Introduced in October 2020, the Deepstar Re-Edition marks the re-birth of an iconic dive watch brand, Aquastar.
The brand was founded by Mr. Frédéric Robert in 1962 for producing professional grade diving watches. In 2020, Aquastar made its return to the world of Swiss made diving watches with a brand new vintage-inspired chronograph.
The new Deepstar Re-Edition is a modern, yet strikingly faithful adaptation of Aquastar’s most emblematic dive watch from 1962.
At the helm of the modern Aquastar rebirth is watch industry veteran and longtime dive watch historian& entrepreneur Rick Marei, who spent over twenty years bringing iconic vintage dive watches out of the shadows and into the collecting conscious of the global watch community, ultimately yielding some of the industry’s best-known independent brand revival stories of the last two decades.
The new 2020 Aquastar Deepstar Chronograph is powered by a custom Swiss-made column wheel chronograph movement from LaJoux-Perret –specialists in Swiss-made manufacture calibres, and the perfect partner through which the Aquastar’s signature mono-compax display could be preserved.
A prolific diver, sportsman, and innovator, every Aquastar watch designed and produced by Robert in the1960s held ground breaking patents not yet deployed in wristwatch applications. These patents included water-resistant crown designs, inner rotating bezels, and special “node compression” calculation bezels that could be used for multiple dives.
The modern Aquastar Deepstar watch is water resistant to 200 meters. Its 40.5mm diameter, solid stainless steel case is topped with a scratch-resistant domed sapphire crystal. Its pushers have also been engineered to be safely activated underwater–a rare hallmark of a true dive chronograph.
Just like the original model of 1962, the stainless steel case of the Aquastar Deepstar Re-Edition is topped with a rotating bezel bearing the brand’s own “no decompression” table that a diver could use to time repeated dives, in addition to calculating the duration of time which could be safely spent at any given depth without needing to incur a time consuming and potentially dangerous decompression period.
The Aquastar Deepstar Re-Edition will be available in three dial options: blue, grey, and the original black; each limited to an opening series of 300 individually numbered pieces. The high-density old radium style luminous coating ensures dial legibility under water and during low light conditions.
The Aquastar Deepstar Chronograph has a full retail price of $3,590, but it maybe pre-ordered during the brand’s launch period for $2,790.
Technical details
Model: Aquastar Deepstar Re-Edition
Case
316L Stainless Steel case with highly domed, AR triple coated sapphire crystal
Diameter: 40.5mm
Height: 14.8mm
Bezel: Rotating, stainless steel with decompression engravings
Water resistance: 200meters (pushers may be activated underwater)
Dial
Steel grey sunburst dial design
Applied stainless steel markers/indices
Very high density filling old light Radium superluminova application
Movement
High-end Swiss Made Manufacture caliber
Mono-Compax Column Wheel mechanical Chronograph
Second chronograph at center
30mincounter at 3h
Running indicator at 9h
Physical dimensions: Ø30.40×7.90mm
Cage diameter: Ø30.00mm
Frequency 4Hz
Power reserve: 55h
Reassembly: Bi-directional automatic
Number of rubies: 28
Rotor: Aquastar decorated and skeletonized Rotor
Functions
Hour, minute and seconds indicators
Operation indicator at 9
30 minute stopwatch sub-counter at 3
Successive/Multiple dive non-decompression table calculator according to the French Navy dive tables
Strap
Set of 2straps included in the pre-order
Matching color
22mm lug width
Genuine original Tropic rubber strap with signed Aquastar buckle
Horween shell cordovan leather strap with signed Aquastar buckle
Stainless Steel BOR bracelet with fitted end links (available from January 2021)
Retail price
$3,590 (Pre-Order Price:$2,790)
