20 Of The Best Dive Watches For Small To Medium Sized Wrists

So for quite a while, we were seeing dive watches typically sized around 40 millimeters to 42 millimeters, but in the last few years, we have seen a barrage of mid-sized dive watches being released. So I wanted to revisit a topic that we looked at in the past around three years ago, and we have a whole new list of different watches, none of them mentioned in that previous video from three years ago, of some of the best mid-sized dive watches or watches that wear great on smaller to medium-sized wrists. Now, most of the watches are going to be under 40 millimeters in size. If any watch is gonna be over 40 millimeters as a dive watch, we'll give reasoning why it might be an exception in wearing smaller than what the diameter might indicate. As I mentioned, in 2021, I believe, we released a video looking at this subject, but since then, there have been so many different dive watches to include that I wanted to do a whole new recap of what is out there in 2024. If you see a watch on here that was not mentioned and you think it should have been, chances are it was probably in that video. This is gonna include the likes of the Tudor Black Bay 58, Seiko SKX013, we had Orient Kamasu on that list, Marathon MSAR, Christopher Ward was also mentioned there, and many others. So if you want to see even more, I'll link to the old one down in the description below. So guys, before we get too far in this video, we have a final call for our Grand Seiko Watch event in Cleveland, Ohio. If you are interested in attending, hit the form down below, fill out the details to be contacted by one of my team members. We only have around 15 to 25 available spots left, so if you are interested, act fast. This is coming up at the end of the month. This is going to be a jam-packed event. We have a watchmaker from Japan, Mr. Suzuki, who's coming over to do live assembly of a 9S Caliber. In addition, we have Joe Kirk, a friend of the channel. If you've probably watched any of the Grand Seiko videos on this channel, you've seen him before. A complete powerhouse of knowledge for all things Grand Seiko. He's gonna be doing a brand presentation. I will be there, of course, and we'll also have hands-on with some of the most rare pieces from Grand Seiko, including the Kodo, if you did wanna ever try that on, as well as shopping a wide variety of different models from the brand. We'll have one of the widest selections of Grand Seiko inventory in the world. So if this sounds interesting to you and you wanna join the party, and it will be a party, we'll have great food and drinks, have hundreds of people already attending, hit the form in the description down below, and one of my team members will be in touch. So to kick us off, I wanted to start with a different section here to get us going, looking at some smaller micro-brands. And I think that this whole arena of releases really was championed in part by a lot of these smaller brands that were even ahead of some of the mainstream brands and leading this trend back to sizes more to a mid-20th century partiality. To kick us off, we have the first watch on the list, the Traska Seafarer. So this watch takes a completely different form as their free diver, which was their first dive watch released from the brand, probably was the first watch that I became familiar with from Traska, but getting many of the same characteristics and traits that you would look for and why many people were drawn to those watches in the first place. Now, one thing I'd call out, more of a compressor-style case here with a dual crown design. You are getting only 150 meters of water resistance and only, crazy thing to say out loud, let's be real, more than legitimate to be classified as a dive watch. 38.5 millimeter case size, thickness of 9.5 millimeters, lug-to-lug of 46 millimeters, Miyota 9-series movement on the inside, so four hertz frequency, and case finishing across the board, well done, beveled edges of the case, five points of micro-adjustment within the clasp. And also this case is gonna be scratch-resistant if I'm not mistaken. Around 1,200 HV on the Vickers hardness scale for the treatment on Traska cases, which rivals that of Zinn's Tejamented cases, as well as Damasco. For the next brand here, this is a favorite amongst many collectors. Coming out of New York, it's founded by a husband-and-wife team, Laurier. This dive watch really helped the brand move forward, known as the Neptunes. We've seen many different iterations of the Neptune over the last few years. The brand was founded in 2018. Mid-20th century styling and design, clean looks across the board. 