A Renowned Tactical Brand’s Affordable New Dive Watch Has Deep Military Roots

Prometheus Design Werx is a significant name in the EDC and tactical spaces. The brand specializes in incredibly formidable equipment of all types, including everyday carry, bags and packs, apparel and much more.

But even for PDW, the brand’s latest project is pretty special (and somewhat unusual).

The PDW SPD x HGP Diver 200M Automatic is a robust, stunning and surprisingly affordable adventure-ready timepiece with a deep connection to military history.

Prometheus Design Werx

In the Navy

For this watch, PDW tapped Hommes Grenouilles de Paris, a French dive shop that outfitted the French Navy’s Nageurs de Combat (Combat Swimmers) from the 1970s through the 1990s, including dive watches. (For reference, the brand went defunct but was resurrected in 2023.)

This watch actually has a connection to the French dive shop’s history, as it utilizes the very same original Monnin case architecture. It’s also assembled near Besançon, in the Franche-Comté (the historic center of French watchmaking, where the original cases were produced).

Prometheus Design Werx

Today, HGP’s watches are still used by French military personnel, including the GIGN and French Legionnaires. This particular watch is based on HGP’s Commando Diver 200M.

What that should tell you is that it is already a robust and capable outdoor watch with an impressive tactical pedigree. And yet, PDW has taken that base timepiece and improved it in crucial ways, making it even more adept and impressive.

Prometheus Design Werx

Dive, dive, dive!

The 42-millimeter case is made of classic 316L stainless steel, one of the most widely used materials for watch cases, especially when durability is a necessity. It also features a screw-down caseback and crown, and the whole package is rated to depths of up to 200 meters, making it a true diver.

Above the dial sits a flat sapphire crystal with an antireflective coating. And even the dial itself is special, crafted from black-finished brass and emblazoned with the brand’s Kraken Trident icon just below the 12 o’clock marker.

Below that, it boasts a reliable, durable, dependable Seiko NH35 automatic movement with a 41-hour power reserve and hacking seconds functionality (all painstakingly looked over in-house by HGP before leaving France).

Prometheus Design Werx

The dial, skeletonized hands and aluminum-insert rotating dive timer bezel are also finished off with a special seven-layer Swiss Super-LumiNova C3 lume treatment, which is incredibly vibrant and makes for easy reading in even the lowest light conditions.

The whole thing is finished off with a Titanium MNPara hardware stretch nylon PD Ti-FXDS strap, complete with a compass unit (which adds even more outdoor functionality).

And that doesn’t even cover it all. It’s a hell of a package, especially for such a remarkably affordable price.

Prometheus Design Werx

Availability and pricing

The PDW SPD x HGP Diver 200M Automatic is now available on the Prometheus Design Werx site for just $649. However, it is extremely limited and is likely to sell out before you can say “frogman.”

Prometheus Design Werx

PDW SPD x HGP Diver 200M Automatic

Specs

Case Size	42mm
Movement	Seiko NH35 (automatic)
Water Resistance	200m

• $649 at Prometheus Design Werx

Want to stay up to date on the latest product news and releases? Add Gear Patrol as a preferred source to ensure our independent journalism makes it to the top of your Google search results.

Related Topics