AURICOSTE ScubaMaster SM300

Could it finally be happening; could the watch industry finally be looking back at the decade that brought us legwarmers, frost-wash jeans and neon colors? Nah, not anytime soon but it was an era that had the very tough job of following one of the most celebrated decades in watchmaking, the 1970s, and a decade where the quartz watch still reigned supreme. However what the 1980s did bring us was: the Doxa SUB 600T (1982), the first ever Casio G-Shock DW-5000C (1983), the Seiko H558-5009 Ana/Digi Quartz 150m (1983) and the Citizen Promaster Aqualand (1985).

The 1980s also gave us the first ever Swatch watches (thanks), the Tag Heuer 1000 Professional series and Panerai’s legendary Mille Metri prototype watches whose design was taken up by the epic Ennebi Fondale watches – 

and from the French watchmaker, Auricoste a 1982 Spirotechnique model on which the model shown here today pays tribute to.

So here’s it is, an SM300 of a different kind; a diver’s watch with its own proud heritage that lives on through this, its worthy heir and successor to the watch of the same name that once equipped – “Des Nageurs de Combats et Plongeurs Démineurs de la Marine Nationale” AKA the French Navy’s Underwater Demolitions Combat Swimmers. Its case which is in 316L Stainless steel has a diameter of 40mm and is fitted with a unidirectional diver’s bezel with a cambered sapphire crystal inlay; a 3mm domed sapphire glass with AR-treatment. Water-resistance is 300m. Its matte black dial is with faded orange SLN luminous hours and hands. The oversized arrow minute and sword hour hands are accompanied by a lollipop seconds in blue (getting a bit clichéd) and a white date aperture at 4’oclock. Power comes via a Swiss made Sellita automatic caliber with 26 rubies, a beat-rate of 28’800 vph and power-reserve of 38 hours plus decoration with Côtes de Genève stripes. The new Auricoste ScubaMaster SM300 has been released in a limited production series with an MSRP is 2’650 €. It come son a genuine black Tropic diver’s strap or with a Steel link bracelet.

Thoughts? This is super nice – I’m just not sure if it’s 2’650 euros nice. The reason I say this is because if you get yourself a new ZRC GF300 – 

it has similar French naval diving heritage but comes with a ton of high-tech diver’s watch innovations that make this ScubaMaster SM300 look a little bit basic. But what do you think?