Spinnaker Cahill New England — The Dark Side Of Daily-Wear Dive Watches

Dive watches come in all shapes and sizes. While the recent trends seem to be hinting that smaller, slimmer, more demure divers await us in the near future, there is still space in this crowded class for a big, brooding brute every so often. This is where watches like the Spinnaker Cahill New England come in. What I have here today is the older, now discontinued model, which you can still find on pre-owned sites going for a song if it tickles your fancy.

Spinnaker makes a lot of reasonably priced, interestingly styled watches. The turnover of models and styles is pretty rapid, so you’ll quite frequently find updates to the existing range hitting the catalog in favor of their forerunners before you know what’s happening. That is, in my opinion, quite a good sign. The brand is constantly developing and bringing those updates into its portfolio without hesitation.

…you will get access to a wide variety of styles at a reasonable price.

It can be a little irksome if you wanted one of the older pieces, but the following of SPinnaker is such that you should be able to source one as plenty of owners seem willing to sell or trade discontinued pieces enabling them to buy the novelties. That’s because this is an enthusiasts brand. You will not make money buying and selling Spinnaker watches, but you will get access to a wide variety of styles at a reasonable price. And that’s the whole point. That’s why largely homage brands like Spinnaker exist. And, to be frank, that’s exactly why they’re popular too.

An unusually anachronistic diver

Even when it came out, the Spinnaker Cahill in gray struck me as a bit of a weirdo. It seemed oddly out of date even upon its day of release. It was uncultured — bulky and brash for no real reason. Its over-dark colorway (accentuated by a deep gray case coating) seemed to be trying too hard. Its strap — a murky olive/gray drab — did little to enhance the elegance factor (it was thick, felt cheap, and looked entirely unsure of itself). And yet this watch is not without its redeeming features…

It is quite simply impossible to review a Spinnaker without mentioning (read leading with) the price. You really do get a huge amount for your money. Be it the automatic movement (with a decorated rotor weight), the open case back, the surprisingly impressive build quality of the watch head, or the access to unusual styles that, while certainly hit-or-miss, are at least conversation starters capable of siring at least some kind of reaction, Spinnaker delivers.

…they’ve always struck me as simply a bit odd… A bit off-kilter… Outliers…

A lot of whether you like this model or not comes down to personal taste. That’s the case with all watches. It is especially the case with Spinnaker watches because they are so often divisive. They may not seem that way from the photos you see on the brand’s website, but in real life, they’ve always struck me as simply a bit odd… A bit off-kilter… Outliers, quite happy to bang whatever drum they please, irrespective of market opinion.

Not always a bad thing

But this is not always a bad thing. I also spent time with a Spinnaker Dumas dive watch. I borrowed this piece before I worked for Fratello and, must admit, was not excited about its arrival. But, in the same way that the Cahill left me wanting, the Dumas delivered in spades. It was a bit of a revelation. As such, I picked one up for my girlfriend’s father, who nows wears it daily, favoring its legibility and build quality.

And I must say that the Spinnaker Cahill shares those traits. It is robust, looking far tougher than its 200m water resistance would suggest. The grooved crown is a treat at this price point, and while I would have preferred a bit more depth to the lasered logo upon it, I can’t complain too much given the sailboat logo’s complexity.

That same sailboat pops up again on the printed winding weight, which is visible through the case back. I really don’t think it style of weight decoration but I listed it as a positive above because it does “add value”, especially to a younger collector, whose focus is entirely within this price bracket.

A bezel worth mentioning

Every watch lover has their foibles. Mike loves “pusher action”; Jorg loves a crisp, minimalist display; RJ “Goldmember” Broer has recently discovered an obsession with the yellow stuff. My biggest foible must surely be my obsession with bezel machining and the accuracy (and satisfaction) of the bezel clicks. At this price point, it is hard to find an excellent bezel action. I know that. And yet, it doesn’t mean I give any of these brands a pass. Why should I? I know full well it is possible to get a good bezel action at this price. It’s more about due diligence and choosing the right manufacturer than it is about pure costs. And so I am notoriously unforgiving when brands don’t take pains to get it right.

The click thing

120-click bezels theoretically allow for more wiggle room when it comes to getting a bezel correctly aligned. At this price point, you almost expect a bit of backward play. With a 120-click as opposed to a 60 click, the distance the bezel can be off is obviously halved (remember, once a bezel clicks forward you cannot push it any further forward, only backward, so a 60-click bezel could theoretically make it 90% of the way toward the next marker with no opportunity to push it further forwards; a 120-click bezel set-up the same way would travel past the desired marker by 40%, which, in some horrifying cases, you could compensate for by rocking the bezel back toward the marker it just missed by a country mile).

This Spinnaker Cahill uses a 120-click bezel. The action is good. The tension is quite nice. There is a high-pitched but definite click upon turning. I prefer a duller, throatier “clunk” and also 60-click bezels on dive watches, but this is fine. The alignment of the sapphire insert, however, is middling to poor. There is about a 25% rock-back potential on a bezel that overshoots the markers by around 30-35%. The result is unsatisfactory. However, it is worth noting that this is the alignment of the sapphire insert, which is glued in place. It’s a lazy error but a flaw common in many watches we love on this site. It shouldn’t be, but it is.

Let’s get to the good stuff

Wow. What a pedant I am. Forgive me. I really do take these little things seriously. It bothers me when brands — especially brands fighting tooth and nail for your hard-earned dollars don’t — but I must say beyond my bezel gripes and my apathy toward the dark aesthetic.

…a white-on-black date wheel …

The movement inside this ion-plated stainless steel case is the SII NH35, a classic Seiko-made caliber with a 40-hour power reserve and hand winding. It has hacking and automatic winding functions. The case within which it sits is 43mm wide (excluding the crown) and a rather hefty 16mm thick. However, these daunting proportions are aided on the wrist by a satisfyingly stout lug-to-lug of just 50mm.

The dial has depth. A raised and lumed minuterie provides excellent definition against the cool gray dial. Raised Arabic numerals are brushed (as is the handset) which looks fine in regular light (just don’t take it under a loupe). A crosshair design and the subtle presence of 24-hour markers round out a display that carries a white-on-black date wheel very well.

Conclusion

When this watch was new, it retailed for about€300. The preloved prices you should be able to scout on popular second-hand marketplaces are roughly the same for new versions and considerably less for those that have been worn a bit. In summary, it is not a bad looking watch on the wrist, but I do not like ion-plating at all, nor do I care for the 16mm thickness. That said, it does not come across as heinously imbalanced, so for anyone seeking a bigger-than-average dark dive watch for daily wear, this is a cost-effective option from a company that listens to its consumers and endeavors to provide an endlessly updated stream of options. Learn more about Spinnaker here.