The Bremont Supermarine 500 Full Ceramic in Deep Blue: Tough, Light, and Worth Protecting

Most luxury dive watches come in steel or titanium. Bremont has now released a third ceramic Supermarine 500, and this one is a deep, dark blue. We spent some time with the details, and it’s easily the best-looking of the three.

(Source: Hodinkee)

The case

The size hasn’t changed from the rest of the Supermarine 500 range: 43mm across and 13mm thick. The material makes the difference. Ceramic is very scratch resistant and light, so the whole watch head weighs just 74 grams. Bremont already did Black and Jungle Green ceramic editions, and Deep Blue suits the diving heritage better than either.

Ceramic does have one weakness. It can crack if it takes a sharp, direct hit. Bremont deals with this by using titanium for the bezel ring and crown, the parts most likely to get knocked. The titanium is colour-matched to the ceramic, so you’d have a hard time telling where one material ends and the other begins.

The dial

Under the sapphire crystal is a black dial with a textured, three-dimensional wave pattern. It adds depth without getting in the way of legibility, because the white Super-LumiNova hands and indices stand out clearly against it. In the dark the lume glows blue, which is handy at 500 metres down and equally handy in a dim bedroom at 3am.

What’s inside

The watch is rated to 500 metres, and there’s a helium escape valve on the left of the case (blue, of course) for saturation diving. Inside is a titanium inner case that shields the movement from magnetic fields.

The movement is the Bremont BB64AH, a heavily modified automatic based on the Sellita SW300. It has a 56-hour power reserve, an antimagnetic Glucydur balance wheel, an Anachron balance spring to keep temperature swings from affecting timekeeping, and a Nivaflex mainspring built to last. In short, it’s a workhorse, built to keep working under harsh conditions.

Price and availability

The Deep Blue costs around $7,220 (£6,450), and Bremont is making only 250 of them. You can choose from a black rubber strap, a black and blue NATO, or a blue embossed hybrid leather and rubber strap. All three have quick-release spring bars, so swapping takes seconds. The rubber works well over a wetsuit, while the leather hybrid looks fine under a jacket cuff.

Where it lives when you’re not wearing it

Ceramic is hard to scratch, but it still doesn’t like a fall onto marble or hardwood, and most accidents happen when a watch is being taken off, put down, or left on the edge of a surface. A fixed, padded spot for it helps. That’s what we make at BezelHold: handcrafted wooden watch boxes lined with soft, non-abrasive material, so your watch has somewhere safe to land each night instead of a nightstand or a bathroom shelf. A box also keeps dust off, though it’s not a humidity-control system.

There’s a visual side, too. Dark blue ceramic looks great against warm, grainy wood, and if you have one of the 250, you’ll want it to look good when it’s sitting on the shelf.

Final thoughts

The Deep Blue Supermarine 500 is a proper dive watch: light on the wrist, built for real depth, and handsome enough to wear to dinner. With only 250 made, you’ll want to keep yours looking the way it did on day one.

Watches rarely get damaged on a dive. It’s usually at the end of a long day, when you’re tired, you take it off, and it ends up on the edge of a nightstand. A dedicated spot for it fixes that. Open the lid, set the watch on its cushion, close it. It takes a few seconds.

That’s what we build at BezelHold. Our boxes are wood with velvet lining, belted cushions, and a secure key lock. The Panorama holds 6 watches ($340), the Dome holds 8 ($400), the Estate holds 10 ($480), and the Grail holds 12 ($560). Whether the Supermarine is your first serious piece or the newest in a growing collection, there’s a size that fits, and the dark wood looks great next to that deep blue dial. Shipping is free worldwide, with 14-day returns. Browse the collection here.