39 millimeter case, thickness of 12.7 millimeters, lug-to-lug of 46 millimeters, still getting 200 meters of water resistance, Miyota caliber on the inside. And they also are one of the very few brands that still utilizes acrylic crystals, but mostly as a by-product of wanting to create this warm vintage hue of the watches that they're trying to represent. Last year, we also saw the release of their GMT Hydra. So it's a little bit of a larger case for them at 41 millimeters, if I'm not mistaken. It's the largest case that they've ever released, which I think demonstrates this whole point around what they think is their sweet spot. A lot of these mid-sized, classic wearing dimension pieces. Moving right along, we then have the Maine Hudson 38. So this was a watch that was one of the earlier releases from the brand Maine. Maine was started back in 2017. And this was one of the first watches that I remember seeing from them. So for around $700, 38 millimeter case, you're getting a Sellita movement on the inside. You have some different customization options, bracelet, strap, 300 meters of water resistance, compact lug-to-lug of 46 millimeters. Thickness, pretty reasonable, just over 12 millimeters thick. Ceramic bezel insert on these watches. This is the fourth generation. And keeping in mind that this is also a higher grade of the Sellita SW200. Very approachable design, never gonna rub somebody the wrong way. And dimensions that definitely fall within the criteria of what we're looking for for a list like this. So a couple of years ago, I got my hands on one of these watches. This is a brand known as Serica. And the watch is their 5303. This is a combination of many different elements of watch design brought together as one. But it still feels distinctive and unique, despite not really going over the top in any one direction. I also just love the way that this case is finished. When I had this watch in hand for the first time, I was very impressed. Just the mirror polish on the lugs, the sunray finish on the inner parts of the bezel. The bracelet is very finely finished. And dimensions that are in line with what we're looking for for this video. 39 millimeter case size. Thickness is reasonable at 12.2 millimeters and a lug to lug of 46.5 millimeters. Given the way the bracelet meets the case, it might wear a little bit larger. It does have this very nice hinge system that doesn't make it shoot out too far and creates a complimentary silhouette to the rest of the design. Inside you have the automatic SOPROD M100, COSC certified movement to go along with it and a sapphire crystal on top. French brand, apparently they also have scaled out quite a bit. I think they have their own boutique now in France. So if you're ever traveling through, it seems like a cool thing to do. Next up is a Swiss brand with a new dive watch. So they're getting into the dive watch category with their Arenis. So this is a piece that actually measures out to 41 millimeters in diameter, but with that 46.5 millimeters and lug to lug, this watch wears way more compact on the wrist. 11.8 millimeters in thickness, 200 meters of water resistance. Also Elka, if you're not familiar with them, they are one of the first brands that I remember seeing using La Jouperie movements, which give them some additional upside. So this here is the G100. This is an equivalent to what you'll find with the SW200 or the ETA2824, just a competitor in that range. But the great thing about their movements, 68 hour power reserve in this instance. I also like the 15 minute markings on the time elapsed bezel, which by the way, does have a ceramic insert. Another interesting thing about this brand is the founder of it formerly worked and was involved as a designer at the Swatch Group, bringing back designs like the Rado Captain Cook. And then for our final brand here, and I don't know if we want to even call this a micro brand given their history, we have Volkane with their Skin Diver. So this is a watch that looks back to the early 1960s. Model basically recreates the former model with consistent form. It has a 38 millimeter case, 12.2 millimeters in thickness, a very compact lug to lug of 44.5 millimeters, still getting 200 meters of water resistance. You have a variety of different dial colors to choose from. Most people, when they think of Volkane, probably think of the 1947 release, the Volkane Cricket being worn by several US presidents. Also was among the first alarm watches and you could probably argue the first alarm watch to really make it to scale production. You had Harry Truman wearing it, LBJ and many other presidents out there. I think the rumor was that LBJ loved the watches so much, he gifted it to 200 people over the years. A lot of lore and mystique around the brand recently revived. And I think with this dimension style and the lore around this brand, it creates a pretty dynamic combination. So we'd be here all day if I mentioned every single micro brand, all these different independents. So instead of going on and on and being in front of camera for three hours, I don't know if anybody would even watch that. Maybe you guys would, but I don't necessarily want to be in front of the camera for three hours today. So if you want more micro brands, check out the article down below. We have 