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I have a real soft spot for the now-classic designs of the diver's watches from the 1960's and 70's. Were it not for several evil looks from my wife (she may be small, but she's wiley), I'd probably have a house full of them. And while there were so many fantastic pieces during this period (from Zodiac, Doxa, Rolex, Blancpain, Jenny, Bulova, Jaeger LeCoultre, Seiko, and dozens more), not surprisingly, Omega is tops for me.
Here on the Omega Forum, the focus, in the diver realm at least, tends to center on modern pieces, with the occasional Seamaster 300 thrown in. But there are so many interesting pieces in between that should see the light of day every once in a while. So, as a tribute of sorts to Omega's long-standing diving history, I endeavored to compile "the list" of Omega's divers from the past 50 years - - all of them.
I used two basic criteria to determine what I would qualify as a "diver": water resistant to at least 100m and rotating "0-60" bezel. You may have a different definition, but this is my thread, afterall.This had the surprising consequence of omitting quite a few Seamaster and Geneve models which did have rotating bezels, but were only rated to 60 meters (I'm looking at you, Seamaster Cosmics). My list may be imperfect, so by all means, if you know of a model I've missed or if I've gotten any details wrong, please call it out. Additionally, I've tried to capture each general model style, but not necessarily every possible dial, hand, and/or bracelet combination, as that would have been an excersize in futility (knowing Omega). Each entry is listed by model number, name, year introduced, and depth rating.
Wherever possible, I've used pictures of watches owned by WUS members (with permission). For the rest, I've used images from Omega themselves (some of which are not exactly fantastic). If anyone reading this owns (or owned) one of the models I'm using stock photos for, I'd love to use one of your shots instead. I don't know if anyone else will find this interesting, but I had fun putting this post together.
So, without further ado, I present to you the Omega Diver Generations:
CK 2913 - Seamaster 300 - 1958 - 200m
Image courtesy of Per K
(The very first Seamaster "diver". Some familiar design cues here, eh?)
CK 14755 - Seamaster 300 - 1960 - 200m
Image courtesy of mamas
ST 164.014 - Seamaster 300 - 1962 - 200m
Image courtesy of gmhutton
ST 165.024 - Seamaster 300 - 1964 - 200m
Image courtesy of mamas
And here is a variation of the 165.0024 as issued to the Royal Navy (UK)
Image courtesy of Nalu
ST 166.024 - Seamaster 300 - 1966 - 200m
Image courtesy of mamas
ST 165.027 - Seamaster 120 - 1966 - 120m
Image borrowed from the Omega Museum
ST 145.008 - Seamaster Chronostop - 1967 - 120m
Image courtesy of Colin_T
Image courtesy of Colin_T
(Note that the caseback states that the piece is rated to 120m (and has also been confirmed by other owners), despite the Vintage Database listing it as 60m. I'm not sure if this is just a discrepancy or if there was a change in the rating at some point)
ST 166.0088 - Seamaster 120 - 1969 - 120m
Image courtesy of Joe K.
ST 166.068 - Seamaster - 1969 - 200m
Image courtesy of 2premo
ST 145.0019 - Seamaster - 1969 - 120m
Image courtesy of IAMsterdam
ST 166.0077 - Seamaster 600 "PloProf" - 1970 - 600m
Image courtesy of Toshi
(Developed specifically for professional divers, it was design and tested with the assistance of Jacques Cousteau)
Let's observe the beast in his natural habitat . . .
Image courtesy of ToddVNO
ST 166.0073 - Seamaster 120 - 1970 - 120m
Image courtesy of Neil(UK)
ST 398.0806 - Seamaster Electronic - 1971 - 120m
Image courtesy of Toshi
ST 198.0016 - Seamaster Electronic - 1971 - 120m
Image courtesy of keitht
ST 166.0091 - Seamaster 200 - 1971 - 200m
Image courtesy of keitht
ST 166.0093 - Seamaster 1000 (aka "The Grand") - 1972 - 1000m
Image courtesy of ToddVNO
(Omega's deepest diver ever)
ST 176.0004 - Seamaster 120 (aka "Big Blue") - 1972 - 120m
Image courtesy of Nalu
And another one, just because this watch is the bees knees.
