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Military dive watches were once the only type of dive watch you could buy. When Panerai released the Radiomir, the idea of this watch was to be durable and visible whilst several hundred feet underwater. The only reason for this dive watch to be created in the first place was upon the request of the Italian military.
It makes sense that a watch made to a high degree of craftsmanship whilst also being functional would be useful to the military. Of course, this is not the only kind of watch used in a military setting with field and pilot watches also having their own use.
In more recent years, dive watches have become super fashionable due to the explosion in popularity of both the Omega Seamaster and Rolex Submariner. Whilst these two watches are luxury, expensive, and very well made, they certainly are not up to military specifications.
As fashion dive watches have increased in popularity, it has become more difficult to find military dive watches. Whilst it is still easily possible to find a decent variety, there is certainly a lot less of these models available when compared with fashion divers watches.
This article will show the best military dive watches available to buy for prices that do not reach the level of luxury brands,
Table of Contents
The Best Military Dive Watches
Victorinox I.N.OX
Encased in black carbon composite, the I.N.O.X is a fairly unusual style for a military dive watch. It certainly looks a little different than what you’d usually expect but is blacked out and sturdy nonetheless. The beauty of using carbon as a case material is that it is both lightweight and durable.
The paracord style fabric bracelet is also unusual for a dive watch but adds to the uniqueness of the overall design. Victorinox are a Swiss made brand, most commonly associated with Swiss Army knives, so have a long history of military interaction.
With that being said, the I.N.O.X is somewhat expensive given the specification so should only be purchased if you are a true fan of the unique style.
Luminox Pacific Diver
A modern military dive watch, Luminox are a company that is known to make watches to the standard of navy SEALs. This all black version of the pacific diver series is ideal since it can be used on both land and sea, yet is visible to you only.
As the outer dial and hands use tritium tubes to illuminate the hour indicators, this means that even in absolute darkness you will be able to see what time it is. Tritium is a radioactive substance so can easily be seen underwater.
The pacific diver offers water resistance up to 200 meters which is not the deepest ever, but good enough for a military dive watch. It is also made in Switzerland and uses a Ronda quartz movement.
Vostok Amphibian
You will have a very hard time finding a quality military divers watch for under $150, but Vostok are able to offer this with some room to spare. The reason for the low prices of Vostok watches are because they are a Russian company that has had the same movement for decades.
Far from this being a negative point, Vostok watches are extremely reliable and rugged, which is what you would expect for a timepiece used by the Russian military. As far as automatic watches go, Vostok are not the most accurate and are certainly not a luxury item, but they get the job done and will not break on you.
Marathon
Somewhat expensive in comparison to other military dive watches, Marathon are a brand that sits somewhere in the middle of entry level and low level luxury watches. Marathon use the highest quality of ETA quartz movements which are some of the most accurate non-mechanical movement in the world.
Not only this, but Marathon are yet another Swiss brand that choose to use tritium as their lume. This is superior to regular lume paint since it has a half life a lot longer than paint will last. Whether this watch is worth over $700 is another question. There isn’t really too much else like it, but this is a little steep for a quartz based dive watch.
Timex Expedition XL
The Timex Expedition XL is a very inexpensive and rugged dive watch that is 200 meters water resistant. Although not strictly “military spec”, Timex are a brand that is well known to be able to take a beating. Former navy SEAL and author Jocko Willink is well known for wearing his Timex Ironman every day.
Useful features on this watch include a 100 hour chronograph which is very suitable for underwater diving, as well as 3 daily alarms. The dial is very visible underwater and like all other Timex watches, this has a strong backlight using the Indiglo feature.
G-Shock
Casio G-Shock are well known to be used by various military personnel for their practicality and durability. G-Shock is the most well known brand in the world for withstanding both dull and hard impacts. In short, you can drop this watch out of a 3rd story window and be very confident that it won’t miss a beat.
Not strictly a divers watch, G-Shocks are now often worn as fashion timepieces. With that being said, this rectangular variation is more practical and is purchased more by people who want something useful rather than something which looks nice.
Perhaps the main selling point of a G-Shock watch is value for money. It’s not the absolute cheapest watch on the planet, but is fairly inexpensive and lasts for an extremely long time.
Seiko Prospex
A relatively complicated looking watch that is very easy to use. The Seiko prospex series has a variety of dive watches, with this particular model being the most military themed of the lot.
The key benefits of this watch are that it has both a digital alarm and stopwatch – not a feature that is commonly seen on any kind of analog dive watch. Secondly, the watch is solar powered, so if you stay out in the sun for a couple of hours you will have no problem underwater with no light at all.
Much like all other Seiko watches, you can always trust that the brand will deliver good value for money. Whilst this watch isn’t the greatest dive watch ever made, it is certainly very solid and durable.
