Hands-On With The Well-Executed Typsim 200M

Acrylic crystal, aging lume, gilt dial — these are the makings of a vintage dive watch. But the Typsim 200M isn’t old. In fact, it’s brand new and a welcome addition of true watch nostalgia in a fauxtina landscape that only pays visual lip service to the past. The 200M from Typsim is half a homage to the first dive watches, half a modern tool, and every bit as beautiful as it is capable. With an incredible attention to detail and microbrand endearment, what’s not to love?

Typsim (pronounced tip-sim) is an American microbrand from the Pacific Northwest. Even though I am a writer in this industry, some brands just slip under my radar until popping up unexpectedly. I came across Typsim and its founder Matthew Zinski at the Windup Watch Fair in San Francisco this year (yet another reason to get out and attend events like this). He had a small table with some decidedly vintage-looking dive watches. I was intrigued by the resemblance to a certain high-dollar luxury watch brand’s “first dive watch,” variations of which debuted last year in conjunction with Swatch. But Typsim’s dive watch, the 200M, is very much its own, which becomes increasingly apparent as I spend more time with it. After seeing it in San Francisco, I knew I had to get one in for review, and Mr. Zinski was happy to oblige.

The origins and design of the Typsim 200M

Mr. Zinski explained to me that the 200M is the result of wanting to build the first dive watch but today. With that aim in mind, of course, there are visual similarities to those first, pre-skin-diver watches that could only go so deep. But Zinski walks the fine line of well-executed neo-vintage like an expert tightrope walker.

Whereas other dive watches employ triangular or rectangular hour indices, the 200M has only circles. What might’ve been a lollipop seconds hand is tipped with a diamond. The reversal might be initially jarring, but I believe it works, and it’s only stark because we haven’t seen that before (to my knowledge). Design choices like these make the 200M a watch of its own within a genre rather than a copycat. That, in turn, allows the 200M to utilize other true-to-period details that don’t detract from its distinctness. In fact, they add to it.

Aging lume

I generally have a problem with fauxtina in watches, particularly when it comes to lume. In my opinion, the act of “aging” a watch to make it appear older than it is or from a different era is insincere, and the effect doesn’t fool anyone. That said, I don’t mind historically informed design; in fact, I love it. I’d just rather have the opportunity to age a watch myself, genuinely. Typsim somehow found the best of both worlds.

The luminous material used on the hands, indices, and bezel insert of the 200M is a proprietary compound developed by Matthew Zinski with RC Tritec, the maker of Swiss Super-LumiNova. As my photos indicate, every lumed surface on the watch is currently a subtle off-white. It’s not the bright white found on modern tool watches, but I’d hardly consider it an obvious attempt at fauxtina. However, what’s special about Typsim’s lume compound is that, over the life of the watch, the lume will age, patina, and turn a rich, creamy yellow. It’s still the good ol’ super bright Super-LumiNova we know and love, but now it ages like the radium vintage aficionados so covet and without the radioactivity. Now that’s some fauxtina I can get behind.

Acrylic crystal

Like all true vintage divers with yellowed radium indices, the 200M makes use of a domed acrylic crystal. The bezel insert is the same material. Omega Speedmaster aficionados are already familiar with acrylic (or Hesalite) crystals. But aside from the Speedmaster, not many modern watches use the material.

Once synthetic sapphire was rapidly and consistently producible, acrylic watch crystals largely went the way of the dodo. Sapphire offers robust scratch resistance. It also sounds fancy from a marketing standpoint. But acrylic has its charm and purpose, even by today’s standards. Even though it picks up scratches easily, it’s more resistant to shattering than sapphire. And, unlike mineral-based crystal materials, scratches polish out of acrylic as easily as they appear. The press sample of the Typsim 200M that I received included a small tube of polishing paste to refresh the crystal if I so desired. However, perhaps inadvertently, perhaps to capture the charm, I neglected to polish out a small scratch on the magnifying lens positioned over the date.

Acrylic is true to the Typsim 200M’s vintage design roots and is a completely valid choice for a tool watch regardless of its heritage. From a more aesthetic stance, the acrylic parts of the watch will give owners the choice to accrue the tell-tale hairline scratches of dive watches from a certain era or keep them polished and smooth with minimal upkeep.

The silver-gilt dial of the Typsim 200M

Through the era-appropriate acrylic crystal, one sees the dial — and what a dial it is. One aspect of many vintage watches that renders them so attractive is a gilt dial. Of course, in dress watches the gilt treatment is perhaps more visible across the dial. But many tool watches also utilized the technique and aesthetic. Unfortunately, as my fellow Thomas detailed in a previous article, traditionally gilt dials are rare in today’s modern watch landscape. But it was important to Matthew Zinski to reproduce the elegance of a gilt dial.

The effect is subtle yet sharp, and it imparts an elegance not found in other less-than-authentic homage tool watches across the market.

