After having owned a ton of watches over the years but never a Seiko, I made the plunge awhile back and bought a 6105-8119. Needless to say, I was blown away by the watch on multiple levels, and have no problem having it in the stable with vintage Omega and Rolex.

Seeing that my beater is a vintage Sub or GMT, I thought it made sense to get a modern, budget watch as a true beater, so of course I started doing a little research on Seiko. In my poking around on ebay, I came across a dirt cheap JDM Seiko and pulled the trigger.

Boy was it the right call, so I pulled the trigger on another one. I am not going to amass Seikos by any means, but am glad to have a few in the rotation. There is definitely a place in anyone's collection for at least one, and if you have not tried it out, it is a great way to satisfy the incoming urge without shelling out much money.

In speaking with fellow watch collectors about my new found appreciation for Seiko, a buddy in Texas summed it up when describing a fully restored Defender 110 that a friend was offering him. He said that after driving the truck for a day, he realized that his 80 series LC was a superior truck on all levels, but aesthetically it was a Japanese truck with a relatively low "cool factor" but high reliability, build quality, and utilitarian nature.

A Defender is a Defender, and a LC is a LC.

He, like many, own both a LC and a LR--he has a joint appreciation for both trucks, and I feel like many collectors have the same appreciation for Japanese watches versus their Swiss counterparts.

I love my Perazzi MX-8 and Weatherby Athena IV (made by Miroku) equally, but they are different beasts.

Would I ever trade any of core collection for a Seiko? Hell no, but I love picking up a killer watch for a budget price, especially in a market where values on great examples, no matter the watch, have skyrocketed.

Always interested to hear other's experiences.

 

Dang, no pics. Hard to read a post without pics

 

Seriously! Let's see 'em!

 

Tried to fix it...added gratuitous shot of Hundy.

 

Agreed! https://omegaforums.net/threads/1969-king-seiko-45-7000.28955/

 

I used to wear a Submariner doing weekend demo and carpentry.

Dumbass.

Then I <found> Seiko and found myself cursing a whole lot less!

 

Huge fan of Seiko. Best value out there...

 

It is not just the current crop of watches as some of the vintage Seikos are superb.
The Seiko 6139 /6138 automatic chronograph was produced in 1969 have a cult following. Arguments /debate clearly focus on the calibre 11/El Primero story but the 6139 was in the mix. The Japanese modern production methods were starting to challenge the Swiss and the quality of these watches/movements is very good.
Price wise these pieces can be picked up for a fraction of the cost of the Swiss but are starting to rise for original pieces. Lots of horrible franken watches around so as usual research is key but there are some good sources of info available.
Seikos from this era also have their own space watch "The Pogue " plus the same era produced a lot of nice Seiko Dive watches
I agree with the OP that these are not replacements for the classic brands but they can provide a heck of a lot of fun and have some great history
Seiko Pogue below

 

I picked up a great original Pogue, but it had some issues with the dial and movement that the seller did not disclose, so I returned it. I am definitely keeping an eye out for a better example. Great watches.

 

Lots of horrible and totally messed up Pogues out there but a good site for reference material is actually called Wrist Sushi

 

@Ray916MN did an awesome write up on here on the Pogue which helped a ton. The one I bought was great, but the the photos did not capture issues with the lacquer on the dial. It happens, learned a lot in the process.

 

I love the SKX and I use them to get friends and family into the addiction. So far 3 SKX, and one SNZ have been purchased after people hear me prattle on about watches.

I was just reading an interesting but long winded article about the new Grand Seiko Platinum which raised some interesting points. The author postulated that this was the most European watch Seiko had made, it was a Spring Drive in Platinum with a very European dial, and pointed out the somewhat schizophrenic nature of the higherend watches. The Japanese watch industry feels like they get the short stick verses Swiss and to a lessor extant German watchmakers. The reason is the Japanese make watches to a slightly different design ethos then everyone else. Japanese watchmakers want to make no fuss watches that look new for long periods and need little if any input from their owners to keep going. Look at the amazing GPS watches from Citizen and Seiko, you never have to do anything they are solar and keep perfect time with no input from the user. This makes sense from a Japanese viewpoint, "why would you want a device that does not perfectly do what it is supposed to do?" Hence we have the sublime Spring drive and other hybrid movements. This is why the high end Japanese watches while having amazing attention to detail and materials seem somewhat plain and utilitarian to the West. Additionally the west is somewhat confused by the Spring Drive for reasons that should be obvious when you reflect upon why most of us are not running out to get one, and when you really start to think about it have to admit it might be one of the best movements ever.

