Once upon a time, hearing or reading the phrase ?vintage-inspired dive watch? caused a stir of excitement and anticipation in us watch enthusiasts. The most iconic watches are, after all, mid-century dive watches. But now, we get it. It?s been done by nearly every brand you can imagine, and there is a new one coming out seemingly every other day. This is not to say we don?t still like them, but the novelty is gone. Now, what matters are the details. Being under 40mm and having a domed crystal are no longer enough to justify yet another ?vintage-inspired dive watch.? We?re looking for nuance, cleverness, a timeless quality that would hold up to their forefathers, and something surprising wouldn?t hurt.
Enter Serica, a French brand that has gained a solid reputation since first releasing their line of Dirty Dozen-esque field watches, the 4512s, back in 2019. Blake Buettner reviewed the follow-up version, with an unexpected California dial, in 2020, which you can read here. It left an impression on him, and those of us who got to try it out in the office as well. The question remained in my head, however, as to how or what they would follow this watch up with. Was Serica a one-watch-pony that would continue to permutate on a single successful platform (something we?ve seen from other brands)" Luckily, the answer was, no. And their follow-up, an aforementioned ?vintage-inspired dive watch,? with a similarly old-school ref-number-name (everything can be a throwback), cal...