Yema’s new fully luminescent Skin Diver Slim is a glowing rendition of the brand’s Five Act releases
Tom AustinIt’s been a busy few months for French independent brand Yema, following a series of releases that rounded off last year, the brand has waited a few months to present its latest collections. It’s chosen to do so with a five-watch quintet of launches presented over 6 days, called “The Five Acts”, picking out core watches from their catalogue, tweaking them with unique attributes, and producing them in extremely limited numbers. As these models are quite rare, we haven’t had a chance to check them all out, but we were lucky enough to get hold of Act III, the Skin Diver Slim Full Lume CMM.20. We’re no strangers to Yema’s intriguing Skin Diver, but what makes this new model different? Let’s take a deeper look.
The case
Sports watches come in all shapes and sizes, but size plays a big role in how good a sports watch is, and the Yema Skin Diver Slim’s case design is a testament to that. At 39mm, the 316L stainless steel case is modestly proportioned, sitting well on the wrist with just a 10mm overall thickness, and a 47mm lug-to-lug measurement. For the most part, the case is relatively flat, while the drilled lugs sweep downwards, accentuated by some subtle polished bevels. The Skin Diver Slim’s design is reminiscent of the original military-style Yema skin divers of the 60s, lacking crown guards to protect the slightly oversized crown and featuring straight flanks that create a diamond-like profile of the mid case.
As the name suggests, the Skin Diver Slim is a very capable diving companion, water-resistant to 300 metres, and featuring a scratch-resistant black sapphire bezel insert, containing bright, contrasting, lumed minute markings, and a luminous pearl at 12 o’clock. This frames a 2.2mm-thick domed sapphire crystal, which is paired with an exclusively engraved, screw-down sapphire exhibition caseback.
The dial
At first glance, you might think this is a standard white-lacquered dial; however, the watch’s full name completely gives away the secret. The Skin Diver Slim Full Lume CMM.20 hides a fully luminescent dial that lights up entirely when the lights go out. The applied hour markers and hands are finished in black for ultimate contrast and legibility in the daytime, and are treated with grade A Super-LumiNova that surrounds the 12, 3, 6, and 9 numerals, enclosed within the hour markers; a signature detail of the Skin Diver.
Everything is clear and easy to read; something that would continue should you wish to use the Skin Diver Slim for its intended purpose underwater, especially the oversized, broad minute hand.
The movement
Many watches from small independent brands at this level spend a lot of time focusing on the overall design, then, due to cost constraints or, at times, oversight, resort to off-the-shelf, widely available movements from the likes of ETA and Sellita. And while of course, there’s nothing wrong with that, in fact, some of our favourite microbrand watches have these kinds of calibres inside; however, it has to be said that Yema stands out because they use their own movements that aren’t based on anything else, designed, manufactured, assembled, and regulated in-house. And before you think I’m just saying, in-house “seems” better for the sake of it, the Calibre Manufacture Morteau 20 inside the Skin Diver is different.
For a start, the tungsten micro-rotor-driven automatic calibre is just 3.7mm thick, which is why the Skin Diver Slim is so, well, slim. Being time-only, it can squeeze a little more juice out of the barrel, delivering 70 hours of power reserve while beating at 28,800Vph, all while maintaining an accuracy of -3/+7 seconds. It looks great through the sapphire exhibition caseback, too, thanks to the galvanic treatments on its surfaces, and comprises 190 components, including a non-magnetic glucydur balance wheel.
The strap
Matching the dial, and again, given away by the watch’s name, this Skin Diver is equipped with what you might at first think is a standard rubber strap; however, turn the lights out, and you find that the FKM rubber strap is impregnated with Super-LumiNova BGW9 grade A luminescent material, causing it to light up in the dark. It’s imperceptible during the day, so you’re usually just wearing a bright, summery white strapped watch, but after it’s spent the day charging up, it’s going to light up your wrist, whether you’re hitting the club or dunking in some underwater caves.
The verdict
The Yema Skin Diver Slim Full Lume is pretty much as good as it gets when it comes to a skin-diver-based dive watch. It’s got just enough retro style combined with contemporary touches and specifications to outperform its competitors in this price bracket, and throw in the addition of a fully luminescent dial and strap, and you have a unique watch that has bags of character, providing you enjoy wearing a luminous watch, of course. Nevertheless, the strong specifications speak for themselves, and the in-house-produced micro-rotor movement is a real standout feature on this piece, because flipping the watch over makes it seem like something much more special than you might usually find at this price point. I’m also glad to see some slight decoration has been added to the micro rotor, too, because Yema needs to shout about it.
Yema Skin Diver Slim Full Lume CMM.20 Limited Edition pricing and availability
The Yema Skin Diver Slim Full Lume CMM.20 Limited Edition is now available from Yema’s e-boutique and retailers, limited to 400 pieces. Price: US$2725/£2,220/€2,450
| Brand | Yema |
| Model | Skin Diver Slim Full Lume CMM.20 Limited Edition |
| Reference | 12.26.20.67.SNL.U7 |
| Case Dimensions | 39mm (D) x 10mm (T) x 47mm (LTL) |
| Case Material | 316L stainless steel |
| Water Resistance | 300 metres |
| Crystal(s) | Sapphire front and back |
| Dial | White, fully luminescent |
| Lug Width | 20mm |
| Strap | White FKM rubber, fully luminescent, pin buckle |
| Movement | Calibre Manufacture Morteau 20, in-house, automatic, micro-rotor |
| Power Reserve | 70 hours |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, seconds |
| Availability | Limited to 400 pieces |
| Price | US$2725/£2,220/€2,450 |