60 of the top micro brands in 2024, always updating this article, have some fresh new takes in here, as well as some new releases. So if you want to get lost in all things micro brands, we have one of the most comprehensive lists. I've been working on this for years and years. So if you want to check it out in the description down below. All right, now we shift into some more familiar brands, some larger brands. This one is not maybe the largest on this list, but still very well known amongst the enthusiast community. Here we have the Orient Mako 3. So if you're familiar with the Mako collection, this is a collection that has become a key pillar for Orient over the years. Not quite to the tier of that of the Bambino. The Kamasu has probably taken a lot of the shine, but that's why I think this watch is unique because it basically takes the Kamasu case, 41.8 millimeters, thickness of 12.8 millimeters, and a lug to lug of 46.8 millimeters. This watch wears like a 39 millimeter on the wrist. There's no other way around it. Still getting 200 meters of water resistance, so diving capable. It's not ISO compliant, but still very well done and more than enough. In addition, what gets carried over here for this new generation of Mako is a sapphire crystal, which helps it differentiate from many of the Seikos in the same price range. So the Bull of a Devil Diver, the Oceanographer, is a watch that typically very large case size as it's most commonly associated, but there is some exception to that with their 41 millimeter case option. Similar to many different Seiko models that you'll find wears much more compact. You're talking 45 millimeters for that lug to lug. I find that this wears like a 39 millimeter on wrist. It is a little bit thicker as a result of the doming of the crystal, so 14.5 millimeters thick. You are getting an eight series movement on the inside. As mentioned, you do have a 44 millimeter option, but for the sake of this video, 41 felt the most appropriate. In the 60s and 70s, I think these are watches that really represent that era very well. Rounded and bolstered case sides, but still in this instance, wears very well and compact on the wrist. So a brand that I would quickly recommend and say that you need to take a closer look at, and I would say is probably one of the best mid-sized dive watches from Switzerland for the price is the Certina DS Action Diver 38. Specifically here, we're gonna look at the titanium because I think that comes together to create even a more compelling point of value where there's not that many titanium dive watches in general at this price point, especially out of Switzerland. So this comes in a 38 millimeter case, thickness of 12.2 millimeters, lug to lug of 45 millimeters. So all good down the board in terms of wearability if you're looking for cases of this size. I think these wear a little bit larger than 38 millimeters, but not by much. These are pretty small watches. At a C07.611 on the inside, 80 hour power reserve, sapphire crystal. And Certina, if you're not familiar with them, their first rise to fame when it comes to tool oriented watches, which they have a ton of history in, was their DS concept in the 1950s. This stands for their double security system. And one of the main points about this system is that it houses a movement in a shock absorber ring to allow the movement to be more robust, keep better time, and of course defend against shock. Also, many watches that use the DS system over the years were able to accomplish many things, or at least be on the wrist of people that accomplished many things. We saw Expeditions in the Himalayas in the 1960s. They were worn by US Navy divers during the Tektite program, which was an underwater habitat and laboratory overseen by NASA and also were issued to the Royal Australian Navy divers. Now we move along to the SPB 143 from Seiko. This is a dive watch that so many fans of Seiko love. Takes off the lineage of the 62 MAS from 1965, taking that skin diver DNA and bringing it to a price point that I think is more approachable compared to some of the other interpretations, reinterpretations of the 62 MAS that we've seen over the years. Certainly not the most inexpensive Seiko, but I think it is probably one of the most compact, wearable, and attractive in my opinion. 