Nodus Duality II Night Shade Limited Edition Introduces DLC Case to Super Compressor

The watch industry is full of niches within niches. For example, within the world of dive watches you have skin divers, saturation divers and super compressors. The latter has had a resurgence of popularity recently, especially among British watch brands, with Christopher Ward and Farer both throwing their hats into the ring. Now it’s the turn of LA-based Nodus with the launch of the Duality II Night Shade Limited Edition.

At their core, super compressor dive watches follow the same formula. They use compressible gaskets inside the watch to ensure water resistance – meaning that as you go deeper underwater and the pressure increases, the watch is clamped tighter and tighter shut, preventing water ingress. Another signature element is the dual crown system, one for adjusting the hands and the other for rotating the internal dive timer bezel.

The Nodus Duality II Night Shade follows all the same principles for its 40mm diameter x 11.5mm thickness steel case with 300m water resistance. The name Night Shade and its limited-edition status come from the addition of a robust, scratch resistant diamond-like carbon (DLC) coating across the case and bracelet. It not only gives the watch a cool, stealthy matte appearance but also helps with the durability of the piece, protecting the steel from underwater knocks and bumps that are inevitable while swimming.

Building on the stealthiness of the case is a pitch-black dial with facetted bar indexes. The use of beige Super-LumiNova (with blue emission) gives the piece a hint of neo-vintage flair as a reminder that it’s inspired by retro designs from the 20th century. Though of course with the DLC case, the Nodus Duality II Night Shade feels far more modern than previous versions of the watch.

Powering the piece is the Miyota calibre 9015 automatic with 41-hours power reserve. One of the drawbacks of this movement is conventionally its accuracy, however Nodus have regulated it themselves to achieve an improved daily rate of +/-8 seconds, which is a big tick in the positive column for the watch. Another tick is the price of just $875 (approx. £650). Though while it’s accessible, it’s also exclusive, in a limited edition of 75 pieces.

More details at Nodus Watches.