Reply With QuoteAwesome retro pieces, I recently acquired a Rodania quartz diver from the same period and they are hugely underrated watches.
...well not quite, but very similar indeed.
Picked up a Zodiac Quartz diver this week, and have been really taken with it.
Given its similarity to the Heuer 1000 quartz diver (sometimes known as the 980), I thought it might be nice to share a couple of views of them side by side.
As you can see uses the same case as the Heuer diver, though the bezel is lower profile and the crown is smaller. Zodiacs of this period (mid to late 80s I think) are seen as a slightly budget alternative to the equivalent Heuers, though in this case, the Zodiac is no bargain basement alternative. The dial is nicely done, with a glossy finish, and the markers seem better defined to me than those on the Heuer. The caseback is more elaborately decorated on the Zodiac with their cross-in-an-oval logo engraved across most of it, the same logo appearing on the crown.
I wonder what the difference in prices was when new - I would say that the Zodiac is actually more nicely finished overall though the Heuer was more probably designed intentionally to look a bit more rugged. Anyway, both quite appealing (to me at least) and as such happy to have both in the collection!
Excuse the dreadful photo quality - phone snaps...
Awesome retro pieces, I recently acquired a Rodania quartz diver from the same period and they are hugely underrated watches.
Both nice. The case of your circa mid/late '80s vintage quartz mov't Zodiac and that of your (similar vintage?) Heuer both seem very close in style to the MOD issue CWC RN divers of around that same era, so I wonder if all three makers used the same case supplier at that time?
Also, I noticed that your Zodiac has a red dot at 4:30 on the dial. Would that be an AM/PM indicator? If so, that would make it even more interesting with a seldom seen but sometimes useful complication (a "Spelunker's Special" maybe?)
The mesh looks great on your Heuer, by the way
they really are in the same looking~ very cool.
fancy beauty.
Similarity is not strange considering that Willy Gad Monnier left Heuer and went to Zodiac in that period.
I like my two Zodiacs, great watches.
Nice watches on display here.
Here's my contribution...
Cheers,
Neil.
I seem to recall that it's a Zodiac stylistic thing to commemorate them winning some horological competition or other in the late sixties, or early seventies?Originally Posted by Rollon
I have a full lume zodiac red dot
The dots indicate what spec the watches were made too
Red dots were sports watches
There were other colours for professional and dress watches I think.
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