When we introduced, last January, some of the innovations that would soon be launched at the Geneva Motor Show, we gave a preview of one of the most interesting innovations presented by the Richemont Group, and for more than one reason, also the most unexpected, the Replica Cartier Caliber de Cartier Diver.
We were not the only ones because, speaking with other industry journalists and enthusiasts, everyone was wondering why Cartier had launched a professional, ISO certified diver’s watch, and why Cartier. However, I gave myself an explanation, natural for those like me who do not come from the world of blogging: all the brands of the group are independent and, although they share technologies and components, each follows its own product strategies, whilst respecting tradition and brand identity.
The Cartier Caliber de Cartier Diver is a professional diver with ISO 6425 certification. This certification is actually not that rare in the world of watches, at least outside of Europe because you find it on almost all Japanese divers who, if you may have noticed, have usually the wording “Diver’s” instead of “Water Resistant” on their dial or in their instruction booklet. What is the difference between the Cartier Diver and any Water Resistant watch?
A Water Resistant is, in short, air and sample tested on the entire production, whereas an ISO 6425 certified watch is, to name a few, tested on 100% of the production, at 125% of the indicated static pressure (300m in this case ) and for prolonged use in water. The tests that (every) Cartier Caliber de Cartier Diver must pass are various, you can find them HERE and also summarized on the certificate that accompanies the watch when you purchase it. These are complex and rigorous tests that require very robust design and construction, so that the difference between this and any Water Resistant watch can be felt immediately.
The tolerances between the parts are minimal; the 120-click unidirectional rotating bezel has a precise, millimetric click and, if you put three divers from three different brands on a table, you will notice, and I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, that none of them have a helium valve because, evidently, the sealing of a Diver is so high as to prevent the mixture of pressurized oxygen and helium from entering the tank during the dive phase.
The Cartier Caliber de Cartier Diver has a 42mm case but is only 11mm thick, a very low value which broadens its use, it is still a Cartier, obtained thanks to the compact dimensions of the caliber 1904MC, an automatic mechanical with balance wheel that oscillates at 4Hz and 48-hour power reserve. The bezel is not ceramic as it might seem at first glance but has an ADLC (Amorphous Diamond Like Carbon) treated aluminum ring which gives it a similar “lacquering” appearance.
The Cartier Caliber de Cartier Diver is available with a rubber strap (or with a steel bracelet), which is very reminiscent of that of the IWC Aquatimer presented this year ago and is offered at 6,800 euros. This Diver represents a further step in the technical upgrade of Cartier’s “access” range (if we consider that the maison’s production extends up to the very highest level of watchmaking) and it is nice to see that a maison like the French one is increasingly turning to true watchmaking enthusiasts and those enthusiasts whose expertise has grown over time.