Image courtesy of Nalu
ST 145.0036 - Flightmaster - 1973 - 120m
Image courtesy of Wytnucls
(Yes, the Flightmaster is very much a pilot's watch, so why mention it here? Well, this particular model featured double the water resistance of previous models, so it ticks all the right boxes)
ST 166.0177 - Seamaster 200 (aka SHOM Seamaster) - 1974 - 200m
Image courtesy of Toshi
(SHOM stands for Service Hydrographique et Océanographique de la Marine. The story goes that this model was ordered by the French for SHOM use. That's the story anyway - - it seems that this association was possibly exagerated. No one really knows how many were purchased by SHOM and how many went straight to retail.)
ST 166.0250 - Seamaster 120 (aka Baby PloProf) - 1978 - 120m
Image courtesy of ToddVNO
(It's a little known fact that the PloProf was stationed overseas for a few months and became romantically involved with a local girl. Unfortunately, he had to ship out and never learned that he had a son, Baby PloProf.)
ST 366.0858 - Seamaster - 1979 - 120m
Image borrowed from the Omega Museum
ST 396.0900 - Seamaster 120 "Plongeur De Luxe" - 1980 - 120m
Image courtesy of keitht
(This model was on Jacques Mayol's wrist when he set the world freediving (unassisted) record at 101m in 1981. Not exactly a "0-60" bezel, but marked sufficiently for dive timing.)
SR 396.0929 - Seamaster 120 "Calypso" - 1981 - 120m
Image borrowed from the Omega Museum
(Black chromium-plated stainless steel case. Also offered in standard stainless steel case.)
ST 396.0932 - Seamaster 120 "Calypso II" - 1982 - 120m
Image borrowed from the Omega Museum
(Stainless steel case. Also offered in black chromium-plated case.)
SR 396.0975 - Seamaster 120 "Calypso III" - 1983 - 120m
Image borrowed from the Omega Museum
(Black chromium-plated stainless steel case. Also offered in standard stainless steel case.)
2810 - Seamaster 200 (aka Pre-Bond) - 1988 - 200m
Image courtesy of WIS_Chronomaster
2531.80 - Seamaster 300 "The Bond" - 1993 - 300m
Image courtesy of Fergie
Image courtesy of Zidane
TB 378.0504 - Seamaster 300 Chrono Diver - 1993 - 300m
Image courtesy of Hewybaby
(This particular model features titanium, gold, and tantalum. Was also available in all titanium or stainless steel)
2514.50 - Seamaster 200 - 1997 - 200m
Image courtesy of keitht
(Features Omega's "Omegamatic" auto-quartz movement)
2054.50 - Seamaster 300 - 2000 - 300m
Image courtesy of John Wilson
2269.50 - Seamaster Racing Chronometer "America's Cup" - 2003 - 300m
Image courtesy of WatchObsession
(Features a 10 minute regatta timer complication)
2895.30.91 - Seamaster 300m Apnea - 2003 - 300m
Image borrowed from the Omega Museum
(The Apnea was designed in conjunction with Jacques Mayol, but wasn't released until 2 years after his death. The piece features a 14 minute timer complication)
2535.80 - Seamaster 300 M GMT - 2004 - 300m
Image courtesy of NMGE17
2594.52 - Seamaster Professional Chronograph - 2005 - 300m
Image courtesy of spogehead
2201.50 - Seamaster Planet Ocean - 2005 - 600m
Image courtesy of AAP
2218.50 - Seamaster Planet Ocean Chrono - 2006 - 600m
Image courtesy of WatchObsession
224.30.55.21.01.001 - Seamaster PloProf 1200 M - 2009 - 1200m
Image courtesy of Hary
Well, that's all I have. Not a lot of info, but lots of pretty pictures.
Again, if anyone has any comments/corrections, let's hear them.
Thanks for looking.
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Originally Posted by waruilewi
