Seiko Presage 2020 Limited Edition SPB127J1 Tribute to the 1964 “Crown Chronograph” (similar to SPB129J1 and SPB127J1) - Well Sized, Fairly Weighted and Comfortable to Wear, A Review (plus Video)

In October 2019, Seiko launched Seiko Presage Chronograph 55th Anniversary Limited Edition SRQ031J1 (or SARK015 if you are in Japan). This special model was made to commemorate the brand's first mechanical hand-wound Caliber 5719 chronograph movement in 1964. This movement was paired with the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph, Seiko’s first mechanical chronograph watch.

A lot of write-ups about that limited edition timepiece advocate that Seiko was 'commemorating' the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph. However, it was the movement that was being recognised (for more, visit this article I wrote). I was actually surprised that a lot of people got that wrong. Even the design of the SRQ031J1 looks different when compared to the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph.

This time around, Seiko launched three specific models with different dial colours to commemorate the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph. These models are limited editions and only 1,964 units of each model will be produced. Visually, these new limited edition models have more in common with the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph than the SRQ031J1. Nevertheless, these new models are not chronographs unlike the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph.


I decide to get the model most closely resembling the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph; the SPB127J1. This particular model has the silver dial with black bezel. I was able to get one from the Seiko Boutique in Mid Valley.

In truth, the original 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph was unsophisticated in function. It was more of a stop-watch than a chronograph (it has a single pusher mechanism that tracks only seconds without any registers for minutes and hours). The SPB127J1 is the closest with a direct aesthetic link to the original. As part of Seiko's product line classification, this set is part of the Presage series.

The Series

The 2020 tribute to the Seiko Crown Chronograph gives you a taste of what it’s like to own that watch aesthetically. Unfortunately, this series is by no means recreation of the original as they have only time & date instead of time & chronograph functionalities. Seiko designed these modern interpretations as a swansong of the iconic model, using only the visual cues. Incorporating the chronograph functionality was never on the cards as re-creating the chronograph function of the vintage timepiece is not a design direction that they want to continue. Let's face it, the 'chronograph' function of the 1964 model is just a glorified stopwatch and not a true chronograph.

1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph

Nevertheless, it certainly looks like the 1964 original, offering a choice of silver, green or black dials. Below is a table of the whole set on offer.

SPB127J1 Silver dial Limited Edition: 1,964 units MSRP: RM3,800	SPB129J1 Green dial Limited Edition: 1,964 units MSRP: RM3,800	SPB131J1 Black dial Limited Edition: 1,964 units MSRP: RM3,800

The Watch

The SPB127J1 is made out of 316L stainless steel. This tribute watch is 41.3 mm wide with a height of 11.3 mm. Lug-to-lug length is 48.3 mm. The general design itself remains very similar with angular lugs and a series of brushed and polished surfaces.



The dial set-up is a good homage to the original watch. The polished band that circles the dial just underneath the applied hour markers create a two-tone effect that has a vintage feel to it. The sub-seconds line markers at the peripheral of the dial as well as the additional Arabic numbers are reflection of its purpose as a precision timepiece. Coupled with the similarly designed multi-faceted applied markers, delta-shaped luminous hands of the original and small rectangular luminous markers on the inside of the dial, one gets a model that can pass as a tribute to the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph.

A few differences are obvious apart from the lack of a chronograph function on the tribute watch. The  first difference are the texts. The tribute has an applied brand name with the words 'PRESAGE' and 'AUTOMATIC' whereas the original has the brand name and the words 'Chronograph' and 'DIASHOCK 21 JEWELS' painted directly on the dial. The small print at the bottom edge of the dial is also different. Now, it is 'JAPAN' plus some manufacturing code whereas before it was 'MADE IN JAPAN' plus some manufacturing code.



The second difference is at the addition of a date function on the tribute watch which was not provided with the original. A date aperture has been cut from the dial surface where the applied marker for 3 o'clock should have been. The aperture has been given a brushed metal frame with a black line painted around the front and bevelled slightly to reduce the sharpness of the corners. The date wheel has a white background which fits in nicely with the colour of the dial. Despite the loss of the 3 o'clock applied marker, Seiko kept the rectangular luminous marker for that position. This is very much appreciated as the night illumination will be complete or symmetrical without any gaps.

Protecting the dial is a flat sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on the inner surface. The crystal is set slightly higher than the edge of the bezel. The end of the crystal is beveled to give a nice transition between the sapphire and the bezel.

The most visually appealing feature of the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph was its narrow black bezel with a 60-minute scale. This has been reincorporated into the tribute watch with the same graduation and grip design. It is not strictly a divers' bezel but more of a timing bezel hence the bi-directional feature of the design. The bezel is a single piece stainless steel design and black coated. The markers are cut directly into the bezel and painted white. The bezel is friction fitted onto the casing.

Since the tribute watch lacks the chronograph function of the original, only the standard push-down crown can be found at 3 o'clock. The pusher button found on the original watch is not longer needed on the SPB127J1. Note that the crown in signed with the letter 'S'.

The lugs have a width of 20 mm. The angled lugs help the watch sits snugly on the wrist. Most parts of the watch are polished. This makes the watch more of a formal timepiece instead of a sports watch. Unfortunately, the surface is a magnet for fingerprints.

The watch came standard with a Oyster-style stainless steel bracelet with a folding clasp. The bracelet tapers down from 20 mm at the lugs to 18 mm at the clasp. The clasp is the typical design used for Seiko's formal watches i.e. a three-fold clasp with push button release. There are only two micro-adjustment points provided. The main surface of the clasp is signed. The links and folding bridge are solid units and milled instead of stamped.

On the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph, the bracelet has a President-style design (something similar to the Rolex Day-Date). This is another departure from the original design.

 

The case-back is a solid plate and screwed-down to the back of the casing. There are no graphics provided except for texts regarding information about the watch. As shown above, I got the 1,046th example out of the total production of 1,964 pieces. Also highlighted on the case-back is its water resistance of '10 BAR' or 100 meters.


The watch is powered by the in-house Calibre 6R35, Seiko’s latest 24-jewel mid-range movement. Operating with frequency of 3 Hz, the automatic movement can be manually wind, has a quick-set date, a stop-seconds function and a 70 hours power reserve.

Using the simple Toolwatch on-line application, I was able to do a quick assessment of the accuracy of the watch. Out of the box, it recorded an accuracy of +10.7 seconds per day. This is well within the accuracy range of the movement. I suspect the accuracy will improve with time.

Despite having the Lumibrite luminous paint on the hands and on the small rectangular markers, you can hardly see the brightness in darkness. I must say that the luminous aspect of the watch is one of the poorest of all the modern Seiko watches (that come with Lumibrite paint as standard). I tried taking a photo of the watch in the dark but the illumination was so poor that nothing discernible can be seen on the photograph.


The Wearing Experience

The SPB127J1 is truly a 'gentleman's sports-watch'. The whole design exudes class. This is a watch that can fulfill a number of roles. The SPB127J1 is flexible in that it looks good with a formal suit as well as in casual clothing. After wearing the watch for a couple of weeks, I find the watch to be well sized, fairly weighted and comfortable to wear. Below is a video of the watch on my wrist.



It is unfortunate that Seiko tied this model with the classic 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph. Although visually you do see similarities, the lack of a chronograph function on the SPB127J1 puts into question whether it is truly a 'tribute' watch to the classic. Personally, if one wants to make a 'tribute' or 'homage' watch, makes sure it has most of the the functionality of the original. The missing 'chronograph' function is a mistake in my view.

I do note that Seiko does not have any movement in its current list of calibers that closely resembles the basic chronograph function of the 1964 Seiko Crown Chronograph. Although the 'chronograph' function in the classic is more akin to a stop-watch, for Seiko to make something similar will take too much time and effort. The additional cost that will have to be imputed into the final price of the new watch would be too high for the target market.  I suspect this was the reason why Seiko dispensed from adding the chronograph function for the SPB127J1.

If I was given the authority to decide how to proceed with this design project, I will insist that Seiko used all its expertise to make a new caliber that mimics the functionality of the classic. More investment would be needed but eventually it can be recouped if the caliber is used for other models as well. Unfortunately, I am not in that position and hence we have to live with what we get.


The Buying Experience

The boutique that sold me the watch also gave me a nice Grand Seiko wine bottle chiller as a gift. I suppose I will eventually put this one for sale soon.





Specifications

Case Material: Stainless steel, polished and brushed
Movement: Seiko Calibre 6R35 manual-winding and hacking automatic
Jewels: 24
Frequency: 3 Hz or 21,600 BPH
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, quick-set date
Stated Accuracy: +25 seconds per day and -15 seconds per day
Power Reserve: 70 hours
Dial Colour: Multi-sector dial in warm silver with applied indexes
Illumination Paint: LumiBrite on hands and indices
Crystal: Sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating
Strap: Stainless steel bracelet with three-fold clasp with push button release
Bezel: Bi-directional bezel with 60-minute scale, black-coated
Water Resistance: 100 meters
Dimensions: 41.3 mm (width); 11.3 mm (height); 48.3 mm (length)
Lug Width: 20 mm
Weight: Approximately 150 gm
Crown: Screw-down
Case-Back: Solid screw-down
MSRP: RM3,800; YEN91,300 (+tax); EUR830; USD825
Availability: February 2020
Purchase Date: 5 June 2020
Purchase Price: RM3,420
Vendor: Seiko Boutique, Mid Valley
Limited Edition Number: 1,046 (out of 1,964 examples)


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