Zodiac watches is a now a brand of swiss watches manufactured by fossil, inc original name of the company was ariste calame and would later become zodiac. It is nice to find them with the original bracelets. Elegant swiss watches for the elevated world explorer. Vintage 1960s zodiac seawolf, popular divers model often associated with the vietnam war and the u. At the bench the restoration of a stunning zodiac sea wolf. The fifty fathoms and submariner today are regarded as upmarket luxury timepieces, but the sea wolf stayed true to its tool watch heritage throughout its history. A 1955 ad from the zodiac watch agency, new york a division of edward trauner inc. She was launched on 15 august 1939 sponsored by mrs. Striking looking example with gray with red detail bakelite bezel and signed zodia crown.
Black original dial with silver indexes and tan eccentric hands with patinad luminous. In 1953 zodiac unveiled the seawolf, one of the first watches with a water resistance rating of 200m and one of the first commercially available dive watches on the market. In 1953 zodiac introduced the sea wolf as the worlds first purposebuilt dive watch manufactured and. The zodiac sea wolf is a classic vintage dive watch. Review of the new zodiac heritage seawolf watchuseek. According to my 1971 zodiac catalog the bezel on this is 9k gold and it originally sold with a t. The watch looks just as fashionable today as it did 50years ago. Seawolf and superduxx offer a 5year warranty on craftsmanship and have a turn around time of 2 weeks or less. The sea wolf featured the caliber 7072 automatic movement that was a collaboration between eta and a.
The new steel bracelet is currently available on the reference zo9257 green dial and reference zo9258 blue dial models. Jan 10, 2016 i have both the zodiac seawolf and aerospace, both with letters of provenance from their military service. Zodiac is a very well known quality swiss watch company. The name zodiac was used early but was not registered until 1908.
Below you will find some interesting facts about them, and a little history. Id like to add a nice white dial seawolf to the watch menagerie in future. This model has a gold bezel instead of the silver plated bezel which is normally found on these. Zodiac seawolf sst 36,000 philipp rittermann on july 26, 2018 at 03.
Typically you may lose 1 psi of air over a 30day period with a seawolf or superduxx boat. Zodiac watches is a brand of swiss watches owned and manufactured by fossil group. But, it did happen and the brand got swept away like so many others, only to be bought and sold and bought again years later. The original name of the company was ariste calame and. In 1882, ariste calame founded a workshop for the production of special watches in le locle, switzerland. The included unused swiss tropic band and original buckle is valuable on its own. The stylish design of the 1960s seawolf seems to be timeless. With zodiacs forthcoming rerelease of the sea wolf, its a good excuse to look back at the pioneering watchs history and evaluate the new watch.
Most watch collectors will at least have a passing knowledge of recent zodiac history. They both wear wonderfully on the wrist, a little small and understated. These include the astrographic, olympus, spacetronic, sea chron and autographic to name a few. This as1700 movement was also produced as 1580, 1641,1681 and 1709 and other model numbers are seen on sea wolf rotors. We float past a myriad of vibrantcoloured coral, spot garden eels on the sandy sea surface and perhaps even some tuna, whitetip reef sharks, masked puffers and. Zodiac and the story behind the curious point series. Zodiac seawolf diver nos blue bezel the global knomad. Discover a large selection of zodiac sea wolf watches on chrono24 the worldwide marketplace for luxury watches.
