Inspired by the historic 1960 expedition to the bottom of the Mariana Trench made by Jacques Piccard and Don Walsh aboard the Bathyscaphe Trieste, the Spinnaker Piccard is the brand’s deepest-diving collection of watches, and for its latest release of 2024, Spinnaker has expanded the Piccard series with a skeletonized version of this ultra-burly model. Available in either black or green, the new Spinnaker Piccard Skeleton Automatic builds upon the blueprint of the original series by pairing the collection’s bold and overbuilt case profile with a transparent dial and an open-worked movement.
Unlike the original Spinnaker Piccard Automatic, which the brand offers in three colorways, the new Piccard Skeleton Automatic is only available in two variations (at least at the time of launch), and they are named Dust Black (ref. SP-5135-11) and Mist Green (ref. SP-5135-22). Additionally, since the new skeletonized Piccard models have largely transparent dials, their respective colorways are limited to their chapter rings and bezel inserts, and while the Dust Black model features small pops of red and orange for its “300 Fathoms” text and the tip of its seconds hand, the Mist Green version features these same details in a bright shade of yellow.
Despite having skeletonized displays, the new Spinnaker Piccard Skeleton Automatic watches are largely identical to their time-and-date siblings from an external case perspective. Crafted from 316L stainless steel, the case of the Piccard Skeleton measures 45mm in diameter by a properly chunky 21mm thick, which is due to the dramatically domed sapphire crystal (with anti-reflective treatment) that significantly sticks up above the rim of the bezel. The unidirectional bezel is fitted with a matte ceramic insert in either black or green to match the specific colorway of each watch, and the inserts feature an engraved 60-minute timing scale with a luminous inverted triangle to denote the zero-marker.
Just like their time-and-date siblings, the new Spinnaker Piccard Skeleton Automatic models feature a generous 550 meters of water resistance, along with signed screw-down crowns at the 3 o’clock location and helium gas escape valves on the side of their cases at 10 o’clock. Additionally, unlike most skeletonized watches that feature display-style casebacks to maximize their open-worked appearance, the Piccard Skeleton Automatic receives a solid screw-down caseback that is engraved with an image of the Bathyscaphe Trieste, and this is the same style of caseback that can be found on the time-and-date models from the Piccard collection.
The dials fitted to the Spinnaker Piccard Skeleton Automatic series feature a transparent center section framed by a colored chapter ring that houses the circular applied hour markers. Rather than having their minute tracks along the outermost periphery of their dials, the Piccard Skeleton models instead have their minute tracks printed along the perimeter of the central transparent section, with the words “Helium Release Valve” appearing directly below the minute track on the upper half of the dial. Displaying the time is an extra-wide handset with luminous inlays, and all of the hands and hour markers on the Piccard Skeleton models are finished with Swiss Super-LumiNova to provide them with a green-colored glow in the dark.
Unlike the time-and-date models that rely on the venerable Seiko NH35, the new Spinnaker Piccard Skeleton is powered by the Seiko NH70 automatic movement, which is the skeletonized time-only version of this popular series of calibers. Running at a frequency of 21,600vph (3 Hz) with a power reserve of approximately 41 hours, the Seiko NH70 offers a proven fundamental design, although its finishing is rather spartan, and its structure isn’t all that open-worked compared to other skeletonized movements that cut away every single piece of extraneous metal. Rather than aiming to maximize the negative space within its case, the Spinnaker Piccard Skeleton simply places a visual emphasis on its mechanics, and only the dial side of the movement is visible, while the rest is hidden behind its solid caseback.
Based on the included press photos, the 22mm lugs of the new Spinnaker Piccard Skeleton Automatic watches appear to be fitted with the same bracelet that can be found attached to the time-and-date models from the Piccard collection. Featuring a flat three-link structure with brushed surfaces and solid components, the bracelet is completed by a folding clasp with a safety latch and a push-button release. That said, no mention is made of any type of integrated extension system, so it is relatively safe to assume that the clasp doesn’t offer any tool-free incremental adjustment.
With features like an ultra-burly case, a helium escape valve, and a heavily domed sapphire crystal, the Spinnaker Piccard is almost a caricature of a no-compromises dive watch, although that is part of the appeal when it comes to this style of ultra-overbuilt underwater timepieces. Additionally, despite its skeletonized display, the Spinnaker Piccard Skeleton Automatic costs the exact same as its time-and-date counterparts from the collection, with an official retail price of $550 USD (or one dollar per meter of water resistance). While you undeniably get an ample depth rating, the Piccard Skeleton isn’t intended to be a strictly utilitarian object, but rather one that celebrates dive watch design, while still being able to “walk the walk” when it comes to surviving the immense pressures found hundreds of meters below the surface of the ocean. For more information on the Spinnaker Piccard Skeleton Automatic, please visit the brand’s website.
