Model # NA
Brand/Model: Deep Blue Master 1000 Automatic Diver
Movement: Japanese automatic(Seiko/SII)
Material: stainless steel case,stainless steel bracelet or rubber strap
Complications: date display
Price: approximately $300 USD depending on exactmodel and options
Plenty of photos follow the review.Click on the pictures to enlarge.
The micro-brandmovement has never been stronger in the world of watch collecting. Micro-brands or boutique brands are usuallywatches manufactured in China using Chinese, Japanese or Swiss movements andsold direct to the consumer through the company’s web site. For the buyer, these brands offer an array ofstyles and features for prices that are very attractive when compared toname-brand watches with the same features.
There can be downsidesto purchasing a micro-brand watch, mainly in the area of warranty service orrepair. Many micro-brands produce theirspecific models in limited quantities and once that model is sold out, gettingreplacement parts in terms of a dial or handset could be difficult.
The movements, ifthey’re Japanese or Swiss, usually won’t pose a problem for service, as anycompetent watchmaker outside of the micro-brand company’s repair facilityshould be able to service the movement.
Also, many micro-brandsare sold on a pre-order basis, so buyers sometimes have to wait weeks or monthsfor their watches to arrive, but if they are patient, the wait can beworthwhile. One nice aspect of themicro-brand movement is that many of these watches get flipped by early buyers ratherquickly for a variety of reasons, so buyers can pick them up at the same oreven lower prices, without having to wait for the watch to be produced.
Overall, themicro-brand revolution has added a fun and exciting dimension to our watchhobby and most of the micro-branded watches I have owned over the years have proventhemselves to be worth the price of entry and have been just as reliable asname-brand timepieces.
This introductiongets me to the subject of this review, the Deep Blue Master 1000 series of divewatches. Deep Blue has been around since2007 and offers a vast array of diver style watches with a seemingly endlessarray of features, dial colors, bezel materials, etc. Their quality is strong and the brand hasdecent resale value.
Back in June of2011, I reviewed the Deep Blue Master 2000 automatic diver, a watch I havesince sold but now regret selling, as it was a solid, bold and great lookingwatch.
But since then, Ihave recently acquired not one, but two, Deep Blue Master 1000 automaticdivers, which are being reviewed here. Iwill deviate a bit from my normal format of reviews due to the fact that I amcovering two watches instead of one, but the results will be the same, that is,a comprehensive look at both pieces.
To begin with, thethings that are the same with my two examples:
-Model (Deep BlueMaster 1000)
-Movement (JapaneseSeiko/SII NH35A 24-jewel automatic with hacking and manual-wind capability)
-Case size andmaterial (45mm stainless steel)
-Caseback(screwdown stainless steel with embossed diver and individual serial number)
-Crown and HEV(signed screwdown crown at 3 o’clock and manually operated helium escape valveat 10 o’clock)
-Crystal (veryslightly domed sapphire)
-Luminosity (bothblue lume, very average intensity)
-Complications(date display at 3 o’clock)
-Dial printing (DeepBlue name and logo under 12; ‘Master 1000’, ‘automatic’ and 300M/1000ft’ abovethe six position)
-Water resistance(factory rated at 300 meters)
-Bracelet/Strap (standardrubber/silicone strap; optional stainless steel solid link bracelet with solidend links and machined deployant with pushbutton double locking clasp)
-Presentation(zippered nylon hardback carry case)
And thedifferences:
-Bezel insert materialand color (green ceramic vs. black/blue aluminum insert; the actual metal bezelitself is the same with both watches)
-Bezel lume (fulllume bezel markings on ceramic vs. lume pip at 12 o’clock with aluminum insert)
-Dial color andmarkers (green with rectangular markers as part of the chapter ring vs. blackwith round applied markers rimmed in silver)
-Hand set (whitesword style outlined in black vs. black stick minute and white hour hands)
The Master 1000stainless steel case is nicely finished and fully brushed, with a smooth satinlook and feel. The watch does not wear overlylarge and due to the downward curve of the lugs, fits the wrist nicely. The watches also have a good heft to them,which is something I appreciate, especially in a dive watch. After all, if the watch can go to 300 metersdeep, you want it to feel like it can go that deep and not be a delicate doilyon the wrist.
