Welsbro Diver

Of late, there have been plenty (too many?) brands resurrected where the new owner recreates a model from the old brand’s lineup, with little ingenuity, innovation, or creativity, and with plenty of concessions to modern preferences. Then there’s Welsbro. At the end of this review, you may think, “What’s the difference between Welsbro and the indolent rehashers?” Well, vintage watches haven’t been done like this. The brainchild of Portland-based couple Katie and Rich (he’s a watch dealer, she’s a creative director and the brains behind the brand), Welsbro was a defunct brand, another victim of the Quartz Crisis … until Katie and Rich bought the name and decided to have some fun creating a diver and a chronograph.

For the Welsbro Diver (and Chronograph), the couple went as full tilt as you can these days: new old stock cases, crowns, crystals, bezels, and movements complemented with new dials, hands, and straps.  Appreciating what Welsbro is doing may require the typical $500 watch buyer to suspend his or her microbrand checklist. Don’t come into this expecting modern specs or even modern design. The entire purpose of Welsbro is to have fun and embrace the charm, beauty, and quirkiness of old watches.

Right out of the box, the Welsbro Diver pulls you in and gets you excited. The dial forcefully grabs your attention, true as it is to this variant’s “Lemon Lime” moniker. I was also taken by the slivers of lume on the hands, which give the appearance of thick black borders. The Monnin case with its broad, polished chamfers contrasts nicely with the matte bezel.

Is this the best watch box ever created? I think it might be. If you buy a Welsbro and are unsure of the spirit of the watches and the brand, the lunchbox case (which also includes a trading card with details about the watch) will set you straight. Given the playful comestible-themed names each variant has, I appreciate the admonishment to not eat the watch. If you’re wondering about the shady canine character, that’s Tony, the Welsbro mascot dog. And he isn’t shady, he’s adorable and charming.

That’s an old case. New old stock, that is. There isn’t some sigh-worthy, eye-rolling story of how these were found in a warehouse and “how could we not make watches from them” and history, legacy, iconic — spare me. No, these were hunted down intentionally, because they are awesome. G. Monnin was a French manufacturing company that gained horological fame in the late 1970s when Heuer, financially struggling and looking to capitalize on the burgeoning dive watch market, used Monnin’s cases for its 844 model. Being as it was a third-party design available to any buyer, watches with ‘Monnin’ cases, like CWC’s RN Diver, were contemporary to the early Heuer divers. While the Monnin company still exists today, its focus is on other parts of the Swiss watch industry, and the ‘Monnin’ case is long gone. It’s a treat to handle what might be one of the better case designs of all time, in brand-new condition. The well-defined brushing, the wide chamfer, and how the crown guards extend organically but terminate abruptly in blocked ends all add to the beauty.

Lord almighty, look at those lines! It’s also a great view of the excellent strap that comes with the watch (which I’ll get to later). The crown is adequately sized but winding action is what I’d describe as “grindy.” You can really feel the mechanics at work with each wind. Nothing to be concerned about, but certainly a different tactile experience from modern crowns.

Sits beautifully on the wrist, doesn’t it? The modesty of old-school dimensions may put some people off, but it should be embraced. The watch world is working its way back to smaller cases, and 37mm is entirely reasonable. With the Monnin case design, the watch doesn’t lean into its dimensions. This isn’t some gold-filled vintage dress watch with thin fancy lugs–it’s still a diver by design, but the case allows it to wear so easily. The bezel is unlumed and bidirectional, but I already warned you about these things, so if you’re scoffing at that, it’s really your own fault. While bidirectional, there is no bezel slipping, which was a relief. Just don’t actually go diving (the Welsbro site actually places an asterisk next to the 200m water resistance spec, suggesting you not test that out, given the old watch parts.

Sprite, Sierra Mist, 7UP, Welsbro. The kings of Lemon Lime. When you’ve got such bold colors splashed on the dial, surrounding it with black and white is the right call, as it doesn’t detract from the main stage. An added benefit is the great legibility afforded by the stark black/white contrast.

The distortion of the domed acrylic crystal is basically nonexistent. If I had a criticism here, it’s the lack of depth and texture to the dial. While the raised chapter ring adds some depth it’s barely noticeable. This is entirely subjective, as there’s nothing wrong with a flat dial, especially one with this much color. I think one of the ways modern microbrands differentiate themselves is with exciting dials. Even though those efforts often leave me feeling overwhelmed, the trend has embedded the unfair notion that dials need texture and depth. Dials with patterns and different finishes and anything beyond the basics are a rather recent proliferation, so keeping things simple was at least accurate to the spirit of the Welsbro Diver.

The lume presented an odd surprise; given how very vintage the watch is, I was expecting the lume to be mediocre, even though I knew the dial and hands were new. So there was a small part of me that was tickled each time I spied the bright glow of the green Super-LumiNova against the darkened yellow dial. Nighttime lemon-lime.

I told you; killer on the wrist. Plus that strap. In addition to the watches, the Welsbro brand’s rebirth includes a veritable slew of excellent straps offered at excellent prices. The strap here was soft and bent easily to the wrist, with no break-in necessary, but also without feeling flimsy. While the case’s lugs are 18mm (in proportion to the case, but sad for me as my strap collection, which is almost entirely 20s and 22s), the straps are offered in 19, 20, and 22 as well. That’s right, vintage Seiko lovers, 19mm. I loved the green suede that came on this, but there’s so much diversity in Welsbro’s offerings, both in color and texture, and the line-up is slated to keep expanding.

I’m realizing that I may not be a vintage watch guy. Despite starting my watch addiction by buying far too many cheap vintage pieces, the only vintage pieces that remain are family heirlooms or hold some other sentimental value. The Welbsro Diver sits somewhere in between new and vintage, though. By combining new and old, it allows lovers of vintage watches and vintage design to avoid the worry and risk that often accompanies buying such timepieces. It is fun and wearing it is fun–how could it not be with those colors and that classic case?

After securing the Welsbro Diver, I finally get why people try to snag super-limited pieces. In the case of this watch, I was intrigued, but it wasn’t a must-have. It was a cool-to-get, but actually getting it was a rush. I looked down at my phone and, with only 5 minutes until the sale went live, saw the reminder I had set; the rest, thanks to Apple Pay, is history. The initial rush was buoyed by sharing my win with friends and finally by getting the watch in hand. The high faded for me a few days after the watch’s arrival; my euphoria plateaued into what I’d describe as disarming charm. Don’t get me wrong, I like this watch and it does everything it promises to, with its unapologetically vintage design and technical specs, great dial (and lume!), and killer strap.

Sadly, the initial stock of all four launch models sold out in 60 seconds. Happily, the brand has 20 more chronographs that they will release in two batches, and plans to launch more models next year. Just as happily, they continue to stock and sell their awesome straps (there’s a Horween basketball leather one that I am definitely buying). Head over to the Welsbro site to check out the models, buy a strap, and get on the list to be notified when the next round of fun watches comes out.