Zodiac Sea-Chron

Some watches are so evocative of the time and the place in which they were made that they can be considered veritable snapshots of the era. The Zodiac Sea-Chron, for example, is a watch that screams '1960s.' From the silver rotating bezel, capped by its luminescent pip, to the funky retro font on the dial, the watch is product of the time in which it was made. But the Sea-Chron’s robust case and internals speak for its quality. Beyond mere aesthetics, this is a watch that was made to stand the test of time. Though Zodiac’s most popular chronographs are perhaps the “Poor Man’s Heuers” —which functionally used the same dials, cases, and movements as popular models like the Heuer Carrera — Zodiac’s association with sports did not end with driving. Swept up in the furor that followed the release of the Sea-Wolf, Zodiac felt emboldened to release a slew of other aquatic watches. One of these was the Zodiac Sea-Chron, the watch we offer here. The Sea-Chron was the successor to another chronograph, the Zodia-Chron. But the Sea-Chron took the slim lines of the Zodia-Chron and beefed them up, making it a watch ideal for use underwater. A combination of a dive watch and a chronograph, the Sea-Chron was rated to 20 ATM. (We should note that we don't recommend using this now-vintage one underwater — enjoy it on dry land, instead!) While the Zodia-Chron was capped by a fixed tachymeter bezel, ideal for use on land, the Sea-Chron featured a rotating bezel like dive watches such as the Zodiac Sea Wolf. And at its heart beats the Valjoux 72 movement, used by brands throughout the industry — including by Rolex in its famed Cosmograph Daytona. Beyond its appearance, the Sea-Chron is replete with details that mark it as a watch of the sea: Check out the knurling around the bezel and the oversized pushers, for example, which makes them easy to be used by divers wearing gloves. Other small details endear us to this particular example: Within the confines of its 39mm stainless steel case is a 'ghosted' aluminum diver's bezel insert with the first 20 minutes demarcated in black. Its black luminous dial, meanwhile, features the aforementioned outer tachymeter scale in white, an inner 1/5th-seconds track, a triple-register chronograph display, luminous rectangular and circular hour plots, and a luminous 'baton' handset. Finally, this piece is paired with a period-correct, stainless steel, riveted 'Oyster'-style bracelet with a Zodiac-signed folding clasp and straight end links.  Though now more likely to be used when desk-diving rather than SCUBA diving, the Sea-Chron remains the perfect 1960s chronograph — which is why it still resonates with collectors today.