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ShovelnTC

Seiko Diver fans opinions please.

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ShovelnTC

Well with the prices of reps getting so high I am delving much more into reasonably priced Gens instead.

One that I am very interested in is this Seiko Prospex SPB051.

The squared off case/lug area does put me off a bit but the rest looks great in my opinion.

Not a cheap option but can be bought for around $900 with bracelet or a hundred less for strap version and when compared with the latest Sub Reps coming in around $500 I'm thinking this one may be a worthwhile addition to the collection.

There are a few much cheaper options for seiko and Citizen divers and also a bunch of micro's in this price range so what do you guys think of this model.

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WatchDog21

Far be it from me to say no to just about any Seiko but I feel they have tweaked the price just a bit because of the 62Mas "remake" history behind it.   Does size matter? ( the watch, get your minds out of the gutter).  If not, and you want to  get the price down a bit give some consideration to the Turtles.  They have several color combos to choose from and over half the price.  

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Gandor

I feel like the price is a bit on the high end, but it's still a nice piece. 

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headhunt3r

At a lower price I'd take a look at sumo. Since you don't like hard edges I won't recommend the samurai. 

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RepGuy

For $900, I would look mire into Swiss autos as well

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ShovelnTC

Thanks for the replies guys, trouble is that I'm fairly particular when it comes to my divers, I like traditional cases, when I say traditional I mean a regular round case with concave lugs such is popular with pilot watches.

My favorite watch would probably be the early Fifty Fathom so watches like the turtle don't work  due to the flat and wide sides and some of the other Seiko Prospex are big chunky things with sharp flat  lines, this one does fail slightly due to the square cut lug/case area where the strap/bracelet sits (no SEL) but apart from that looks good.

I have the Ginault OR which I do love and is currently my most worn watch but as you know we are always on the lookout for the next "Hit".

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GenTLe

I actually like this exactly because of the sharp case and lugs :)

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MetalMickey

I really really like that. 

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Wriggles

I really really like it and am kicking myself I didn't just bite the bullet when creation had them at about 550usd there a couple of weeks back. 

There is however a new PADI prospex coming out that I like too...

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Khronos

The SPB053 was 499$ on Creation.. :( But they all came in wrong boxes ( PADI ). I love this watch, but I'll wait a bit for the prices to come down. They always do. The 053 is about 620€ now from German sellers if you search on Idealo.de.

The one thing I don't like is the way the endlinks fit the case. That gap.. :(

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KarmaToBurn

I like the watch a whole lot but I don't like the price. There are currently a bunch of other companies that are producting 62MAS homages (before Seiko released theirs) for better prices. Armida, MWW, Sharkey and soon Merkur all have homages. I would personally go for one of those first although I don't like the text on the Sharkey so I'd probably skip that one. 

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Bash64
I like the watch a whole lot but I don't like the price. There are currently a bunch of other companies that are producting 62MAS homages (before Seiko released theirs) for better prices. Armida, MWW, Sharkey and soon Merkur all have homages. I would personally go for one of those first although I don't like the text on the Sharkey so I'd probably skip that one. 
I've got a Sumo, a new turtle and a number of vintage Seikos. My modern Seikos are, imo, fantastic value, but as a recommendation it is somewhat meaningless - ultimately, you have to buy what you love.

Sent from my BBA100-1 using Tapatalk

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Mike Page

Can't beat a Diver :-)

oWiikyk.jpg?1

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epalanb

I am a big fan of Seiko Divers. In fact here is a pic of the one I was wearing today below. I have a Turtle (SRP777), a skx007, SBDC053 (Blue ver of the one you are considering) & I had up until today a snzh55. I have a friend that has a sumo and he lets me wear his every now and again so I have a pretty good idea of how I like that one as well.

No need to pay anywhere  close to $900 for SBDC051.  I think you could manage to pick one up pretty easily for somewhere around $750. There is one right now offered on WUS for $775 that comes with the warranty card and everything. He says worn only once so you could probably pick up a "pre-owned" one for $700 or maybe less. This watch is really nice and wears great! Only nit pick would be that for this price range you could get a microbrand with a ceramic or sapphire bezel insert. One benefit of Seiko is that everyone has heard of Seiko and if you buy pre-owned you are not going to lose much if you go to sell it. Microbrands tend to lose more...

