10 Vintage Seiko Watches And Their Modern Interpretations

Here in the watch world of the 21st century, we’re living in the heyday of the vintage revival, with just about every brand returning to their archive, and trying to find the magic heritage design that will resonate with a contemporary audience. Seiko has one of the most extensive catalogs – vintage or modern – in the watchmaking world, and in today’s guide, I’ll be digging into the brand’s past and matching it with the watch that has carried its torch into the present. With the 10 vintage Seiko watches below, we’re going to run the gamut of style and utility, but each piece is an icon of Seiko’s past and present in its own right. 

62MAS: Seiko’s first diver

At the time of its introduction in 1965, the Seiko 62MAS was the first dive watch to ever come out of Japan. Featuring a deep grey dial with luminous, trapezoidal indices, a unidirectional dive bezel in black, and a date window at three o’clock, the 62MAS was water resistant 150 meters, and actually accompanied members of the Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition from 1966 to 1969. 

For Seiko’s (and Japan’s) first diver, the brand has gone the heritage reissue route, releasing a faithful modern take on the watch with the Seiko Prospex SPB143. Despite being in the brand's more expensive Luxe tier, I would say the SPB143 is among the brand’s most popular watches at the moment. Even outside of its heritage connections, the SPB143 is a capable, versatile piece that’s as good-looking as it is practical. The SBP143 packs its vintage inspired diver with modern muscle, opting for a more modern case size of 40.5mm (vs the 37mm 62MAS), expanding the water resistance up to 200 meters, and is powered by the contemporary 6R35 automatic caliber, which has a power reserve of 70 hours. 

Seiko Astron: The Brand’s First Quartz Watch

Unlike many Swiss watchmakers that struggled through the quartz crisis, Japan’s Seiko had the homefield advantage of the new technology and embraced it wholeheartedly with the 1969 release of the Quartz Astron 35SQ. The Astron, as we’ve argued before, might be one of the most impactful watches of all time, but the Astron of today couldn’t be more aesthetically opposed to the dressy, gold-toned, cushion-shaped Astron of the late 60s. 

The connecting tissue between the vintage Seiko Astron watch of yesterday and the one of today is the push towards quartz-oriented innovation. In its modern expression, the Astron has been Seiko’s vehicle to pressure test out its GPS Solar quartz technology. In my personal opinion, the SSH161 is the brand’s best-looking, modern Astron, yet is the SSH107 with its tricompax subdial layout (it feels more classic to me than the Astrons with the trio of subdials on the vertical axis) of chronograph, dual time, and calendar functionality. In addition to the novelty of charging via natural and artificial light sources, this Astron also sets itself with atomic clock precision via its GPS connectivity. 

King Seiko – Seiko’s First Upmarket Offering 

Compared to others on this list, I think the King Seiko is one of the brand’s most slept-on offerings. But there’s a lot working against it – mostly, the strange, internal tier system within Seiko itself, and the stiff competition with Grand Seiko’s offerings. This King Seiko vs. Grand Seiko rivalry has actually been going on since the early 1960s, with Seiko’s Suwa factory being responsible for Grand Seiko beginning with its original launch in 1960, and the Daini factory producing King Seiko in the luxury category just one year later. 

King Seiko has always been defined by the sophistication it brings to the entire Seiko catalog, focusing on premium finishing techniques and movements. Much of the DNA from the brand’s early vintage King Seiko watch models has been maintained, including its sharp, angular geometry, minimalistic design language, and its everyday luxury appeal. Currently, I would say the SPB389 is among the most compelling King Seiko options with its fresh take on Mid-Century design language in a wearable, 38.3mm package. King Seiko is under the Seiko Luxe umbrella, which you will see reflected in this model’s current $2,000 price tag.

“Pogue” Chronograph – Seiko’s Quirky Space Explorer

With its yellow sunray dial and Pepsi bicolor bezel, Seiko’s “Pogue” chronograph is interesting to look at and has equally interesting historical and astronautical significance. Though it was never officially approved or issued by NASA, Colonel William Pogue actually wore a 6139-6005 Seiko on his left wrist while aboard the Skylab 4 mission, making it the first-ever automatic chronograph watch to make it to space. 

Now, this model is more commonly known by the astronaut who popularized its last name. Currently, the brand has revived its “Pogue” for today via the Prospex Speedtimer SSC947, which opts for a more modern 41.4mm case compared to the very '70s cushion-shaped case of the Seiko 6139, but maintains the easily identifiable color palette. Additionally, the contemporary Pogue has gotten a Solar-powered upgrade, complete with the V192 Solar Quartz movement that achieves up to six months of power reserve when fully charged by natural or artificial light sources.