Case dimensions are45.1mm wide; with winding crown it measures 49.3mm. Lug-to-lug measurement is 52.2mm.
The crown isperfectly sized, signed with the Deep Blue logo and knurled for an easygrip. It screws down with about threefull turns. Small crown guards helpprotect the crown from accidental knocks and bumps without getting in the wayof winding or setting the watch.
One nice thingabout this watch, even though it is 45mm in size, it wears smaller and doesn’tfeel overly large on the wrist, due to the curvature of the lugs as mentionedabove.
Lug spacing is 22mmand thickness is 15mm. The caseback isstainless steel, embossed with a diver logo and the Deep Blue name andindividually serialized. Of course, thecaseback screws down to maintain water resistance.
A manual screwdownhelium escape valve (HEV) is located on the left side of the case at the 10position. On both of these examples ofthe Master 1000, I found the HEV to be too tight, it was very hard to turn toopen and close.
Overall fit andfinish is excellent, especially for the price and the look and feel is one ofsolidity, quality and strength.
The Deep BlueMaster 1000 is factory rated for 300 meters/1,000 feet of water resistance.
The realdifferences between these two Master 1000 models is in their dial and hand setpresentation.
The green dialmodel has white sword style hands outlined in black with white rectangularmarkers that are integral with the white chapter ring encircling the dial, soin a sense, they are applied, but more like being overlayed on the dial, whichis fine. The seconds had is a simpleblack stick with a lumed circle towards the tip.
The shade of greenon this dial is what attracted me to this watch. Many people don’t care for green dialwatches. I like the color for a watch,but it has to be the right shade, as lots of green dials are too minty or tooshiny for my tastes. This Deep Bluegreen dial hits the mark perfectly for me.
Both watches have aquickset date window at the 3 position.The date wheel is black on white and setting and alignment within thewindow is good.
Relatively minimaldial printing is present on both models and is identical, as listed above.
The black dialMaster 1000 has a semi-sunburst black dial that has hints of grey in it, it’srather a charcoal dial with a bit of shine.This dial features applied round markers rimmed in silver tone. The markers at 3, 6 and 9 are rectangular andthe marker at 12 is an inverted triangle.All the markers on both watches are blue lume and glow, but not thatbrightly.
A simple whitechapter ring is printed on the black dial with hash marks for the minutes.
The handset on theblack dial model is comprised of stick hands; the hour hand is smaller andwhite outlined in black, so it tends to disappear a bit on the dial. The minute hand is white and outlined insilver tone and is wider than the hour hand to stand out more. The seconds hand is the same as the greendial model, except that it is dark blue in color, and once again, save for thelume ball end, it tends to get lost a bit on the dial.
The bezels are alsodifferent on these watches. The actualmetal part of the bezel is the same, as is the 120-click unidirectionalmotion. The bezels are fairly tight witha bit of backlash.
The green dialmodel has a sharp looking green ceramic bezel insert that has the perfectceramic gloss to it. Some watches as oflate feature ceramic bezels, but are matte in finish and it’s hard to tell thatthey are actually ceramic (my Omega Planet Ocean 8500 is a good example ofthis).
The green bezelinsert has lume-filled hash marks and arabics around the entire bezel and alume-filled inverted triangle at the 12 position. All-in-all, this bezel is a winner.
The bezel insert onthe black dial model is much more plebian in nature. It’s a standard aluminum insert that is halfblack (from the 45 to the 15 marks) and half dark blue (from the 15 clockwiseto the 45 marks). Obviously, this colorcombo was chosen to mimic the Rolex ‘BLNR’ watch has a blue and black ceramicbezel.
The bezel herealmost doesn’t look two-tone because the blue is so dark it blends into therest of the black shades on the watch.This isn’t a demerit so much as a disappointment. If you’re going to make a two-tone bezel,make it stand out as such. There is alsoa slight dimple at the 41 mark on the bezel insert, presumably a point that gotmissed in QC. Not a huge issue, butagain, the insert should be perfect.
The only lume onthe black and blue bezel is the lume pip at the 12 position.
