If you’ve spent any time on the watch internet over the last few weeks, it should be no surprise that it’s dive watch season. Hardly a day goes by right now that some new dive watch doesn’t pop up on our radar, or come across our Instagram feeds. Now — with the release of the Type 5 L — Ressence has joined in, harnessing the sheer awesomeness of copious lume to make what may be the coolest version of their Type 5 diver yet.
When the Ressence Type 5 was first released in 2015, it was unlike anything else on the market. With its bulbous architecture, oil-filled case, and signature Ressence Orbital Convex System (ROCS) displaying the time, the Type 5 was about as fun as a watch could get. The Type 5 L pushes it even further and is a nice reminder that dive watch design doesn’t have to be static — there are still plenty of pages in the dive watch playbook to explore.
On a technical level, the Type 5 L is exactly the watch we’ve seen over the last near-decade, but the technical side of things only tells part of the story. What sets the Type 5 L apart is its fully luminous dial. Without the glow, the Type 5 L looks awfully similar to the gray Type 5G from 2017. It shares the same 46mm wide, 15.5mm thick grade 5 titanium case; the same ETA 2824/2 calibre modified with a ROCS 5 module and magnetic transmission showing hours, minutes, and running seconds (plus oil temperature for good measure); and the same 100 meter water resistance. But it’s a whole other story when the lights go off.
Lume is one of those rare features of a watch that requires no explanation. Lume is just plain cool, and — if you’re anything like me — the excitement that comes with anything glow-in-the-dark isn’t something you grow out of. The dial of the Type 5 L is decked out with just about as much lume as possible. Of course, this isn’t any wildly luminous watch. The luminous dial is enhanced by the oil-filled top case of the Type 5.
Oil-filling a case eliminates any and all light refraction that could impact the readability of a watch dial. It has an otherworldly effect that makes the dial and the crystal feel like they exist on one plane, readable from any angle. If you’ve never seen an oil-filled watch in person, the effect can be surprisingly trippy. Pair that with the sheer quantity of lume on the Type 5 L and this is a watch that is sure to be wickedly fun.
Admittedly, I’m not sure the Type 5 L is going to become the go-to diver’s choice any time soon, but the reality is that most dive watches will never see beyond the bottom of a pool or the top few feet of the ocean. Dive watches are really about vibes, and I’m hard-pressed to think of a vibey-er dive watch than the Type 5 L.
The Ressence Type 5 L is available now for CHF 34,500 and comes with two straps, one in gray textile with yellow leather lining, the other in blue rubber. Ressence
