Tag Archives: prices

Japanese Watches

Go Deep Or Go Home, Says Seiko

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How deep? Well, 1000m to be exact which is venturing into `Let’s raise a shipwreck this weekend’ territory but this is still a technical tour de force worth showing off in your Seiko collection.

What do you mean, you only collect Swiss watches? Come on, Seiko are true watchmakers, and clockmakers too. It’s all they do and they do it with typical Japanese shokunin elan, always aiming for perfection in terms of craft and excellence.

That’s especially true of the Prospex line we think, so here’s the word from Seiko;

In 1986, Seiko launched a diver’s watch that set a new standard. It combined Seiko’s legendary 1975 design with the 1,000 meter water resistance required for saturation diving with a quartz movement that delivered an accuracy that no mechanical diver’s watch could match. At the time, and still today, it was recognized as one of Seiko’s most important diver’s watches. Today, 35 years on, this classic Seiko Diver’s watch is re-born with new design features and upgraded professional diver’s watch specifications. This is a watch that truly lives up to the promise of the Prospex name. It will be available in July 2021 as a limited edition of 1,200 at selected Seiko Boutiques and retail partners worldwide.

This new watch inherits all the important design features and innovations which made both the 1975 mechanical and the 1986 quartz original so greatly trusted by the professional diving community. It has the 1,000m water resistance and helium resistance that saturation diving requires and incorporates the unique one-piece titanium case with its outer protector structure that makes its shock resistance so exceptional. It also has the accordion-style strap that ensures that the watch remains tight on the wrist at every depth. The outer protector is made of zirconia ceramic, which is seven times harder than steel, further enhancing its resistance to shock. The strap is now of high grade, strong yet flexible silicone.

As a new safety and design feature, the crown is marked with a vivid yellow “Lock” sign and an arrow to indicate the rotating direction. The winding stem is also in yellow so that the wearer can immediately notice if the crown is unlocked. The white hour markers stand out against the dark dial so that they are easy to read at depth.

The watch is equipped with Seiko’s tried and trusted quartz Caliber 7C46 which delivers a high level of torque so that it can move the powerful hands that are wide, robust and Lumibrite-coated for maximum legibility. It also delivers a reassuringly long battery life of 5 years.

The watch is a limited edition of 1200 pieces and it retails for around 2700 euros, or £2400.

Verdict: Invest in a used Grand Seiko instead, better chance of making money in the long run and arguably a more wearable watch.

Japanese Watches

Casio Add New Colours to G-Steel Range

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Casio has added red and blue dial options to its G-Steel range. The watches, which feature a steel case, mineral glass crystal and resin straps have a wide variety of dial colours.

The red dial model is priced at £399 and the blue dial costs £479. Not really sure why, as it appears to have the same spec on the Casio website. 

The G-Steel watches are powered via solar cell, so you should get about ten years or so before a new cell needs to be fitted. That saves you the costs of about 3/4 battery swaps.

Japanese Watches

60s Style Seiko Presage Models Are Retro Heaven

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There are retro/recreation style watches all over the internet right now, from brands like Timex, Zenith, Casio, Tissot, Longines and many more. You can’t blame watch brands for making the most of their heritage and remixing it DJ style for the 21st century.

So as a fan of the Seiko Presage models, I approve of everything to do with the Style 60’s range – except the incorrect use of the apostrophe. Nothing belongs to the number 60. It should be 60s plural, denoting the decade of style, OK?

Moving on, let’s look at these models which are arriving in June at Seiko dealers. The SRPGO models have blue, black, champagne or green dials and a 41mm case, featuring the 4R35 movement. Yep, you can wind it – no shaking required.

It has a more sporty feel than some existing Presage models, mainly due to the dive style bezel and more utilitarian crown. The cocktail time watches have the onion shaped crown. It looks like a scuba ready watch, but it really isn’t a dive piece though at 5atm rated.

