Hands-On Review of the Zodiac Super Sea Wolf Skin

When you think of watch brands with a lot of heritage, you don’t normally think of Fossil. Fossil watches, like Swatch (besides, of course, the Sistem51 and MoonSwatch), has its place as an affordably priced fashion watch. It is surprising to many, then, that they also own Zodiac watches, a Swiss made watch manufacturer that not only boast their own in-house movements, but also have over a century of history.

It was after speaking to multiple industry veterans about their plans to make Zodiac great again, that I got excited about not only the brand and its future, but how Fossil has (and continues) to nurture the resurgence of the brand. The team at Zodiac was kind enough to let me review the historically influenced Zodiac Super Sea Wolf.

Zodiac Watches was founded in 1882 by Ariste Calame in Le Locle, Switzerland. The brand really came into it’s own when it released the Sea Wolf dive watch in 1953 and it successor, the aptly named Super Sea Wolf, in the early 1970s. The Super Sea Wolf, which has become an iconic dive watch, used a patented crown and stem system and improved caseback design to greatly increase it’s water pressure rating (to 750 meters) over it’s competition. The watch so far surpassed the competition that the U.S. Navy SEALs wore the watch.

The brand was bought by in 1990 but the company eventually filed for bankruptcy. It was in 2001 that Fossil, Inc. bought the rights to the brand (for a relatively modest $4.7 million and relaunched the brand in 2002. Fosil has been serious about growing Fossil into a serious Swiss Made watch brand. Fossil also owns Swiss movement manufacturer STP, which allows Zodiac to use in-house Swiss made movements for their timepieces, which is not common for a brand that typically sells timepieces for under $2,000 USD.

More recently in collectors’ circles, Zodiac has become known for releasing funky, limited versions of their hit Super Sea Wolf. It has seemed to work out for them, as most of these pieces look great and sell out relatively quickly. The Super Sea Wolf 53 Compression in neon green is a personal favorite of mine.

But a brand backed by Fossil has so much more potential than leaning on limited edition releases. This brings me back to the Zodiac Super Sea Wolf 53 Skin automatic, which I have had the chance to wear over the past few weeks. Though Coined a Super Sea Wolf 53 Skin, the watch clearly takes it’s cues from the original Sea Wolf (sans Super) released in 1953. To me this watch is a reissue of the OG dive Zodiac Sea Wolf with a few modern updates. The watch is handsome, but leans heavily into the vintage vibes.

Vintage Zodiac Sea Wolf. Photo courtesy of Gear Patrol.

Like the original Sea Wolf, the Super Sea Wolf 53 Skin features the iconic triangle indices at 12,3,6,9 with the numbers represented into the triangles. The hands take the same general shape as the original (but are updated), as does the bezel. The big difference in the bezel is that they went for a Carbon (DLC) bezel insert as opposed to one of the steel variety. As a tool watch, this is a well thought out, and much appreciated, upgrade. For a watch that is meant to be worn daily, and dived with, not having to worry about endless scratches to your watch’s bezel is a big plus. Beyond this, the red 12 o’clock bezel indicator has become orange and the watch has additional orange accents (including on the second hand). These accents are understated but add a little flare to a traditional watch.

The dial and bezel are matte black, which adds additional vintage charm to the watch. That paired with the brushed steel finish of the case work well on this piece. Super Sea Wolf 53 Skin also features orange lume, which to be honest looks pretty nice (and is different). The only problem with orange lume is that it does not have anywhere near the brightness or longevity of its green counterpart (or even blue). For that reason, the lume seems more of a stylistic decision than a functional decision. I rarely actually use lume, so its not a huge negative for me.

The watch comes in at a very wearable 39mm and the rubber strap is very comfortable. The watch runs on an STP 3-13 automatic movement with a 44 hour power reserve. This is a reliable movement that is made in-house by the Fossil Group. My only other issue (and its an incredibly persnickety) with the watch might be its name. This watch is clearly a tribute to the original Sea Wolf, yet is named after the heir, Super Sea Wolf. It would be nice to see the watch named just the Sea Wolf.

How Much is the Zodiac Super Sea WOlf SKin Automatic?

The Zodiac Super Sea Wolf Skin Automatic comes in at the affordable price of $1,195 USD. This puts the watch, like most Zodiac models firmly under $2,000 USD. With any Zodiac you are getting a lot of watch for your dollar. On top of that, with the Super Sea Wolf Skin you are getting a watch with a lot of heritage. If you want that type of heritage in another dive watch, you likely will be paying at least $10,000 USD for a Rolex Submariner, Blancpain Fifty Fathoms or Glashutte SeaQ.