No 443 - Seiko SBDC063

My first Seiko from the 2018 release and man did this one stun me. What a beauty! I was a little tempted to buy a SBDC051/53 from last year's release but for some reason I never felt they were that good. The SBDC061/63 on the other hand were that good! 

#443 - The Seiko SBDC063.

First of all it looks fantastic. The hands and indexes together with the matte dial makes it super legible. I love it that there's no day, only date. Lume is excellent of course but the best thing about this watch is its case. The lines are beautiful and the size is perfect. It sits just like you want the MM300 to sit on your wrist. Much slimmer and not top heavy at all. The flat sapphire is nice and makes it really easy to take good photos of. The blue bezel can go from crazy strong blue to a deep blue shade, almost black, depending on the light surrounding you and the angle you look at it. I rarely like the Seiko bracelets and if I’d ever pick up the SBDC061 I’d definitely would have bought the rubber strap for it that this one had. I quickly tried out the SBDC063 with a MM300 rubber but it didn’t gave it that cool look I was hoping it would so I switched back. I only kept this watch for a week but I could easily have worn it much much longer. It actually made such an impact on me I had to write down my thoughts about it immediately. There you go!

© All pictures by a Watch Flipper's Diary unless noted.

No 256 - Seiko SBDC005

Did I really need to give the Seiko Sumo another go? Absolutely not. The second I opened up the box I said to myself “oh no, why?”

Alright, so it was orange. The orange faced Seiko’s have been proven to become quite uncommon as soon as they’ve been discontinued. The orange Sumo perhaps haven’t received a rare status yet, and perhaps it never will, but it is definitely more uncommon than the black and blue versions. So when I found one really cheap I just had to, as always, give it a try.

#256 - The Seiko Sumo SBDC005.

But it’s just too big. And it’s ugly. I don’t like the case, nor the bezel or its insert, not the font on the dial, not the 12 hour marker, not the bracelet. The list goes on and I’m just going to leave it at that…

...almost…

Recently there was a Zimbe version released, the SRPB055J, which had a dial that faded from black to blue, purple bezel insert, golden hands and crown, and with a PVD treated case and bracelet.  And it looked awesome! So weird that it became awesome. But it was way too expensive. Otherwise I might would have want to reconsider trying out the Sumo yet one more time.

© All pictures by a Watch Flipper's Diary unless noted.

No 176 - Seiko SARB033

Another “poor man’s Grand Seiko” from Seiko’s Mechanical line. A good looking dresswatch to a really competitive price. It’s still available to purchase new and it would suit great as an everyday wearer for anyone. I haven’t met anyone who’s bought one and felt disappointed. Just the other week a friend of mine picked up the SARB035 (white dial version) and he loved it. I still haven’t had a watch with the 6r15 movement that haven’t been running other than perfect and that is quite impressive. 

#176 - The Seiko SARB033.

I just bought this one because I had to try it. At the time I was actually on the hunt for a wedding watch but I never considered this one as a possible choice. It’s a fine watch, sure, but I was looking for something more of a timeless classic.

© All pictures by a Watch Flipper's Diary unless noted.

No 164 - Seiko SARB059

The SARB059, also nicknamed ”Alpinist”, is a discontinued member of the Prospex family. At first glance you might mistake it for a SKX-diver because of the similar case design but it has a couple of own details, like the dial, handset, chapter ring, bezel, crown and movement, that makes it unique. I loved the quality. It felt solid and the bracelet was really comfortable. I hate all the heavy aftermarket steel bracelets. They’re not even close to Seiko’s own quality. Just chunky, thick and uncomfortable. I especially liked the bezel on the SARB059 which had a much nicer design than the SKX’s. But the chapter ring is what makes this watch stand out. It is filled with ground to air emergency codes; hence the connection to the Alpinist nickname. The dial had a sunburst dark petroleum green tone to it (even though it looks black in all my pictures) which looked very nice in the sun. The 6r15-movement ran great as they always do. A great survival/adventure beater!

#164 - The Seiko SARB059 a.k.a. Alpinist.

I wasn't able to catch that green dial.

Back in early 2013 when I bought mine, and when you could buy these new, the used price was around $300 but nowadays you got to be prepared to pay up somewhere between $600-800. I would easily say it is $300-400-fun but not $600-800-fun. It is a great Seiko, don’t get me wrong, I just think you can get more watch for that kind of money.

© All pictures by a Watch Flipper's Diary unless noted.

No 119 & 151 - Seiko SARB072

My first purchase of a new watch from Japan was the SARB072 and I got it from Higuchi INC in mid February 2012. The watch got caught up in the Swedish customs of course but the value was misread and I was charged a ridiculous amount of VAT. Such a worthless feeling when you’re standing there happy at the post office and you’re greeted with “You know there is a toll fee that you must pay?” and you’re like “Yes yes, I know, just give me the package!” but then all of a sudden you’re told to pay almost the same amount as you’ve already paid for the watch in the first place. “What the f**k?! Are you serious? How is it that I have to pay that much?” Then when you get the reply of someone saying “I’m sorry Sir but I'm just doing my job. If you're not pleased you can call the Swedish customs and file a complaint”. So what do you do? Well you clench your fists in your pocket trying to stop yourself from choking the poor cashier to death and then you pay up and walk away. The Swedish customs customer service gave me such a hassle. It was no walk in the park convincing them that they were the ones who had made a mistake. Jeeezzz…

Back to the watch! The SARB072 is just an incredible and beautiful watch. Simple and elegant.  Perhaps not very stealthy since it has got a rose gold coating and it sure doesn’t go unnoticed. Even though the Seiko leather it was delivered on isn’t of the highest quality it still was decent and it looked very classy and worked very well with the watch. I loved wearing this watch! It looked great with whatever I wore and I just loved taking photos of it. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: the 6r15 movement was amazing and kept time well within COSC. I only sold it because I had got a taste for gold. But I wanted real gold! 

#119 - The Seiko SARB072.

Bought my second one used in late October 2012. I was about to leave for vacation in Ft. Lauderdale and I only had a couple of dive watches in my drawer at the moment. I wanted something a little dressier for dinners and other non-beach activities. This one popped up for sale two weeks or so before we left and I decided it was good enough to bring with me. Had a superb looking honey colored lizard strap lying around which I put it on and I think it made the watch look even better.

 

#151 - My second SARB072 on the honey lizard strap.

By the pool in Ft. Lauderdale.

Having a Shock Top beer.

There are so many nice dress watches in the SARB-series. The SARB072 is just one among them. I just came to think of a watch that I haven’t had yet but that is a must-have; the SARB030. I’ve totally forgot about it. That might just be the perfect dress watch in that price range! I searched for one for about two years and then gave up. I want one. I need one. I got to have one. NOW!

© All pictures by a Watch Flipper's Diary unless noted.