Got some nice lume on there, plus a retro hardlex box crystal for that 60s vibe. Nice touch, but many buyers will still be slightly miffed that they are paying decent money for an acrylic crystal watch. That’s Seiko for you – they don’t have to change their philosophy for you, me or anyone else.

Some variants have a vintage, faded type lume on the indices for that extra retro flavour.

Prices start at £440 for the black model with a NATO strap and rise to £530 for the open heart dial option. Seiko are deifinitely `price-walking’ their fanbase up to entry level Swiss stuff, but then you could argue that a Seiko Presage is on par with a basic Hamilton, Tissot or Longines.

Except for the plastic crystal. Oh and the poor packaging with that kinda cheap ol’ 90s white box. OK yeah, they are getting cheeky on prices.

The range is inspired by the Crown Chrono model from 1964, but the modern days Style 60’s models lack the stopwatch button at the 2pm position.  Maybe that tribute watch is in the pipeline for the Christmas selling season?

More info here at Seiko’s site.

Watch market news

Historic 1968 Rolex GMT Is a Bankable Investment

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We love watches where you can trace the history since new, especially when that story has a military connection. So this 1968 Pepsi bezel Rolex GMT owned by Commander John Carr is a winner in terms of investment potential we think.

It is being auctioned later in May by Gardiner Houlgate and here is the spec from their website;

Rolex Oyster Perpetual Date GMT-Master ‘Pepsi’ stainless steel gentleman’s bracelet watch, ref. 1675, circa 1968, serial no. 1870xxx, ‘Pepsi’ bezel insert.

‘Swiss -T<25’ black dial with twenty-four hour hand, dot markers, Mercedes style hands, sweep centre seconds and date aperture, cal. 1570 26 jewel movement, no. D167xxx

Expanding bracelet, the inside case back stamped ‘1675’ and dated ‘I.68’, bezel 40mm diameter.

Comes with the original box, guarantee booklet and chronometer certificate, Rolex service receipt for 1989, and tag.

Commander John R Carr was born in 1912 in Patagonia. Following the death of his father John returned to Britain and served at the Dartmouth Naval College. He served the navy during the war, rising to the rank of Commander, and retired in 1962.

He then went to work for Shell in Europe as Superintendent of Diving, and was the project director of an international group investigating the effect of mixed gas diving on the ability of men to work at great depths, called Capshell.

It was a collaboration of the Italian, US and British Navies, Shell and Italian diving firm Micoperi. This project was at the forefront of modern oceanography and paved the way for the oil industry to work in the deep sea.

The medical side of the research took place in Zurich and after the project was finished John was gifted this Rolex from the team. He passed away in 2001.

ORIGINAL CONDITION, NOT RESTORED

What we like about this watch is that it has NOT been restored or refurbished with modern hands, bezel or other bits by well-meaning technicians at Rolex. Yes the crystal has scratches, the case has marks and there is some dust inside the watch, but that makes it undeniably authentic, a true piece of watch history.

Clean it now and then, have it serviced but not restored – and then store it away safely. This is better than  money in the bank, we guarantee it will almost double in value in a decade – try getting that return from NatWest.

Japanese Watches

New Quartz GS GMT Is a Bridge Too Far – See What We Did There?

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Grand Seiko has a new 9F86 quartz GMT creation that adds a new dimension, so the Japanese watchmaker says, with three variants available in June. Prices start at 4450 euros – ouch.

Maybe invest in a pre-owned Grand Seiko automatic instead? Prices are rising rapidly on the pre-owned market and we think they will go higher as more collectors fall out of love with Rolex waiting lists.

Anyway, here is the word from GS on their new model;

The case is simple in design but, with its muscular shape and sharp, Zaratsu polished surfaces, it presents a powerful sports aspect. The dial has gold color details and it is offered as a limited edition of 2,021 to mark the 140th anniversary of Seiko’s foundation. Two other versions with red and blue accents join the main Grand Seiko collection.

A design perfect for both sport and daily use.

