Hands-On With Wempe’s Iron Walker Diver Bronze

In 2020, Wempe presented the Iron Walker family of watches. The retailer’s in-house brand, Wempe Glashütte, manufactures these watches to expand Wempe’s offerings in the popular class of steel watches featuring a sporty design with an integrated bracelet. The Iron Walker family comprises slightly sporty (Automatic and GMT), sportier (Chronograph), and fully sporty (Diver) watches. Now, the brand extends the last category with a new model no longer made of steel. The new Diver has a bronze case. And because this new member of that family looks rather attractive, I had to go hands-on with it.

Why a bronze watch?

The name “Iron Walker” suggests steel, the material of all other Iron Walker models. But that name actually refers to the workers who built the metal skeleton of skyscrapers in the USA at the beginning of the 20th century. So the material choice for this new model is a novelty for that watch family, but it’s not necessarily a deviation from the general concept.

Wempe argues that bronze is the material of choice for those who find gold too delicate and steel too mundane. Of course, Wempe Glashütte is not the first brand to introduce bronze as a case material. Finding ways to speed up the aging of one’s bronze watch to enhance the formation of an individual patina has become a passionate activity for many watch enthusiasts. Especially for dive watches, bronze feels natural, as it evokes the bulky dive helmets used for diving before the invention of scuba systems.

A golden touch for the Iron Walker Diver

The design of the Iron Walker Diver Bronze focuses on the mix of the golden bronze tone with black. The layout of the dial, the typography on the inner turning bezel, and the shape and dimensions of the case are identical to its steel siblings. The case has a diameter of 42mm and a height of 12mm. The lug-to-lug length is 48mm. A sapphire crystal with an anti-reflective coating offers a clear view of the dial. The indexes, the hands, and the frame around the date window are gold-plated. Even though the frame highlights the date window, it blends well with the rest of the dial. Thankfully, the date disk is black with white numerals. As a matter of course, the hands and indexes contain luminous material.

The text on the dial, the printed minute scale, and the printed scale on the inner turning bezel share the same bronze hue. The sunray finishing of the dial is a bit more restrained than on the steel models. This suits the watch well, as one very shiny element of the steel models is missing on the bronze model: the polished bezel is coated with rubber.

The coating on the bezel is caoutchouc, not silicone. Therefore, it will not turn shabby after a short period of wear. This coating is meant to protect the bezel. When the bronze case has developed some patina, a scratch on the prominent polished bezel could be unfavorably visible. On the other hand, a scratch in the rubber revealing the shiny metal underneath could look even less favorable. The rubber coating felt hard, not soft and elastic, when I touched and pushed it. It appeared robust to me. However, I didn’t dare to seriously test its durability with the watch Wempe had loaned me.

Exploring details on the case

The finish of the case corresponds to that of the steel models. The top shows a circular brushing, the lugs and the case flanks a vertical brushing. A thin, polished bevel along the case’s edge provides some pleasing eye candy.

A titanium screw-down case back closes the watch. As this case back is constructed of two parts, the laser-engraved image of the Glashütte observatory that houses Wempe Glashütte can be aligned vertically. The limitation indication “1 VON 100” (one of one hundred), unfortunately, is the same on each watch. It doesn’t mean this is the number 1, and there is also a “2 VON 100”.

There are two interesting details on the crowns. The crown at the 2 o’clock position operates the inner turning bezel. This crown remarkably only turns the inner bezel counterclockwise. This, like the winding crown at 4 o’clock, is a screw-down crown. Therefore, the one-way rotational function does not necessarily offer additional security, but it is a nice feature. The crown for the turning bezel carries a black rubber ring to indicate its function. The Iron Walker GMT, Tide, and the Diver models on a rubber strap also feature this detail. But the bronze Diver even has a transparent coating on the end of the crowns. This is no sapphire cabochon, just a resin corrosion protection, but it assures you that someone paid considerable attention to detail in the design of this watch.

A comfortable strap

The black rubber strap complements the predominantly monochromatic look of this watch. It feels surprisingly soft to me. This strap, like the coating on the bezel, is made of caoutchouc and will keep looking fresh for a while. It tapers from 24mm width at the lugs to 18mm at the clasp. The strap is mounted on the case by tiny screws. This means you can only use proprietary straps from Wempe Glashütte.

The double folding clasp is made of brushed steel with a black DLC coating. This clasp is not overly exciting, but it fits the watch and is well-made. It offers four micro-adjust positions to attach the strap, which is important because you cannot alter the length of a rubber strap. After you have cut the strap to the needed length, you cannot extend it anymore.

Conclusion

Wempe’s Iron Walker Diver Bronze is a handsome watch, on the wrist as well as in the details. Its design reminds me of IWC’s Aquatimer collection from 2004. Taking Inspiration from great examples is a way to pay tribute to past achievements. Despite being a fully capable dive watch with a depth rating of 300 meters, it rather appears to be intended for elegant occasions than for diving. 42mm diameter may seem big compared to today’s preferences. But for a dive watch, this is a common size, and it felt comfortable and inconspicuous on my 19cm wrist.

Wempe certifies the Selitta SW200-1a movement inside this watch as a Chronometer according to ISO 3159. The choice of a standard movement for this watch is perfectly okay. The chronometer certification frees you from the worry of needing to have the watch regulated right after you bought it.

The 100-piece limited edition Iron Walker Diver Bronze costs €4,495 (including VAT) / US$5,200 (excluding sales tax). And this is the aspect of this watch I need to criticize. When Wempe presented the Iron Walker Collection in 2020, the Diver cost €2,975 (US$3,450). Now, the same model costs €3,790 (US$4,350). This represents a price increase of more than 27% (26% in US$) within five years! The price for the limited edition lies even 19% (20% in US$) above the current price for the regular model. This is no ambitious pricing; this is audacious. Unfortunately, this corresponds to steep price increases we are currently observing at several brands.

Visit Wempe’s homepage to find out more about the brand and its offerings.

What do you think of Wempe’s Iron Walker Diver Bronze? How do you like its appearance? Would you go diving with it? Let me know in the comments section.