If you are tool watch enthusiast, there is no way that you will not be aware of Omega. The watchmaker’s reputation in precision tool watchmaking precedes it. Over the years, Omega has pretty much established itself as a stalwart in the industry with the help of some spectacular creations. Just recently, the Swiss horologist announced the launch of a new Seamaster reference and we could hardly contain our excitement.
The New Omega Seamaster Diver 300M – Nekton Edition
The Nekton Foundation believes in environmental conservation and that the best way to do so is through science. The foundation is doing its share by perpetuating scientific exploration of the oceans. It was only logical for Omega to team up with Nekton Foundation given the brand’s long-running history with the oceans.
The Nekton Foundation
Nekton is a charity and not-for-profit organization based in the United Kingdom. The foundation is committed to the protection as well as exploration of the world’s oceans. Nekton works in collaboration with bodies like Oxford University to take care of the world oceans and at the same time conduct expeditions to better understand them. Right now, as you read this, a series of explorations by the name ‘First Descent’ is underway in the Indian Ocean.
The First Descent missions began in the year 2019 to survey and protect the Indian Ocean. These expeditions use a submersible vessel dubbed as the Seamaster 2, a fact that is engraved on the case back of the new Nekton edition of the Seamaster timepiece. However, the vessel is not named after the watch, if that’s what you’re thinking. The name is to honour the late Sir Peter Blake, a former explorer himself and the captain of the boat of the same name. Sir Peter Blake kept advocating the need to protect our oceans up until his demise in 2001.
A Brief History Of the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M
The Omega Seamaster Diver 300M has always been a cult classic. The watch was originally available in a Swiss quartz / automatic movement. It started getting popular around the year 1993 and became a permanent icon after its inclusion in the Bond franchise. The first James Bond movie to have the Omega Seamaster was ‘Golden Eye’.
The watch received a complete revamp in 2018 and came fitted with the in-house manufactured Calibre 8800 Master Chronometer. The Nekton Edition of the Omega Seamaster belongs to this generation of Omega watches.
What’s New?
The first thing that any watch enthusiast would notice is that the Nekton Edition of the Seamaster Diver 300M is not shiny. In fact, it takes away all the glitter from the watch. This is because of the new grade-5 titanium bezel that is being used instead of the usual ceramic one. This gives the watch a little bit of character and makes it stealthy in appearance.
The watch offers conventional lyre lugs and polished as well as brushed finishes. Another new feature included in the timepiece is the laser-ablated diving scale. The ablated texture gives the diving scale numerals a positive relief and better legibility. The diving scale numerals are themselves quite large and prominent.
The dial is made of black ceramic (zirconium dioxide) which is a brilliant choice as it gives the timepiece additional character and a very sleek aesthetic. The wave patten on the dial is laser engraved and amazing to look at. Design elements such as Super-LumiNova treated large applied plots and skeleton hands are iconic. The monochromatic theme of the timepiece is further enhanced by a tough of red. This can be seen in the form of the central seconds hand and the ‘Seamaster’ inscription on the dial.
Getting Into The Details
With the case dimeter of 42 mm, the watch possesses a decent size and wrist presence, something that we usually expect from an Omega timepiece. The case is made of the usual 316L stainless steel whilst the uni-directional rotating bezel is made of brushed and polished grade-5 titanium. The helium escape valve located at the 10 o’clock position is signature Seamaster. The watch has a screwed-in crown and a scratch resistant, domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment. Needless to say, the timepiece comes with a 300-meter water resistance.
The Movement used in the watch is the Calibre 8806, an automatic mechanical mechanism with Omega’s Co-axial escapement. The METAS certified Master Chronometer comes with silicon balance spring and is resistant to magnetic field of up to 15,000 gausses. Lastly, the movement offers a power reserve of up to 55 hours.
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