40.5 millimeters, thickness of 13.2 millimeters, still pretty reasonable lug-to-lug at 47.6 millimeters, water resistance of 200 meters, ISO compliant dive watch, Seiko 6R35 movement on the inside that gets you to 70 hours of power reserve. The bracelet, although not spectacular, still is a step up compared to some of the entry-level dive watches from Seiko. And on my wrist, it wears like a complete dream. For our next piece here, this is one of the unsung heroes of dive watch history. Here we have Aquastar with their Model 60 Reissue. So first, let's go through some of the case dimensions, then we'll talk a little bit more about the significance of Aquastar, why you maybe should give them a closer look. 37 millimeters in diameter, 11 millimeter thickness, lug-to-lug of 47 millimeters, so check, check, check across the board. I would say this one wears a little bit longer in the case here, so like a 38.5 to 39 millimeters. So it won't wear as small as that case size, might indicate 200 meters of water resistance, and also using a Lajeux Peret movement with that 68-hour power reserve on the inside. So this is one of the earliest takes, if you look back to the original, of a classic skin diver. And also, Aquastar was one of the pioneers of dive watches during the early 1960s. They actually started in 1962, but came out of another brand known as Jean Richard. These were commonly found available at many dive shops and were worn by U.S. Navy divers, as well as Jacques Cousteau's aquanauts. In a similar fashion, and I would say probably another unsung hero, but probably much more sung about, is the Doxa family of dive watches. Here, though, is a brand new watch from Doxa with the Sub 200T. So many people will think about the Sub 300, its beloved professional watch that was tested in Lake Neuchatel in Switzerland, and they were able to see that orange, the orange professional dial had the most visibility underwater. These are legends of dive watch design, but those are a little bit larger with the case, but I still think they're very wearable. These just lean into the theme of the video even more. So you're talking 39 millimeters for its diameter, but a very compact lug-to-lug of 41 and a half millimeters, still getting 200 meters of water resistance, and that falls very short compared to the Sub 300, but follows the general style and characteristics of the Sub 300. So if you want basically the Sub 300 DNA, but don't necessarily want to have the same case size, you also, in this instance, get a new dial color with this emerald green. But the history of Doxa, you have the Jacques Cousteau connection, also were one of the earlier developers of scuba and saturation dive-ready watches. Doxa was also at the forefront of bringing forth the concept of a helium escape valve in watches back in the mid 20th century. And amongst those that love dive watches, I think Doxa is near the top as a cult favorite. So I was recently in Switzerland, I was bouncing around at Watches and Wonders, and then I had a little bit of additional time at the end of my journey where I wanted to go to a different event. And one of the brands that was at that event was Zinn. And this was a watch that I saw in person and I thought was unbelievably badass. And it was just so cool because I've never seen anything really like it when you get to see it at these different angles. This is known as the Zinn U50 Hydro. So the Hydro collection is not necessarily new for Zinn, but this is a newer creation within the U50 family. But really what makes this watch so unique is how it is able to have unbelievable visibility as well as water resistance while still remaining compact. So it is a quartz watch, but as you look at this watch and why I will call attention to it is this is an oiled filled timepiece. So oiled filled technology is not new for Zinn. It actually dates back to 1996. And why they use oil, so what you're seeing on the inside is a watch completely filled from the dial to that crystal with oil. But why this is so crucial for a dive watch and what they were really aiming to do was to eliminate refractions and increase the ability to see the time at an angle. I was holding this watch and I'll just show some of my iPhone photos cause I was so excited. I had to just snap photo. They typically don't do that. Even at an angle where your eyes are completely level with the watch and it's on your wrist, you still can see it at extreme, extreme angles. Further, the watch has ridiculous water resistance, 5,000 meters of water resistance for context. The wreckage of the Titanic is down 3,800 meters. This watch is built to last. It is just built with utility in mind and over-manufactured in typical Zen fashion. So we go to serious tool watch to playfulness with the AORUS Diver 65, this version being the Cotton Candies. The Cotton Candy first unveiled with bronze cases a few years ago, now coming available with a stainless steel option as well, but coming with a case that is very rarely seen for a dive watch at 38 millimeters. This was one of the first brands that were more mainstream that I saw incorporating this case size. 46 millimeter lug to lug, 13 millimeters in thickness, a lot of that coming from that dome sapphire crystal. Watch comes from a 1965 design, not the Cotton Candy, but the form and structure of that silhouette in bezel style will come from the 1960s. But then they fuse in these powdered pastel colors with green, pink, blue. It's a watch that doesn't take itself too seriously from a brand that doesn't take itself too seriously. So one of my favorite releases last year from the dive watch genre has to be the Longines Legend Diver