newbie question Sub/Sea Dweller?

[deltabrent]

Hi. New watch collector here. I'm curious why it seems that a submariner is the preferred dive watch when the sea dweller is rated to go deeper and is very similar except for the date window bubble? I would assume a Sea Dweller would be more desirable or popular?

[eton97]

My guess is that the 5513 wears easier then a 1665 due to its thickness. I love my 1665 drsd, but my 5513 maxi probably gets more wrist time

[Kingface66]

Preferred by actual divers, or simply fans of Submariners...like a lot of people on this forum.

[Fabrice M]

The Seadweller is a more expensive watch, the reason the sub is more popular. As far as diving depth, it doesn’t matter. I think in the last 10 years only 7 divers or so actually reached below 300 meters. And frankly I don;t know any technical divers, and I know lot’s of them, that dive with a mechanical watch. You have a computer, and a back up computer in case one fails...

[Styles Bitchley]

My feeling is that the icons associated with the Sub (Connery, McQueen) gave it widespread attention and association with being "cool." Plus, I find the cyclops pretty darn useful day to day as my mid-forties eyes start to deteriorate!

[Fabrice M]

Originally Posted by Styles Bitchley

My feeling is that the icons associated with the Sub (Connery, McQueen) gave it widespread attention and association with being "cool." Plus, I find the cyclops pretty darn useful day to day as my mid-forties eyes start to deteriorate!

So true about the cyclope. Glad they have it on the sd43

[gman5515]

my imo, the submariner is probably the "mainstream" dive watch offered by Rolex, as opposed to the sea dweller, which is more of a toolwatch, meant for proessional "working" deepsea divers. Don't quote me on this, but SDs were made in much smaller production quantities than the subs(someone once quoted 30:1, but i find that a little hard to believe). Having said that, the practicality of any "mainstream" recreational divers going beyong 300m, is much fewer, even if you do technical rebreather dives with mixed gas.

But the sea dweller and DSSD is a great testimony to what Rolex watches are able to achieve.

Just my 2 cents.

[swish77]

Originally Posted by deltabrent

Hi. New watch collector here. I'm curious why it seems that a submariner is the preferred dive watch when the sea dweller is rated to go deeper and is very similar except for the date window bubble? I would assume a Sea Dweller would be more desirable or popular?

They're very different watches, with a different weight, feel, vibe, thickness, etc ... I'm not even referring to the cyclops vs. non-cyclops. Even the dials are different. The SD dial is just a tad smaller.

While they might look similar from a couple of feet away, on the wrist is a different story. I prefer the SD, vintage or modern (up to the 16600), just because it's not as common and has more of a wrist presence, in my mind anyway.

[deltabrent]

Thanks everyone. Appreciate the info and opinions.