All three new creations are all quintessentially Grand Seiko in every way, combining the highest level of precision and durability with supreme legibility and the quiet yet instantly recognizable brilliance that is the Grand Seiko hallmark.

The case ridges are sharp and crisp. The bezels are ceramic and so are almost impervious to scratches. Every detail is fashioned to enhance the legibility of the time and the precision that Caliber 9F86 delivers.

The two-tone dial ring allows the night and day hours indicated by the GMT hand of matching color to be read instantly. Legibility at night is ensured by the use of two colors of LumiBrite: green for the hour hand, minute hand and indexes, and blue for the GMT hand. The ceramic bezel allows the time to be read instantly and accurately in the GMT 24 hour format.

The hour hand is independently adjustable so that the precision is maintained even when adjusting the time to a second time zone. A date with an instant change mechanism, a sapphire crystal, 20 bar water resistance and magnetic resistance of 16,000 A/m complete the specifications. Even with this high functionality, the case diameter is a modest 40mm, making the watch perfect for sport and daily use.

The blue creation features a deep blue dial and bezel to match the bright blue color accents of the dial. All three watches will be available in June 2021 at the Grand Seiko Boutiques and selected Grand Seiko retail stores worldwide.

Micro Brands

Monsieur Watches Helm One Dive is on Kick

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We love Kickstarter watches and this Monsieur Helm One dive model has got some cool features.

Let’s start with the lume which is kinda different in that it isn’t just applied to the hour markers and hands. The distinctive logo diver’s helmet pattern is also lit up at night. Looks great we think and made possible via a sandwich dial so the lume shines through the top plate y’see. Clever detail.

Inside the 41mm steel case there is a Seiko NH38 cal movement, which spells reliability. Sapphire crystal, 300m depth rating, see-thru caseback and signed crown add neat touches.

Also, the bracelet has a clever little ratchet lever, so you can adjust the foldover clasp without using a watchmaker’s pin pusher tool. Handy.

Price is £178 on the early bird deal, which is great value, even with 20% VAT and import duty on top.

Moere here.

Micro Brands

Zelos Hammerhead V3 on Pre-Order Deals

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You can pre-order the new Zelos Hammerhead V3 model in a couple of days, and we reckon the teal dial and emerald green dial are the pick of the range. With a slimmer profile at 13mm, the 44mm Hammerhead remains a serious dive watch, but is now something that can be worn slightly more comfortably every day. Sapphire crystal naturally, screw down crown, steel case, Seiko NH35 movement and 300m depth rating. You also get a date window for that practical wear-it-on-dry-land vibe too.

Chunky dive watches with sunburst/fume dials are not everyone’s cup of tea, but we love the sheer value that Zelos offers. Reliable Seiko power with real dive ability at just $349 plus import taxes etc is a bargain compared to a typical Swiss 300m dive watch. I mean an Oris Sixty-Five is about £1300 and can only handle 100m, the entry level Hamilton Khaki Navy Scuba is another 100m watch, although it can be found for about £400. For a 300m Swiss made dive watch you need to look at spending over £2000, or £4000 if you want a prestige brand name like Omega,

The offer on this new Hammerhead is good until the end of May, and you can see the entire range; orange, brown, white dials etc here. 

Japanese Watches

Would You Pay £1500 For a Casio G-SHOCK? Maybe So

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We only ask the question because Casio have other limited edition G-Shock watches that cost over 6K, which is basically Floyd Maywether level collecting mania. Compared to those, this titanium beauty actually seems like great value. It features a special alloy case material, which Casio says was developed for a mirror polish smooth finish and outstanding durability. That is the Casio G-Shock USP when you mull it over, so yeah, makes sense.

Inside there is a Casio movement that tells the time, day, date, week, plus features like a countdown, an hourly alarm function and a host of other digital goodness like a Worldtime function, so you can select which city to sync with, as you travel like the Fresh Prince of Instagram in Dubai.

