MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver Review

I first became aware of Norwegian watch brand Micromilspec around a year ago after they released their excellent MILGRAPH. Since that time I've been fascinated by the new releases the brand is putting out. MICROMILSPEC has only very recently started releasing watches intended for the public, previously the brand focused solely on producing specialized pieces for government and military organizations. The pieces they have released for public consumption are really striking a chord with collectors along with me.

Before I get into the watch we're going to review today, let's first go over a brief history of MICROMILSPEC. If you'd like a more in-depth history of the brand, please read our review of the Field Testing Unit where we go into a much more detailed history of the brand.



MICROMILSPEC was founded in Oslo, Norway on May 29th, 2019 by Henrik Rye. Prior to the formation of MICROMILSPEC Henrik was running a business that resold overstocked goods, including watches, out of an office behind a charismatic watchmaker in Oslo named Erik Sutterud. One day Henrik overheard a conversation between Sutterud and a guest who was inquiring about having a batch of specialized watches being produced for him.

Henrik introduced himself to this guest, who happened to be a member of the Norwegian Armed Forces, and said he believed that he could produce the watches being requested. Through reselling overstocked watches, Henrik had made contacts in the Swiss watch industry that could help him facilitate this order. The project was a success and a batch of 200 watches were delivered to the Norwegian military and became the basis of MICROMILSPEC.

The name MICROMILSPEC was created by combining "Micro" (for small production batches) and "MIL-SPEC" (meaning the watches would adhere to military specifications). Just days after being founded, MILCROMILSPEC received an order for 330 watches from the Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) to equip their 330 Squadron. This was the first time the RNoAF had ordered bespoke timepieces since the 1970s when they ordered custom Heuer watches. MICROMILSPEC was now becoming the go to producer for commissioned military timepieces and their client list would soon grow to over 30 different military units worldwide.



When MICROMILSPEC decided to offer their watches to the public, they went with a limited release window each year. During these times, the brand would offer one of their core models for sale in a very limited production run. Often these models would sell out extremely fast and then be dormant for the rest of the year. Models like the exceptional MILGRAPH and no nonsense Field Testing Unit are released in such a manner. MICROMILSPEC also takes the knowledge of producing rugged military timepieces and uses that as the basis for their civilian watches.

The watch we're going to be looking at today is actually something a bit out of leftfield for MICROMILSPEC and not a part of their core collection. A few weeks ago I was looking at Russian Vostok watches, in particular their Amphibia models with the "Scuba Dude" on them, and I ran across some models with what looked like an astronaut floating towards the moon. These models where referred to as "Luna Dude" models. Even more interesting was that these watches were never officially produced.



The "Luna Dude" was designed by Ole Dokka, who established Rocket Grace and Spaceport Norway, who was having the official online retailer and authorized distributor of Vostok watches, Meranom, produce the watches. When quality control issues crept in Dokka and Meranom decided to part ways. To recoup their costs in the project, Meranom decided to sell their stock of "Luna Dude" / Cosmodiver parts to collectors. This lead to the creation of many un-official Cosmodiver watches housed inside of Vostok watches.

Ole Dokka had spent 18 months developing the Cosmodiver and was not going to let the project die after little to no progress with the Russian watch manufacture. Dokka ended up turning to fellow Norwegian brand MICROMILSPEC to see the watch through to production. The MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver was never available to be purchased by the public, but instead was reserved for those who were part of the official Cosmodiver facebook group. Ole Dokka himself even verified eligibility before each Cosmodiver was sold to a member of the group.

Initial Thoughts

After reading about the Cosmodiver project I thought it was worth the long shot of asking MICROMILSPEC if they had a Cosmodiver left that I could review. Much to my surprise they actually had a Cosmodiver in stock that they could send to me. When the watch arrived, the first thing I noticed was the dial. MICROMILSPEC is mostly known for having very serious dial designs, and the Cosmodiver was anything but that. The background of the dial is a gradient blue that gets darker as the dial nears the bezel. There is also a repeating concentric circle design that radiates outwards on the dial. Then there are the floating astronaut and moon figures really giving the dial a cosmic story.



The next thing I noticed about the Cosmodiver during my initial time with the watch was just how comfortable it was. The watch typically comes on a stainless steel bracelet, but with not being a fan of bracelets I asked MICROMILSPEC to send it on a rubber strap. The rubber strap is extremely supple and required zero break in time to fit like a glove. I'm also typically not a fan of stainless steel watches since they come with a significant weight penalty when compared to watches crafted out of titanium, carbon or ceramic. Much to my surprise, even with the Cosmodiver being 42 mm and being made out of stainless steel, the watch only weighed 90 grams when on the rubber strap. Anything under 100 grams typically disappears on my wrist, so this low weight and comfortable rubber strap really made the Cosmodiver a treat on the wrist.

