Full Circle with the Seiko Presage SPB359

Round the world and home again, that's the sailor's way!

(Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, 1971)

Long before there was a job with Tourneau, a three-year stint with DOXA, the blog formerly known as Tempus Fugit, and now probably too many consulting projects with Swiss, Japanese and German brands to count, your's truly was a semi-freshly minted graduate from the University of Oregon with a BA in English (New World Literature as a focus). It is fair to say I had not figured out what to do with my life.  

Moving to Japan changed my life. I found a career, and I met the woman I would marry. And on a side note, nearly 31 years later, we are still together.

Japanese watches at that time were not really valued the way they are now by the Japanese public and or watch collecting community as a whole. In the early 90s, Japan was very brand conscious, and at least in the metro Tokyo area, Swiss brands were IT. 

I have returned to Japan twice since living there - both times in 2018. And it's funny returning to a place you called home 25 years later. You assume that the people who were there will still be there, frozen in time. The landscape of the city I lived in (Kasukabe), had changed completely. And I suspect that now after an additional 6 years, it's changed even more. But what is curious about memory, is it is often more visceral than anything else. Smells, sights, noises can trigger memories of people and events that you have filed away deep in your personal hard drive, remaining completely forgotten until the switch is flipped.

Seiko came out with the Presage "Laurel" in 2023. It was created in celebration of Seiko's 110th anniversary. It was limited to 2500 pieces. And when I first saw it, it triggered a flood of visceral memories. It brought me back to being 23 years old, trying to figure out how to navigate in a new environment, living in a "newish" city that was still deeply rooted in the past. Old, yet modern, and constantly evolving while never letting go of its history.

I have been tracking the Presage Laurel for the past year and a half. and hitting a personal milestone, the timing seemed right. I love the look and feel of the Laurel. I appreciate the fact that it is, indeed, different. And this, in turn, might be why it did not sell out as quickly as a limited series might typically do. But there are some retail outlets our there who still have them, so if it is in your wheelhouse, I would encourage you to run, don't walk to get one before they are gone.

For those of you in search of the vital statistics:

The case measures 37.5 mm in diameter and is of stainless steel. The movement is Calibre 6R27 which is an automatic movement with self-winding capability.

The functions are hours, minutes, and seconds with a date and power reserve complication. The power reserve is approximately 45 hours.

The dial is enamel - and it is beautiful.

A watch can be simply a way to measure time. But at least for me, the Seiko Presage Laurel is a time machine, taking me back to a place and time I continue to reflect on, uncovering misplaced memories that continue to inspire me.

Enjoy your watches.

Twice Again

The Swatch Twice Again.

People who write about watches tend to skew towards the new, the shiny, the haute.

A bit about me - back when the dinosaurs still roamed the land, I was 25, living in Japan, and just gotten together with the woman I would later marry. It was a beautiful Saturday morning, and I strode into Robinson’s department store in Kasukabe (Saitama-ken) and bought the original version of this Swatch. If you knew me then, you would say that this was a bit out of character for me.

Before moving to Japan I had spent nearly a year and a half struggling to keep myself afloat. I was situationally homeless for a part of that time. When I got the job, I had to come up with about $3,500 (or so) to pay for my flight and have one month's worth of cash to live on until I would get my first pay check.

I sold everything I owned to get there…and that first year I was notoriously cheap. So believe it or not, the 6,000 Yen (less than $60 US at the time) I spent was a big deal. But something told me this was a big moment. Looking back 29 years later, I finally pulled the trigger on that Swatch's replacement, the Twice again.

Watch brands love to try and tug at our psyche, usually with over-priced, instantly forgettable wrist trinkets that will likely be worn for less than a year and discarded as the gift itself held little to no personal connection. With that said, it’s not lost on me that without any marketing efforts, a new $85 Swatch has landed such a visceral sucker punch on me some 29 years later.

Enjoy your watches!

