The strap size depends on the reference. Yours is engraved on the case back or between the lugs at 6 o'clock.
21 or 22 mm
Verification: From our database, not yet verified
44 mm case · 2008 to 2022
Indicative information. Check your watch before buying a strap: whatsmylugwidth.com is not responsible for an incorrect size.
The story · Since 1953
Rolex built the Deepsea in 2008 to survive 3,900 metres of water, then tests every one as if it were going to 4,875. When James Cameron climbed out of his submersible after diving alone to the bottom of the Mariana Trench in 2012, a Deepsea was on his wrist.
3,900 m
Guaranteed water resistance of every Deepsea since 2008
Long before the Deepsea, Rolex attached an experimental Deep Sea Special to the hull of the bathyscaphe Trieste. On 23 January 1960 it reached 10,916 metres at the bottom of the Mariana Trench and returned to the surface in perfect working order.
Released in 2008 as ref. 116660, the Deepsea put a 44 mm Oyster case around a new patented Ringlock system: a 5.5 mm sapphire crystal, a nitrogen-alloyed steel compression ring that alone bears the water pressure, and a titanium case back. It also debuted Rolex's Chromalight lume.
Rolex built an experimental Deepsea Challenge, 51.4 mm wide and based on the Deepsea's Ringlock case, in a few weeks for James Cameron's solo dive. On 26 March 2012 it rode the submersible's manipulator arm to 10,908 metres and kept working. Cameron surfaced wearing his own Deepsea.
Rolex gave the Deepsea a D-blue dial that shades from deep blue to pitch black, recalling the twilight zone where surface light disappears. The DEEPSEA name was printed in lime green, the colour of Cameron's submersible.
Ref. 136660, launched at Watches and Wonders 2022, brought a slimmer bezel, a larger date window and a case back in a different titanium alloy, and dropped the Fliplock diving extension. By 2024 Rolex had removed the Sea-Dweller name from Deepsea dials.
Rolex made the Deepsea in 18 ct yellow gold for the first time, with a blue dial and bezel. Its Ringlock compression ring is made of blue ceramic, which Rolex calls a new way of integrating ceramic into a watch case.
The filmmaker wore his own Deepsea when he emerged from DEEPSEA CHALLENGER after his solo dive to Challenger Deep. He told Time and Tide the D-Blue Deepsea was only the second watch he had owned, after a Submariner.
Rolex says its Testimonee since 2011 has worn a Deepsea for many years. He wore a Deepsea D-Blue when he lifted the trophy after winning the 2019 Masters.
The actress, who appeared in Titanic, owns a D-Blue Deepsea too, according to her husband James Cameron; he said it is big on her wrist but she loves wearing it.
The National Geographic underwater photographer bought his first Rolex at 16 and now wears a Rolex Deepsea, according to Rolex.
On the first Deepsea Under The Pole by Rolex expedition, 45 days in Canada's Far North, she said the only diving instruments that always worked were their Rolex Deepsea watches.
With Emmanuelle Périé-Bardout he embarked on the first Deepsea Under The Pole by Rolex expedition to explore beneath the sea ice; she said the only diving instruments that always worked were their Rolex Deepsea watches.
2022. Number 19 of 50 Deepsea watches Rolex made for the Royal Navy Clearance Diver Branch, with the branch crest in relief on the case back, sold at Christie's on 9 May 2022 for CHF 69,300 against an estimate of CHF 30,000 to 50,000.
2019. On 14 April 2019 Tiger Woods won the Masters and raised the trophy with a Deepsea D-Blue visible on his wrist. GQ reported Apex Marketing Group valued the exposure for Rolex at $2,288,777.
2012. On 26 March 2012 James Cameron dived solo to 10,908 metres with an experimental Deepsea Challenge on the submersible's arm; Rolex's own press kit shows him emerging with his production Deepsea on his wrist.
Testimonees Ghislain Bardout and Emmanuelle Périé-Bardout dived beneath the sea ice for 45 days in Canada's Far North on their first Deepsea Under The Pole by Rolex expedition, relying on Deepsea watches.
18 ct yellow gold, blue lacquer dial, blue Cerachrom bezel and blue ceramic compression ring, RLX titanium case back and helium valve.
22 mm yellow gold Oyster bracelet with patented ceramic inserts around the pins and Glidelock clasp.
Launched at Watches and Wonders 2022; same 44 mm case, 3,900 m rating, RLX titanium case back and calibre 3235.
The Fliplock extension link was removed; Glidelock remains in the clasp.
Redesigned, thinner lugs and calibre 3235 with about 70 hours of reserve; black and D-Blue dials carried over.
Lug width rose from 21 mm to 22 mm with a wider bracelet and larger clasp, so earlier bracelets and straps do not fit.
Commemorative dial for Cameron's DEEPSEA CHALLENGE expedition, blue fading to black with DEEPSEA in lime green. Not a limited edition.
Experimental watch, 51.4 mm wide and 28.5 mm thick, rated to 12,000 m, built on the Deepsea's Ringlock architecture for Cameron's dive. A 50 mm titanium production version followed in 2022 as ref. 126067.
Rolex Sea-Dweller Deepsea references in our database. Each card says where its width comes from: listed by the maker (linked to the maker's page in the details), two independent sources agree, or listed in our database and not yet verified by us.
Sea-Dweller Deepsea
Lug width: 21 mm
Source: DatabaseCase size: 44 mmYear: 2008Black dialCase material: Steel
Lug width: 21 mm
Source: DatabaseCase size: 44 mmYear: 2014Blue/Black dialCase material: Steel
Lug width: 22 mm
Source: DatabaseCase size: 44 mmYear: 2018Blue/Black dialCase material: Steel
Sea-Dweller Deepsea ref.
Lug width: 22 mm
Source: DatabaseCase size: 44 mmYear: 2022Black dialCase material: Steel
No reference matches.
Rolex Sea-Dweller Deepsea references use 21 mm or 22 mm depending on the reference and case size, so check yours in the list below. The most common is 21 mm (2 of 4 references with a known width). These widths come from our database and are not yet verified.
No. 2 different lug widths appear across the line, often by case size or generation. Check the reference engraved on the case back or between the lugs.
It depends on the reference. The first Deepsea, launched in 2008, measures 21 mm between the lugs. Rolex widened it to 22 mm with ref. 126660 in 2018, and the gold 136668LB carries a 22 mm bracelet.
No. Rolex reshaped the lugs for the 126660 and made the bracelet about a millimetre wider with a larger clasp, so a 21 mm part from the first generation will not fill the 22 mm gap of the 126660.
The Glidelock system in the Oysterlock clasp has 10 notches of about 2 mm, for up to some 20 mm of extra length, enough to wear the watch over a diving suit up to 3 mm thick.
No. Earlier Deepseas had both Glidelock and a folding Fliplock link, but Rolex removed the Fliplock in 2022; only the Glidelock adjustment remains.
The case is 44 mm across. The gold 136668LB is 17.7 mm thick and weighs about 320 g on its gold bracelet.
The gap between the two lugs that hold the strap, in millimetres. A new strap must match it exactly: 20 mm lugs take a 20 mm strap.
Most watches use spring bars, so any strap of the right width fits. Many smartwatches use their own band system instead, such as Apple Watch bands or Garmin QuickFit.