In 1953, the brand released its original and nowiconic sea wolf. It features a complete kit and is waterproof to 3330 feet. Zodiacs super sea wolf 68 is a celebration of dive watch. This is a very nice condition example, featuring a 35mm diameter case, gray bakelite elapsed time bezel, and very nice condition original matte silver dial with raised indexes, prominent 6, 9, and 12 triangular shaped indexes, and tapered luminous hands. They were major innovators for a time, and had the quartz crisis never happened, could have been one of the major brands today. The history of zodiac watch watch repair fullservice. The last super seawolf model was only made from 19992001. Zodiac is a brand with a rich dive watch heritage that is sometimes overlooked by enthusiasts and collectors due to the ubiquity of the submariner and the seamaster, but in truth, their sea wolf debuted to much fanfare way back in 1953, making it one of the first timepieces purposebuilt for the then relatively new recreational sport of scuba diving. Watches are one of those possessions that you want to have a spellbinding story behind it or a distinguished history that sets it apart from other. However, nothing has ever been as popular as the original 1960s seawolf. The rest of us just appreciate the fact that we can wear.
Zodiac sea wolf all prices for zodiac sea wolf watches. The seawolf and super seawolf were famous in 60s during the vietnam war. Zodiac has been slow to get attention from collectors, despite having great history and some interesting models. Big brother is 650 metres long and 180 metres wide. Zodiac s rejuvenation of our most enduring collections revives this commitment and reestablishes the origins and spirit we were founded upon. This is a later model 699 and has the count down bezel but the dial. The dial has some gentle ageing and patina, but still looks great. Uss seawolf ss197, a sargoclass submarine, was the second submarine of the united states navy named for the seawolf her keel was laid down on 27 september 1938 by the portsmouth navy yard in kittery, maine.
The first divers watch with a rotating bezel, the zodiac sea wolf was announced at the basel fair together with the fifty fathoms from. The original name of the company was ariste calame and would later become zodiac. Released in 1953, during the initial boom of the dive watch, the sea wolf vintage version above slowly but surely became the goto piece for divers either unwilling or unable to pay the prices commanded by rolex, omega, and other luxury brands. Zodiac super sea wolf 53 compression zo9257, zo9258 watches. Since ariste calame first set up his workshop in 1882, zodiac has been building. Zodiac super sea wolf 53 compression zo9257, zo9258 watches on new bracelet handson oct 12, 2016 by ariel adams f or 2016, zodiac has quietly introduced a new bracelet for some versions of the popular and affordable retrothemed mechanical zodiac super sea wolf 53 compression i know, the name is a mouthful diver watch collection. It is competing vs aquadives, doxa, longines and oris at this pricepoint. Both islands are of volcanic origin and sit atop a mountain ridge which plunges well over 1,000 metres in depth from the west side to the east side. Zodiacs rejuvenation of our most enduring collections revives this commitment and reestablishes the origins and spirit we were founded upon. In the 1990s zodiac watches were being produced by zodiac sa in neuchatel. New york city, he is a persistent student in all things historical, a writer on watches.
For those unfamiliar, zodiac has a long, storied history. This most recent restoration very well illustrates many of the internal issues one can face when diving into the the lair of the sea wolf. Kalbfus and commissioned on 1 december 1939, lieutenant frederick b. From the stately sea dragon chronographs racinginspired details and the super sea wolf 53s iconic silhouette to the automatic sea dragons colorful dial options and the sea wolf 68s reimagining of a treasured classic, each of our swiss watches for men brings a unique set of offerings to the table. I am a small time collector, and farm all of my service and repair needs out to a professional watchmaker.
Not only was this the first dive watch designed with a rotating bezel, but it was. Zodiac watches is a brand of swiss watches manufactured by fossil, inc. The modernday zodiac sea wolf is one of these series. Time to play a naval and submarine video game title. This vintage 1970s zodiac super sea wolf dive watch is all original including the black dial, lume and handset. I purchased my first zodiac sea wolf in 1967 while serving in the us marine corps. Collectible zodiac super sea wolf kits at time machine. Here are photos of seven of them that you can download as desktop wallpaper. May 27, 2015 for those unfamiliar, zodiac has a long, storied history. The classic zodiac sea wolf a history the spring bar.
