Saturation Diving, Helium Valves, and “Extreme” Watches For Diving

Saturation Diving, Helium Valves, and “Extreme” Watches For Diving

Saturation Diving, Helium Valves, and “Extreme” Watches For Diving

Evaluating “diving” as generally people know it to “saturation diving” is like evaluating a novice bicyclist to some professional construction worker. They may share exactly the same atmosphere and also the same have to breathe, but apart from that, they are actually doing quite various things (this is applicable to many kinds of diving, incidentally). Saturation diving (meaning the diver’s tissues have absorbed the utmost of gas possible) was practically explored in the finish from the 1930s to be able to (A.) reduce a diver’s chance of decompression sickness when (B.) working at great depth for (C.) lengthy amounts of time - quite simply, to improve both effectiveness and safety.

In the finish from the 1950s, the required scientific basis was presented to begin saturation getting started the military and, right after, for doing things on the commercial basis. In a nutshell: this type of diver works under water and resides in a dry, pressurized atmosphere for approximately several days, and it is decompressed to come to light pressure just once, in the finish from the mission.

Rolex Ocean-Occupant Deepsea Helium Valve - submerged

Which is when a few of the earlier, standard watches for diving began to exhibit problems - avoid the outdoors pressure that they are effectively created to withstand but, rather suddenly, with pressure from inside from the watch situation: the breathing gas mixture used contains helium (you will find, individuals divers do actually speak in high, funny voices due to this) that seeps in to the watch situation too. Because the pressure is gradually reduced, and also the diver adjusts to normalcy atmospheric conditions, it had been learned that the interior pressure within the watch accumulates because of its effective sealing, and also the watch’s very would sometimes pop off.

The timepiece industry taken care of immediately this issue in three various ways:

By no means. A few of the watches for diving of times, some already water-resistant against 1,000 meters, were clearly robust enough not to be prone to this issue. In 1968, for example, Longines clearly marketed its new dive watch, the Ref. 8221 with internal bezel (the main one that’s being re-launched at this time) like a watch having a “protection contre éclatement du verre (travail sous cloche d’élium)” which probably meant the normal fixation from the very by having an exterior dodecagonal ring.

Watches’ constantly growing water-resistance, and also the number of “Compressor” cases and then “Super Compressor” cases, also helped to supply many brands with ultra-robust watches for this kind of diving. Also, most of them simply missed an industrial reason to purchase this type of relatively small audience.

The helium release valve: Around 1967, Doxa and Rolex both began to operate on methods to enhance their existing watch models for saturation divers, Rolex already had close relations towards the French company COMEX (Compagnie maritime d’expertises). The invention of the integrated, automatic valve brought towards the launch from the Sub 200T “Conquistador” around 1968, and also to the general public discharge of the legendary Rolex Ocean-Occupant, an evolution from the Rolex Submariner, around 1971 - most likely probably the most effective partnerships from a watch manufacturer along with a commercial dive company.

Omega, that was also associated with Comex in those days, created a large “Super Comprex” prototype that featured a specifically designed caseback that acted also like a pressure valve:

Omega Super Comprex Prototype

Omega, however, was convinced it had become time on a regular basis:

The “extreme” dive watch: Beginning on your own, Omega introduced in 1970 a radical new method of the dive watch which was intended for all sorts of diving, the Omega Seamaster 600 “Ploprof”. The timepiece seemed to be put “through our helium test. Helium, getting much smaller sized molecules, can penetrate where water can’t. Therefore if a wrist watch is proof against helium, it’s proof against nearly anything else. This test demonstrated the 600 is a hundred occasions as air- and water-tight because the Apollo spacecraft.”

Twelve months later, Omega launched the Omega Seamaster 1000 (utilizing a azure very) in a classical-searching situation.

In 1975, Seiko presented a much more single-focused method of creating a highly innovative dive watch particularly designed for professional divers inside a saturation atmosphere: The equally legendary and searched for-after Seiko “Tuna” (Ref. 6159-022). An up-to-date, 1,000-meter version continues to be currently available, out of the box a contemporary form of the Omega Ploprof, the 1200 - which, ironically, features a built-in helium release valve.

None of the has altered much, to this day: You will find watches for diving meant for recreational divers, and you will find watches for diving meant for professional divers inside a saturation atmosphere. It is sometimes exactly the same watch, sometimes it features a helium-release valve (or perhaps two, as on the model created by Girard-Perregaux in 2004), and often the maker felt no requirement for one whatsoever: Seiko, for instance still marks its professional watches having a “He-GAS” inscription and it has proudly not used at all a valve (see picture below). Omega, surprisingly introduced a handbook helium-release valve in 1993 around the not-so-extreme Seamaster 300 as well as an integrated valve around the Seamaster 1200 in '09. Since 1984, IWC has created watches water-resistant against 2,000 meters which should credibly work with a saturation diver too, while Breitling’s 3000-meter-water-resistant model has incorporated a built-in helium-release valve since 2002.

Saturation Diving, Helium Valves, and “Extreme” Watches For Diving

In the end this

You might ask: Will a professional dive watch require a helium release valve? This will depend around the logo and model: the Rolex Ocean-Occupant is most likely probably the most legendary and revered high-finish dive watch among professional divers, but most likely not just due to its essential, integrated valve. It might be it simply offers a classical and recognizable look than a lot of its more radical-searching competitors.