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Genuine vintage Seiko 5


martijnp

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Hi guys,

 

Today I'm showing you something different. A genuine vintage Seiko 5. I have researched some interesting facts about this watch (thank you internet!)

 

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Why I bought this watch?

A while ago I was at my work and by coincidence my appointment had a Seiko  5 on his wrist. What a beauty, he told me that he's wearing his watch for over 40 years and the only thing he had to replace was the bracelet. The movement is running smooth for all that time! 

 

Why is it called the "Five/5"?

From the very start, Seiko 5 was created to be a watch whose performance would serve in demanding needs of the new 1960's generation, who cared less for tradition and more about life. The watch had five key attributes:

1. Automatic winding

2. Day/date displayed in a single window

3. Water resistance

4. Recessed crown at the 4 o'clock position

5. Durable case and bracelet

Because it grew out of the watch itself, the name Seiko 5 was deemed to express what made Seiko great and was chosen. A simple and memorable name for a simple but serious watch.

 

Some details about Seiko 5:

-  It is 37mm wide and 11mm thick

- The day is changed by pushing the crown in

- The day is bi-lingual. That means it is in both English and German, with e.g. the German version being jumped over at every change

- A Seiko serial number tells one the year and month of production: the first digit shows the year (without the decade) and the second shows the month. The decade needs to be found out from other indicators

- It has metal day and date rings. The rings in the Seiko 5's where plastic after around 1990. This helped me work out the decade of production

- The model number stamped on the watch back is in the form XXXX-YYY where XXXX is the caliber and YYYY denotes the watch body. For this watch it's 7009-876A

- It has a caliber 7009 day/date movement, 17 jewels, 21600 Bph. According to the sources I found, this movement was used in Seiko 5s from 1980 until it was replaced by the 7S26 in the late 80s. This nailed down the decade and let me deduce the exact month of production

- The watch I own was produced in May 1983

- Under the 6 on the watch face (Very small) are two numbers: XXXX (left) and ZZ ZZ Z Z (right). Again, XXXX indicates the caliber whereas ZZ ZZ Z Z denotes the watch face itself. For this watch it is 7009 and 21 44 R 2. 

 

The movement, 7009A:

This movement is one of the most produced Japanese movements, which was for example and mainly used in the legendary "Seiko 5", until it was replaced in the late 80s by it's successor, the caliber 7S26. The 17 jewel equipped movement is pretty simple but efficiently constructed. It cannot be hand wound, but on the other hand, it uses a rather elaborated executer mechanism like for example IWC uses in may of their own movements. The 7009A uses all possible indications, hour, minute, second and day and weekday. 
An interesting detail is, that the day is advanced by turning the crown in it's second position, but the weekday is advanced by pressing the crown in position one.

 

7009A movement facts:

Manufacturer: Seiko

Caliber: 7009A

Numbers of Jewels: 17

Escapement: Anchor with pallets

Balance: Glucydur

Shock protection(s): Diashock (Seiko)

Balance direction: counterclockwise

Hairspring stud: Moveable

Regulator Type: Hairspring key

Features: SC?, QG, JG, RDR, AUT

Functions: Hour, minute, second, day, weekday, self-winding 

Beats per hour: 21600

 

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I love your review and I love the photography (great macro photos), wear it in good health mate ;)

 

@whoever

about the language on the day disc,

I think (not %100 sure) that the seiko "5" was later on started being producted for specific markets so they have adjusted the day disc with the correct language per market producted (you can find many vintage watches with various of date\month languages such as : german, spanish, chinese, etc..)

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A nice thread mate and a great share thank you.. :)

 

Some super pics too mate and some interesting facts... it does hold the design elements of several watches but still looks classicly seiko...

 

I like that sunburst dial too....

 

So are you looking to refurb parts of it or all of it or keep it as it is?

 

Thanks again for sharing :)

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Great review, thanks! Nice watch! BUT: WHY in the world is the day date in Japanese and german??? Is that a little reminder of their glorifying work together back in the laaaaaaaate 40's???

Thanks! I'm not sure but I think db1 just gave you the answer mate! 

 

I love your review and I love the photography (great macro photos), wear it in good health mate ;)

 

@whoever

about the language on the day disc,

I think (not %100 sure) that the seiko "5" was later on started being producted for specific markets so they have adjusted the day disc with the correct language per market producted (you can find many vintage watches with various of date\month languages such as : german, spanish, chinese, etc..)

Thank you again mate for the great service you are a true gent! 

 

A nice thread mate and a great share thank you.. :)

 

Some super pics too mate and some interesting facts... it does hold the design elements of several watches but still looks classicly seiko...

 

I like that sunburst dial too....

 

So are you looking to refurb parts of it or all of it or keep it as it is?

 

Thanks again for sharing :)

Thanks mate! I think I'm going to keep it as it is. :)

I was searching for the exact year of production (May 1983) and I found everytime some interesting facts about the watch. Now I know it's a 30 year old watch, quite amazing that it runs so smooth after all that time B)  

Edited by martijnp
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  • 3 months later...

I have been working on one of these (7009A) in my Horology class. I must have diassambled, cleaned, oiled and re-assembled this movement about 20 times now.

 

Brilliant implication of the auto wind system, so simple yet effective. It's so well made, the only issue I have had is the day jumper has a little spike that advances the day wheel, the spike has a cut away underneath it that makes it quite weak and I have had one break. But they are easy to get hold of so no worries.

 

I realy like some of the dial/case combinations, you could have 1 movement and a dozen different cases and dials that you just swap around.

 

Great stuff!

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 3 months later...

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