Ernest Borel Diver

Overall Condition: Very good condition overall. Case shows moderate signs of wear, consistent with age. Dial and matching handset show even patination. Chipping on dial noted at 6:00.

So many wild watches from the 1960s and 1970s have been lost to time.

While many are reissued by their parent companies, others are fished out of drawers to be discovered by the next generation of budding watch enthusiasts. Lots of these pieces are wildly affordable next to their more famous brethren, making them compelling entry points into the watch-collecting universe.

This diver from Swiss firm Ernest Borel may look like a Fifty Fathoms knockoff — but that's not quite the whole story. Back in the mid-20th century, many companies used the same parts suppliers for their watches, which explains why this neat tool watch does in fact look like the spitting image of Blancpain's famous diver. Measuring 39mm in stainless steel with faceted lugs, a large, unsigned crown, an acrylic crystal, and a bidirectional bezel with a fully-hashed dive insert, it features a black dial with an open, outer minute track, luminous square and rectangular indices, and a luminous 'sword' handset. (In short, this is one good-looking vintage diver!)

Powered by a reliable automatic movement and paired to a black rallye-style leather strap, this genuine piece of dive watch history is in truly excellent condition for its a age. Wouldn't you love to own a little piece of tool watch history?

We know we would!