Hands-On: Squale 2001 Watch | aBlogtoWatch


There’s a certain allure to vintage divers. Whether it’s the proportions, the often idiosyncratic design flourishes, or the simple charisma of an old-school tool watch, there are plenty of reasons why vintage and vintage-styled dive watches remain a massive part of the modern dive watch market. In theory, vintage-inspired divers should offer all of the charm of their ancestors along with modern durability (i.e., it’s actually safe to use them for their intended purpose), but most fall into one of two pitfalls. Either the design is so changed to fit modern standards that it loses some of its character, or the basic concept is so conventional and conservative that it barely feels like a throwback in the first place. Dive watch specialist brand Squale has a solution to this, offering faithful reproductions of both conventional Submariner-esque diver concepts along with bolder, more offbeat fare. The Squale 2001 collection absolutely falls into this second category, reviving one of its funkiest, most capable collections from the late ‘60s and early ’70s, complete with vivid colors, distinctive forms, and enough underwater capability to leave most larger, heavier-built divers behind.

Although it’s not particularly compact at 40mm wide and 13mm thick, the Squale 2001’s stainless steel case offers a surprisingly small wearing experience thanks to its unorthodox design. When viewed head-on, this slimline barrel case appears almost circular, with only the short, rounded hooded lugs extending past the bezel. Beyond this, the fully polished main case body features no hard edges whatsoever, with even the transitions between the upper surfaces and case sides delineated with a softened curve. This rounded, bright look gives the 2001 the warmth and feel of a heavily re-polished vintage case right out of the box, although this sort of well-worn character might disagree with certain tastes. The bezel itself is a warm, funky slice of ‘70s diver charm in its own right, with a heavy gear-toothed edge and a fully delineated dive scale in Bakelite-effect sapphire. The fixed inner bezel ring is layered, with a circular lower level contrasted with a 14-sided upper ring. It’s just close enough to a 12-sided form to mess with one’s perceptions, and the fact that none of the corners corresponds to an hour marker heightens the well-worn vintage feel on the wrist. Of course, there’s a good mechanical reason for this oddly shaped inner ring, and it corresponds to the bezel’s most distinctive feature of all – unlike nearly every other modern dive watch, this bezel is bidirectional. Rather than a conventional ratcheting mechanism to avoid accidental bezel movement, Squale uses a system more like a child-safe pill bottle cap. Once the bezel is pressed down, it can rotate freely in either direction before locking into one of 120 different secure positions once the pressure is released. When not depressed, the bezel is solid with only the faintest hint of back-play, but once one adjusts to the smooth, fast unlocked movement, standard dive bezel timing can feel cumbersome. However, it’s important to note that pressing down on the sapphire insert almost invariably leaves fingerprints, and this narrow, recessed piece is difficult to quickly wipe down. The deeply recessed screwdown crown at 4:30 helps to keep the 2001’s compact profile on the wrist, while the solid caseback’s light shark and wave-pattern engraving faithfully recreates the look of the original late ‘60s 2001. Despite the offbeat forms and vintage feel, the Squale 2001 is an immensely capable modern diver, with a thick sapphire crystal and a massive 600 meters of water resistance.



Like the case, the dial of the Squale 2001 is a dynamic visual throwback, but here the brand relies on graphics rather than forms. The overall dial layout of the “Reverse Orange” variant pictured here is punchy and extremely legible, with broad, black-coated straight sword hands contrasted against a vivid, summery gloss orange dial. With a stark transition to the printed optic white outer minutes scale and generous square lume plots, it’s an effective functional layout, but with enough old-school charisma to continue the overall theme. It’s the applied polished indices that are the real standout on the wrist, though, with a simple, chunky two-facet beveled design that feels both bright and charmingly simple. Like all other Squale models, the 2001 is not lacking for dial text, however, alongside the combined Von Buren and Squale print logo at 12 o’clock, the 6 o’clock side of the dial carries no less than four lines of glossy black printed text. It may take up a fair amount of real estate on the dial and unbalance the layout when laid against the single line at 12 o’clock, but this 6 o’clock block of text does have one thing going for it. The classic Squale shark logo is one of the best pieces of watch branding design anywhere, in my opinion, and the simple illustrated style works to liven up this dial considerably.

Squale powers the 2001 with an Elaboré grade Sellita SW200-1 automatic movement. The SW200-1 is a staple of the modern Swiss industry, appearing in countless brand lineups over the years, and its appearance here is more or less in line with expectations. Its 38-hour power reserve at a 28,800 bph beat rate is a bit antiquated at this price point, but it remains robustly built, plentiful, and extremely easy to service.

As characterful and vintage-accurate as the Squale 2001’s case and dial are, the bracelet has a solid claim to being the most memorable part of this watch. Like the original 2001 line of the ‘60s and ‘70s, Squale uses a partial ladder bracelet here. Rather than a full ladder design à la the Zenith Defy Revival, this is a split concept, with the first few links connecting to the hooded lugs using slim ladder-style center links before transitioning to full oyster-style center links near the clasp. It’s a look that definitely takes some getting used to, but if the mismatched design strikes your fancy, there are several benefits to this quirky layout. Far more breathable than a standard oyster bracelet and less jangly than a true old-school ladder design, this split-decision presentation is impressively built for the price. On the other hand, the locking clasp is more thoroughly modern, with a fully milled folding dive extension included.



While countless modern brands offer a vintage-style dive watch in their lineup, few can truly deliver the warmth, personality, and funk of a true vintage diver. The Squale 2001 fully delivers on this front, offering a truly distinct, energetic taste of old-school diver design while offering heavy-duty modern performance. The Squale 2001 is available now through authorized dealers. MSRP for this watch stands at $1,590 USD as of press time. For more details, please visit the Squale website.

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