As someone fixated on rare, vintage, affordable divers, the Polerouter Sub checks all the boxes. Let’s start with the brand. Universal Genève was an illustrious Swiss watch company established in the 1800s that shared DNA with the likes of Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet, but ultimately fell during the quartz crisis. Their many accolades include creating the first wrist-worn chronograph in 1917, as well as the innovative Polerouter line designed by a young Gerald Genta. Not only are Universal Geneve watches striking and timeless, but I love that the brand is not a household name, yet it’s drenched in horological provenance and can go ‘toe to toe’ with the big boys in engineering and design.

I’m a bit of a contrarian by nature, and Universal Geneve provides the perfect combination of vintage Swiss and loving an amazing underground rock band that most people never heard of. Genta conceived the Polerouter in 1954 after Universal Genève tasked him with creating a watch for pilots that could resist the magnetic fields over the North Pole. The watch was a success and catapulted Universal Geneve and Genta’s career. The Polerouter design changed continually over a 15-year run from dress to sport styles. This particular Polerouter Sub from the 1960s sports a stainless case with down-bending lugs that sits nicely on the wrist. It features ‘art deco’ aesthetic with framed Arabic indices, a matte black dial with subtle red crosshairs, and an asymmetric magnified date window; this watch stands out from all other divers. The 40mm watch is powered by an in-house produced micro-rotor self-winding movement. The elapsed time bezel keeps it looking sporty. To finish it off, the original Gay Freres bracelet is as cool as it gets (and comfier than a jubilee). Wearing one of these watches feels like you are in on a secret no one else knows about.