I paid $150 for my sea urchin 3 years ago. After some falls, hiting it with everything, water exposure, high and low temperatures, mud, sand, and daily use for work (blue collar job) its still running and loosing just 5 seconds a day. It doesnt matter the price range, seiko never disappoints.
My SKX has 4 years I've worked in the vinewood with it, painted, warehouse job, partying etc.. and the only scratch is in the aftermarket oyster bracelet
I gave my son my Sea Urchin after acquiring my Seiko special edition PADI diver with blue dial. I missed my Sea Urchin so much I ended up finding and buying another one and wear it every day, while my PADI gathers dust. It's my favorite watch ever. The font size on the bezel is equal to the font size GS bezel, and yet my Sea Urchin has a silver framed day/date window. For me it's one of the most underrated Seiko's out there. Good luck finding one for sale.
I own the JDM Pepsi Sea Urchin and one of my best and all time favorite watches ever . I also own the Padi Turtle 🐢, the SBDC033 Sumo/Blumo and the SKX009. With that said the Sea Urchin being the most affordable is still amazing 🤩
Surely the point is that if you pay $15000 and you know full well that it's not much better than a $150 watch, as well as having none of the romance or history of a classic Swiss timepiece, you will be disappointed...or you should be.
As much as I love Grand Seiko, I think they've gotta overhaul their divers. I actually prefer most of Seiko's divers over GS's if we're talking design and dimensions.
Agreed. I’ve got a Samurai and a SPB153 Willard and would be nailed on for a nice GS diver. But they all have those hideous cathedral hands and dull as ditchwater dials. Ironic when GS mostly trades on it interesting/crazy/beautiful dials elsewhere in their catalogue.
@@ProfessorPesca the real irony is that Grand Seiko has such interesting designs and such a steadfast design language in almost every line they make, and then their divers are just Submariner/Sea Dweller knockoffs with worse specs.
@@Ryan-fh9fh they make good sports watches too! The Snowflake and White Birch may look dressy but their specs are sports watch specs. The sports GMTs look fantastic too. Even their chronographs, while acquired tastes, are still super impressive. It's mostly the divers that are a problem.
The accuracy of spring drive is far better than the specification guidelines. My 9r65 has only gained 2 sec in 3 months. This is the actual level of accuracy. Mind blowing!
What about my 7s26 in SNKL43 that's gaining only 6 seconds a day for 5 years straight, and it's like the most basic Seiko Movement ever. Seiko NEVER disappoints.
Seiko's divers are iconic. It's hard to beat them for the price, although in the last few years, the prices have REALLY started to creep northward. Should Grand Seiko ever start to release divers with their new 9RA2 or updated 9S automatics in smaller, thinner 39-41mm cases, I think Grand Seiko would start selling boatloads of their divers. Right now, they're just extremely big and thick.
Yep, spot on. They'll get there eventually as they did with taking power reserves off the dial (not here granted). Whoever designs their watches needs some re-education it seems. Though the new SBGH289 is going in the right direction.
@@leepenney6104 I did like very much that Grand Seiko took customers' feedback regarding the power reserve and started implementing them on the back, rather than saving that for their high-end *limited* models that were upwards of $20,000+. The new SLGA009 coming out is an absolute beauty.
Which sucks really. Don't get me wrong I'm a huge, HUGE Seiko fanboy, but their noticeable drop in QC for some diver model among some other persistent issue or questionable decision (Hardlex) rubs me the wrong way
I have owned this very SRPD in the video for the last month and it has quickly become my favourite. I enjoy it more than my TAG quartz Aquaracer and similar styled Movado. It looks great, wears great and the accuracy is acceptable. It is mechanical after all. At it’s price point it offers fantastic value.
I recently bought a Seiko SRPD 7 days ago thanks also to your tips and advice. I love it and i think Seiko is truly a unique and different watch brand. Thanks for all your reviews and comparisons!
My Srpd21 is my favorite watch, and I’m mostly a citizen guy. I get lost in the textured blue ocean waves on the dial. It’s a joy to wear. I’m lusting over that Grand seiko but I’m happy with what I’ve got right now.
