The aforementioned submarino. The "5" in "45" had looked just like the "5" in "15" prior to service.

 

Submarino ... never heard that one before, but the photo helps. A generic vintage diver-style watch.

The bezel insert is likely acrylic, so it's not delicate, but aggressive cleaning could certainly affect the paint.

 

Probably should've stated "Super Submarino" as this genre of skindiver is often called.

 

Super Submarino refers to a specific Jenny case, IIRC. Of course, there were many 1970s diver-style watches made in similar styles.

 

You'll find many virtually identical watches by obscure watch brands who used the same case back in the day, often actually with Super Submarino printed on the dial.

 

Yes, that last one is a legit Jenny case.

 

The back of mine states, among other things, SUPERWATERPROOF 20ATM. So not bad.

 

An actual Jenny Super Submarino. Same case.

 

Possibly, but many cases look superficially the same. In fact, off brands often deliberately copied case shapes. You would need to check inside. Most watches that used Jenny cases indicated it on the dial with the words Caribbean, Super Submarino, etc. But there are exceptions.

 

I'd try a guitar pic but since I and my friends are all philistines I don't have access to one at the moment. . Then I remembered that some time ago I added a cheap case back removal tool to my arsenal. Having a fine edged wedge blade it looked like it could work. To help avoid marring the case I wedged a couple strands of floss under the bezel to lift it a bit, and the tool fit in without issue. It did raise the bezel but the blade eventually came in contact with the inner case and the bezel still hadn't popped off. At least at this point I was able to remove the jammed bits of floss but I could see that it was very dirty in there and that the bezel really needed to come off for a thorough cleaning. I have numerous sizes of screwdriver bits and found a couple that fit perfectly into the spaces on either side of the case back removal tools knife, and so inserted them there and removed the case from the tool. Then I was able to gently twist the bits with a screwdriver handle and the bezel popped off with no case or bezel damage.

I hand cleaned the bezel and put the the case in an ultrasonic cleaner. It took quite a while but it came out quite clean. It went together easily and now works perfectly with 60 nice clicks. Thanks to all for the help!

 

Great for really gunky bracelets too. Just tie them down to an old plastic cutting board first.

 

Dynamite

 

You are an aficionado.

 

That would have been my last resort for the frozen bezel.
I always have some with my case openers

 

Some small brands calling their watches "Super Submarino" used these squarish cases. Quite attractive, IMO.