Seiko | Featured Brand at Time+Tide Watches

30.07.2021
Luke Benedictus

VIDEO: The Seiko SPB239J is a retro-styled crowd pleaser

The craze for the Seiko 62MAS style shows no signs of slowing down, with the release of this SPB239J essentially confirming the brand’s intention to continue their climb into a higher tier of watchmaking. This vintage-inspired blueprint will continue to be adapted for all tastes, and this particular reference is sure to be a crowd pleaser, lathered with tasteful faux-ageing. The dial The SPB239 takes a refreshing approach to the black-and-gold colour scheme which dominates the world of vintage dive watches by incorporating a subtle two-tone look. Instead of having conflicting metallic surfaces, Seiko have kept all of the solid metal components such as the case, indices, and hands in their original silver finish, and use all of the printed and painted elements on the dial and bezel to represent the gold tone with a rich, creamy parchment colour. It carries all of the retro weight that gilt dials do, although appearing much more utilitarian instead of potentially blingy. Over the softly sunburst black dial, the SPB239 carries a lot of character for a very versatile watch. The layout of the 62MAS-inspired Prospex line is quickly becoming an unbeatable platform for Seiko enthusiasts, with all the details perfectly executed. The… Read More

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21.07.2021
Zach Blass

INTRODUCING: The Seiko Custom Watch Beatmaker SRPH19K

When it comes to evaluating a new watch, many of us play the “what if” game. What if the watch had a blue dial? What if it had a grey bezel? The new Seiko Custom Watch Beatmaker SRPH19K puts that idea into action with a new limited-edition design chosen by fans of the brand worldwide. The result of the “Custom Watch Beatmaker” campaign, the new SRPH19K won the most votes out of 48,000 designs submitted by up and coming artists all around the world. Each design was paired with a song, and then left to you, the people, to democratically elect your favourite by throwing it a like. The Seiko Custom Watch Beatmaker SRPH19K utilises the familiar Seiko 5 sports design, its stainless-steel case 42.5mm in diameter, 13.38mm thick, and a wrist-friendly 46mm across the wrist lug-to-lug. Mixed finishes create a dynamic aesthetic that’s predominantly satin-brushed with a mirror-polished caseband and crown guards. While the protected crown at 4′ is not a screw-down, the robust sports watch is water-resistant to 100 metres, making it a great daily diver for the summer season. What is really interesting to see here is the new colour scheme and user-elected aesthetic. Seiko fans worldwide… Read More

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18.07.2021
Thor Svaboe

The Seiko Presage Studio Ghibli Castle in The Sky offers vintage delights with an animated twist

Studio Ghibli is a Japanese national treasure in the world of anime with a vast output of traditional animated films. Each one is a very Japanese, deeply immersive experience populated by creatures that would never have made it past a Disney focus group and propelled by a decidedly less commercial set of values. The Seiko Presage Studio Ghibli Castle in The Sky is inspired by the animated feature film of the same name, the debut film that spawned an iconic studio and grossed a total of $157 million in box office, home video and soundtrack sales. I’ve enjoyed the entire 124 minutes of this 1986 opus with the family, observing how the direction of co-founder Hayao Miyasaki and orchestral soundtrack of noted composer Joe Hisaishi create a parallel universe inflected with European inspiration. Laputa – Castles in the Sky (original title) comes with an almost British countryside feel and a large dose of steampunk, proving the Studio’s well-earned Oscar in 2003 for Spirited Away was no fluke. This combination of Japanese and European heritage inspiration also informs this new and limited Presage reference. The off-white dial is a rich parchment coloured enamel, bringing an early 20th century vibe to a… Read More

