Seiko 5s are very robust watches, but - as an owner - please consider the following:

=

1.
The watches are not very accurate. You might get lucky (or have the watch regulated), but expect a deviation of 20-30 seconds per day, or about 2-3 minutes per week. By contrast, your Casio F91 will probably lose no more than 15 seconds a month.

2.
The seconds hand is 'non-hacking', which means that the seconds hand doesn't stop when you pull out the crown to set the time. You can force it to stay still (or go backwards) by applying a little pressure, but it's not ideal.

3.
The metal bracelets (on some models) are cheap, sharp and clatter quite a bit. Easily replaced, but not supremely comfortable. Perhaps the NATO straps on those offered by GroupOn are better.

=

The designs can be smart or fun, and you will not find a better automatic movement for £50. But for anyone considering their first automatic after a lifetime of quartz (or the clock on your 'phone), then - to avoid disappointment - please be aware of these factors before buying.

I hope this helps.

So, as I said, "Seiko 5s are very robust watches".


So, as I said, "You might get lucky (or have the watch regulated)".


So, as I said, "you will not find a better automatic movement for £50".

Can't we all just get along? :smiley:

These are usually 50 on Amazon so ignore the 99 quid rrp on Groupon but a fiver saved is still a fiver saved and a decent watch too

Not me mate. My name is Connor MacLeod of clan MacLeod.

RockonTommy,

Glad to hear it arrived, and you didn't have to pay UK sales tax!

Seiko 5s that I have owned are actually bilingual (French and English). When you have pulled out the crown one-notch to set the date, try spinning it the other way and you might find that English (MON TUE WED) magically appears!

Good luck.

for those worried about the seller I ordered the watch last Friday and it arrived today, it's a great watch and perfect for my small wrists!

No extra customs or duties to pay. Days of the week are in another language though. Spanish, I think.

Mine's arrived too and to answer your question there was no extra Customs Duty or VAT to pay but I would expect that as according to the tracking on the Groupon site the origin is Cheshire.

AH! Thats pretty fast - so no extra Customs Duty or VAT to pay? I once ordered a CD Box Set from the US - it was $60 (about £40) when it arrived - or rather had to pick it up from Parcel Force - there was £9.57 VAT and an £8 handling charge! So nearly half the price of the Box Set extra! It would have been cheaper to just buy it in the UK?

If you buy from Skywatches are'nt you hammered for Customs Duty when it arrives?:neutral_face:

Well it was about reading up on everything and not missing something. The thing that put me totally off larger spends from overseas was the fight I had with I think FedEX years ago. Bought a bellows for the Sinar and they added a large amount which made me go over and over the rules with them. When I got them on one thing they came ack with another bill which was also not correct. Went back and forth and was a real b' ache but I wasn't going to let them blatantly screw me over. If a watch is just the one thing applied at import then that sounds much easier to deal with if they decide to charge me like 80% of the item cost al la FedEx.

Sure these were £44 all year on Amazon, as I considered buying one

Blackfriday joke

Cheap watches... :neutral_face:

Thanks - I hope it was helpful!

Really, the only thing that HMRC will do is charge you 20% VAT on the purchase price (paid through the courier, who will gleefully add their own admin fee for the trouble), if bought outside the EU. The downside is that many Japanese and American retailers cannot (or will not) take off their own sales tax, which means you are effectively paying sales tax in two countries. But hey - just think of all the schools and hospitals you'll be helping to build!

The good people of HMRC are very busy, and so most of the time they will not bother to open and inspect your parcel - they will take the external dispatch paperwork at face value, and a quick airport-style scan will establish that your parcel contains one watch. But just like those friendly American chaps on Homeland Security, they are at liberty to open and inspect if they so choose - so bear that mind if you are super-concerned about the condition of your goods on delivery.

These are good watches, for what they are. If you go around high Street jewelers and other similar shops it's really hard to find an automatic watch - especially from a reputable brand like Seiko anywhere under the £100 or £150 odd range so for what they are at £40-£50 they're good value.

The strap it comes with is terrible, and it's hard to find decent 18mm leather straps due to the small lug size. I put a grey and black "Bond" NATO on mine but I don't like the itchy nylon of it much so I'm stuck as there's not really any leather straps either.

The movement is non-hacking as someone said which basically means when you adjust the time the second hand doesn't stop so it's a bit difficult to get it set dead-on accurate. My one seemed to lose anywhere from about 7-15 seconds a day as well even right after buying it new. The watch face itself is tiny at something like (from memory) 36mm. My girlfriends watch is about 38mm and just makes it look like a teen/ boy's watch to my eyes. Setting the date is also annoying as you have to cycle between two language sets (English and French on mine) and the date takes about 2 hours to roll over around midnight rather than being instantaneous. It's not really waterproof but rather splash proof.

I bought this as a spare cheap watch when I bought an Omega Seamaster for times that I didn't want to damage it but ended up just not using the Seiko at all in the end. This is probably an unfair comparison though pitting a £40 watch vs a £1500 one.