That’s the beauty of Seiko: you can spend $80 on Amazon for an SNK (my first mechanical was the SNK807) and get just as fine a quality there as you would on a $700+ baby Alpinist. The fact that you can progressively climb the ladder of the brand as your budget allows, without compromising anything in the process is remarkable. It would be like if Ferrari put the same quality and level of detail into an FT86 fighter as a LaFerrari and nobody held it against them. Few brands in any industry can make such a claim. It’s why most of my collection is made up of Seiko and Seiko-powered watches. You read “Seiko” anywhere in the description of the watch, be it made by Seiko themselves or a third party that bought a Seiko movement, you know you’re going to get a solid timepiece.
I'd say they're about on par with JLC in terms of quality. Their watches' movements are sadly not near as well finished as PP, VC, Lange and so on, but that would quadruple the price. In terms of just dials, they are unequaled.
I own the Seiko 5 SRPD71 that you have featured in this video. My wife got it for me as a Christmas gift…I picked it out. It’s extremely high quality IMHO. Why spend $11k?
I have four inexpensive Seiko dive Watches. I have three in the $800-$1200 price range… I sold my grand Seiko and lost a considerable amount of my investment… It did not live up to the hype. The sweet spot for Seiko in my opinion is in a three to $700 price range IMO… I won’t be spending any more than that in the future…
I've had the srpd77 'cactus' for a year, very happy with is as a casual/sporty/watery daily bar the worst abuse reserved for the Gshock. It's an absolute strap monster, and for me it is a great desk diver as much as a real diver. I had it rafting, swimming, sea sports etc. Looses a minute or two per week not being worn daily, would every day or two if not worn. I'll never go near 100m and it was a great first mechanical :)
10 secs a month is an understatement. I've used my SBGA229 for 5weeks & it only gained 2 seconds! Spring drive is AMAZING! even better than most quartz watches. 👏👏👏 GS!
The final line is borderline epic. As fine as a review gets, although a wearing them while diving sequence, wouldn't be bad. Thanks and best of luck in hitting the 1M subscriptions mark.
I really want (well Seiko too but especially) Grand Seiko to put some serious r&d work on their bracelets. Make them taper, make them feel solid and comfortable, give them all toolless quick adjust, and they'll fly out of the boutique displays
I bought the SLGA001 when it came out and I have no regrets. If you have smaller wrists I recommend wearing it on the silicon strap it comes with which makes it lighter to wear too. It's not the first watch in a collection I would buy but its definetly an interesting watch.
Thanks so much for this video, I've always wondered what a SKX level watch looked like under the lenses you use for high end watches. It's amazing how Seiko puts so much quality and mechanical repeatable processes to make a fine inexpensive watch. So amazing.
I’m not super into watches but I absolutely love finely tuned machines. Seiko’s to me are the Nixon’s for people with a few more hundred dollars. Best bang for the buck, accurate, good looks, awesome customer service. Awesome video great camera work
So Andrew, as you were jumping the shark, did you try to look down and see it? I'm always curious about that when I see it happening; did you see fins swimming around or some toothy jaws? Or were you just concerned about sticking your landing? While you are on this trajectory how about a glowing review of a vintage Epson inkjet printer? One of the Seiko watch manufacturing company's greatest gifts to horology.
I'm wearing that exact "cheap watch" with the black dial/bezel right now. Great tool watch and very versatile with different straps and bracelets. If you're actually scuba diving (you're not) the water resist might put you off, but the timekeeping is appreciably better than advertised (+/-15sec per day) in my opinion.
Excellent video. That shot of the GS secondhand sweeping “in place” as the dial “spins” is mesmerizing. I would buy both/either of these watches, but would want to try the GS in person because of oft-repeated admonitions re case size. WF did a similar video with a Presage and GS. This was a good follow-up. We can discuss wherever the comparisons to Rolex are necessary or relevant.
Agreed! I am a huge fan of hi-beat movements. One of the reasons the White Birch is a top choice. But why force a pick? Get at least one of each! And maybe something with an El Primero movement too. Good and shelter are overrated.
Two of my favorite watches. You have to remember though the depth rating isn't necessarily for diving straight down. When doing watersports like jetskiing the pressures exerted on a watch can by much more than the static pressure from diving.You may never hit 100 feet diving but you'll easily exceed that falling off a jet ski wrong.