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30.07.2021
Luke Benedictus

VIDEO: The Seiko SPB239J is a retro-styled crowd pleaser

The craze for the Seiko 62MAS style shows no signs of slowing down, with the release of this SPB239J essentially confirming the brand’s intention to continue their climb into a higher tier of watchmaking. This vintage-inspired blueprint will continue to be adapted for all tastes, and this particular reference is sure to be a crowd pleaser, lathered with tasteful faux-ageing. The dial The SPB239 takes a refreshing approach to the black-and-gold colour scheme which dominates the world of vintage dive watches by incorporating a subtle two-tone look. Instead of having conflicting metallic surfaces, Seiko have kept all of the solid metal components such as the case, indices, and hands in their original silver finish, and use all of the printed and painted elements on the dial and bezel to represent the gold tone with a rich, creamy parchment colour. It carries all of the retro weight that gilt dials do, although appearing much more utilitarian instead of potentially blingy. Over the softly sunburst black dial, the SPB239 carries a lot of character for a very versatile watch. The layout of the 62MAS-inspired Prospex line is quickly becoming an unbeatable platform for Seiko enthusiasts, with all the details perfectly executed. The… Read More

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16.07.2021
Thor Svaboe

What watch does a veteran crocodile hunter (with only three fingers) wear?

What sort of watch does a veteran Aussie crocodile hunter wear? Well, Northern Territory Problem Crocodile Management wildlife officer Tom Nichols (how’s that for a job title by the way), caught a record 352 crocodiles in 2020, and in this intriguing story and short film from ABC News he explains how he goes about hunting down monster crocs. “The biggest one was 4.7 [metres] and he did have a bit missing off his tail, so that was a good-sized croc,” Tom tells ABC. But that sort of thing is just a normal working day for Tom, catching around 300 of the terrifying animals each year to reduce the risk of fatal attacks in Darwin Harbour. Tom lost two fingers to a crocodile more than a decade ago, but still spends his day jumping onto traps, manhandling large saltwater crocs and tying them up before transporting them out to safe waters. On his wrist is a battle-scarred Seiko SKX, proving the bullet-proof nature of this tough diver’s watch on its original salt-stained concertina rubber band. Any desk diver like myself will feel like a feeble coward after watching grey-haired Tom hauling in these crocs. He does make it seem like any… Read More

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14.07.2021
Ricardo Sime

Let’s go to work: The best watches for every job from white collar to tech

Whether you’re keeping a close eye on the stockmarkets, laying girders at a construction site or swapping stacks in a server room, your love for watches (which I’m just going to assume because, well, you’re reading this) means you’ll want a timepiece on your wrist. And not just any timepiece; you’ll want something that both suits your vocational needs and your budget. So before you pony up your hard-earned cash, here is a list of nice watches that should definitely be on your professional radar. Blue Collar Blue collar workers are the backbone of every economy and deserve a watch that stands up to the toughest of environments. From the entry-level guy that may be putting up sheet rock, to the senior manager making a bid for a new construction job, there exists a great watch for them all. For the entry-level employee, I’d suggest the Seiko Prospex SPB143 ($1895 AUD). A modern interpretation of their first diver, the watch is a robust and reliable beast that will take a licking and keep on ticking. Its 40.5mm size also means it won’t be making friends with every hard surface on a site, something a much larger watch has a habit… Read More

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08.07.2021
Zach Blass

7 Seiko Spring Drive watches you should know about from past and present

Usually, when you think about Spring Drive movements the mind wanders to Grand Seiko. To be fair, Grand Seiko currently has the largest selection of Spring Drive powered watches in their catalogue, but they were not the first to use it. Twenty-two years ago, Spring Drive was commercially launched by Seiko and Credor in 1999 with both brands still producing Spring Drive watches today. The technology, controversial to mechanical purists who cannot get with the times, is lauded by many for its unparalleled accuracy and beautiful fluid sweeping motion that has no stutter or tick. Some cry “quartz foul”, but the movement leverages primarily mechanically driven components that are regulated by a quartz oscillator. So little electrical energy is found in the movement that it would supposedly take every person in the United States wearing one to power a single lightbulb. So to shine a spotlight on Seiko’s ingenious tech, I wanted to share seven Seiko Spring Drive watches from past and present that I believe you should know about. The one that started it all: Seiko SBWA001 I first encountered the Seiko SBWA001 at the 20th anniversary of Spring Drive HSNY lecture on the wrist of lecturer Joe Kirk,… Read More

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