... for diving. As many of you know, I'm a newly-certified diver and now have to think about buying equipment. Know that I need a watch, so that will be the first purchase. Now, which one?

Welcome any suggestions. I'm technically-incompentent, so don't need bells and whistles. Just a reasonable one that's easy to see and use. Suggestions on where to purchase??? On-line, at a local shop, wait until I get to Bonaire (I'm always happy to leave my $$ there unless it's more expensive to do so)? If on-line, where?

I know BTers have opinions on everything, so all are welcome... Thanks,

hi josie - i'm a fairly new diver, myself. I asked the very same question of many of my diver friends. The best advice i got (and followed) was to buy the least expensive waterproof (not water resistent) thati could find. check out Seiko, Timex, Casio, etc. I think if you wait until after Xmas, the prices will be even lower.

I bought my diving watch online at www.overstock.com at a great price but would not do it again. It's a bit bulky on my wrist, which i had no way of knowing until i received it. too lazy to return it for another model which may or may not have the same problem.
Check out Target, Walmart, etc. You will get what you need at an inexpensive price.
I believe i will be in Bonaire while you are there. look forward to meeting you.
mimi
p.s. Bonaire is more expensive for all dive gear, including watches & batteries.

Thanks, Mimi. I'm looking SO forward to Bonaire in Feb. Hope to see you: will you join us for the Progessive Dinner and the east shore clean-up? After Christmas we'll be reviewing who's there when and pick some dates.

I have found that there is no such thing as a dive watch that isn't bulky on the wrist if you have wrists as small as mine. They don't seem to make too many dive watches in women's sizes...

Generally, what to get depends on what toys you want on the watch. If you want it to be a backup depth gauge, mini dive computer, etc., then expect to pay out some $$$, and look at Suunto or Citizen for quality (I have the Citizen Aqualand Duplex, and love it -- as long as I'm diving. It's waaay too big for daily wear -- looks rather ridiculous on me if I'm not underwater).

If you just want a watch that just tells time and isn't going to implode at depth, there are some decent watches (including ones that would fit a woman's wrist) available, and for decent prices, too. Water resistant is actually OK -- as long as it's resistant to a minimum of 300 feet, and 600 would be better. I had an old FreeDive analog watch that I used as a dive watch for my first two years of diving. Couldn't kill the thing. Strap gave out a long time ago, and I had it on a velcro strap that I wrapped around the clip strap on my console. Then the battery finally died (I'd had it for many years before I started diving -- very water resistant is good for kayaking, too). Found the Citizen before I got the battery replaced on the FreeDive, so I haven't gone back to it... I think the FreeDive cost me less than $50 ten years ago...

Faith

My partner wears a Freestyle and thinks it's great. I bit the bullet and bought a Suunto Mosquito dive computer/watch. There were a number of reasons for my doing so. 1) my dive watch had problems and couldn't be fixed here 2) my computer went up at the same time. It is still bulky on my wrist but I can see the numbers on land and in the water. Major advantage. It also tracks your dives and gives you lots of information such as water temp, average depth, and a dive profile. It may be more than some folks want but I am in the water almost daily and wouldn't be without it. Takes a standard 2032 batery which I can replace myself. It all depends on your needs and how much you want to spend.

Post script
I would buy it in the states

I have a freestyle and recently bought the mosquito for my daughter. I've had the freestyle (time only) since 1996 and have never had a problem with it. The mosquito can be downloaded to your pc. :-)

Josie, If you want a watch that you can where all the time ,even out to dinner,and you don't want all the bells and whistles, just check out the cheap watches in any department store. I bought a dressy Anne Klein watch for $50 two years ago and I haven taken it off since. I dive nearly everyday in the summer. It says that it is water resistant to 65ft, but I have had it down to 130ft with no problem. The face is kind of small but under water you can see it OK. The way I look at it is if it should give up I'll just get a new one for that price. Good luck and Happy Holidays

My wife and I both use a Casio G-Shock watch. There are several models with different features. Price is from $29 to about $70 depending on which bells and whistles you get.
As a side note; many companies specify that watches must be water-resistant to 200 meters to be covered by their warranty for scuba diving. This may seem to be much deeper than necessary, however my Casio manual says it's because of instantaneous pressure changes when you move your arm quickly while underwater.
Although mine has some really neat features such as time of sunrise/sunset, temp recording and bar graphing every 5 minutes, the stopwatch function is the one I use on every dive.

