Nivada Grenchen Depthmaster Bronze Review

by Don Evans

Nivada Grenchen Depthmaster Bronze

The Nivada Grenchen Depthmaster Bronze Pacman is the latest from the revived Swiss brand and the first bronze watch in their lineup since its resurrection a few years ago. Nivada could have just made a copy of their steel Depthmaster in bronze, but they decided to take things a bit further and add applied Pacman indices and a black ceramic bezel insert. Everything else pretty much stays the same as the steel models-39mm case, helium release valve, and a Soprod P024 movement, and this time there is no bracelet option, but that’s rare for bronze watches anyway. This aluminum bronze case is shown in this review on a black tropic rubber, but leather straps are available as well, and this all comes with a price tag of $1,750.

Specifications

  • 39mm Aluminum Bronze case
  • 20mm Lug Width
  • 47mm Lug to Lug
  • 13mm Thick (With Crystal)
  • 12.2mm Thick (W/out crystal)
  • 96 Grams in Weight
  • 1000m Water Resistant
  • Helium Release Valve
  • Soprod P024 Automatic Swiss Movement
  • Domed Sapphire Crystalย 
  • Ceramic Bezel Insert
  • Choice of Straps (Shown on Tropic)

Price $1,750ย 

https://nivadagrenchenofficial.com/collections/depthmaster/products/depthmaster-bronze

Currently, the Depthmaster Bronze only comes in this black dial with a ceramic bezel, but who knows if there will be future iterations. Black dials on bronze watches are very popular of course and real quick let’s discuss this bronze. This model is made of aluminum bronze, which has much more of a gold hue when new, compared to say CuSn8 bronze, which has a warmer, almost rose-gold look when new. The biggest difference is that aluminum is added to copper, instead of tin, and the more aluminum added, the more gold in color it will be. A big difference is that this bronze case is all brushed, even the chamfered edges, compared to the high polish sides of its steel predecessors.

Since a lot of this watch is still the same, I will refer you to my previous review of the steel Depthmaster, but I will go over the main points here. This Depthmaster Bronze is not only vintage styling, but also vintage sizing, like all of the watches from Nivada Grenchen and all of the dive watch lineup using the Soprod P024 automatic movement. It has an extremely high water resistance at 1000m, rare for a watch of this size, and barely 12mm thick, a helium release valve, and a nicely seated screw-down crown. The case has retained its drilled lugs and has that gorgeous double-domed sapphire crystal as well.

Nivada Grenchen Depthmaster Bronze

One of the biggest changes though is the dial, especially compared to the model I previously reviewed, which had more text on the dial, a very different secondhand and printed indices. There are about 10 or so versions of the Depthmaster currently, and most of them share 2-3 different handsets or dials, while this Depthmaster Bronze does share this dial layout with less text and the hour, minute, and seconds hand with a few others, the big change here is the applied indices. This is the only one to currently get this treatment, and it is very welcome, especially with the Pacman dial. These funky indices are pretty thick and pop off the dial, and combined with that domed sapphire, create a look currently unique to the bronze model.

The other big change for the Depthmaster Bronze is the bezel. Yes, this is the first of the lineup to get a full ceramic bezel insert, and only one other model has an aluminum bezel, all others are steel. Nivada could have gone with a solid bronze bezel, instead, they chose to ramp things up and make this bronze version a lot more special. The bezel numbers and markers are a goldish hue to match the bronze case, and while only the pip is lumed I think the ceramic bezel was the way to go. While ceramic bezels are nothing new and are done by countless brands these days, the dial and bezel changes do put this bronze model on another level compared to the steel versions.

Because of the newly applied indices, I was expecting a lot of lume and I was not disappointed. I would not call this Seiko or Rolex lume or anything like that, but it is C3 Superluminova and the lume is brighter and longer lasting on this Pacman Bronze over the steel versions.

On the wrist, this cushion-style case with relatively short lugs does wear pretty much like a 39mm, if not a little smaller, but for some reason I like this better on my 7 1/2 inch or 19.05cm wrist than I did the steel Depthmaster. Not sure if it is the bronze, if it’s the addition of the ceramic bezel that makes it pop a little more, or what, but it doesn’t feel as tiny as I expected it to. That said, I would prefer a larger watch, but that is not what Nivada Grenchen is about. Unless one of their past offerings was over 40mm, we will probably never see that size from the brand and that is the way they want it.

The tropic style rubber strap of the Depthmaster Bronze is very pliable, I believe it is FKM rubber, and unlike a lot of smaller watches, I can wear this with no problem, and I am not right at the end of this strap either, meaning if you have a 7 3/4 inch (19.69cm) is should still fit you. This tropic rubber is fitted with quick-release pins and a bronze buckle, and when looking at the back of this strap, it does appear these straps were custom-made for Nivada, and not just off-the-shelf straps fitted with a branded buckle.

Nivada Grenchen Depthmaster Bronze

The only part of the Depthmaster Bronze that is not bronze (besides the ceramic bezel insert) is the case back, which is steel and pretty much the same one used on all Depthmaster models. Bronze tends to turn your skin green, especially as it patinas, and while you can get away with a bronze crown buckle because they have limited skin contact, the case back needs to be steel or titanium on bronze watches. The case back is not very thick and only sits a few mm proud of the case itself, which does aid in how it wears on the wrist.

Nivada Grenchen Depthmaster Bronze

Nivada Grenchens steel Depthmaster models are priced right around $1,000, so it goes without saying that $1,750 for the Depthmaster Bronze is quite an upcharge. The only difference is the bronze case, applied indices, and the ceramic bezel insert. All of the updates to the dial and bezel are very much welcomed and the case is very well-machined just like other NV watches I have reviewed, and it is well-finished with a lot of attention to detail.
I don’t know the difference in producing bronze cases compared to steel, but I do wonder if they could have done a little more for the hefty price tag. Maybe give the movement the COSC treatment, or offer two strap choices, something just a little extra. It is no doubt a beautiful bronze diver, and to me, the highlight here really is those applied Pacman indices, as they make such a difference compared to the printed dials. As far as I know, these are not limited edition models either, but bronze and vintage do go well together, and now you can have both with the Nivada Grenchen Dpethmaster Bronze Pacmman.
Nivada Grenchen

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