For much less get a Turtle. In my book, best bang for the buck watch bar none! Straight out of the box it is just outstanding for roughly $250. If you are handy with a few watch tools you can do a few mods and add a sapphire crystal, a ceramic bezel insert and have a watch that is just fantastic for not much north of $300

This am

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Edited by epalanb

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Charly
On 1/27/2018 at 20:01, ShovelnTC said:

Thanks for the replies guys, trouble is that I'm fairly particular when it comes to my divers, I like traditional cases, when I say traditional I mean a regular round case with concave lugs such is popular with pilot watches.

My favorite watch would probably be the early Fifty Fathom so watches like the turtle don't work  due to the flat and wide sides and some of the other Seiko Prospex are big chunky things with sharp flat  lines, this one does fail slightly due to the square cut lug/case area where the strap/bracelet sits (no SEL) but apart from that looks good.

I have the Ginault OR which I do love and is currently my most worn watch but as you know we are always on the lookout for the next "Hit".

seiyajapan.com     for $798  ...      get it,   you wont regret it. 

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ShovelnTC

Thanks guys,

I saw this one in the flesh today and it's a beauty although the case lug area still makes me hesitate slightly.

I love most of the turtle except for the "Turtle" case shape so that one won't work for me.

None of the micro versions do it for me I'm afraid and the Seiya offering states misaligned bezel/chapter so although priced nicely I's rather a perfect version.

Definitely considering the WUS one but I guess I'd better not dilly dally on that one.

OR.............maybe they will drop slightly more once they've been on the market as I believe they were only released in December 2017.

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epalanb
7 hours ago, ShovelnTC said:

Thanks guys,........

OR.............maybe they will drop slightly more once they've been on the market as I believe they were only released in December 2017.

I don't know why, but with Seiko the norm seems to be that Retail prices are only paid at the beginning soon after release.  Look at the Turtle.... Retail on the srp777 is $495. No  one in their right mind is ever  to pay $495 for a Turtle as $250 ish is about right now.

 

What about the SPB051? I don't have a crystal ball, but I do think prices will drop some more and then stabilize. The SBDC051 (jdm version) has been out 9 months or so prior to the release of the spb051 that you mention. The two watches are identical.

 

What would I do? Just buy one m2m on wus. I have bought and sold so many watches m2m and have really almost never been burned. My reasoning is that usually you can find one that is basically brand new anyway and then if you do decide to flip it you won't lose much. If you  decide to wear it then the brand new one will look just the same as the m2m one in about a week any way.

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ShovelnTC

Well I checked out the one for sale at WUS but the lume application looks rough, especially noticeable on the 12and 6 O'clock markers.
 

BzrSXSh.jpg

Now I'm no nitpicker but that just looks rough and now I've seen it I doubt that I'd be happy with it.

I think I'll hang off for awhile but with the reports of misaligned chapter rings/bezels and this possible rough lume I'm hesitant to buy without seeing it in person.

Oh well on to the next watch obsession I suppose.

 

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FL13

I prefer the MM300 line.

 

They wear smaller than their spec and are so sweeet.

 

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ShovelnTC

 

On 2/5/2018 at 23:51, FL13 said:

I prefer the MM300 line.

 

They wear smaller than their spec and are so sweeet.

 

 

 

Yes but at 2 to 3 time the price not really in the running.

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RussP
On 1/31/2018 at 09:47, Mike Page said:

Can't beat a Diver :-)

oWiikyk.jpg?1

Great shot, Mike.

But then, I'm a Seiko fan..............through n through.

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Infernal

Im planning on getting this model later this year black one with ss bracelet. I think the price is relatively high when compared to their mid range divers. But when you compare the SBDC051 with its neares competition it helds up and beats most of it. Swiss nor other producers dont do better watches at this price, really. 

 

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