If you are looking for just a watch (not a computer), I say go for the a Casio or Timex at your locate department store or discount store. They are water resistant to 300m and you can use the count down alarm or stop watch functions (with thin gloves) to stick to your dive plan. Replace the wrist band with one of those velcro wrist bands. They are usually big enough to wrap around the outside of your wet suit.

If you want dive functions, I would go with a dive computer with a wrist mount. Check out the product reviews on www.scubadiving.com for more information.

All I have is a simple Timex 'Ironman'. It is only resistent to 100 meters but I have had no problems at all. The thing is so old the printing on the case is almost all worn off. It has lived through two battery changes and still hasn't failed on a dive.

One thing to do with any watch you take underwater that has a strap with the usual spring-loaded slide pins securing the strap to the housing is to make sure you desalt the pins after your trip--if not they corrode and break. Almost lost my watch that way, did lose half the strap. Best to remove the strap and use a desalter like Salt-X to make sure the salt is gone.

Salt-X works on any gear safely--good for cameras, also. Gets the salt out of shaft o-rings, salt that simply does not come out with any rinsing: then the crystals cut the o-ring when you are testing ashore later, then they leak. The camera repair people use it before trying to open any gear that comes in for work. Do use it as recommended; don't leave clear plastic things soaking too long.

Casio G shock for Marcia & me Josie, if you're after nothing more than a watch.
Ours have both suffered 5 years of inconsiderate abuse & despite having a display illumination function which we've used to excess, they are both still using the same batteries that they were sold with! I attach mine to a ring on my stab jacket just above my octopus holder. That way it's easy to see with the aid of one hand to point the face towards your own & more importantly I don't have to rely on Dr Alzheimer to remind me to put it on my wrist.

Thanks, Andy. Several others have mentioned the Casio G Shock. I just looked at Casio On-Line and there's a pile of different ones, including the Baby G (for women -- smaller).

This is what they say about a Baby G model that's on special right now for $89:
On Special: Baby-G File BGF340F-4T

Shock resistant
Electro-luminescent backlight
Memory Function
Memory capacity: up to 20 sets of data, each set including:
name, telephone number and cell phone (or pager) number
Other: Auto sort funtion
1/100 sec. stopwatch
Measuring capacity: 23:59'59.99"
Measuring modes: Net time, split time, 1st-2nd place times
Regular timekeeping: Hr, min, sec, am/pm, mo, date, day
Auto-calendar (pre-programmed until the year 2039)
5 multi-function alarms with icons
Hourly time signal
12/24-hour formats
Accuracy: +/-15 seconds per month
Battery: Approx. 2 years on CR1616

Looks like it's got a plastic strap.


Or, there's a regular G Shock for $79, described as follows:

On Special: G-Shock G-Lide X-Treme DW004V-7VT


- EL Backlight
- 1/100" Stopwatch upto 24 hours
- Auto Repeat Timer
- Daily Alarm, Hourly Time Signal
- Full Auto Calendar
- 12/24-hour Timekeeping
- Low Temperature Resistant, -20°C
- Shock Resistant
- 200 Metres Water Resistant
- Mineral Glass
- Cloth Band

Any thoughts? Or should I go shopping in a real store or dive shop for this? I get overwhelmed by all the choices, especially as I don't really know what most of the functions mean. These both look as if they have a clear, fairly large, digital readout, for my old eyes.

I just have a Timex Indigio Expedition. Cheap, reliable, analog, has comparatively big numbers, glow in the dark hands, and a 'push button' to light up the dial (and the room if you are dry and inside). It doesn't give depth, decom time, store phone numbers, or any other the other fancy stuff. It just tells time and is about 1 1/4 inches (30mm) across. I have found that most of the digital watches are hard to read underwater at night.

Josie,

The G Shock is a good watch, but you stated "I'm technically-incompentent, so don't need bells and whistles". Most of that stuff you will never use and the G Shock is a bulky watch. You should go with the cheaper Ironman, Expedition, or Casio model and save your money for other dive gear.

Josie... I think you can get the same watch you saw online for $79 for much less at a local store.
The one my wife bought is the same watch except it has a plastic band and she paid $29 - on sale at Service Merchandise. I also see them at Walmart.

Thanks, Clay. I guess it's time for a trip to Walmart. I don't think we have Service here any more. (Unfortunately, since Walmart came to town, there's a lot of stores we don't have anymore!)