Seiko 5 SRP665 Compass Watch review

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Case

This Seiko 5 is definitely a larger watch, but not
so large it can’t be worn by a man with an average 6.5”
wrist like myself. The case is solid 316L stainless steel which featuring a smooth sandblasted finish with a neat and precise cut at each corner. In terms of diameter we are looking at 44MM and 12MM in thickness. I do like the fact that this watch can be used in the water as it is rated to 100 Meters. By no means is this a true diving watch - but it will sure survive the pool or lake just fine. If we flip the watch over there is a pretty large exhibition window displaying the Seiko automatic caliber which powers this model. I can definitely say this watches feel and shape falls into the explorers or camping category.

Dial

This watch was certainly meant to be legible, and that ot is. The dial is covered by seikos’ proprietary hardlex crystal which is essentially a hardened mineral crystal and is supposed to be a bit more shatter proof than your standard mineral. The deep blue dial is spacious and contains large applied lumed markers with a day and date cutout at the 3:00 position in white with black numerals. Details such as the bold sword hands and red arrow tipped seconds hand provide great legibility at any given time. The best feature of this model
is the friction coin edged bi-directional bezel which can be used as a compass if your electronic device happens to run out of battery. It is quite simple to do this by pointing the hour hand towards the sun in a level position and rotating the “S” in between the hour and minute hand. Please keep in mind the sun has to be out and you must be in the Northern Hemisphere to use it this way. I have found the lume to be quite
good and evenly applied as most Seiko 5s are, but please do not expect “Lumibrite” status with this one.

Movement

Inside beats the Seiko In-House 4r36 automatic movement (NH36). This movement beats at 3 Hertz and features hand winding as well as a hacking function. It also includes the day and date which is framed in the window at 3:00. You can expect around +4-10 seconds a day with these movements and should honestly not have any issues for years to come.

Two Piece Canvas Strap

One thing that surprised me was the two piece 22MM straight blue canvas band that it came equipped with. Now, usually Seiko doesn’t offer the highest quality of straps and bands with their entry level models but this one is of decent quality. It is definitely wearable and not harsh on the skin nor stiff. The matching buckle is also very slim and basically conforms
to the shape of your wrist. Lastly, if you did not notice this piece features drilled lug holes, which makes it a breeze to swap straps out.

Conclusion

Furthermore, I am quite content with my purchase and have really found no quality control
issues nor huge complaints. I would maybe like to see the removal of the “5” logo , as it cheapens the watch a bit I have come to realize after owning a few Seiko 5 models. One other thing id change is the overall
size to around 42-43MM. Now, that is just my personal preference due to my own wrist dimensions,
so this won’t apply to all. For the money, I think you are getting a lot of watch and a decent quality one at that. There may be an issue sourcing one of these models as I believe they are discontinued, and prices may be a bit higher than they were a year ago..