I’m not trying to do a deep dive, or create a post to appear with the most SEO, but a simple article showing my appreciation for an elusive vintage diver.
The Gruen Ocean Chief is an oddball. One could say it’s underappreciated, yet entirely unique in its own right. Upon diving into its features, you may be left wondering where the hell this thing came from.
New Era For Watches
The 1950s were objectively the most prolific decade for watches (yeah that’s a bold statement, let’s fight in the comments).
There’s no arguing that a majority of the watches we wear today have design cues that hail from this decade. Speedmasters, Subs, OPs, these modern watches are just plays on the timeless designs invented 70 years ago.
Additionally, some of the most popular watch genres all spawned within this decade. Divers, GMTs, the modern chronograph, the list goes on.
That brings us to this Gruen. I mean look at it, it’s like a Superocean and Fifty Fathoms had a baby.
Radium is not for the weak, hell this picture felt like getting 2 X-rays
Challenging the Biggest Names in the Game
Gruen saw how successful the Sub, Fifty Fathoms, Superocean, and Seawolf were, and thought, “We can do that.”
It reminds me David vs Goliath story. Gruen was a prolific brand, and had great influence in the United States. They were, however, merely fitting Swiss movements inside American made cases - a far cry from brands like Rolex and Omega at the time.
Imagine it’s 1958 and you’re in the market for a diver. Rolex isn’t yet the company it is today, and the idea of a luxury sports watch is foreign. This considered, would you have much reservation choosing the Ocean Chief instead of a Submariner? Perhaps you liked the Gruen name more, or the design was more appealing.
Gruen saw the market for this sports piece, and they spared no detail with the Ocean Chief considering their competition.
Somehow, in a board meeting somewhere, the concept behind the Ocean Chief was pitched. This Hail Mary for the brand produced a truly high quality timepiece, one that easily stacks up against any diver from the era.
They’re simple timepieces; Gruen Caliber 560 RSS automatic movement inside, bidirectional bezel, push/pull crown, black dial, etc. Yet the beauty lies in the details.
Its glossy dial with silver printing contrasts the gilt chapter ring; features somehow more at home in a dress piece found themselves to the center of a gigantic tool watch. Gigantic? Yeah a watch from the 50s measuring in at 39mm is a far cry from the 31mm dress watches of the same era.
An unassuming ad showing off that dinner plate of a bezel
Not many of these watches survived, considering they were produced at low numbers, and usually worn to extinction.
Relevance Today
Honest, it’s a tough sell, but so worth stocking up on these.
For me, the Breitling Superocean is a grail - one of the absolute coolest tool watches ever made. Sadly, they cost 40 racks, and I don’t got that kinda money to drop on a piece.
This Gruen though, scratches that itch so much so that it was hard letting it go. A unique piece that’s equally as cool as it is rare. It’s the kind of watch that makes collecting worth it; hunting down the piece unlike any other.
Relevance today? Even at 4k, it’s a complete bargain. You get a wearable tool watch with a heritage ranking up there among some big names. I remember telling a bud that it’s the sort of watch that you get when you want a heavy hitting sports piece that isn’t the same 5513 that everyone else has. One for the true collector, you’ll never see a guy wearing this who isn’t a massive watch geek.