Covering the dialson both models is a slightly curved sapphire crystal that exhibits nodistortion or undue glare.
My biggest disappointmentwith both of these Master 1000 models is the lume. The quality, brightness and application allseem lacking, which is a puzzle since Deep Blue prides themselves on generousapplications of luminous material to really make their watches glow. I would rate both watches only average (and onthe low end of average at that) in regards to their luminosity.
When it comes tothe movement in these Deep Blue Master 1000 models, as stated previously, theyboth sport the hearty Seiko/SII NH35A automatic, which is the same as Seiko’s4R36 movement.
The NH35A runs in24 jewels and beats at 21,600 vph. Themovement can be manually wound and it also hacks. Much has been written about this engine andit is found in a wide range of watches and in many micro-brands.
My only complaintwith the various examples of this movement I have owned is that is varies quitea bit in accuracy. Some examples runslow, others fast and still others more spot-on, which leads me to believe thatif the time is taken to regulate it at the factory, it can keep very good time.
In the green dialMaster 1000, the NH35A was timed by me at +15 seconds over 24 hours in thecrown up position. Conversely, the blackdial Master 1000 ran at -3 seconds over 24 hours in the same crown upposition. See what I mean?
Power reserve onboth watches is fine, the green dial at 44 hours and the black dial at 44.5hours. No complaints here. Both movements wind and set fine and thecrown action is good. Overall, the NH35Amovement in these Deep Blue models performs acceptably and I have no doubtsabout the reliability and durability of this movement over the long term.
Deep Blue sellsmost of its watches with a rubber/silicone dive strap and the stainless steelbracelet is sold as an accessory item.The bracelet as seen on the green dial model is the same as the braceletthat came on the black dial Master 1000.I removed the bracelet on the black dial and installed an aftermarket22mm grey leather strap, but retained the factory signed buckle from the rubberstrap that also came with the watch.
I found the rubberstrap to be too bulky and not wrist hugging enough for my smaller wrist, mainlydue to the fact that it’s one of those rubber straps that fits against the caseas a bracelet with solid end links would, that is to say there is no gapbetween the strap and case. This doesn’tallow the strap to flex downward enough for a good fit if your wrist is toosmall, hence the reason I installed the leather strap.
One small note, thecase is relatively well finished on the inside of the lugs and case sides thatare normally covered by the bracelet end links or rubber strap ends. The watch looks good on the leather strapwith these areas exposed.
The factory rubberstrap is of decent quality and is not scented (that you very much) and wouldwork well for people of a thicker wrist.
The stainless steelbracelet is a quality item, with solid links, solid end links and a signed,double locking clasp with machined deployant.The bracelet measures 22mm at the lugs and tapers to 20mm at the clasp.
The bracelet isbrushed in the same smooth satin finish as the case and it looks great. The links are held in place by standard splitpins and there are three micro-adjustment holes in the clasp to achieve a goodfit. Sizing of the bracelet posed noproblems.
If you’re thinkingof getting a Deep Blue, the relatively small amount of extra money for thebracelet is dollars well spent, as it’s a good piece.
Presentation asnoted above is a hard-back black nylon zippered case, with the strap inside (ifyou order the bracelet, the watch comes on the bracelet with the strap insidethe case), along with the instructions and warranty. The case would make a nice travel case if youchoose to use it that way.
In summary, both ofthe Deep Blue Master 1000 divers reviewed here are quality, affordable watchesthat are true divers, I wouldn’t hesitate to get them wet. Given the variety of designs Deep Blueoffers, this brand should have something for every aficionado of divewatches. The green dial and black dialMaster 1000s are nifty watches that come highly recommended.
Pros: nice case finish and good case size, qualityaccessory bracelet, Seiko automatic movement is solid, affordability
Cons: lumecould be a lot better, its application and brightness leaves something to bedesired, accuracy could be a bit tighter in some examples, HEV valve was veryhard to turn open or close
Verdict: verygood quality and modest price equate to value and Deep Blue brings thatequation home with the Master 1000 series.Good looks and solid construction contribute to a tool watch that is astrong piece, even if you don’t get it wet.
Thanks for readingand enjoy the pics.
Excelsior!
-Marc