The final thing I took note of during my first time with the Cosmodiver was the lume of the watch. Micromilspec uses top grade Super-Luminova to coat all of the round hour markers and hands as well as the astronaut and moon. The result is a light show in low light with the whole dial glowing an otherworldly bluish green. I really got a kick out of the moon being lumed for some reason as well.



Technical Specifications

Now that we've gone over the history of MICROMILSPEC and the "Luna Dude" project as well as my initial thoughts on the Cosmodiver, let's now take a look at the technical specifications of the watch. The Cosmodiver is crafted out of stainless steel and has a case diameter of 42 mm and a lug to lug length of 50.1 mm. The watch weighs in at 90 grams on our scale and at its thickest point is 11.9 mm tall.

The Cosmodiver uses a slightly raised flat sapphire crystal with an anti-reflective coating. Underneath the crystal clear sapphire is the stunning "Luna Dude" dial. Around the outside of the dial is a minutes ring printed in blue. The dial then goes from near black at this ring to a light blue as you go towards the center of the dial. The repeating concentric circle design engraved into the dial gives this scene of space some nice depth as well.



MICROMILSPEC uses round applied hour markers on the Cosmodiver with 12 o'clock getting two markers. The markers have polished surrounds and are filled with Super Luminova that appears white in daylight and glows a bluish green in low light. There is an applied MICROMILSPEC logo at 12 o'clock as well. At 6 o'clock are the "COSMODIVER" and "Swiss Made" text. The round black backed date window is also found at 6 o'clock and blends in seamlessly.

There are three centrally mounted hands on the MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver being the hours, minutes and seconds hands. The hour and minute hands are sword shaped and are outlined in light blue and black. The centers of the hands are filled with matching Super Luminova to the hour markers. The seconds hand is done in yellow with a round counterbalance that matches the hour markers. The seconds hand is also tipped with a rocket shaped pointer that is coated with matching lume.



The dial is finished off with the real star of the Cosmodiver, that being the floating "Luna Dude" and the moon. The astronaut is designed to resemble the iconic Vostok "Scuba Dude" but this time floating through the endless void of space heading towards the moon. Both the astronaut and moon are covered in match lume to the other dial elements and they glow an amazing bluish green. The lume combined with the gradient and textured dial really brings this celestial scene to life.

Moving on from the dial is the uni-directional bezel which takes 120 clicks to complete a full rotation. The bezel has two functions, one being a second time zone and the other being a countdown or dive timer. The outer portion of the bezel is done in blue and features a 12 hour scale in white. The inner bezel is black and has the 60 minute scale printed in yellow. With 100 meters of water resistance, the Cosmodiver is a serviceable diver so the dive timer makes sense. Also with the focus of the Cosmodiver being of space travel, having the ability to track a second time zone makes perfect sense. There is zero back play with the bezel and each turn makes a satisfying click as well.



The MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver has an octagonal case with all major surfaces being brushed in finish. The only polished areas are found on the chamfers as well as the crown. This gives the Cosmodiver a true tool watch aesthetic with just a tiny bit of flash thrown in. Looking at the profile of the watch you can see that the lugs turn down sharply and really help the Cosmodiver follow the curve of your wrist.

On the right hand side of the Cosmodiver is the screw down crown protected fully by matching crown guards. The screw down crown aids in the dive worthy 100 meters of water resistance and is nicely scalloped. A nice touch is that the crown is topped with an image of a crescent moon. Un-screwing the crown allows you to wind the automatic movement in the resting position. Pulling the crown out to position one lets you set the time. The second and final crown position sets the time and also stops the seconds hand for precise time setting. Pushing the crown back in causes no jump in the minute hand and screwing the crown back in doesn't take any extra care to get it to catch.



Flipping the Cosmodiver over shows off the solid screwed in case back with an engraving of the "Luna Dude" floating over a topographically accurate depiction of the moon based off of images from NASA. The Latin term "Ad Astra" meaning "to the stars" is also engraved on the case back. This term is synonymous with space travel and fitting for this timepiece. All other important information about the watch is engraved around the outside of this image as well, including the individual limited edition number and a space for a personalized engraving.

Underneath the solid case back beats the Swiss made Sellita SW200 automatic movement. The SW200 is a tried and tested movement that has always been extremely reliable and accurate in our testing. The Sellita can easily be repaired and serviced by most local watchmakers with abundant parts available as well. The SW200 beats away at 28,800 vph (4 Hz) and has a power reserve of around 41 hours. On our timegrapher the Cosmodiver showed an average accuracy of +4 seconds per day when averaged out over several positions. This result shows that the watch is extremely accurate, even to chronometer standards.



The MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver has a lug width of 20 mm and comes on a stainless steel integrated style bracelet with h-links. I requested the watch be sent with a rubber strap which fits the case nicely and even extends over the lug overhang keeping the integrated look. The black rubber strap is textured on the top side and tapers down from 22 mm at the lugs to 18 mm at the brushed stainless steel pin buckle with MICROMILSPEC branding. The backside of the strap is smooth and still manages to keep the watch snug and centered on the wrist. On my 7.25 inch wrist there was a lot of extra room left on the strap for much larger wrists.

On The Wrist

During my time with the MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver I tried to wear the watch every opportunity I had. The lug to lug length of just over 50 mm placed the watch squarely in my preferred size of watches I collect personally and the well under 100 grams weight made the watch a true pleasure on the wrist. On my 7.25 inch wrist with a 55 mm flat area the watch covered my wrist perfectly as well. The rubber strap also offered excellent grip and kept the watch centered on my wrist. With the over 100 degree days we've been having here in Austin the strap also breathed well and I never had issues with wrist swell or wrist fatigue.



The Cosmodiver was a great wrist companion for running everyday errands due to its lightweight case and comfortable strap. For the most part the watch completely disappeared on the wrist and was only there when I thought about it or needed to check the time. The steel, blue and black aesthetic of the watch went very well with my normal dress of a black t-shirt, shorts and sneakers as well. Typically I'm not a huge fan of blue on watch dials and bezels, but I actually liked the Deep Blue of the bezel and gradient of the dial.

To test the legibility of a watch I use a simple test where I see how easy it is to tell the time with a quick glance while driving. Typically dive watches with their large indices and hands do the best at this test while complicated watches and skeletons do the worst. I wasn't too sure what to expect from the Cosmodiver since the dial is mainly focused on the scene of the astronaut and the moon with the indices playing a backup role. For the most part the Cosmodiver passed my legibility test very well with the stark white and bright blue outlined hands having good contrast over the dark background near the hour markers. Sure having Arabic numerals would have made quick time telling easier, but the look of the watch would have been wrecked. Also with the amount of lumed elements on the dial, telling the time in the dark was a breeze with the Cosmodiver.



When I wore the watch out around town and out to dinner and drinks I didn't notice the watch getting too many looks. I think that is mostly due to the rubber strap, brushed case and dark colored bezel. You really have to get rather closer to the watch to notice something interesting is going on with the dial. Those friends I did show the watch to really loved the textured circles on the dial along with the drawings of the moon and astronaut. Everyone was blown away with the price of the watch as well.

Value and Position in the Market

Speaking of price, the MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver had a retail price of $1,040 when it was offered to members of the Luna Dude community. For that price you were getting an extremely well built watch with a very accurate Swiss movement and a more than serviceable 100 meters of water resistance. The real draw to the watch was that it was the completion of a long drawn out project that ended up being completed by a much more competent watch producer. Even though the Cosmodiver is no longer available, now would be a good time to see how other watches with similar features and specifications compare value wise.



Up first naturally would be the modified Vostok Amphibias that have the original parts from Meranom making them into Luna Dude / Cosmodiver watches. The watches are housed in stainless steel cases with around a 41 mm case diameter and have 200 meters of water resistance. The movements are automatic Vostok 2426.02 calibers with around 31 hours of power reserve and -20 to +60 seconds per day of accuracy. These watches are just not nearly the same caliber of watch produced by MICROMILSPEC and they being sold for at least $1,000.

Next up we have the Reef from Formex which has a 42 mm case crafted out of stainless steel. The Reef has a swappable bezel but still limits you to only a dive scale for the bezel unlike the Cosmodiver which has both a second time zone and dive scale. The Reef is a full blown dive watch and as such has a 300 meters water resistance. The Reef also uses a Sellita movement, but this time the SW300-1 which has 15 more hours of power reserve at 56 hours. The Formex Reef is a lot more expensive than the MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver at $2,355 though.

Moving on is the U50 from Sinn which has a 41 mm case made out of German Submarine Steel. The Sinn is a no-nonsense tool watch similar to the core offerings from MICROMILSPEC while the Cosmodiver doesn't take itself so seriously. The U50 is once again a dedicated diver and has 500 meters of water resistance. Like the Formex, the Sinn is also powered by the Sellita SW300-1 movement with 56 hours of power reserve. Also like the Formex, the Sinn is a good deal more expensive than the Cosmodiver at around $3,200.



Finally we have the Super Sea Wolf from Zodiac which has a 40 mm case made out of stainless steel. The Super Sea Wolf can be had in various dial colors including a bright blue gradient that somewhat reminds me of the Cosmodiver. The Super Sea Wolf again is a dedicated diver and has 200 meters of water resistance. The Super Sea Wolf also uses the Sellita SW200 like the Cosmodiver. The Zodiac is a bit more expensive than the MICROMILSPEC at $1,395.

Looking at these four watches you can see that the MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver was a great value at $1,040. All the watches we mentioned used very similar Sellita based movements and the big differentiator came to water resistance. 100 meters is still way more than enough for recreational diving and I don’t really see professional divers choosing a watch like the Cosmodiver to do serious dives below 40 meters which is the threshold for professional dives. Today you would be hard pressed to find a watch of the caliber of the Cosmodiver for anywhere near $1,000. It's kind of amazing that MICROMILSPEC and Ole Dokka were able to offer the Cosmodiver to the Luna Dude community at such a fair price.

Closing Thoughts

So in the end is the MICROMILSPEC Cosmodiver for me? I'd say I really think it is. For one I love what MICROMILSPEC has been doing in both the military and civilian watch sectors. Some of my favorite watches of all time were pure tool watches and sadly it seems those kinds of watches aren't being produced as much as they were in the 90s and 2000s. MICROMILSPEC is keeping that type of watch alive and really doing an amazing job with it.



The story behind the Cosmodiver is also a great one. If there is one thing I think is severely missing from today's watches are the great stories behind them. The Cosmodiver was conceived by a Norwegian who had the idea of changing the iconic Russian Vostok Scuba Dude into a more space themed dial which was near and dear to his passions for the cosmos. The project fell apart and fellow Norwegian watch brand MICROMILSPEC stepped in bring the project to completion. Also the fact that MICROMILSPEC produced the watch means the end result of the Cosmodiver is heads and shoulders above whatever final version of the Vostok based Cosmodiver would have been. Vostok watches are quirky and people love them for that, but you cannot compare the execution of a Russian made Vostok to a Swiss Made MICROMILSPEC piece. Having the project stall out and then being completed by MICROMILSPEC was a blessing in the end. Also that MICROMILSPEC was still able to offer the Cosmodiver to the Luna Dude community at a very reasonable price is commendable.

In all honesty I really don't have much if anything to ding the Cosmodiver on. The only thing I wasn't a huge fan of was that the rubber strap is a bit long and on my 7.25 inch wrist it seemed like there was a lot of additional strap left after I sized it. Maybe MICROMILSPEC offers a shorter strap or members of the military just have a much larger wrist than I do. That was really my only negative with the watch and I'm sure something that's easy to change with a different sized strap.

Otherwise I loved my time with the Cosmodiver. The watch fit my wrist like a glove and covered it perfectly. Even though stainless steel isn't my preferred metal due to its weight, the Cosmodiver was still very lightweight at only 90 grams. I love fun watches and the dial of the Cosmodiver is a nice change from some of the much more serious watches I have in my personal collection. Sellita movements have always proved themselves to be very accurate in our testing and the SW200 inside of the Cosmodiver proved to be no different. The 41 hours of power reserve isn't the greatest, but I space out the wearing of my watches so far apart that even my watches with 5 and 7 day power reserves still need to be wound and set each time I wear them, so a shorter power reserve isn't an issue for me.



I'd really like to thank MICROMILSPEC for sending me this Cosmodiver to review and I'll really miss it when it has to go back. This is now the second watch from the brand I've reviewed and once again the Cosmodiver proves that MICROMILSPEC can produce an extremely well made tool watch and this time with a bit of fun as well. I'm sure all the members of the Luna Dude community were ecstatic to get their hands on the completed version of the watch, especially after having to deal with what was looking like a project that would never be competed months earlier. In the end they received a watch that was exponentially better than what the original project would have yielded.

For more information about the Cosmodiver please visit : MICROMILSPEC

Technical Specifications

Reference Number: NA

Retail Price: $1,040

Case Size: 42 mm

Lug to Lug: 50.1 mm

Thickness: 11.9 mm

Weight: 90 grams

Case Material: Stainless Steel

Bezel: Uni-Directional 120 Click with Dive Scale and Second Time Zone

Strap: Black Rubber Strap with Stainless Steel Pin Buckle

Movement: Swiss Made Sellita SW200 Automatic Movement

Functions: Hours, Minutes, Seconds and Date

Power Reserve: 41 Hours

Water Resistance: 100 Meters