L: earlier Seapearl R: later variant with clam-and-pearl case back Regardless of the case back style, I do believe that all variants featured EPSA’s classic bayonet style closure system. There are other versions with a more traditional polygon ridge. Later examples have a uniquely cool Seapearl clam-and-pearl embossed logo.īelow, you can see the older iteration case back (left) with a scalloped ridge for the case back tool, a detail that does make it a bit of a pain to use. There are also several case back variations, some using the Sherpa name, and some without, among other differences. There are two different lug variations–one with the angled lugs shown here, and another with more rounded ornate lugs of the two, I strongly prefer the former. The Seapearl measures 34.6mm wide by 42mm long with 18mm lugs. The earlier versions are pre-Super Compressor, though they too utilized a bayonet closure. The stainless steel case is an EPSA Super Compressor case with a bayonet style back closure. So, now that we know the history of this little gem, let’s talk about the watch itself. In the end, however, the Navy did not issue the Seapearl 600, but went with the Rolex and Blancpain instead. When it was needed, the Blancpain won out. In the end, with all factors considered, the first choice of the divers themselves was the Seapearl 600 when a rotating bezel wasn’t needed. In fact, they considered the Enicar cheap enough that they figured their divers could wear them for a year or so and then just throw them out rather than pay the expense of servicing them. The Navy definitely liked the price of the Seapearl 600 at $25.00 compared to $55.50 for the Blancpain (yeah, you read that right) and $90.00 for the Rolex.
The Navy did eventually test the Sherpa Dive 600 which did have an external rotating bezel, but those findings were published in a later report. It should be noted that while the Navy liked the Seapearl, its use was limited to when an external timing bezel was not needed. The reason? Highly reflective cases can attract biting fish if there are any in the vicinity of the dive! Not something I would have ever considered, but it definitely makes sense. One aspect of the Seapearl 600 the test subjects did not like was the shiny case. As it turns out, the Enicar Seapearl 600 was popular with Navy divers at the time and many were in (non-issued) use by divers, so the Navy included the Seapearl 600 in the tests as well. While the Bulova was under development, the Navy was performing official testing on the Rolex Submariner 6538 and Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Milspec 1 divers. In 1958, Bulova was developing a submersible diver’s watch for the US Navy’s Experimental Diving Unit (EDU). Now, as cool as the possible Eggler expedition connection is, the Seapearl 600 has an even more interesting historical tie that is not up for debate. Regardless, Enicar used the connection in advertising campaigns to great advantage, adding the name “Sherpa” to the Seapearl and over 100 other models over the years.
It is generally believed that the manual wind Seapearl 600 was the watch used, mainly because of advertisements showing that model and calling it the “Everest watch.” However, Eggler states in his book detailing the expedition that they actually used automatic Enicars, so there is speculation that they may have been supplied a different Seapearl model with an automatic movement. In May of 1956, Enicar provided Seapearl watches to the Albert Eggler-led Swiss expedition to climb Mt. One of the lesser known Swiss brands to do so was Enicar. If you read our article on the Croton Nivada Grenchen Antarctic, you’ll know that it wasn’t just the bigger players taking part in this smaller brands were also taking advantage of this marketing opportunity. Companies like Rolex, Omega, and Jaeger-LeCoultre are just some of the well known brands to send their watches on great expeditions and then cash in on the resulting popularity with advertising. Most seasoned watch collectors are well versed in the connection between famous explorers and their watches.