Good Cheap Dive Watches

[donnad]

wow, i'm glad to hear someone had a good st. moritz service experience, but uh, wonder why it flooded........maybe the crown wasn't screwed back in properly?? our watches arrived a couple days ago. will get to use them hopefully on july 20,21 at flower gardens

 

[tiburon72157]

the helix is no longer in production. you can find them here and there, but the issue is this. the batteries are usually dead or close to it, in any you can still find. and 99% of the watch shops out there are old school, do not use the correct materials to reseal the watch case after replacing the battery. as such, it floods and is destroyed when it goes under. you need to find a good watch "repair" guy who has experience with dive watches, and can reseal the case CORRECTLY.

 

[cra2]

I TOTALLY agree with you tiburon.
found out the hard way.
took my favorite little $8 aquatech to the battery store and told them to replace the batteries. blammo - filled with water on the next dive.
you're right - you HAVE to be careful about taking your stuff to someone who KNOWS how to seal it back up for diving.
Not that the $8 set me back too much, lol, but I liked that little bugger.
My good luck charm. Went to over 100' with me on more than one ocassion.

the helix is no longer in production. you can find them here and there, but the issue is this. the batteries are usually dead or close to it, in any you can still find. and 99% of the watch shops out there are old school, do not use the correct materials to reseal the watch case after replacing the battery. as such, it floods and is destroyed when it goes under. you need to find a good watch "repair" guy who has experience with dive watches, and can reseal the case CORRECTLY.

 

[cra2]

Here's a tip for anybody who wants a deal on a basic dive watch. I bought an Aquatech watch at Walmart for under $6.00 and it has been a fantastic SCUBA watch....

last time I went into walmart, they didn't have the aquatechs.
I was gonna pick up another one but they didn't have them.
There was another line in their place, called Athletic Works.
Some of the body styles look EXACTLY like the aquatechs did.

Does anyone know if these are the same watches under a new brand name?
Has anyone tried them while diving to confirm?

thanks

 

[Scott T]

Gotta say, I love this board. There's always something to learn from. I wear fairly cheap watches at work so if they get smashed, no big deal.

My current is an Ironman WR100. After reading this thread, I have no problem at all in using it as a backup timer.

I figure Smashed...Flooded, not much difference.

Scott T

 

[dk2943]

I went into the Walmart in North Miami near Joe Robbie Stadium. They had many watches to 165 feet. Some were 7.87 and others were $5.00

 

[cra2]

last time I went into walmart, they didn't have the aquatechs.
I was gonna pick up another one but they didn't have them.
There was another line in their place, called Athletic Works.
Some of the body styles look EXACTLY like the aquatechs did.

Does anyone know if these are the same watches under a new brand name?
Has anyone tried them while diving to confirm?

thanks

Hey, I'm quoting myself, how wierd...
anyways...
Yes, I picked up the Athletic Works watch (under $10).
It went down to 80' or so and has been on several dives so far.
Still ticking.
(though it's digital, so I guess I should say, still beepin')