When a watch is designed by someone who has actual diving experience both personally and professionally it gives an added sense of security. That security is cemented when the people responsible for bringing the watch to life, actually test the watch out in the field. That is exactly what Paul does with each of his watches. Paul from Scurfa actually takes his watches into the murky cold North Sea to personally put them to the test. Of course that’s not enough for me, I have to put the watch through my own tests to be completely satisfied. Staying inside of a light box is not the lazy kind of testing/reviewing that I am talking about either. Today I will be testing out the quartz version of the Diver One from Scurfa.

The Diver One arrived in Scurfa’s signature screw together bolt box. It is a smaller size plastic box that is unique and functional. I have had the opportunity to review a few of watches from Scurfa and each watch has arrived safely in this style of packaging. ”Watch supplied in our German manufactured Twist Box the same type of box used to supply a range of spare parts to the diving and offshore industry only made on a larger scale for Scurfa Watches.”

The blue dial and blue bezel insert what initially caught my attention. It’s a darker shade of matte blue which fits this watch nicely. The Diver One case measures at 40mm x 47.7mm x 14mm which I typically gravitate towards watches in the 43mm-45mm are. I have to say though it is nice to experience watches in all sizes, even if I don’t necessarily agree with what current trends try to dictate what I should be wearing. The older that I become I am consciously aware of not limiting myself to experiencing watches that are just in my comfort zone. The Diver One definitely wears with comfort in both size and weight. The genuine rubber strap assists with the comfort of this watch especially when I was in the sand and in the water.

The case of the Diver One has some added details that I really appreciate and like. The drilled lugs are one of those appreciated details on this watch because I believe it not only serves a functional purposes but it also serves on an aesthetic purpose. Functionally, drilled lugs allow for easier and cleaner strap changes in my opinion by allowing you to get to the strap bar. Even with the right tools you end up with scratched lugs because some non drilled lugs spring bars are hard to access. This kind of thoughtfulness by Scurfa can also be found on the bezel and the crown.

To reference back to what I was implying earlier about where experience in the field comes into play in the design of a watch how these details function with ease. Rotation of the bezel is done with easy grip and smooth action. I love the smooth rotation without any of that annoying extra play that plagues more watches. Something else I appreciate about this bezel is how it lines up with the markers on the dial. It drives my OCD tendencies absolutely crazy when the bezel triangle/pip doesn’t line up exactly with the 12 o’clock hour marker. The 7mm screw down crown with the signed D1 logo is a generous size to grip and to operate. The crown itself is well protected by the crown guards.

The domed Sapphire crystal gives you the ideal ”looking glass” into the dial itself. The dial is matte blue just as the bezel insert and both look incredible together. The large white markers allow for optimal legibility in daylight situations and thanks to the Super Luminova BGW9 application it is legible at night as well. The lume on the dial glows an awesome blue which matches perfectly the faux pearl pip on the bezel. What I can honestly say without any doubt, I am 110% happy with the hands choice on this watch. No Mercedes style hands, no snowflake style hands, just perfectly sized sword style hands here. Crisp white hands, just as are the painted white hour markers. The hour, minute and second hand are ideally proportioned to this dial where they reach to the intended locations on the dial.

This is the ideal watch to wear when you need to keep an eye on the time during activities that you know your watch is going to take some abuse. Scurfa put this watch through it’s paces and I have as well. My conclusion? It can handle it, but what impresses me more is the $200 price. Yes it has a Ronda 513SM quartz movement but it also has Super Luminova BGW9, domed sapphire crystal, drilled lugs with toughass single shoulder springs, signed crown, I can go on further to support why I think it is an impressive watch at $200. Paul certainly knows his way around in the depths of the cold, murky sea, but he also knows his way around designing a watch. A watch that can handle abuse out in the field and abuse of every day life without the worry of failure.

As always thank you for reading and your questions and comments are certainly welcome below.

Thanks to Paul and Scurfa.

Specification

Case size 40 mm by 47.7 by 14mm, 20mm strap size
316L Surgical grade Stainless Steel
7mm screw down crown with D1 logo
120 Click unidirectional bezel
Aluminium bezel insert with Luminous pearl
Matt blue dial with brushed steel hands
Super Luminova BGW9 on the dial, hands and bezel pearl (glows blue)
Domed sapphire crystal with blue Anti Reflective coating on the underside
Ronda 513SM Non Date Quartz movement
300m ~ 1000ft
Drilled through lugs with strong single shoulder spring bars 20mm X 2mm X 1.2mm
Scurfa Watches blue rubber strap based on the Italian leather straps seen on a lot of vintage diving watches today
12 Months warranty