The Oris Divers Sixty-Five
2015 homage (right), 1965 original (left) / Credit: Orologi a tempo perso
Oris doesn’t really have any notable vintage watch models. Most brands have at least a few models that stand out in history – maybe a WWII era pilot watch or a 1960s dive watch. But Oris, the Swiss watch company founded in 1904, doesn’t have that history. In fact, one of the brand’s most popular timepieces today, the Oris Divers Sixty-Five, leaves out the name of the timepiece it was originally inspired by. Leaving one to wonder, what the Sixty-Five is named after in the first place.
Of course, there are some very intriguing vintage Oris watches, like their early pilot watches, but nothing that comes close to the popularity of other vintage watch models. On the other hand, the Oris Divers Sixty-Five was released in 2015 and is one of the brand’s best sellers. Inspired by a 1965 model of the Oris Waterproof, the Oris Divers Sixty-Five does stay true to the design of the original watch, except for a few features.
Originally, what stood out in the watch upon its release in 1965 was the uni-rotational bezel, timing scale and luminous markers. What was then called the ‘Oris Waterproof’ used an in-house Oris Caliber 654, that was shockproof, featured 17 jewels, had a 46-hour power reserve, and an 18,000 bph. Personally, this is where my dislike of homages comes out, because to replace the Oris Caliber 654 with the current Sellita SW200-based ‘Oris Caliber 733’ simply does not do it justice.
Another notable difference between the 1965 and 2015 versions is their size. The Waterproof was a much smaller dive watch, with a comfortable diameter of 36 mm versus the homage’s 40-42 mm. Otherwise the main variations would lie on the dial, which now says ‘Automatic’ and ‘Water Resistant’ instead of ‘Waterproof’ and ‘Anti-Shock’.
All in all, I think this is a case of the homage being more popular than the original, an original that most people don’t even know the name of. Something that is sad as a watch collector who stays away from homages and focuses more on vintage, because the Oris Waterproof was a pretty cool watch.
By: Andres Ibarguen