Vintage zodiac watches are known for their unique designs. This heritage seawolf captures the original 1960s design and is just. Once an incredibly innovative and highly regarded brand, they like many others hit hard times as quartz killed the middle market for timepieces. F or 2016, zodiac has quietly introduced a new bracelet for some versions of the popular and affordable retrothemed mechanical zodiac super sea wolf 53 compression i know, the name is a mouthful diver watch collection.
Jul 20, 2018 zodiac is a brand with a rich dive watch heritage that is sometimes overlooked by enthusiasts and collectors due to the ubiquity of the submariner and the seamaster, but in truth, their sea wolf debuted to much fanfare way back in 1953, making it one of the first timepieces purposebuilt for the then relatively new recreational sport of scuba diving. The zodiac seawolf has been redesigned several times over the years. This new zodiac is an updated larger 39mm version of the same watch, and is part of the new zodiac heritage collection. To date, the original sea wolf, and its successor, the early1970s super sea wolf, are widely considered two of the most iconic commercial dive watches in history. Since 1882, founder ariste calame and the zodiac watch brand have been dedicated to excellence in design, innovation and creativity. After a successful period that started roughly in the 1950s and continued through the 70s, the brand, like so many others, faltered during the quartz crisis. I continue to enjoy the heritage collection from zodiac which takes classic designs from the brands history and makes them new again. Zodiac super sea wolf 53 compression zo9257, zo9258. When it was a featured at the swiss watch pavilion at the 1964 worlds fair in new york, it really gained in popularity. This is a replacement tutone band with nos yellow zodiac clasp. The company changed hands a few times and is currently owned by fossil. It also sold for more than twice the amount of a regular sea wolf.
Ssn21 seawolf, a really nice simulation game sold in 1994 for dos, is available and ready to be played again. The zodiac seawolf is a uniquely striking watch which sort of blazed its own trail with regards to styling. The zodiac super sea wolf is the real collectors dive watch. The release of the zodiac sea wolf is scheduled for spring 2015, with the united states and asia as the primary markets, and has already had a chance to see some of prototypes at the brands workshop in bienne, switzerland. Brother islands seawolf diving safari tauchsafaris im. Maybe the should have gone the panerai route and puffed up their history while releasing wildly priced timeonly pieces with strange references to questionable military exploits.
Since 1882, founder ariste calame and the zodiac watch brand have been. When it was a featured at the swiss watch pavilion at the. Schild movements and the 17 jewel as1624 was used by zodiac and ernest borel. Zodiac seawolf chronograph super divers with images zodiac. The dial is a nicely aged original with applied gold luminous markers and hands, 92%. In the decades that followed, zodiac went through a number of deaths and rebirths. Find great deals on ebay for zodiac sea wolf and zodiac seawolf. Zodiac sea wolf all prices for zodiac sea wolf watches on. It is also a great example of a rapidly growing parts problem in the vintage watch world. You can see all of our listings by scrolling down to the seller information section and clicking on the view current listings button. In 1953 zodiac introduced the sea wolf as the worlds first purposebuilt dive watch manufactured and marketed to the masses.
The automatic, rotor winding zodiac movement was recently cleaned and overhauled and is keeping accurate time. But, it did happen and the brand got swept away like so many others, only. Stylish guys love their rugged elegance, while watchheads geek out over their technical design and history. I have the exact same watch discussed in this thread. Zodiac watch founded in 1882 in le locle, switzerland. In 1990 the address of the zodiaccalame company was care of paul buhre in le locle but the zodiac watch company was still in new york. Like all vintage pieces however, it has its quirks. Wonderful early zodiac seawolf automatic vintage black dial. Zodiac make sure to look at all of our 300400 vintage watches we have constantly listed on chrono24. What this means, of course, is that some changes can and most likely will be made to the different. As far as divers watches are concerned, few are as iconic, reliable, and reasonable as the zodiac seawolf. Other inflatable boats leak 23 psi within 24 hours. Zodiac watch company 35mm stainless steel especially water tested to twenty atmospheres signed seawolf case, 88%.
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