Citizen Revives PROMASTER Mechanical Diver 200M

Citizen revealed a slew of new releases this week, including a lovely trio of The Citizen models with some seriously good dials. More on those coming soon. Among the new watches we were happy to find a new PROMASTER Diver with a mechanical movement, and looks taken from the classic ‘70s Challenge Diver. The watch aims to a similar tack as the Seiko SPB143 range, recalling a classic mechanical diver from another era, and at a glance, it looks to be pulling it off. Citizen has their own considerable heritage from which to draw inspiration, and does so in rather unique fashion with this latest diver. 

Within the Citizen archive, there is a story of a recovered Challenge Diver produced in 1977. The watch was discovered in 1983 near Long Reef Beach in Australia, and was covered in barnacles, having clearly been submerged for a number of years (no greater than 6, I presume). Upon inspection, the movement was still ticking away on the inside, seals clearly still intact. It is this very watch that served as the starting point for the new PROMASTER Diver we see today. And that’s a good thing, because it’s a great looking diver.

The new PROMASTER Diver ditches the Eco-Drive we’re used to seeing from Citizen in favor of their 9051 caliber, a movement we saw in the Series 8 released last year. Citizen have added anti-magnetic components around the balance spring (no specifics on exactly what), to maintain performance even when “placed 1 centimeter from a device emitting a magnetic field of 16,000 A/m.” Accuracy is stated between -10 and +20 seconds a day. 

The case is constructed of Super Titanium and measures 41mm in diameter and 12.1mm in thickness (that’s 1.8mm thinner than the Seiko SPB149, FYI). Visually, the case is straightforward like a proper skin diver, with no crown guards, and just a simple chamfer running the length of the lug line. The bezel assembly flairs out from the case, which looks to be the main reason the diameter is listed at 41mm, but from the profile shot, I’m guessing it will wear a bit smaller. 

The bezel insert gets blocky numerals at each 10 minute mark, with minute dots appearing in the first 15. This leads into a flat crystal that’s domed on the interior, a move that likely saved a mm or so in the thickness department. The dial itself gets the same oversized blocks at each hour as the original Challenge Diver with a date aperture at 3 o’clock. The Mercedes hour hand is present as well with a hollowed out base. Overall the look is familiar and comfortable with no frills or flourishes in sight. In other words, classic dive watch material.

A urethane strap is standard, which gets a design that blocks out at the lug, following a trend we’ve noticed quite a bit recently, and I must say it works wonders here. A full titanium bracelet is also available at an extra cost. You can have any color you want, as long as it’s black, or blue. 

The Citizen PROMASTER Mechanical Diver will be available for purchase later this year, and pricing details are as yet, unannounced. We look forward to going hands-on with this one, and of course comparing to a Seiko diver or two along the way so keep an eye out for that. Citizen