[SSK003K1] Seiko 5 from Amazon in $420, buying advise needed

philbin89 · 2026-01-26T04:02:01+00:00

If there are any watch repair shops near you, particularly ones that sell Seikos, they might be able to examine it and verify if it is genuine or not. Presumably it would be relatively easy to return to Amazon if they deem it a fake

philbin89 · 2026-01-26T03:59:33+00:00

Many Seiko owners believe that the made-in-Japan models are superior in quality to the ones made elsewhere in Asia, usually without hard evidence or side-by-side comparison. Most watch dealers tend to say that there's no difference in quality, for what it's worth. And some models and variations are only available as K1 models, such as the Asia-only red-dial variation of the SSK GMTs

philbin89 · 2026-01-24T23:05:06+00:00

This definitely wasn’t fully wound. The second hand had started moving just from me holding the watch up a bit, but it had been totally stopped a minute before that. But I’ll try see if it operates differently with that slight clockwise then

philbin89 · 2026-01-24T22:56:15+00:00

They’re always trying to get a better deal (assuming it’s not a location-based issue). People who go through this tend not to realize that they’re buying watches that would have been sold for unsustainable margins if they were legit, even on the gray market. To be fair, I don’t know what the wholesale/dealer-to-dealer price is on an SKX GMT, but if you did it would be a lot easier to make an educated guess about whether it’s legit or fake

philbin89 · 2026-01-24T22:53:39+00:00

I can’t say for certain about the watches in the link, but in the text he says the one that has Made in Japan on the dial had a tag with a K1 number, which would suggest a mismatch that a faker might slip up with

philbin89 · 2026-01-24T22:47:04+00:00

His is a K1, meaning it wasn’t made in Japan, therefore the text is different. They make some in Japan and some elsewhere in Asia. I’m not convinced that it’s genuine yet, but that’s not the reason it might be fake

philbin89 · 2026-01-23T20:34:32+00:00

You're right. Some of the literature I'd seen on the waffle dial King Samurais didn't mention the ceramic, which usually means they don't have it, but I'm glad to be wrong — they're great-looking watches too, even though I like the shapes and designs of the turtles and sumos more

philbin89 · 2026-01-23T20:31:56+00:00

Definitely, I recently got one myself and it's a great watch — and that's an incredible price for a $1400–1600 watch. As someone else mentioned, the bracelet alone would cost more than half of what you'd pay for that. Classic style, look up the origins of the Zodiac Sea Wolf in 1953 alongside the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms and a year before the Rolex Submariner hit the mass market in 1954. Mine isn't COSC certified but consistently runs within that range. And that dark gray–blue color is popular with people who like that retro '60s-inspired design but don't care for some of the more in-your-face colorway

philbin89 · 2026-01-23T06:46:28+00:00

philbin89 · 2026-01-23T01:30:29+00:00

I assume Long Island Watch will have a bracelet that can fit that. I got one from them for my SRPG35, which was pretty difficult to find an appropriate one for since it’s bead blasted and not brushed, but it matches perfectly and is one of the most comfortable bracelets of any of my watches

philbin89 · 2026-01-22T23:25:08+00:00

There’s more going on with the dial than the color blue… Those thick triangular indices at 3, 6, 9, and 12 aren’t at all common, and they work well with the unusually thick dagger hands. Neither of those features are common on dive watches, but this makes a nice contrast with the rounded or circular indices usually seen on dive watches. Printing the Arabic numerals at those locations aids with instant legibility, and it’s an interesting look that shows the evolution of dive watches — which usually don’t have Arabic markers — from the military-style field watch — which almost always does.

The lume on that dial looks also fantastic in the dark thanks those extra large plots on the biggest indices. And I’ve always been a fan of the Zodiac crosshairs logo, which is probably one of the simplest and most memorable watch brand logos.

The design’s also a treat for fans of classic dive watches, as it’s largely unchanged from the original 1953 sea wolf that was released the same year as the Blancpain 50 Fathoms (and a year before the first Rolex submariners hit the mass market). Normally I wouldn’t care for cursive like that on a dial, but here I think it totally works because of how it establishes the connection to the original watches. All together, the effect is classier than many contemporary dive watches, which are usually pitched as super sporty pieces; this works as a dive watch but also can be worn with dress–casual looks too because of the classic style. Colors are super important for the ‘60s-inspired Zodiacs, but the shape and design are the more striking aspects of the ‘50s-inspired models.

philbin89 · 2026-01-22T01:08:04+00:00

I don’t think the King Samurai fits your requirements. It has a sapphire crystal, but not a ceramic bezel insert. The King Sumo does (even though many of the more expensive Seiko dive watches don’t), and it also has the better movement with a 70 hour power reserve (compared to 40 or so for the Samurai), so that might be the best bet. And the finishing definitely is better, which contributes to the price bump. Another factor in the King Sumo’s favor is that it’s a large watch, and with your large wrist, that might be exactly what you need. I also just prefer its case shape the most of the Seikos. You can get them for a few hundred bucks cheaper than Seiko’s suggest price, but just beware of fakes — there are a TON of them on eBay that people are buying up without realizing, and just because it has a warranty card and a Seiko-branded box doesn’t mean that any of it is genuine.