at 39 millimeters. Legend Diver was one of the first watches that I thought brought forward this whole vintage revival craze. Came back all the way in 2007, where they brought back a reference at 42 millimeters, really bringing in, representing that 7042 that debuted all the way back in 1959. It's an iconic dual crown compressor style watch. This watch though, comes in with a different case size, splitting the difference of the 36 millimeters and the 42 millimeter option at 39 millimeters, 12.7 millimeters in thickness, and a lug to lug of 46.9 millimeters, wears like a dream. I'd say it wears a little bit larger, but still shy of 40 millimeters, but slightly larger than its 39 millimeter diameter, 300 meters of water resistance, and the movement checks off a lot of boxes. You're getting COSC certified movement, 70 hour plus power reserve with that L888.6. This also comes with a silicon balance spring and is going to have high resistant to magnetic fields. This will actually 10X the level of resistance to magnetic fields that is asked for from the ISO 764 standard. So I mentioned there's not gonna be a Tudor Black Bay 58 because obviously that would be on this list. We've mentioned in the past, we've talked about it many times, but there's been two other dive watches from Tudor that should be mentioned since the last video we've done on this topic. The first is gonna be the Tudor Black Bay 54. This came out last year. This looked at the 7922, the original 58, look at the 7924, 7922 came out in 1954. See how that naming convention works. 37 millimeter case though, no one really asked for a smaller Black Bay 58. I think most people were like, okay, I don't really need anything smaller than the 58. But then this came out and then we all started questioning which one should we go for then? You're getting 11.2 millimeters in thickness, lug to lug of 45.7 millimeters. So still wears reasonably. They also messed with the proportions here so that despite the scaling down of the case, it still wears to an acceptable range where this doesn't look out of place on a wrist that is more to the medium size, if not a little bit larger. I think many people can give this watch a go if they wanted to. 200 meters of water resistance, MT5400 caliber on the inside, 70 hour power reserve, COSC certified, gilt markings on the dial, very clean, romantic, and classic Tudor Submariner in much of what we're seeing here, looking back to that 7922. Then the other watch, which basically the polar opposite of what Tudor is doing nowadays, you have, looking back to the Heritage DNA, but then you have their professional oriented watch that is going to compel to more contemporary technical feats, as well as positioning itself with some different style that deviates farther away from the Submariner, but not so much so, because I could argue that if a Tudor Submariner was being created today, it would look like this watch or the recent Black Bay Metas that we saw at 41 millimeters. Here we have the Tudor Pelagos 39. So the Pelagos 39, 39 millimeter case, 46.8 millimeter lug to lug, and 11.8 millimeters of thickness. So you're getting a thinner, more compact case compared to the 42 millimeter variant, basically giving the 58 treatment to the Pelagos while still giving you a titanium case, are losing some water resistance in the process compared to the 500 meters of the standard 42 millimeter Pelagos, with this one getting 200 meters of water resistance. To help with the verticality, the Rehant is also going to be redesigned. T-fit clasp, on the fly adjustment, best in the business, at least at this price range, at the very bare minimum. COSC certified movement, 70 hours of power reserve, and a ceramic insert to go along with it. For our next piece, this is one of the smaller dive watches on the list, and I would say it wears just slightly larger than its case size at 36 millimeters, is the Breitling Superocean 36. So this follows the DNA of the more contemporary style Superoceans. You have the Heritage Collection, you have the 57 Superoceans, and then you have more of this modern type of look that you're getting with the Superocean. I would say these are suitable for both men and women. So they are gonna be a bit on the smaller side here with a lug to lug of 42.4 millimeters, 12.1 millimeters in thickness, but I like the look, automatic at a caliber on the inside, sapphire crystal. I think for the price to value ratio, I can see for some might be stretching it a bit too far, but the Superocean, one of the key pillars within Breitling's catalog back in 1957 for the original reference, one of the most important and iconic dive watches, many different color options you can choose from. And from a design perspective, I think these really look phenomenal. For our next piece, this is a watch that is a dive watch, but why that's remarkable is because I'm gonna tell you what brand it comes from, Zenith. Not a brand that we typically associate with dive watches, but in