There is a light button too. Old school. Nice.

Taste the rainbow, wear the rainbow.

Sapphire crystal and what the…what about those multi-coloured links? Get the Skittles Rainbow on your wrist. It also has a screw down crown, for that extra water resistance, in fact it’s good for 200m so no worries on swimming with this goldfinger Casio on. The watch is ion-plated, not gold plated, but you know what, if you are a diehard Casio fanboi then this is going to be a very collectable piece in years to come. Not saying that investing £1500 in a used Omega Constellation from the 1960s isn’t a better investment, because it undoubtedly is, but sometimes a quirky wristwatch, that’s way outside of the mainstream, is a good thing to own.

More here at the G-Shock website.

German watches

Sinn ST144 Anniversary is An Old School Chrono

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Sinn have a new collection for spring 2021, with the ST 144 being a revival of a traditional design. This model has an old fashioned motorsport feel to it and looks the business, very stopwatch efficient with its red second hand. Inside there is a Concepto 25 jewel movement, which is an independent Swiss manufactured piece, which as far as we can tell does all the stuff you want a chronograph to do.

Here’s some background on Swiss movement supply for you watch fans; The Swiss movement industry is subject to EU political pressure, as for decades ETA had a near-monopoly on supply to indie watch brands and then an agreement was reached a few years ago that some brands would manufacture in-house, and others would obtain their movements from alternative makers like Sellita, Soprod, Eterna or Felsa. One thing the EU hates is an efficient manufactuer on its doorstep making luxury goods and exporting them into the eurozone without ticking lots of ideological boxes on free trade, diversity or climate agenda stuff. So that is why Sinn – and other brands – cannot keep on fitting a Valjoux 7750 inside every chronograph they produce. There has to be a diversity of movement supply, or at least the appearance of it. Even though it would be more efficient in terms of resource and energy consumption to have say two movement suppliers making all mechanical movements in Switzerland.

Anyway, Concepto are Swiss based, modern factory and aiming high in terms of quality, so you’re buying a genuine Swiss quality timepiece for 3250 euros – which is reassuring.

Here’s the word from Sinn;

Launched in 1974, model 144 is one of the most traditional watches in our range.

To mark our company’s 60th anniversary, we are now introducing a special limited edition of 600 timepieces in the form of the 144 St S Anniversary II. This model clearly demonstrates the timelessness of our instrumental, technical watches. The 144 St S Anniversary II is also a fine example of how we are constantly developing our classic timepieces. For example, the old 144 featured a black chrome-plated case with mineral glass and was only pressure-resistant up to 5 bar.

The 144 St S Anniversary II takes things to the next level in many respects. For instance, this timepiece is equipped with a wide range of technical features, is resistant to low pressure, waterproof and can withstand pressures of up to 20 bar. Ar-Dehumidifying Technology ensures greater functional reliability and freedom from fogging. The bead-blasted surface of the stainless-steel case has also been hardened using Tegiment Technology, making it especially scratch-resistant. This type of technology forms the basis for the high-quality Black Hard Coating. Typical of a 144, our anniversary edition also features a combined tachymeter and pulsometer scale.

The prominent positioning and intuitive readability of the white counters for the stopwatch minutes and seconds give this anniversary edition a modern look, without forsaking its traditional feel. As a reminiscence of the company’s anniversary, the number 60 of the pulsometer scale has been applied in orange-red daylight luminous paint. It has a 41mm case diameter and there is a nine week delivery time on this new model.

Our limited edition 144 St S Anniversary II with unique numbering comes in a fine case with a black solid bracelet and a black silicone strap.

SHIPPING APARTHEID

By the way there is a 120 euros shipping cost to non-EU countries, which is pretty spiteful for residents of the UK and NI, but entirely to be expected after the bitterness of Brexit. Bitterness by the EU naturally. The cost for German delivery is zero euro, but someone in Denmark has to pay 50 euros. Astonishing. How are they getting away with it?