Useful. Was thinking about a Hamilton Khaki Mechanical from the USA (about £177) but thought all the mumbo jumbo tax levy tax, tax and a bit more tax would make it hardly worth the trouble.

Has anyone got any specific alternative strap suggestions? There are so many on eBay and I'm sure most are a load of rubbish!

I wouldn't recommend this for grownups ill be honest. The watch face / dial is absolutely tiny, got it for my dad and ended in the wrist of my 11 year old sis. Also, she's always complained about the time being off every day.

It is solid, it's just not accurate. It's not as easy to regulate as you make out either, how many people have access to a timeographer or are you suggesting someone just opens it up and make adjustments without knowing what they are doing?

A fairly ignorant post. You can try and regulate it all you want, it's still an inherently inaccurate movement.

Nice one, thank you Comrade! :smiley:

I would say the quality has actually dropped a bit.
But you get what pay for with Vostok watches.
http://meranom.com is a good site to buy from.
here is bit of info & history about vostok watches. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vckRv2ZiV0U

Aren't Singapore infamous for fakes?

Some of the vintage ones on ebay and the like look great in that 60s/70s style. Do you know if they have always been of a certain standard or are we talking, for example, new skoda >>>> old skoda (Czech, I know, but the new lada hasn't arrived yet :smiley: )

I would beg to differ, a Russian vostok amphibia is cheaper and very tough. http://youtu.be/jkhc25z_seE

Good to know, thanks.

Good watches, I've owned the same one for years, as someone said they do lose a little time but that's not biggie for a classic. I have a the slightly larger SNZ model with which I use a NATO strap. I heard that the Japanese ones (which I have) are supposed to be better than the Singapore / Maylasia ones but I don't know how much truth there is in that. For less than £45 I don't see how you can go wrong, it would make a great Christmas Present!

Thankyou! Most helpful.

Oops, missed them - cheers!

I've got a black one. I wasn't a fan of the NATO strap so added a black one like this for less than a tenner.

The straps are 18mm if you're looking to buy.
Think I paid just under £50 for Amazon. It runs about 5-10s day out but I haven't bothered trying to regulate. Voted hot.

You're welcome.

I still have Seiko 5 watches going strong after 40 years. I haven't bought a new one yet but heat from me as I do love a Seiko 5.

So, as I said, "Seiko 5s are very robust watches".


So, as I said, "You might get lucky (or have the watch regulated)".


So, as I said, "you will not find a better automatic movement for £50".

Can't we all just get along? :smiley:

Mine gains about 15 minutes a day! I have up on it and went back to a quartz Seiko instead.

Some reviews of the merchant can be found here. They are not encouraging.

See posts 18 & 20

Cheaper from here. Blue looks excellent on a brown leather strap.
http://www.skywatches.com.sg/reviews/seiko-5-snk807k2-military-automatic-mens-watch-snk807.htm

Just make sure the width is the same as the Seiko strap width.

Thank you. I didn't know the name of that particular clasp :neutral_face:

Search for brown leather deployment strap on ebay or wherever and take your pick

Seiko 5s are very robust watches, but - as an owner - please consider the following:

=

1.
The watches are not very accurate. You might get lucky (or have the watch regulated), but expect a deviation of 20-30 seconds per day, or about 2-3 minutes per week. By contrast, your Casio F91 will probably lose no more than 15 seconds a month.

2.
The seconds hand is 'non-hacking', which means that the seconds hand doesn't stop when you pull out the crown to set the time. You can force it to stay still (or go backwards) by applying a little pressure, but it's not ideal.

3.
The metal bracelets (on some models) are cheap, sharp and clatter quite a bit. Easily replaced, but not supremely comfortable. Perhaps the NATO straps on those offered by GroupOn are better.

=

The designs can be smart or fun, and you will not find a better automatic movement for £50. But for anyone considering their first automatic after a lifetime of quartz (or the clock on your 'phone), then - to avoid disappointment - please be aware of these factors before buying.

I hope this helps.

Cheers Op, heat added

Any idea where to get the strap from? That exact combo looks really good together.

it's on there with the fabric strap. Just search the product code of the watch. The strap has been bought separately.

They're based in Singapore. Similar to Creation Watches. I've used them several times. Excellent service.

Nice watch. Love seiko.

Question I have is why is this Groupon deal OK, but the 22.99 Ps4 pad on Monday marked spam?

Not me mate. My name is Connor MacLeod of clan MacLeod.

It's a great watch, I only paid £46 for a blue one from Amazon a year ago. It's a great way to try out an automatic if you've only ever worn a quartz or digital.

Only if you don't want a box or don't mind waiting a fortnight.

I think Group on would shift a lot more of these if they used some proper pictures of this watch. Those images they are using don't do it any justice.

Can't go wrong for a <£50 watch. The movement used is a reasonable time-keeper and the watch will most likely outlive any of us.

good find op, heat

These are usually 50 on Amazon so ignore the 99 quid rrp on Groupon but a fiver saved is still a fiver saved and a decent watch too

The blue version looks great on a bond nato strap.

Can't beat a seiko