I am a retired oceanographer who have designed, fabricated and deployed a lot of subsea equipment using O-ring seals as used in these watches. I will tell you now that those hydrodynamic forces you mention and how it affects real world water resistance is somewhat of a myth. I have done many tests and experiments on hydrostatics and hydrodynamics.
I have the Seiko 5 Sport (SRPD) and I really love it. It is robust yet highly refined. Now my dream watch truly is the SLGA 001. I do have a rare Rolex Datejust as well, so I do love Rolex, but not as much as the snobs who keep Rolex winning against Grand Seiko in their comparisons.
Three of my favourite watches are my SKX007, SRPD71K1 and my (almost) mint Pogue 6139-6005. My SKX is still my daily go to... I'm thinking of getting a snowflake next, unless I grab the new Cartier Tank Must 41mm instead (another great value watch) but there is definitely nothing wrong with a Seiko or two in your collection!!!
4:39 - the current scuba diving world record is 332 metres held by Ahmed Gabr of Egypt (not sure where you got 700m from). This is a feat near impossible to achieve for atleast 95% human beings. That makes dive watches (and chronographs) an old world charm. Nobody wears them for the functionality anymore because a $250 dive computer can provide much more crucial life saving data than just time and date. Don't get me wrong, I love watches but it's kinda late for dive watches to be bragging about depth rating with little practical application in the present day.
@r2l100 That is the depth theoretically possible with these suits. Nobody has actually gone that deep in them. It's simply not required, and more importantly these suits are almost exclusively reserved for military or rescue ops (those folks usually don't buy $10,000 watches). As a diver myself, let me tell you that even if you manage to strap a 600m Grand Seiko or Rolex to that suit, it would have zero logical use except maybe getting some PR for the brand.
Uhm, in my humble opinion here looks like we're missing the point of making a watch capable to reach those depth... it's not because a person could use it to get -600 meters in person, but for the sake of building capability and fine craftmanship. We all agree that 99,99% of people wearing a "normal" 100m sub watch will never ever go more than a few meters deep. And of course a deep diver will use a life saving computer instead of an expensive watch. But it's the limit that this GS can resist. And it's a hell of a limit. A mechanical watch without escape valve able to manage 60 atmospheres of pressure and still working perfectly... to me it's amazing. Look for Press Channel here on YT. Sometimes they put some watches under a big press underwater and it's amazing to see what happens to watches at 1000 meters deep...
I have been a commercial diver for two decades and I can tell you divers wear a Seiko for $300 on the job and keep a nicer one at home in a box to wear when we finally retire. Swear to god the Casio diver's watch at $40 is equally sturdy and takes a hell of beating. And if you try and tell Sport Divers their $3000 dollar watch with all the bells and whistles has NOTHING to do with diving, that it's all EGO, the will prove it to you on the spot!
@watchfinder; small correction, the deepest human free dive is 700 foot (235 mtrs), the deepest scuba dive is 1089 foot (332 mtr). But I guess that you knew this and want engagement from the audience ;-). Which I am happy to oblige to. That said, I absolutely admire Seiko and Grand Seiko. All be it, I do think they should re-brand Grand Seiko to its historically accurate name; Seikosha - Grand Seiko.
I don't recall seeing any other watch that has such a smooth sweep on the second hand, and that attribute for me is second on my list of preferences behind appearance. 👍✌
Years ago I bought a ~$200 Seiko Recraft SNKM97 with a 7s26 manual winding movement that some reviewers online described as “sturdy”, “robust”, and “reliable”. It’s a beautiful watch with an emerald green dial and gold indices and a retro design. The movement was absolute junk. It was noisy, and couldn’t keep accurate time to save my life. I returned it and vowed I would never by a cheap watch ever again. I bought a pair of Grand Seikos together (because it was impossible to choose between the two and I asked for a deal), the original titanium snowflake and the original stainless steel High Beat 36000 (SBGH001) and as much as I like regular Seikos such as the Presage and Prospex lines, I will stick to Grand Seikos only and I don’t care what any reviewer has to say about that. So yeah I’ll take the High Beat and Spring Drive Grand Seiko divers over anything else without a second of consideration for regular Seiko divers (as much as I admire their looks).
