Question Pressure test after battery swap? Aqualung i300c

[Open Ocean Diver]

I spoke with Aqualung recently about this watch and there’s no requirement to pressure test it once you replace the battery.

 

[BoltSnap]

So Bergeon (the prestigious Swiss manufacturer of watch tools) came out with this ingenious (and expensive) pressure tester to prevent flooding and ruining one of those very expensive watches. During the first two or three minutes of the test, while the vessel is pressurized, the specimen under test hangs in the air attached to a sliding rod free to slide through the top lid (I mention Bergeon is a Swiss company, remember?). Afterward, you dunk it into the water pushing the sliding down the rod that holds it. Two options: a) the watch leaks, in which case air at the testing pressure would have got into it without damaging the mechanism. If this is the case when you start depressurizing the vessel with a purge valve provided to that end you would see air bubbles coming out of the watch. Not only you would know that the specimen did not pass the test but also where the leak is ( rear case, one of the pushbuttons, or a crack or bad sealing in the glass). b) the watch is perfectly waterproof. Therefore you see no bubbles coming out of it during the depressurizing phase.

Does the pressurization in air harm the pressure/depth sensor in the dive computer in any way?

 

[Bigbella]

@dmaziuk, Irony accepted. Now, the explanation. The pressure testing shown in my avatar is a Bergeon #5555/10 capable of pressure testing watches (and now pressure testing dive computers by guys that take it seriously) and was invented to fulfill a specific request from the high-end (US$ 10K+) dive watch manufacturers of the Rolex Submariners, Omega Seamasters, Panerai Submersibles, etc.

Impressive.

Would you care to venture a guess just how many times that I've seen a Bergeon #5555/10 pressure tester in a dive shop, anywhere?

That's a big nil.

The only time that I ever saw one of those, aside from your avatar, was at a jeweler -- a Rolex dealer, as a matter of fact, in Milan, who had one on display . . .

 

[BoltSnap]

Bergeon #5555/10 (US$ 10K+)

Are you saying that the price you find for this tester is $10K???

 

[Bigbella]

Are you saying that the price you find for this tester is $10K???

A cut and paste error, done in haste, since corrected . . .

 

[BoltSnap]

A cut and paste error, done in haste, since corrected . . .

Prices I am getting are around $1400:

Bergeon 5555/10 Wet Tester

Cousins UK for Bergeon 5555/10 Wet Tester

www.cousinsuk.com

Waterproof Tester Bergeon 10 Bar 5555/10

Professional watchmakers and horologists find Bergeon testing equipment and other professional jeweler and watchmaker supplies at Cas-Ker Jewelers Supplies. We carry the Bergeon 5555 10-Bar waterproof tester and much more.

www.jewelerssupplies.com

 

[DIVEWATCHDOCTOR]

Does the pressurization in air harm the pressure/depth sensor in the dive computer in any way?

@BoltSnap

The short answer is no. We have waterproofed a few thousand dive computers since 2005 and none of them has shown any harm or loss of calibration of the pressure sensor. In all fairness, I've spoken with Suunto technicians in a couple of DEMA shows and I acknowledge one of them said Suunto does not recommend pressurizing their computers in the air. However, every week we use the Bergeon 5555/10 to service around 10 to 12 Suunto's (from the old Suunto Solution to all their D's models, including Stingers, Mosquitos, Zoops, etc) without ever experiencing any issues.

 

[DIVEWATCHDOCTOR]

Prices I am getting are around $1400:

Bergeon 5555/10 Wet Tester

Cousins UK for Bergeon 5555/10 Wet Tester

www.cousinsuk.com

Waterproof Tester Bergeon 10 Bar 5555/10

Professional watchmakers and horologists find Bergeon testing equipment and other professional jeweler and watchmaker supplies at Cas-Ker Jewelers Supplies. We carry the Bergeon 5555 10-Bar waterproof tester and much more.

www.jewelerssupplies.com

@BoltSnap's $ 1,400 price is about what it costs right now in the US. It was a bit more expensive but I guess the present parity between US$ and Euros brought the price down somewhat.

 

[dmaziuk]

... the watch leaks, in which case air at the testing pressure would have got into it without damaging the mechanism. If this is the case when you start depressurizing the vessel with a purge valve provided to that end you would see air bubbles coming out of the watch.

Yeah, that would work for the battery compartment. I wonder if that's what OP would get for his 30 EUR.

 

[Bigbella]

Yeah, that would work for the battery compartment. I wonder if that's what OP would get for his 30 EUR.

Dollars to doughnuts, he'd probably get one of those old pressure pots . . .