"The Baddest Dive Watch Seiko has ever made". That is what I called this watch when I first reviewed it on Youtube. However, in this blog, you will be seeing a more personal and a much more subjective review of this watch. Here is a short debrief of the build and we will get right into it.
Case Diameter: 44.3mm
Case Size Thickness: 15.4mm
Lug-to-lug: 50.5mm
Crystal: Sapphire crystal
Lug Width: 20mm
First of all, this watch has deceiving dimensions. Knowing the size and the specific numbers of it, it does not wear as what it says on the spec sheet. It is a watch that may look small on the wrist. The dial size gives the illusion that the watch is small. Have you ever wondered how come dress watches with the case size of 38mm or maybe 40mm look massive on the wrist? It is mainly because of the diameter of the dial. The dial consumes more space on the watch case and the case profile of dress watches are usually thinner and not chunky. The weight of this watch is at 222grams (adjusted to wrist size). In a long day of wearing it, you could definitely feel the weight of it. Especially in activities like car washing or cleaning the aquarium. When you move your hand to wipe up and down, you can feel the weight.
This is not something that I thought would bother me at all, I mean, it is truly a well-built watch with a unique looking monobloc case. I thought I could forgive the feeling because it looks so good. The solution here is to use the silicone strap it comes with. Which is similar to the Seiko 62 MAS Reissue SPB053J. It is a very comfortable silicone strap. Honestly, I am a bracelet guy, sometimes maybe a Nato strap guy, but mostly bracelet. Overall, the build quality of this watch is phenomenal, it is not like most baby marinemaster 200m's. It is a tad bit better in almost everything, and to be frank, the first generation baby marinemaster SBDC061 does not look anywhere near this masterpiece. The second generation on the other hand SPB185 looks much closer to this SLA021.
The bracelet of this watch is said to have super hard coating. It is true as this watch has witnessed a lot of action, from scratching it while using an open wrench, from hitting it on hard top counters. I would say it has a slightly better durability compared to the baby marinemaster which also has diashield coating on it. The clasp on this one almost sometimes pinches my skin when adjusting to fit. So far I like the lines on this bracelet. Again, I am not a fan of replacing OEM watch bracelets to something like Uncle Seiko or Strapcode. I have already paid a lot for a watch and for the bracelet to be average is not really a concern as long as it feels good on the wrist.
The 8L35 movement has been the same since the SBDX001 from the year 2000. This movement is based on the Grand Seiko caliber 9S55. This is the first movement assembled by hand at Shizuku-ishi watch studio in Morioka, Japan. In terms of accuracy, if you don't know me by now, and this is going to sound crazy but I don't keep track much of the accuracy of my watches. It is mostly because I change watches often throughout the day (crazy right?) therefore it is just not necessary. This might change but in the time of this review, I only keep track when I am going away for a few days and I bring one watch with me. So far, it hasn't been this watch.
I'm sticking with my gut here, this is still the best dive watch you can buy from Seiko, it is impeccably a solid built watch, with a robust movement that you know can last for a long time. You can not go wrong with this watch, unless you don't like heavy watches, then this might be a difficult candidate. The way I see it, the price of this watch at around $2,500 - $2,700 brand new is reasonable yet not as easily attainable compared to the mid-tier models. It gives you a glimpse of owning a grand-seiko quality watch. If you can find one on the second hand market, that could be an option too. This is usually where the reviewer would say to you the negatives and the positives and so on, but I am a watch collector, to me, the negatives and the positives do not matter as long as the watch is within your interest. Anyone can say anything ill about your favorite watch and yet you still buy it, use it, etc. These negatives on watches are not necessarily deal breakers, but minor nitpicks that have gone mainstream. What I'm getting here is that the positives of a watch, outweigh the negative, almost every time - to the right person. As I have said it before, and I will say it again, this is the most practical luxury dive watch.
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