I learned something recently about Japanese dive watches, especially Seikos; there is a huge fan following around them. These avid watch lovers enthusiastically enjoy the best from the Japanese watch giants, and eagerly anticipate new models. While many of the watches coming from this arena are on the less expensive side of things, there are some models where Seiko (or Citizen) put their “all” in the watches. The Seiko SBDX001 is just such a watch, and has been highly acclaimed as representing an apex in the genre. If you aren’t aware of what the genre is, well it is hard to explain because it is more that just a dive watch. Japanese and Swiss dive watches have always been a bit different. The Japanese have a more technical and instrument slant to the design. They also have little quirks like off center crowns, distinct hands, and other unique characteristics. For someone who knows Japanese watches, you know what I mean.

The Seiko MarineMaster SBDX001 is a high-end Japanese dive watch. Inside is a quality Seiko automatic movement, and everything about the watch is geared toward durability and function. I won’t go into too much detail because I already gave the Seiko MarineMaster Professional watch a full discussion here, complete with a relevant video. Overall, I really like this watch and it typifies what is good about mechanical Japanese instrument watches.

Retailing at over $2000, a used one is available on eBay right now starting very cheap. It will likely go for a few hundred dollars, though it will still certainly be a good value. This is a classic, and one of the finest all mechanical Seiko watches. More recent MarineMaster watches use Seiko Kinetic Direct Drive, or Spring Drive movements, not automatic mechanical movements (though the Seiko Prospex SBDB001 does have a newer GMT mechanical movement and costs over $3,000). Check out this nice find.

See Seiko MarineMaster watches on ebay here.

See automatic Seiko Dive watches on Amazon here. [phpbay]seiko marinemaster | seiko marine master | seiko prospex professional | seiko prospex automatic, num, “”, “”[/phpbay]