuel Gueit's chunkier Offshore version from the nineties, and you either like that look or you don't.
Where it falls down for me is 14.1 mm of thickness and 24 mm lugs on a 42 mm case. It wears big. The open caseback is pretty but I don't need to see a rotor while I'm hanging off a shot line.
Who buys this? Someone who wants AP on the wrist and happens to like the sea. Fair enough. I'd rather have a Submariner and a very nice holiday.