I like the Hardlex on my Seiko. After three years of abusing my Seiko Mini Turtle, not a scratch. As where the AR coated Sapphire on my Sinn shows micro scratches. Granted Its the coating but nonetheless.
I have 3 Seiko's SRPD sport 5's, So I'm going to exchange parts between them, to make them unique and different! All of them have different color dials and chapter rings, so it should be a fun project to take on ......
My Seiko 5 diver is great. My only complaint is the 7s36 movement, specifically the inability to hand wind. I'd happily pay an extra $100 for that feature.
A 5kx has hand wind and hackable movement .. The actual SKX with screw down crown and ISO certification has that 7s36.. Non hand wind. Gotta do the Seiko shuffle for 30 seconds.. You should be good to hand wind
This video made me buy an SRPE21. Black face on hybrid leather silicone strap with pin buckle. New without tags on eBay for $200 less than the SRPD in this video allowed me to purchase an aftermarket ss oyster bracelet & still be ahead of every new with tags internet price. The SRP Seiko 5 series share the same 42.5 mm case/ 22mm lugs across the entire line. That makes them highly customizable with straps, bracelets, & bezel inserts available all over the internet. Not COSC but it keeps great time! If you wanna go completely crazy, hands & dials can also be fount to turn your Seiko into a rolex hulk clone tribute if you prefer. Me, i love the Seiko and will not do more than a possible luminous bezel insert😛
I own the SLGA003.. the green dial version of the 001... it wears much smaller than the specs would suggest... and the titanium makes it beyond comfortable... its a pure LUX diver.. favorite diver in my collection bar none... one has to experience it on wrist to understand
Ive got some of the heaviest hitters in the world in my collection and I still love my Seiko 5 Diver... meaning no offense to others financial situations, its the best 'beater watch' in the world.
A Grand Seiko is simply a Kinetic Quartz except instead of the self-wind rotor turning a generator to charge a capacitor that powers the quartz oscillator, the GS rotor turns to wind a mainspring that drives a generator that powers the quartz oscillator. It’s ingenious but not so far removed from their Kinetic technology as to warrant a five-figure price tag.
Could you please review a DOXA? I have one myself (Sub 1200 Sharkhunter) and it's still a mystery to me... feels expensive on the front and cheap at the back, and brags about none other than his highness Jacques Costeau. Thanks a lot for your attention, thanks even more fore the fantastic content. Best regards
Hello, I love and appreciate the content. Would you please be so kind as to feature the Cartier Pasha XL GMT with the date, and night and day complication? What are your thoughts on that particular watch?
Seiko gets alot of flack but people have a double standard. Many Rolex/Tudor/Omega are plagued with qc issues including misaligned bezels, indexes,etc. Rolex even made an air king with 2 9'o clock markers but of course it was special and commands a premium.
Gotta love Seiko. My beater Willard has never failed me, looks great (imho) feels comfortable,is accurate enough & saves my nicer watches from a battering. Love it. GS don't float my boat- springdrive just doesn't appeal to me at all, I spend the money on more prestigious Swiss automatics instead. Excellent video, thank you 👍🏻👍🏻
In terms of high end Seiko dive watches, I think their Prospex LX line of Spring drive dive watches (e.g SNR029J1 )is pretty neat - a better alternative the the GS models imo.
100 percent agreed. If memory serves, GS started making dive watches when it formally split from Seiko and gained some autonomy. Prospex has been making serious professional watches for years. Those reissues from the 60s are amazing and reflect the long history of the brand.
I saw an SRPD pepsi in H. Samuels for 125 squid. I nearly pulled the trigger but, I own a mint SKX007J1. 3:57. Just look at the second hand move. It's sublime.
I love GS tot of getting one already have srpd sekio 5 hulk and a rolex but my favorite is still the sekio 5 hulk. Love the colour to be honest my rolex is much precise after I put them together and check it with my handphone clock.
Sorry, I didn't hear a word you said any time that GS second hand was locked in sync with the camera movement. Damn, I going to have to watch it again.
