Citizen Blue Angel as dive watch???

[svnipp]

Just curious if anyone else uses this as a dive watch. This is a great watch that I already have and the info for it says it's "water resistant" to 100m. I just got a Oceanic Pro Plus 2 dive comp, so I would think that the only real functions I need from the watch would be as a backup timepiece to the comp.

 

[fnfalman]

There's only one way to find out.

 

[miketsp]

100m is not an adequate rating for a dive watch.
You want at least 150m and preferably 200m.

Although this may sound like an overkill for recreational depths, it's not just a question of the static pressure. Just suppose you're at 30m and you move your arm around rapidly for whatever reason. The dynamic pressure on the seals can then rise way above the ambient pressure.

If you get any of the manuals from any of the reputable manufacturers they will tell you that a 100m rating is for swimming and dive ratings start at 200m. Since yours is already a Citizen, your manual should say the same.

That said, my wife had a Technos rated at 150m for various years and this was in regular use for diving with many in the range 30 - 45m and we never had any problem. However in the end we stopped using it for diving because of the hassle and cost of getting the battery changed and the seals tested. We replaced it with a real dive watch - a Citizen Hyper Aqualand - because Citizen offer much better and cheaper post-sales service. We could change the battery AND get the watch pressure tested for a fraction of the cost of what Technos was charging us.

 

[svnipp]

I appreciate the feedback. I think for the short term I'm going to go ahead and use my current watch since I'm still a brand new diver and not coming anywhere close to even 100'. For now I'm pretty much limiting myself to the recommended 60' for basic OW certification. This is 1/5th the rated depth on the watch, I think even sudden movements shouldn't create that much additional pressure.

Once I move on to AOW and start getting into deeper waters though, I'll definitely invest in a new dive watch. I really like my Blue Angel and wouldn't want to ruin it. Thanks again.

 

[fnfalman]

Apropos of nothing, there's a reason why manufacturers have dive watch lines. Last I checked, the Blue Angel wasn't included in the Citizen line-up of dive watches. YMMV.

 

[JoeinLA]

Be careful. I had a Tag Heuer rated for 200M. It flooded and I don't go below 90 FEET.

I think you need either a watch that's specifically a dive watch or be OK with flooding your watch. Or get a Casio G Shock or some other type of durable type watch. I'm still bitter about that stupid Tag - a decent hunk o' change down the toilet.

 

[svnipp]

Yeah. I'm already eyeing a new Citizen actual dive watch. I'm just thinking of using the Blue Angel for a few shallow dives. For instance, today I won't be below about 35 feet max.

 

[Tortuga68]

Water Resistant mark - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Water Resistant 100 m: Suitable for recreational surfing, swimming, snorkeling, sailing and water sports. NOT suitable for diving"

Water Resistant mark - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[miketsp]

Water Resistant mark - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Water Resistant 100 m: Suitable for recreational surfing, swimming, snorkeling, sailing and water sports. NOT suitable for diving"

Water Resistant mark - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Interesting article except I would question the argument used to say that the dynamic pressure increase will not exceed 0.5 bar (or 5 additional meters). The formula used to derive this is shown in reference 2 at the bottom of the article and is the simple drag force formula.
This assumes that the watch is hanging free in the medium.
This is certainly not true the way that I wear my watch. It's on my lower arm normally between my dive computer and my compass so water pressure is being funnelled in to the watch according to the angle and the movement direction.

And don't forget other situations to be taken into account like a giant stride with a 6ft drop

 

[Tortuga68]

Interesting article except I would question the argument used to say that the dynamic pressure increase will not exceed 0.5 bar

The increase in dynamic pressure due to current, moving your arm through the water or doing a giant stride is neglible