Inside the watch is a caliber CFB 1950.10 automatic movement. I believe that this is a base Swiss ETA 2892, and for this watch it has been COSC Chronometer certified. The Patravi ScubaTec is water resistant to 500 meters with a helium release valve and thick sapphire crystal. On the rear of the watch are engraved manta rays. Why? Because manta rays look cool on pretty much any dive watch right?
Where the Patravi ScubaTec excels is the dial. Boy, is this guy legible. I love the large hands and hour markers they are liberally bathed in SuperLumiNova. Though, I am not sure the hour hand needed to be skeletonized. The dial has what appears to be a fish scale pattern on it, which is interesting. More boldness is on the rotating diver’s bezel. I like the large-sized lume pip and numerals that look a bit too large for the space. The strip of blue is nice enough, and the color is echoed on a ring in the crown.
Available on a custom rubber strap or bracelet, both options are nice depending on what you are looking for. Actually writing “ScubaTec” on the rubber strap will no doubt be a polarizing design decision. This is on the final version. Note that the models you see here are all pre-production prototypes. Many people complain about the intense branding on Breitling watch straps (for example), so I expect that here. For me the top choice is the bracelet though.
The bracelet is quite cool. It has a designer, yet masculine aspect to it. At the least, it doesn’t look like everyone else’s steel metal bracelet. All in all, there is a lot to like about Carl F. Bucherer’s Patravi ScubaTec, even though it doesn’t bring a lot new to the table. It does however have the shiny polish and high-end feel from a major watch brand, and is going to be as enjoyable to wear as your standard well-done indy dive watch. I wouldn’t turn one down. Price is $6,400 on a strap and $6,800 on the bracelet. carl-f-bucherer.com
Tech specs from Carl F. Bucherer
Reference number: 00.10632.23.33.21
Movement: automatic, CFB 1950.1 caliber, chronometer, diameter 26.2mm, height 4.6 or 4.8mm, 25 or 26 jewels, power reserve 38 hours
Functions: date, hours, minutes, seconds
Case: stainless steel, steel/ceramic bezel, automatic helium valve, screw-down crown, sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on both sides, water-resistant to 500m (50 atm), diameter 44.6mm, height 13.45mm
Strap: stainless steel, diving clasp stainless steel
Variants: 00.10632.23.33.01 with rubber strap