In this last part of my continuing musings on Seiko kinetics, I wanted to focus on some dive watch styles that seem to be almost completely ignored by the non-Japanese collecting community. In the early- to mid-1990’s, Seiko released a multitude of interesting kinetic dive watches in a rainbow of colors and styles. Many of these were high quality offerings with features collectors associate with Seiko’s higher-end watches. Monocoque cases, drilled lugs, ISO rated construction, made in Japan production, and applied indices are all characteristics these watches display. All of them convey a feeling of quality, and while not rare, they will take a bit of work to find, and many deserve a place in a serious Seiko diver watch collection.

• Seiko 5M23-7A10
• Diameter – 40mm
• Thickness – 13mm
• Lug Size – 19mm

For those prone to nicknaming their Seikos, this is often called the “Starfish” diver. More importantly, it was the first production kinetic diver produced. This model dates to 1992. It has a conventional case design and was available in both titanium and stainless steel versions. Other variations include a model with gold accents. The watch was originally sold with bracelet or on a strap.

This watch is a pleasure to wear. Although small by today’s standards, it has a chunky feel and an extra ergonomic bezel. When you grab it, your fingers naturally fall towards the humps on the perimeter imparting a smart feeling in its operation. Bottom line:
it works better than the traditional design.

The lume is set within silver surrounds on the dial and has that clear-coat look you occasionally see on Seikos. It gives the watch a classy and expensive appearance. The silver outlined date window enhances the package. The dial itself is a deep black, and the hands are painted white out from a black center just like on the 7C43 Professional divers.

• Seiko 5M23-6B40
• Diameter – 38.5m
• Thickness – 12mm
• Lug Size – 18mm

This must have been a popular watch when it was released. My models date to 1992 and I have seen them in at least seven different dial color combinations. These are fun lighthearted designs, but don’t let the colors fool you. Again, construction and design are high quality. The orange model is particularly striking. This is the brightest orange-dialed watch I have ever encountered. It has a sunburst metallic construction and if you look closely, you will see a tiny purple outline drawn around each dial marker. A subtle nod to the purple “water resist” writing Seiko used in their previous 4205 and 6309 orange divers.

The blue model’s dial is broken up by an odd glittery outer track. At first look, it appears that the dial just turns gray, but closer inspection reveals the track is embedded with tiny glittering flakes. The cases on these are stainless steel with drilled lugs. I have seen them with both frosted and polished surfaces.

• Seiko 5M43-0010
• Diameter – 42mm
• Thickness – 12mm
• Lug Size – 20mm

The 5M43-0010 is a titanium watch with a monocoque case. Perhaps you could call these baby brothers to the better known Stingray kinetic divers. The black-dialed model is reminiscent of a 6159-7000. The gold hands, markers and glossy black bezel exude a dress diver elegance not unlike what you get with a 300M 8L35 Marinemaster.

The dial on the blue model is particularly interesting with it’s “kitchen counter” granite appearance. Slightly domed crystals add to the package, and again, with this model, the lugs are drilled. When new, in 1996, these watches were not cheap, and I believe, sold for around $400.00. In my first post about kinetics, I alluded to, and posed a caveat about, the thought that solar technology was probably better than kinetic in utilizing recharging methods in watches. My caveat, if you remember, was about dial design. In order to work properly, Ecodrive watches must have solar panels built into the dial of the watch. To date, I have yet to see a solar powered watch that did not have that odd translucent look to its dial.

Some of these kinetic divers are examples of the advantages a manufacturer has with kinetic designs. You could never have the textured blue-granite, bright metallic-orange, or blue-speckled dials these Seikos display on a solar powered watch. By sticking with kinetic, Seiko does not have the built in limitations inherent in dial designs using solar power.

As always, thanks for reading, and corrections and comments are encouraged.

This entry was posted on Sunday, March 18th, 2007 at 9:14 am and is filed under Seiko. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.