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Gallet Adanac Military-Issued Diver/Navigator, 1986 — view 1 of 6
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Gallet Adanac Military-Issued Diver/Navigator, 1986

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Gallet (maker)
Date
1986
Country of origin
Switzerland
Object type
Wristwatch
Stock no.
ADANACMSUB86-4
Credit line
Dealer listing, Craft & Tailored (ADANACMSUB86-4)
Catalogue title (original)
1986 Gallet Adanac Military-Issued Diver/Navigator (English)

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Record summary

Catalogued by Craft & Tailored (dealer), Los Angeles (stock number ADANACMSUB86-4), this is a wristwatch by Gallet, made in Switzerland, dated 1986. The Atlas places it in the Quartz Revolution period (1969 – 1990) of its Wristwatches collection. The record is illustrated with 6 photographs.

Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.

Catalogue description

Dealer description — Craft & Tailored

In the late eighties, both the USAF and Canadian Armed Force issued these tough-looking Adanac watches to their service members. Adanac is (Canada spelled backward) and was produced in the joint contract between Gallet and Marathon. The watch has an unusual 0-11 marked bidirectional bezel, which makes it look like a hybrid of diver's and pilot's watches. The United States Air Force and the Canadian Armed Forces issued the Adanac watches in the late 1980s. The Adanac possesses an asymmetrical case that possesses a screw-down crown, has fixed bars, and is water-resistant to 660 feet, which qualifies this watch as a military diver's watch, although it seems to have been issued more commonly to aircrews. The dial maintains 24-hour markings commonly found on many military watches. The hour and minute hands have applied tritium luminous material, as do the hour indexes on the dial, and the zero position on the bezel is also tritium-coated. The Adanac uses a Swiss-made quartz movement, and there is a separate latch (which you can open with a coin) for replacing batteries. SPECS Stock # ADANACMSUB86-4 Brand Gallet Style Adanac Model Diver/Navigator Serial N/A Size Men's Material Stainless Steel Dial Matte Black Millimeters 40 Strap Green Phoenix NATO Strap CASE & BRACELET The impressive asymmetrical stainless steel case is unpolished, retaining its original bead-blasted finish with light signs of honest use. The black bezel is in exceptional condition, showing only minimal signs of use, with the tritium pearl intact. The case back shows all the correct military contract numbers and serials. The watch will come supplied on a green Phoenix NATO strap DIAL & HANDS The dial is in wonderful, original condition, remaining extremely clean to the eye, however, there is a hairline craze at the edge of the minute track between 6 and 7 o'clock. The tritium-lumed triangles have achieved a creamy yellow patina and exhibit no degradation when inspected under UV light. The original tritium hands match the dial perfectly and exhibit no degradation under UV light inspection. ACCESSORIES None. The watch just received a new battery and is keeping time perfectly.

Historical context

Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)

Seiko's Astron begins mass quartz timekeeping; traditional industries contract sharply.

Quartz and digital watches transformed the market after 1969. Swiss employment collapsed, Japanese and Hong Kong production soared, and the Swatch (1983) helped the Swiss industry recover; mechanical watches survived as luxury goods.

Read the period in the timelineMore wristwatches from this periodEarlier: Modern Mechanical Horology

Atlas type guide

Dive and water-resistant watches

Keeping water and dust out of a wristwatch was a long-standing challenge. Rolex's screw-down Oyster case (1926) and Omega's Marine (1932) were landmarks; in the early 1950s Blancpain's Fifty Fathoms and Rolex's Submariner defined the professional dive watch with rotating bezels for timing dives, luminous dials and high water resistance. The ISO 6425 standard (1982) later codified what a 'diver's watch' must do.

Dive watches became icons of post-war design and exploration, and their evolution — helium escape valves, ceramic bezels, saturation-diving depth ratings — records the history of underwater work.

What to look for

  • Unidirectional or bidirectional rotating bezel with minute markings.
  • Screw-down crown and case back; depth rating printed on the dial.
  • Luminous hands and markers (radium before c. 1960, tritium c. 1960–1998, then Super-LumiNova).
  • Reference numbers on the case between the lugs or inside the back.

Dating clues

  • Screw-down Oyster cases: from 1926.
  • Professional dive watches: from 1953.
  • Tritium 'T' marks on dials: c. 1960–1998.

General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.

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