http://www.grand-seiko.com/collection/sbgd001/ Look at this thing it is gorgeous with diamond dust dial and amazing finshing but $55k for a platinum watch that is that low key?

On the other end of the Spectrum the low cost Japanese automatics like the Seiko and Orient watches have amazing craftmanship and workhorse movements that will go for years with no service and no fuss at a price that should make the Swiss blush in ebarrassment. Swatch's innovative low cost Sistem 51, retails at $150 in a plastic case, while you can get an automatic Seiko in a stainless case for the same price or even 33% less with an SNZ or Seiko 5.

The utilitarian design ethos works well in the lower cost watches, they are simple and pure, but I think it is the midrange Japanese watches that really start to loose the Wests interest, the Seikos in the $1-5+k range just look odd the design language just doesn't mesh with European sensibilities and the watches start to seen a little too busy.
Take this one for example..
http://seikousa.com/collections/ananta/SPS007

It just seems off... But can you put a finger on why it is off? You could argue the chrono pushers are not doing it any favors, but I think that too much effort was put into readability and it ended up a bit busy...

IDK my thoughts about this. And you can pull my SKX off of my cold dead arm!

 

My taste in sushi runs to....

SNK805K2



And Orient Blue Mako



I pretty much agree with all of what @Foo2rama wrote above. Total outlay for both (ex postage/shipping) - £55

 

Thanks this thread reminded me about one I was hunting. Made the eBay seller an offer and closing the deal tommorrow.

Incoming wrist sushi!!!

 

Currently on the look out for a SBDC003(Blue Sumo)was gonna have it as a beater,but think it might be too nice?

 

Vintage sushi for me. I have half a dozen of the "Jumbo" 6138-300X series chronographs. I'm also partial to the 6138 Panda.
The 6138/9 chronographs are a technological marvel. It's wild how Seiko was able to mass produce column wheel and vertical clutch automatic chronograph movements in the early 70s that still run perfectly 40+ years later. A lot of the 6138/9s had some pretty funky designs but a few hit the mark just right. If some of these were made in a different location they'd be worth 10x what they are now.

 

There will ALWAYS be a Seiko in my box. Always!

@citizenrich - Black & orange rule!!!

 

I totally agree on the 6138’s I also have a bunch of the 300x. And the 0011, and some 0030, a 0040 and a 7000. I still am looking for a panda, but the 80xx just don’t do it for me. And I do not get the 6139, why go for “less” if you can have the 6138? But being a Omega, IWC and AP royal oak collector, those seiko’s sure do can stand the heat!

I am still pondering which I like better of the 6138-300x. The “3002’s” or the “3009’s” so to speak. The 3002 seems to wear bigger (dial wise) but from the side Iike the cleaner 3009 look....Which design is your favorite?

 

I only own one Seiko, a 5 and it is a good watch. I kind of think that the design ethos that Foo2rama pointed out is a bit like old American watches from the early twentieth century, I have have owned several good American pocket watches from mid range Elgins and Walthams up to Illinois Bunn Specials and Hamilton 992s. One thing that they all share is utility. They are easy to read, easy to maintain, and work exceptionally well. My current Bunn Special, 992, and Elgin B.W. Raymond all keep COSC time and the newest one (the Elgin) is over 60 years old. On the other hand European watches have always seemed to have a heavy kind of bling factor.

 

I have a couple Seikos and would like to own more. One of the more unique low-budget ones I have is a Seiko S-wave from the late '90s. They were available NOS for quite a while - I bought mine off of Overstock in 2010 or so. Posting stock photos below because I don't have time to go take some of mine. It's the same 7s26 movement, but a cushion case, solid link bracelet instead of folded, and a signed crown: