Seiko 5 Sports Automatic Blue Reference SRPB85K1 (similar to SRPB79K1, SRPB81K1, SRPB83K1) - A Great Starter Watch for a New Collector, A Review (plus Video)

The SRPB85K1 was launched in 2018 without much fanfare. Not surprising as Seiko tends to keep Seiko 5 product launches extremely low-key. Although there were a number of such releases last year, most were generally cosmetic changes to a basic design - last year, the bulk appears to be dive watch related.

One that caught my eye was the SRPB79 - 86 Series (please refer to a short introduction to the series as the end of the review), specifically the SRPB85K1.

The SRPB85K1 comes with a countdown timer. As the name suggest, the scale provided allows one to set a target time (within 60 minutes) and set the bezel so that when the minutes hand reaches "0", target time has been reached.

The countdown timer bezel is seldom seen on a Seiko sports watch. Most of the new Seiko 5 Sports launches throughout 2018 came with a movable bezel, either a dive timer bezel, a compass bezel or a 24-hour bezel.

Unfortunately, it is not as flexible as a dive timer. A dive timer can be used to track not only the amount of time spent doing something (like diving) but also be used to track a secondary timezone. It is because of this flexibility that watch makers tend to produce more dive timer equip watches.

The SRPB85K1 is a stainless steel made watch with a stainless steel bracelet measuring 44 mm (without the crown) with lug width of 22 mm. Lug-to-lug is 50 mm with a thickness of 12 mm. The call-to-fame of this particular example is the unique bezel design. The SRPB85K1 has the mesmerising blue countdown bezel.



The dial features a crosshair design. Painted dark matte blue, it is more pleasing to the eye in my opinion compared to a plain black dial. There is a sloping chapter ring with minute markers in white. Thick line markers for every 5 minutes while normal line markers for the rest. For illumination in the dark, a drop of LumiBrite paint is added for the 15-minute, 30-minute, 45-minute and 60-minute markers.

The dial surface has a small aperture cut between the 4 o'clock and 5 o'clock position for the date complication. Having a negative style date wheel i.e. white numbers over a black background helps reduce the risk of the dial looking busy. I am actually pleased that Seiko decided to place the date aperture this way instead of placing it over one of the hour markers. At least there is symmetry in the hour markers.

The thin applied hour indexes are a combination of rectangular markers and Arabic numerals. They are not painted with LumiBrite but instead painted with normal white paint. There are seven lines of texts and logo on the dial surface, all in a North-South alignment. The brand and logo are on the North quadrant while the rest are on the south quadrant. Apart from the applied brand, applied logo and the text "SPORTS" painted in red, the rest of the texts are painted in normal white paint. Despite the amount of texts and logo on the dial, it still looks surprisingly clean and uncluttered even after taking into consideration the thin white crosshairs across the dial.

Seiko uses the Roman sword style design for the minutes and hours hands. Within polished frames, the hands are painted with LumiBrite paint for nighttime illumination. Meanwhile, the seconds hand is a thin rapier like design, polished and without any paint.



Seiko uses a flat Hardlex crystal to protect the dial without any AR protection on the glass surface.  

The bezel is highly practical with a good grip. It comes with gear-like grooves on them that is easy to to get a good hold on. The polishing and the PVD process done on the bezel is so precise and smooth that the surface has mirror-like quality that can reflect almost perfectly. Unfortunately that quality doesn't seem to come out properly on the photograph. You have to see it with your own eyes to know what I mean. The bezel is uni-directional with a 120-click increment for a full rotation. However, there is some play in the bezel if you try to turn it to the opposite direction. 

Another positive thing about this watch that I personally like is the location of the crown. Seiko seems to be inclined to place their crown at the 4 o'clock position but for this watch, the more contemporary 3 o'clock position was chosen. As I have written may times before, I love symmetry and this watch fulfil that need. 

The crown is sterile without any markings and uses a push-in & push-out system to gain access to the movement. It has three positions; the safe position which allows one to manually wind the watch; the first position out which allows one to adjust the date wheel and; the second position out which allows one to adjust the time. Getting the crown to the last two position is sometime tricky as the gears must align perfectly when pushing the crown stem in and out of the watch. A good visual cue is to see the seconds hand. If it stops moving, it means that you are in the third position.

In the photo above, you can just about see a mixture of satin brush and polish surfaces. For a sports watch, Seiko should just made it an all brush finish. Scratches, however small may not be that obvious with such a finish.

The lugs are 22 mm wide and curve downwards towards the wrist. This helps the watch to wrap around smaller wrists. Do note the pass-through holes on the lugs. This facilitate a much easier way to remove the bracelet. My only comment is the choice of the 22 mm lug width. For the size of the watch, a more pleasing 20 mm would be just nice. I would prefer the watch casing be the centre of attraction on the wrist while reducing the visual impact of the bracelet.



The Seiko 5 Sports SRPB85K1 comes with a stainless steel bracelet with three-fold clasp with secure flap-lock and push-button release.
 The brand is stamped prominently on the flap-lock. The links are not solid but folded on itself from a thinner piece of steel. Looking closely, you can just make out the seam line on each of the links. The links are connected together with friction pins. There is a slight taper from 22 mm at the lugs to 20 mm at the clasp.

The screw-down case-back has a display window made out of Hardlex. Through it one can see the engine powering the SRPB85K1, Seiko's automatic caliber 4R35B, operating at 21,600 BPH (or 3 Hertz) with seconds hand stop mechanism and manual winding system. It has 23 jewels with a power reserve of 41 hours. No special decorations were noted on the movement. Straight out of the box, the watch recorded an accuracy of +23.1 seconds per day (SpD) using the Toolwatch accuracy programme. This is well within the manufacturer's stated limits of +45 SpD and -35 SpD for the 4R35 movement.

The watch is rated to 10 ATM or 100 meters. Although it is deemed to be 'swimming proof', I would not recommend you to use for swimming. The push-in crown system does not feel strong enough in my view to protect any water ingress especially if put under certain peak pressure (the sudden change in pressure when your arm is out of the water and suddenly in water during a swimming stroke of the arms). Although the manufacturer seems to think otherwise it is better to be safe than sorry.

As highlighted earlier, the number of illuminated spots on the watch is not a lot. Below is a photo of the watch in the dark. Unless you are wearing the watch (assuming you would then have a good reference on the alignment of the watch), you cannot discern the time at all as there is no unique reference to 12 o'clock. The illumination on all four main hour markers are the same. This is a design flaw in my view.

Overall, the watch weighs in at 183 gm.

The Wearing Experience 

The watch is visually pleasing to wear. For me, the symmetry of the dial, the hour markers as well as the crown ticks all the right notes for me. The blue is mesmerising and the paint and polishing job on the bezel belies it's selling price.

As shown in the second photo above, the curve lugs helps the watch sit nicely on the wrist. This photo also shows why I believe a 20 mm wide lug would be better suited. It also shows why more tapering in the bracelet would be more preferable. The current design and size of the bracelet is too overwhelming which reduces the focus on the watch casing which should be the case.

The choice of where LumiBrite is put is also questionable. I think Seiko should have put the paint on all the markers instead of just the four markers (see the night shot photo above).

The slight play in the bezel is also something that Seiko should look into (see my comments on this earlier).

Honestly, I should not complain too much considering the price point that this watch is being sold at. For the price that I got, it's a bargain.

One thing that I have to say is that this watch is a good candidate for a beater watch or perhaps the first seed watch for a new watch collector just starting the hobby.

Below is a video of the watch on my wrist.




The Series

There are five members to this series. The first four watches in the series come with bracelet, the SRPB79K1, SRPB81K1, SRPB83K1 & SRPB85K1 while the fifth watch comes with a canvas strap, the SRPB86K1. Similarly, you may also encounter models with the "J1" suffix which signifies them as 'Made in Japan' models. These models will have the words "Made in Japan" printed on the dial in very small font size. The "K1" suffix signifies that the model was made in Seiko's manufacturing facilities outside Japan. These models will not have any notation of origin on the dial unlike the "J1" series. In my opinion, the quality is the same although a lot of people put an extra premium for "J1" models.

SRPB79K1	SRPB81K1
SRPB83K1	SRPB85K1
SRPB86K1	You may also find these come with the suffix "J1" to denote that the origin of manufacture which is Japan.

All five examples are attractive in their own right. If given an option, I could also take the SRPB83K1 as an alternative. The gold accent on the hour markers as well as on the word 'COUNTDOWN' over the bezel does make it more colourful.


The Buying Experience 

By the time I decided to get the watch, most of the ADs in Kuala Lumpur have run out of stock. I quickly put in an order via my trusty and capable dealer from AWG in Mid Valley and within a week I got it. The MSRP was RM1,190.00. I was able to get it for a nice number of RM800.00.


Specifications

BRAND: Seiko
SERIES: Seiko 5 Sports
MODEL: SRPB85K1
MOVEMENT: Automatic, Seiko Caliber 4R35
POWER RESERVE: 41 hours
CASE SIZE: 44 mm
CASE LENGTH: 50 mm
CASE THICKNESS: 12 mm
CASE MATERIAL: Stainless Steel
CASE BACK: Display Window
BAND TYPE: Bracelet
BAND COLOR: Silver Tone
LUG WIDTH: 22 mm
CLASP: Fold Over with Button Release and safety latch
WATER RESISTANCE: 100 meters / 330 feet
FUNCTIONS: Date; Hours, Minutes, Seconds Hands; Countdown Timer
DIAL COLOR: Blue
CRYSTAL Scratch Resistant Hardlex
LUMINESCENCE: LumiBrite Paint on Hours & Minutes Hands and four round markers
BEZEL: Blue PVD Uni-directional
CROWN: Pull / Push
MAGNETIC RESISTANCE: 4,800 A/m (60 gauss)
WEIGHT: 183 gm
MSRP: RM1,190.00


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