The Typsim 200M dial is first plated in silver. It is then selectively galvanically coated in black lacquer. The logo, minute track, and the indices that are then filled with lume are simply the visible parts of the silver-plated dial below. The only printed element on the dial is the “200m” at 6 o’clock in blue, denoting both the name of the watch and its water resistance.

The result is hard to capture with pictures. Unlike white dial elements printed onto a black background, the reflective silver runs the gamut of grayscale depending on lighting. Often, it appears crisp and white against the black lacquer. Sometimes, though, it looks just as black. The effect is subtle yet sharp, and it imparts an elegance not found in other less-than-authentic homage tool watches across the market. It pairs with the sharp, polished sword hands perfectly. The gilt dial of the 200M is one of its strongest features.

An authentic riveted bracelet

Another period-true component is the Typsim 200M’s five-row riveted bracelet. The commitment to rivets is thorough. That is to say, while other brands making use of the rivet aesthetic might forgo the look for access to the removable links, the Typsim 200M’s bracelet has rivets all the way to the clasp.

This, unfortunately, is my only gripe with the 200M. Those last few links on either side of the clasp meant to be removed for sizing are held together with post-and-screw bars. This allows them to be unscrewed and removed for sizing. But two slotted screw heads on both sides of a pin, with one being a post no longer than a couple of millimeters, make for an incredibly frustrating sizing experience. The tiny posts for the pins to screw into also don’t impart confidence in their ability to handle wear. A slightly loose pin quickly becomes a lost one with this setup. Sometimes continuity isn’t everything, and I would’ve greatly preferred a simple pin-and-sleeve system for the removable links at the expense of the rivet aesthetic.

Frustrations aside, once sized, the bracelet was quite comfortable, as five- and seven-row bracelets usually are. And the look undoubtedly matches the watch. I just know that if I were going to buy it, I’d probably be anticipating also purchasing a different period-correct aftermarket bracelet or strap.

Modern specs for this vintage diver

For all its nostalgia, the Typsim 200M is fully equipped for the modern world. Mentioned already is the scuba-worthy 200m water resistance rating. The mechanics are equally as capable. Inside runs a chronometer-grade (but not certified) Sellita SW300-1. This slim automatic workhorse movement has 42 hours of power reserve and beats at a 28,800vph frequency. You can’t see it through the all-steel case back, but trust that it has rhodium plating and heat-blued screws.

The watch’s dimensions are also modernized. A Goldilocks 39mm case diameter and 41mm bezel make the Typsim 200M comfortable and handsome on just about any wrist. It offers a 47.7mm length and drilled lugs with a 20mm spacing, setting it up nicely for aftermarket straps and bracelets. And even as a full-fledged tool watch, the 200M only sits 12.7mm thick on the wrist.

On the wrist

Bracelet woes aside, I very much enjoyed having the Typsim 200M on my wrist. The dimensions are perfect, and the watch is undoubtedly classy. My daily wearer is a mid-1960s skin-diver-type watch. Putting the 200M felt very similar but perhaps more special. I cannot overstate the elegance of the gilt dial. The domed acrylic bezel insert and the date magnifier never fail to draw the eye, and the crisp machining on the crown catches the light. Wearing the 200M made me feel every bit as prepared for life as I do with my usual diver but with more, well, sparkle, for lack of a better word.

Good then, better now

People pay tens of thousands of dollars for watches that hail the era that the Typsim 200M invokes. These watches are now very much luxury items. The unique aesthetic of the mid-1950s dive watch has now become coveted, so much so that people seek $200 bright-colored plastic toy clones just for the association and look. It’s refreshing to have an option that is still very much a dive watch before anything else. Furthermore, the Typsim 200M is truer to the 1950s than any other example I’ve come across.

What Mr. Zinski and his brand have done with the 200M is find that very sweet spot where good looks, premium components, and capability meet (excluding clunky functionality in the bracelet). In a watch market so strongly steeped in nostalgia while simultaneously trying to champion robust, modern features, the Typsim 200M clearly and simply makes sense. It has everything it should and nothing it shouldn’t. Furthermore, it’s a distinct addition to the watch landscape that will scratch an itch for people looking for a very specific type of watch. I imagine it’s also quite attractive to quite a few who had no idea they needed a mid-’50s dive watch until now. This watch certainly has me reconsidering my collecting trajectory.

Pricing and availability of the Typsim 200M

The Typsim 200M retails for a reasonable US$1,199 from Typsim’s official site. The next production batch is expected to ship in November or December 2024, but those who want to reserve one can still do so now. For everything offered, this is a rare and refreshing instance in watch pricing when I don’t understand how the 200M is so affordable. I thoroughly enjoyed reviewing the Typsim 200M and highly recommend it to anyone attracted to its unique vintage air. I know I’ll be keeping a close eye on Typsim and its future releases from now on. Maybe a Flieger is next?