Seiko SNXS – Seiko’s Original Everyday Carry

First released in the 1970s, the vintage Seiko SNXS watch was made as their answer to the needs for an everyday watch. Originally positioned within Seiko’s 5 Sports collection, the SNXS line added more versatile options within the series as compared with the more ruggedly sporty offerings that the collection was known for. Made to be a daily companion, the SNXS series was continuously popular, combining the five-feature formula of the 5 Sports Collection (Automatic movement (automatic movement, day/date complication, water resistance, recessed crown at 4 o’clock, Durable case and bracelet) with a more elevated appeal than the suite of divers previously offered.

 The SRPK89 and similar models carry on the legacy of the SNXS series within the 5 Sports collection of today. Each model leans into the retro 70s funkiness on its dials, but in an approachable, equally wearable manner. The 37.4mm case dimensions are also aligned with those of the 20th-century SNXS series that inspired it, but of course, we have an upgraded movement with the automatic 4R36 caliber with manual winding with a 41-hour power reserve. 

SNK Series: Seiko’s Staple, Affordable Field Watch

Originally released in the late 90s, the Seiko SNK series leaned on the codes of earlier 20th-century field watches for its looks, but its affordability, versatility, and vintage-inspired design (even at the time of its release) made it a steady hit, especially in the everyday category. While the SNK series has been discontinued, the design ethos has been reimagined into the brand’s current Field Series within the larger 5 Sports collection. 

I’m going to turn my focus now to two models that were introduced relatively recently, with the khaki green SRPH29 and navy blue SRPH31. Both models have the familiar dial layout (which has also led to these watches being commonly accepted as pilots’ watches) with a day date window at three o’clock, the new Seiko 5 logo at twelve, and the recently added cursive “automatic” script at six o’clock. Measuring 39.4mm in diameter, powered by the 4R36 automatic movement, and priced at $315, I think both of these models are some of the brand’s most underrated entry-level watches in its current catalog. 

Seiko Willard – Seiko’s 70s Vintage Dive Watch

Released back in 1968 and produced until the late 70s, the Seiko 6105 diver got its widely accepted nickname from a silver screen appearance, prominently featured on the wrist of Martin Sheen in his role as Captain Benjamin L. Willard in Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now. Aesthetically, the Willard diver was a product of its time, with its oblong, cushion-shaped case, and was at the forefront of the quest to offer sporty, versatile dive watches that could handle a plunge in the deep, but also be rocked on the day-to-day. 

Seiko’s modern pieces that carry on the Willard spirit are typically positioned within the Prospex collection, often beginning with the “SPB” letters in Seiko’s internal naming system. To be transparent, I often get the Willard and the Turtle mixed up (they both are divers with funky cushion cases, give me a break), but the key difference between the two is largely the difference in size, and that the Willard is typically more streamlined than the oversized Turtle. Currently, the Seiko Prospex SPB317 is the most approachable reinterpretation of the Willard, and measures 41mm in diameter (46.9mm lug-to-lug), is water resistant to 200 meters, and is powered by the 6R35 automatic caliber. 

Seiko Presage – Seiko’s Staple Dress Watch

Okay, I’m cheating a bit here, as Seiko’s Presage line doesn’t have a singular watch from its design archive that it's a recreation of. But it’s among my favorite collections from Seiko, and this is my article, after all, so I will continue on as I please. Spiritually, the roots of the Presage lie in the brand's elegant, mid-century designs, like the Seiko Marvel of 1956, and early Seiko Crown models. 

The Presage collection is an example of a brand channeling a vintage vibe, rather than going the full vintage-reissue route, and I think Seiko has managed to achieve this feat rather successfully. I particularly like the SPB403 from the Presage Classic series, which features a white “craftsmanship” enamel dial not unlike some rarer models the brand produced throughout the 1950s. Another perennial favorite from the Presage collection is the light blue SRPB43 Cocktail time, which also has that vintage-meets-timeless appeal, measures 40.5mm, and is powered by the 4R35 automatic caliber. 

Seiko SKX007 - Seiko’s Cult Favorite Diver

Given the uproar within the enthusiast community that was triggered by the discontinuation of the brand’s fan-favorite SKX line, I know I’m in tricky territory here. The SKX was the undisputed value leader from the brand for decades, and, justifiably, people have a hard time letting that go. I get that for some, there is really no comparison, but it is my job here to find an alternative for discontinued Seikos, whether you agree with my choice or not. 

Technically, Seiko has created the SKX umbrella within its 5 Sports line to fill the void its favorite affordable diver left behind. I get it, the reduction in water resistance is a tough pill to swallow, among other things. But if you can stomach it, and you really want an alternative to the SKX007 that’s out-of-the-box fresh (and will save you some struggling on the secondary market), the SRPD55 is waiting for you. If you’re preference lies with the Pepsi bezel SKX009, the SRPD53 is also waiting patiently for you. You can learn about some of the watches mentioned here over at seikowatches.com