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Doxa Sub 300 Professional 42mm Mens Watch
Ref. 821.10.351.10
Sits in Doxa’s upper tier here — more premium than three quarters of the Doxa watches we list, which start at £1,150.
Price range £1,150 to £5,215 across 36 Doxa watches in stock.The orange dial did not begin as a design choice — it was an engineering decision. When Doxa launched the original Sub in 1967, no production diver's watch had used a strongly coloured dial as a visibility aid, and that saturated orange became the model's defining feature and its practical argument. This reissue reconstructs that watch with unusual fidelity, including the patented bezel, which carries two scales simultaneously: elapsed immersion time in minutes and a no-decompression depth limit, so a diver can read ascent safety directly without arithmetic. That dual-scale bezel remains a Doxa patent and appears on nothing else quite like it. The cushion case is worth understanding before you dismiss the 42.5mm figure. The lug-to-lug distance of 45mm is exceptionally short for a case of this width, which means the watch arcs with the wrist rather than bridging across it, and most wearers find it sits smaller than the diameter implies. The domed sapphire is engineered to reproduce the profile of the original acrylic — visually warmer and more period-correct than a flat modern crystal — with an internal anti-reflective coating doing the practical work underneath. The Beads of Rice bracelet is specific to Doxa and fastens through a wetsuit extension built into the folding clasp — a ratcheting mechanism that adjusts over a drysuit or glove without tools. The SW200-1 here carries COSC certification, which is a meaningful step beyond the standard version of that movement, and it is finished rather than left in its base state.
- Reference
- 821.10.351.10
- Brand
- Doxa
- Collection
- Sub 300
- Case size
- 42.5mm
- Case thickness
- 13.4mm
- Lug width
- 20mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- Orange
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Bezel
- Unidirectional rotating
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- ETA 2824
- Functions
- Date
- Water resistance
- 300m
- Bracelet / strap
- Stainless steel bracelet
- Strap colour
- Silver
- Clasp
- Folding clasp
- Lume
- Super-LumiNova
- Retailer
- Mappin & Webb
Additional specifications
- Lug-to-lug
- 45mm
- Power reserve
- 38 hours
Learn more about Doxa
Doxa was founded by Georges Ducommun in Le Locle in 1889, and spent its early decades on pocket watches and, notably, dashboard clocks for the emerging car industry — supplying Bugatti among others.
Its lasting contribution came much later. In 1967 Doxa released the SUB 300, developed in consultation with professional divers, and it introduced several things now taken for granted. The dial was orange, chosen after testing which colour remained visible longest as depth filtered out light. The bezel carried a US Navy no-decompression scale rather than simple minute markers, letting a diver read safe bottom time directly. The beads-of-rice bracelet included an expansion section to fit over a wetsuit.
Jacques Cousteau's organisation distributed the watches, and US Divers sold them in America. The SUB became genuine professional equipment rather than a dive-styled dress watch, and it appears throughout Clive Cussler's novels on the wrist of Dirk Pitt.
Doxa struggled through the quartz era and was largely dormant before being revived by the Jenny family, who reissued the SUB faithfully from 2002 onward.
The modern range remains almost entirely dive watches, with the same cushion case, the same bezel scale, and dial colours named for their depth-rating heritage — Professional orange, Sharkhunter black, Searambler silver, Caribbean blue.
- 1889
- Georges Ducommun founds Doxa in Le Locle.
- 1908
- Supplies dashboard clocks to early car manufacturers.
- 1967
- The SUB 300 debuts with an orange dial and decompression bezel.
- 2002
- The SUB is reissued under new ownership.
Also in 5 collections
This watch appears in Stainless Steel Watches (3,308), Back in Stock (2,703), Automatic Watches (1,651), Sports Watches (816) and Dive Watches (578).
What the specifications mean
A mechanical watch built to be worn hard and got wet.
Strengths
- 300m water resistance, rated for actual diving
- 45mm lug-to-lug keeps the 42.5mm case wearable
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
- One of Doxa's more premium watches
Worth knowing
- 38-hour reserve means winding it after a day off
Doxa Sub 300 Professional alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | 821.10.351.10 | SLA077J1 | R32138208 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £2,590 | £2,580 | £2,500 |
| Case size | 42.5mm | 42.6mm | 42mm |
| Water resistance | 300m | 300m | 300m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Stainless steel bracelet | Stainless steel bracelet |
| Power reserve | 38 hours | 50 hours | 80 hours |
| This watch | Closely matched | Closely matched |
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
Yes. At 300m it is rated for swimming, snorkelling and recreational diving.
Will the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Does it need a battery?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
How long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 38 hours fully wound — so it will usually stop if you leave it off overnight.
What size strap does it take?
20mm. Any strap of that width will fit, and on most modern watches quick-release bars make the swap a two-minute job with no tools.
Will it fit my wrist?
Lug-to-lug is 45mm, which suits wrists from roughly 16cm (6¼ inches) upward.
Lug-to-lug decides fit more than case diameter does.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as men's.
Cheapest place to buy
Mappin & Webb is the only UK retailer we track stocking this reference new, at £2,590. There is nothing to compare it against today.
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