Don't Fake The Funk - Sō Labs

Every so often I clap eyes on something that renews my faith in watch town. And while I realize that more intrepid, curious and perhaps better informed outlets might have already shared news about Sō Labs, in the interest of trying to catch up, here you go -

While I can not claim to know a whole lot about Sō Labs, I can say I'm digging their ethos!  In their own words:

SŌ LABS IS A TEAM OF CHICAGO BASED WATCH DUDES STRIVING TO PUT THE FUN(K) BACK INTO TELLING TIME. 

We believe differentiation meant starting from the ground up. Our core design aesthetic of transparency drove the need for a fully custom watch to bring our concepts to life. Our name is meant to encompasses this vision:

SŌ ~ translates to 'Layer, or Idea/Thought/Conception'層/想 in Japanese. Having lived there for a short period, I was greatly influenced by their playfulness in design and minimalist aesthetics. Transparency through layering is central to the look of our timepieces.

LABS ~ innovation requires hypothesizing, tinkering and experimentation; all processes which we've put in place to launch our LAYER ONE Series and look forward to pursuing more through the future launch of our automatic pieces.

 

Our dials are intentionally logo-free so that our Pantone color combinations, transparent cases, gradient wheels, and printed disc handsets can remain the hero of the brand's identity.

Finally, each model we release will remain in limited quantities because Exclusivity is Never One-Dimensional, sō add another layer!

Courtesy of Sō Labs

Having lived in Japan for 3 years, I can absolutely agree, and needless to say I could easily see some sharp dressed youths in Kasukabe, fresh from a shopping excursion to Harajuku sporting one of these drip time machines.

To just pick one is challenging, but the Emerald Rhino speaks to me -

Courtesy of Sō Labs

Priced at a wonderfully accessible level -

$175.00

Here are the pertinents -

A chunk of emerald green, a punch of rhino grey, a dazzle of tiger orange and dot of prussian blue.

Emerald Rhino has a FULLY LUMED dial!

Comes with a 20mm dark gray suede Sō Labs strap, all packaged within our custom 'petri dish' packaging.

This inaugural collection from Sō Labs was designed from the ground up in the heart of Chicago. From the clear case to the die-cut dial and the handset discs, every element of the Layer One Series has been thoughtfully considered.

Limited to 500 pieces - each watch is uniquely numbered

38mm | Miyota Quartz | 3ATM | Acrylic Case | Fully Lumed Dial

Summer Re-run: Happily Ever After - "Preservers of Important Intangible Cultural Properties"

This story is now three years old, amazing because it does seem like yesterday.  Recently, many of us were delighted to hear about a fellow watch enthusiast and writer who had landed (what at least to us) appears to be his dream job working for Seiko, which by all accounts is his favorite watch brand!  And seeing the genuine good wishes shared by those of us in our "fraternity of watch nuts", it reminded me of this post.  So I wish a good man the very best of luck in his new adventure, although given his drive, passion and knowledge I suspect that luck will be the residue of design ; )

Tempus Fugit!




We live in a throw-away society - and I hate that! Regular readers might recall this image from a previous post. This was a much maligned hand-wound, 17 jewel SEIKO wristwatch that I found on EBAY. I suspect that this poor fellow had been bashed, and then shunted into a dresser drawer.

I think it is only fair to take a few minutes and really talk about Japan, and what it means for me. So apologies in advance, and if you feel the need, hit the fast-forward button, no offense taken.

I grew up a Northern Youth. I had a sheltered upbringing - my problems were, admittedly, first world problems. And much of this time is fuzzy. But some things I remember pointedly - I remember being seven years old, and sitting in Mr. Grusser's class room. He was our teacher and had spent years working on Indian reservations - that is what they were called in the 70s. He was a good man. And in my class there was:

1.  Henry- his family had lived in France for a year and were just returning to the US.

2.  Milan Desai - from India.

3.  Kosuke Inaagaki from Japan. His father was a noted scholar from Tokyo who was a professor at Todai (Tokyo) University.