this instance, shows that they can do it well when they decide to do it. This is the Zenith DeFi Revival A3648. So this year at Watches and Wonders, we saw the Zenith DeFi Extreme dive watches, which obviously were more modern in their take on things. And then we had the Revival piece. So we've seen Revival pieces within this DeFi collection. This goes another step further, looking back to 1969 to this specific reference, one of the first DeFi models ever created, and one of the first capable dive watches that Zenith ever produced. Even back in the day, this was world-class leading water resistance. And even today, you're getting 600 meters of water resistance, sneaky water resistance that you wouldn't expect. I will warn you that this is a very, very saturated dial. I saw pictures of this and how you saw an orange dial and you're like, okay, I think I know what I'm gonna get myself into. Saw it in person and it was way more vibrant than I was suspecting, but looks very cool with the black and contrasting with the orange, some of the white incorporation, the orange hands as well. Now there are brands that certainly do this pops of color at more attainable prices, but to see Zenith doing it with a unique case style and looking back deep into their archive to unearth something that I think presents a very compelling proposition, I think that's where this one really stood out to me. And it was so unexpected. 37 millimeter case, thickness of 15.5 millimeters. That thickness is definitely not gonna be the thinnest on this list. It actually might be the thickest on this list, but it is not nearly wear like that. Lug to lug of 44 millimeters. So wears very well on a wide variety of wrists, a little bit smaller, but definitely try this one on if you have the opportunity to, or at least ask for photos, if you are maybe looking online and we're thinking about buying one of these. Sapphire crystal on top, automatic elite movement, 670 on the inside, available through that exhibition case back. So still getting 600 meters of water resistance while seeing that elite caliber on the flip side. Three years ago, we capped out our list with the Glashütte Regenau CQ 39.5 millimeters. This time around, we're gonna cap out with a different brand. I would say a peer brand, but from Switzerland with Blancpain with the 50 Fathoms Bathyscaph at 38 millimeters. So let's take a step back, appreciate the 50 Fathoms for what it is. One of the early pioneers of dive watch design. In the 1950s, Jean-Jacques Fischer actually took over in 1950, became the CEO. He was also a diver in his spare time, very passionate about scuba diving. And this was an era where to be a scuba diver and be a diver, it was not as safe as it is nowadays. But the 50 Fathoms was at the beginning stages of developing many of the characteristics that we now associate with dive watches. The 50 Fathoms DNA was used by the French Navy, the US Navy, and many others around the globe. But another important pillar within the 50 Fathoms collection was the Bathyscaph. The Bathyscaph was seen more as the less professional grade version of the 50 Fathoms. Also could be worn by more recreational types of divers being released later in the 1950s. This follows the theme of being a slimmed down, less professional version, but still incredibly capable watch from Blancpain within the 50 Fathoms collection. 38 millimeters, thickness of 10.5 millimeters. Big thanks to the automatic caliber on the inside. It's the Blancpain or Frederick Piguet 1150 movement. Crystal is going to be sapphire, 300 meters of water resistance, compact lug to lug at 44.6 millimeters. One of the better looking movements I would add as well for a dive watch at any price point. And we're talking about the top of the line here for the most part for a dive watch. It doesn't get much better than this. And to cap out the wearability, the size, you have the history to go along with it as one of the most important dive watches of all time. But all right guys, that is my video here today looking at some mid-size or very wearable dive watches now in the year of 2024. I probably could even include more dive watches. I even lost count of how many dive watches we talked through here today. But if you enjoyed the video, please give it a thumbs up, subscribe, hit the bell icon. So many new watches in this case size and dimension set have been released. So it really shocked me that even three years goes by, how many more dive watches you can include. None of these were repeats, I believe, from that previous video. We included a lot on that list. Also, if you want even more watches, dive watches, even beyond the genre of dive watches, check out the microbrand article down below and check out teddybaldistow.com, full authorized dealer of 30 brands, quick and fast fulfillment, dedicated customer support, and a full factory warranty for all the products that we offer. Guys, thank you again so much for watching. Be well, and I'll see you all very soon.