Origins of the ScubaPro 500?

[namor]

9D35E91B-9F9B-416D-A6EF-7E87CCC5BA8F.jpeg

I’ve always had a fondness for these Scubapro 500m watches. They are vintage, they are rugged, and they embody so many of the things that dive watches have that attract us all. But there seems to be very little information about who actually produced them, or how they came to be. Most posts I’ve seen on the ‘net say something like - nobody knows who made them for ScubaPro branding.

There are several branded watches that have a very similar look, offering a possible clue to their origins. The vintage Eterna Kon Tiki 500m has a lot of similarities for instance, as does the vintage Nautilus diver, the Tevomatic, and the Nivada Taravanes.

3DB7736E-15FA-486A-8546-E7DCFCE2A502.jpeg

I found one obscure mention that said the Nivada was the original version and that they supplied other brands with the watch for re-badging. I was told that the owner of Nivada during the 70s and 80s was an avid scuba diver, so that could be true. They made both an automatic version and a quartz one, just like we see in the ScubaPro lineup.

Does anyone here know anything more about the how/when/why of the Scubapro 500?

[Chronos]

Hey Seth

I too have always appreciated the Scubapro 500. I saw a post, somewhere, long ago about the history but it is lost.

The watch's design hits all the high points for a dive watch.

I'll do some digging this weekend to see if I can come across that post.

[gwells]

don't know anything about the history (i do remember reading some on W&W a long time ago, maybe that's where the article was?), but i've been super happy with my quartz version since i got it. such a great watch.

[gwells]

nope, not much more info there in the W&W article.

https://wornandwound.com/affordable-vin ... bapro-500/

[namor]

nope, not much more info there in the W&W article.

https://wornandwound.com/affordable-vin ... bapro-500/

In the comments section of that article, there's a guy who says definitively that Nivada made them. But doesn't offer any evidence or further info...

[demer03]

I always thought they were contract case items from Eterna. I’d love to find definitive info.