Why We Chose Signal Yellow and Safety Orange for the Oceanking

Last summer, we released the Turquoise Oceanking, 100 pieces with a turquoise lacquer dial in place of the standard black. People asked us why we chose that color, and our answer was honest: because we loved it. Turquoise is a fun summer color. It looked incredible on the wrist. There was no deeper story, no committee, no focus group. We made it because it made us smile, and it turned out a lot of you felt the same way.

This year, we wanted the color to do a job.

Colors That Mean Something Underwater

Dive watches were born as tools, and the Oceanking has always been built to that standard. So when we started planning this year's limited edition dials, we asked a different question than we did with the Turquoise. Not "what color do we love?" but "what colors actually belong on a diving instrument?"

The answer was sitting in every dive shop, on every rescue vessel, and on every piece of serious safety equipment in the water: signal yellow and safety orange.

These are not fashion colors. They are the colors of dive flags, surface marker buoys, rescue gear, and life vests. They exist because they work. In deep or murky water, where reds and blues fade quickly and everything trends toward gray, high-visibility yellow holds on longer than almost any other color. Orange is the international language of "look here" at the surface. When visibility drops and conditions get serious, these are the colors you want on your equipment.

We matched our dials to those standards as closely as we could, in the same lacquer finish as the standard black Oceanking dial. The result is a pair of watches that are genuinely identifiable at depth, not just attractive in a product photo.

The Happy Accident

Here is the part we will admit freely: these colors also happen to be perfect for summer.

Signal Yellow and Safety Orange pop against a wetsuit, a swimsuit, or a linen shirt at a beach bar. They carry the same energy the Turquoise did last year. So in a way, we got to have it both ways. The Turquoise was fun first and a dive watch second. These are dive colors first, and the fun came along for free.

That order matters to us. MONTA exists to build serious tool watches that you actually enjoy wearing. This release puts the tool part back in front, without giving up any of the joy.

Two Colors, 50 Pieces Each

The new Oceanking limited editions come in Signal Yellow and Safety Orange, limited to 50 pieces per color, half the run of last year's 100-piece Turquoise. Each features a lacquer dial in its signature color, paired with the same black ceramic bezel that anchors every Oceanking. Beyond the dial, nothing changes: the same proven case, movement, and bracelet that have made this our most sought-after model. The only thing different is the intent behind the color.

Last year we made a watch for summer. This year we made a watch for the water, and summer came along anyway.

Both editions ship in August.