Why We Love It
Vintage DOXA are some of the coolest divers we can think of, and we'll seek out any opportunity to trumpet their awesometude.
And while their glory days were the late 1960s and early 1970s, the brand is still around, and in recent years has created some incredible contemporary tributes to their legendary forefathers. Take this beauty: a reissue of the original Sub 300 Professional "Blacklung."
Jacques Cousteau, the father of SCUBA diving, wore DOXAs in his expeditions, and loved them so much that he offered them for sale through his company, U.S. Divers. The earliest prototype Sub 300s that were retailed by U.S. Divers featured a distinctive 'full color' Aqua Lung logo, which gave rise to the nickname “Blacklung.” Very few of these were produced as they were deemed to difficult to read, with subsequent models featuring a 'skeletonized' logo version in its place.
In 2017, DOXA released a limited edition homage to the Sub 300 in honor of the model’s 50th anniversary—one of which we offer here, complete with its tube packaging, warranty card, chonometer certification, bracelet sizing tool, and a limited edition book commemorating its release.
The 300 pieces produced sold out in record time; snatched up by collectors for its excellent quality, design, and value - a proper tribute to the original. This example is in brand new, unworn condition, complete with factory plastic wrap on its bracelet. If you missed the opportunity a few years ago to grab one of these direct, now's your second chance!
The Story
DOXA began Research and Development for the Sub 300 in 1964, under a team helmed by Urs Eschle, the brand's head of operations, who consulted professional divers including none other than the father of SCUBA himself, Jacques-Yves Cousteau.
Since wearability was crucial, Eschle designed a large case with wide rounded lugs. For the dial, the team tested many colors (orange, yellow, turquoise, and red) in the waters of Neuchatel Lake. An unprecedented amount of tritium was also used on the hands and hour indices.
The team implemented a unidirectional bezel with an innovative insert: the U.S. Navy No Decompression chart, with the outer depth scale in orange and the minute scale in black, to allow divers to gauge how much air was in left in their tanks. Rounding out the Sub 300's innovative design was a beads-of-rice bracelet that was the first to implement an ratcheting expandable clasp capable of fitting over a diver's wetsuit without having to remove links.