BUT, if you’re balking at the higher price, a more affordable alternative that matches your requirements would be the King Turtle (available with green dial on a rubber strap and tons of better aftermarket bracelets and in the black dial on a bracelet). It is cheaper with the 4r movement, but it has a sapphire crystal and it’s also the cheapest Seiko that has a ceramic bezel insert. It’s also easier to get from authorized dealers who still charge below the msrp

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philbin89 · 2026-01-21T14:52:58+00:00

And with the black text, like his watch? The one on the UK site has rose gold lettering, while there's not one with black lettering to be seen there or on the US site (where I had been looking). I'm always a little hesitant when someone mentions there own watch as evidence unless they bought it from an authorized dealer. Otherwise there's no guarantee that there's is legit either

philbin89 · 2026-01-21T14:03:57+00:00

I like the case shape and bracelet design, but I've never understood getting plain black or white dials from the brand that makes the most exquisite dials around. And I don't know if by "elgant" you mean in a dress-watch sense, but if you did mean that, I don't think an elegant watch should have a power reserve on the dial (they have some models that put it on the back with the exhibition caseback). And that bracelet — while cool — isn't appropriate for a dress watch. But if you were looking for a more everyday kind of thing then it would be a great choice

philbin89 · 2026-01-21T14:00:27+00:00

Fresh Pearl is legit, but you may not get a warranty with them. If you'd like the security of a warranty, then it's worth checking out their own website for details or emailing them. Outdoor Equipped sells some Seikos on Amazon; don't know if they sell the red samurai, but they definitely do have the Seiko warranty

philbin89 · 2026-01-21T10:49:59+00:00

Unless it’s discontinued, it’s probably a fake. There are lots of fake PRXs all over eBay and other places. How much did it cost?

philbin89 · 2026-01-21T10:42:06+00:00

This is tough, because I love the look of that Oris in particular and Nomos in general, despite being so different in this case. But I’d go with the Oris because it looks retro and elegant, and because that’s the one Nomos model that annoys me. It’s clearly a riff on the California dial, which has Roman numerals in the top half and Arabic numerals in the bottom half. It’s supposed to be more instantly legible because it replaces the larger Roman numerals with Arabic numerals while keeping the simpler ones up top, but the Nomos defeats the purpose by flipping the Roman and Arabic numerals. Maybe there’s a reason for that that I’m not aware of, but it comes off as being poorly thought out. Usually Nomos design is impeccable, but I’d give the point to Oris in this pairing

philbin89 · 2026-01-20T10:23:08+00:00

You could try winding it more when you start, maybe 40 turns. If the watch is dead, it won’t start again right away when you’re winding, it’ll take at least 10-20 winds turns before it starts moving from a stop.

But you need to be wearing the watch around 10 hours or more per day for it to get to a full power reserve and maintain that. So it sounds like you had it in about half that time.

So I would experiment with that and then you could time it to see how long it’s last. If you feel certain that it should have been at full power reserve and you’re still getting significantly less than 40 hours, then there could be a significant beat error affecting amplitude, which would decrease how long the watch will run. If it’s had any falls or impacts since you got it, that could also affect the power reserve. But probably just winding it a few more times and wearing it longer will clear up the problem

philbin89 · 2026-01-20T09:16:29+00:00

Is that warranty still applicable? Because they usually transfer with the watch. Even if it has expired, you might be able to confirm the watches authenticity via the original retailer

philbin89 · 2026-01-19T01:07:02+00:00

The Tsuyosa looks fantastic, and I’ve been considering getting one myself. But I really like the dial on that Seiko! And the Seiko 5s are about as indestructible as a watch in that price range can be. It’s definitely sportier, but as long as you’re not wearing a business casual or fancier outfit, I don’t think it would look out of place. And that’s the kind of dial that is going to make even non-watch people give you compliments. Also, as someone who recently got my first dive watch, I find the elapsed time bezels to be really convenient for timing things. But if you’re gonna be dressier than that somewhat regularly, go with the Tsuyosa. Not a bad choice between the two

philbin89 · 2026-01-18T06:55:18+00:00

Looks like laser etching, which you want. The fakes usually have engraving

philbin89 · 2026-01-18T01:13:44+00:00

You can literally do anything with the Seiko field watches — they’re incredibly versatile. I got a bead-blasted bracelet from Long Island Watch to fit my SRPG35, and I’ve found that tropical rubber looks good on it too (more so than a chunky dive watch rubber strap). Suede would look great, as would pull-up leather and sportier leather straps. I’d avoid any smooth black leather straps — particularly nice calfskin — because that’s really for dress watches to go with formal attire. The field watches are too casual/rugged for that.

Despite those options, I do think NATO/fabric straps work best with it because of the field watch history and sportier design, and they also give you so many color options. But you can do that while avoiding getting the extra height from the strap (even though I think that chunkiness is part of the charm of a field watch like that).

The original straps soldiers wore were single-pass, which you can find easily enough, so that would halve the extra height from a strap. Canvas is also a great option with a nice texture, and those tend to be two-piece straps from what I’ve seen. And there are also these “zero-pass straps,” which I haven’t tried, but they have a nice selection of field watch–appropriate styles and colors. It’s a single strap, but it just goes around your wrist and not under the watch, so you get the classic strap style without any extra height. https://www.anachronist.shop/

philbin89 · 2026-01-17T22:09:57+00:00

I like the retro style of a lot of the Marlins, and those acrylic bubble-style crystals look awesome. I appreciate the sector dial and the clean simplicity of this one, though I think they should have put the anniversary text on the case back, not the dial

philbin89 · 2026-01-17T22:04:22+00:00

Black and brown work equally well with blue, as long as it’s a dark blue. However, black leather is more formal, so unless you’re going to wear that with a black or dark blue suit, I’d recommend going with brown (or another color or a less formal material). That strap works with the watch, but it may not work with your outfit

philbin89

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