Shot of the day: DOXA SUB 300 Searambler

I will continue my DOXA Sundays here with a watch from a friend. He was able to find an early DOXA SUB 300 Searambler reference 11889-4 from ca 1967.

The difference between the early SUB 300 and the later SUB 300T is surprisingly big!

Up front the SUB 300 (no T) and the SUB 300T are quite similar. Same size 42.5 x 45 mm, big saw teeth edged bezel with double indications. In this case meters and minutes, indicating that this watch was aimed for the European market. The lack of the Aqua-lung also indicates that.

The Searambler with silver dial have a very different, almost monochrome look compared with the orange Professional.

The orange minute and seconds hands are the only things breaking the black and silver tones… And yes, the meters indication on the bezel.

DOXA Searambler – big orange minute hand

From the back there is not much that differs. On the case back is the DOXA sailing boat, no mentioning of Synchron this early in time. The bracelet with the double folding clasp is the early version with a pusher on the side to adjust the expandable part.

DOXA Searambler – Sailing boat on the back

So what is the big difference you may wonder..? The big difference is shown from the side!

The SUB 300 no T, reference 11889-4 case is only 10mm thick (not including the domed plexi crystal), while the SUB 300T, reference 11899-4 case is 14mm thick! Four millimeters might not sound as a lot, but yes it is.

In this comparison shot the difference is very evident, SUB 300 no T on top, SUB 300T at the bottom:

Including the domed plexi the SUB 300 no T is almost as thick due to that the SUB 300T have a flat mineral glass crystal.

But the biggest difference you can’t see in photos, it is how the watches feels on the wrist! While the SUB 300T feels solid as a metal brick, in comparison the SUB 300 no T feels very light…

The SUB 300T is 30 grams heavier! At 128 grams the SUB 300T is still a light weight in modern standars, but compared with the SUB 300 no T – 98 grams…

The feel on the wrist is VERY different!

To end this post, here is a side-by-side: left Searambler SUB 300 no T, right Professional SUB 300T.