We were kids, and we talked about the things kids did. Henry taught us about Babar - and I suspect a deep-seeded need to see elephants outlive me was born. And a desire to live in France!
Milan instilled in me a desire to see everyone be healthy - if I remember rightly, his father was a doctor from India, and even at seven years old - he was far more eloquent and more sophisticated than I hope to be even now.

But Kosuke fascinated me. Fascinated me on such a sub-atomic level. He spoke a bit, but not a lot. But his English was fine, probably better than this Northern Youth's. I know that in hindsight that he had a lot to say, but also knew something that I have only learned later in life - that time is precious, and we are called upon to contribute something special - and oftentimes we say what is important. And at the end of the year, his family returned to Japan. And I remained fascinated by Japan, France and India.

And I suppose that in my own way I hit the "fast-forward button" and suddenly it was 1985. I was a Junior at Oberlin High School, and at soccer practice one day this kid showed up. The coach introduced him and something stirred in my memories. He explained that Kosuke would be with us this year, and explained that he had been with us back in the 70s. He then asked if Kosuke remembered anyone and he pointed at me and said "I remember him".

Understanding that my life between those two points had been something far from memorable. But for whatever reason, we connected. And an obsession with Japan was reborn and smoldered through my last year of high school, through university and ultimately delivered me to Satiama-ken in 1992 as a newly minted English teacher, setting up shop in the outskirts of Tokyo. Kosuke was at that time a journalist for the Yomiuri Shimbun. Not bad for a transplanted Northern Youth! If you are going to be a journalist, why not be one for the Japanese "paper of record"?

And when I think about that time between grade school, then high school - and then our twenties - I was blessed with a friend that I probably didn't deserve, but one that many of us long for in our later years. And I suppose that is in many ways this is what I see in this vintage SEIKO. A beautiful hand-wound watch that tells a story. A watch that I would wear proudly before passing it on. Something that reminds me that friendship goes beyond years, or distance. Friendship is the very best type of incurable virus - we're stuck with it .

This is what I have decided to call the Kosuke SEIKO in its "after" condition.  A new Seiko crystal installed - it is is wonderful, clean and nearly perfect  - just like my memories of a childhood friend.

The blue of the dial is indeed a blue that I have seldom seen on a Seiko of this age.  And while I know that they exist (because clearly this is one) try to find a hand-wound Seiko of this vintage, not too easy to come by, just like a good friend.

Tokyo

As many regular readers know, I spent some very good years in the Tokyo suburbs of Kasukabe and Hachioji.  So I am always interested in events over there.

And in the "if I had a million dollars" category, Vacheron Constantin is right up there, so today it is (at least for me) a treat!

Courtesy of Vacheron Constantin

 With a brand new boutique in Tokyo's Ginza district - or as we used to refer to it:
"If you have to ask the price, you can't afford it-town", Vacheron Constantin has also thrown some special releases to help celebrate -

Courtesy of Vacheron Constantin

A new Overseas Dual Time model -

Reference             47450/B01A-9800
Special product for Vacheron Constantin Tokyo Boutique

Caliber 1222 SC
Mechanical, self-winding
26.6 mm (11 ’’’ 1⁄2) diameter
4.85 mm thick
Approximately 40 hours power reserve 4Hz (28,800 vibrations/hour)
153 components 
34 jewels

Indications 
Hours Minutes
Center seconds
Date
Power reserve
Second time zone with day/night indication

Case 
Stainless steel
42 mm diameter, 12.45 mm thick
Solid caseback with stamped “Overseas” medallion
Screwed-down crown and pushpiece
Anti-magnetic protection certified to 25,000 A/m
Water-resistance tested at a pressure of 15 bar (approx. 150 metres)

Dial 
Black opaline dial with hand-guilloché date and dual time counters 
18K white gold hour-markers with white luminescent material
18K white gold hours and minutes hands with white luminescent material 
18K 5N pink gold applied Maltese cross and 5N gold-plated pfinodal seconds hand
“LIMITED EDITION TOKYO” secret signature under the power reserve segment

Bracelet 
Stainless steel


Clasp 
Stainless steel triple-blade folding clasp 


And a special version of the Traditionnelle - Traditionnelle Tokyo Boutique

 

