Introducing the TWCO Salvage Diver

Technical Watch Company (TWCO) is a Netherlands-based micro-brand with a keen focus on producing professional tool watches. The company’s first two releases were the Sea Rescue, a beefy diver with an impressive water resistance of 600 meters, and the Air Controller, a robust pilot’s watch loosely pulling inspiration from the Fairchild Republic a-10 Thunderbolt (read our review of that watch here). TWCO’s latest is a spiritual offshoot of the Sea Rescue—an EPSA-styled dual crown dive watch dubbed Salvage Diver.

The Salvage Diver comes in at 43mm wide, with a lug-to-lug height of 51mm and a thickness of 14mm, so it’s certainly a watch with some presence. The stainless steel case features mixed finishing—fine brushing along most of the case surface with high polished bevels on the lugs. A consistent feature across TWCO’s catalogue, the lugs also include two sets of holes to open up strap options. As someone who swaps out straps quite often, it’s a detail I really appreciate.

Paying homage to dual crown Super Compressor cases manufactured by EPSA (Ervin Piquerez S.A.) between the ‘50s and ‘70s, the Salvage Diver features two oversized crowns (both signed) flanking the right side of the case at two and four o’clock. The former controls an internal bi-directional bezel, and the latter (screw down) controls the time setting function. To achieve its 300-meter depth rating, the Salvage Diver utilizes Viton O-rings to seal off openings in the case. The screw down crown at four features not one, but five Viton gaskets, and the case back has two. The IWC-styled case back features an aperture for viewing the Miyota 9015 automatic movement—a solid workhorse found inside a large number of micro brand watches.

The black sunray dial features a mix of applied rectangular and circular markers with a diamond at 12. The bi-directional internal bezel features a count down configuration, with lines denoting the minutes and Arabic numerals at intervals of 10. A circular date aperture is positioned right off four o’clock, with a black date wheel keeping the symmetry largely intact. The handset consists of two sword hands (hours, minutes) and a white lollipop seconds hand. The brand’s logo is placed at the traditional position right below 12, and the model name (‘Salvage Diver’) and depth rating are above six. The hour markers and hands are fully lumed. Overall, it’s a somewhat conservative take on this style, but one that’s largely effective and incredibly legible. That being said, given the colorful nature of TWCO’s previous offerings, I would have liked to see a splash of color on the dial or hands.

The full package consists of a matching stainless steel bracelet, a black nylon strap, an extra set of spring bars and a spring bar tool, a screwdriver for adjusting the bracelet, and a plastic hard case.  The bracelet is an oyster style with a large ratcheting diver’s clasp. The finishing looks expertly done, with the clasp featuring polished bevels to match those of the case.

The TWCO Salvage Diver is currently available for €776.86, which is roughly $720 without VAT. To purchase, visit TWCO’s e-store.