Courtesy of Vacheron Constantin

Reference 82172/000R-9808
Hallmark of Geneva certified timepiece
Special product for Vacheron Constantin Tokyo Boutique

Caliber 
4400 AS
Developed and manufactured by Vacheron Constantin
Mechanical, manual-winding
28.6 mm (12 ’’’ 1⁄2) diameter
2.8 mm thick
Approximately 65 hours power reserve 
4Hz (28,800 vibrations/hour)
127 components 
21 jewels

Indications 
Hours Minutes
Small seconds at 6 o’clock

Case 
18K 5N pink gold
38 mm diameter, 7.77 mm thick
Transparent sapphire crystal caseback
Water-resistance tested at a pressure of 3 bar (approx. 30 meters)

Dial 
18K gold
Hand-guilloché black dial
“LIMITED EDITION TOKYO” secret signature at 12 o’clock

Strap 
Black Mississippiensis alligator leather, hand-stitched, saddle-finish, large square scales

Clasp 
18K 5N pink gold buckle
Polished half Maltese cross-shaped

Limited edition of 20 timepieces 

I Dream of Seiko

I sometimes feel the need to remind folks that watches are not the sole dominion of Switzerland and possibly Germany.  This is a "Japan Only" model from Seiko.  This is (I hope) my next watch!  It is something that I could realistically afford - and REALLY enjoy! 

Courtesy of Seiya Japan

Looking back it seems like a lifetime ago, and in many ways it was.  My first real job after graduating from the U (University of Oregon) was teaching English in Japan, in what everyone assured me was a small town - Kasukabe.  Now keep in mind that I was a Northern Youth from a tiny town in Ohio - population hovering around (if memory serves) 5,000 or so.  I am guessing that either my memory is faulty, or the town experienced some sort of "boom" because the census lists the population around 8,292 as a 2011 estimate.  So when I got off the train and looked around it felt like I was in the big city.  I seem to recall population estimates of over 200 thousand or so.

Anyway, Japan seemed the most amazing place to me.  I mean yes, there were many of the same things that we had in the US, but of course many differences as well.  I'll never forget my first meeting with a "talking toilet"!  But what I also really liked about Japan was that tradition was not a "fad".  Grandfathers, fathers and sons working together in the family business - making ramen the same way that it had been done for generations - maybe even all the way back to when another American barbarian arrived in Tokyo Bay to try and force some "cultural exchange" on them.  I suspect that he probably left without a new watch as well.

Some of the happiest memories I have are of that time and place - I met my wife Wendy there, and learned that in many ways, almost anything is possible so long as your willing to compromise and learn and accept that perhaps there are a dozen other ways to do things - and easily a million different points of view! 

So I dream of Seiko - of this Seiko!  And of my friends Obara-San and others.

Kasukabe, Obara-San, and Seiko

Back in the early 90s I lived in Japan working as an English teacher.  My next door neighbor and I spent the better part of that first year (92) trying to figure each other out.  In my infinite wisdom (read none) I would often go for a five mile run before work each day.  Work started at around 12:00 Noon and I was usually "on the road" by 9:00 AM - about the hottest and most humid times you could do anything.

Every morning I would see Obara-San, my neighbor, and shout "Ohayo-gozaimasu!" to him and wave as I ran past.  And every morning he would just look at me puzzled as I ran by, silent.  About a year into this exercise in cross-cultural communication, he stopped me as I was running and we actually had a fairly lengthy conversation, wherein he explained that he and his wife were a little worried about my "stability" as I was going out and doing heavy exercise at the worst possible time of the day for it.  You live and you learn.

This Seiko is a dead-on ringer for the Seiko that Obara-San had.

I put it on today thinking about neighbors, friends, and that far away town of Kasukabe - which from all reports has grown dramatically since then - and I suspect that they finally got some decent English teachers in as well!  And I suspect that Obara-san is still there, lending a helping hand to the misguided Gaijin teachers.