Seiko SKX009 Men’s Watch Review.
Hello, today I’m doing a Seiko SKX009 review. This is one of the best Seiko Diver’s watches available with a 200m Diver rating and a popular Seiko automatic movement. It’s a sought after professional diver’s watch at a very affordable price so this should be an interesting watch to look into.
(Click on any image to head straight to the product page for prices and specifications)
Anyway, I’ll get on with my Seiko SKX009 review below and you can find out the price on Amazon today, enjoy.
At the bottom of the article, I’ll show you some of my recommended places to buy this watch from
Seiko SKX009 Review
My Initial Thoughts On This Watch
For a watch that’s known to be one of the most popular Diver’s watches available, I’m expecting a lot from this timepiece, but at the same time I’ve known and trusted the Seiko brands for years, and not been let down yet.
Seiko has a history of wanting to please the masses by bringing out excellent quality watches, but making them as affordable as possible so that they’re accessible to everyone. Notably, the Seiko 5 series which aimed to make automatic watches affordable for everyone, something many agree they definitely succeeded in.
The Seiko SKX009 is an aesthetically different take on the extremely popular Seiko SKX007. The SKX007 is known to be one of the most iconic divers watches available on the market and is an affordable option that many can realistically aim for.
So what’s the difference between the SKX007 and the SKX009? The SKX007 is the original watch, this SKX009 variation features the ‘Pepsi style’ bezel, that’s this red and blue finish the bezel has. Other than that, the watches are the same, from the impressive Seiko 7S26 movement to the 200m ISO-rated diver’s rating.
With all that in mind, it’s easy to see why the SKX 00 series has been so popular, even watch snobs give this watch a seal of approval. If you’re after an affordable diver’s watch with ISO-rating, then this is worth checking out, but first, let’s take a look at everything in more detail.
You can find more of the best professional dive watches here.
Dial
The dial has this typical Seiko easy to read finish to it. I love how the hour markers and hands of the watch all have this bold feel to them. It’s worth noting that the hour marks, the hands, and the rear of the seconds hand are all packed full of this fantastic Seiko LumiBrite that makes the watch very easy to read at night.
At the top of the dial we have Seiko’s standard insignia telling you this is a Seiko automatic watch. At the 6 o’clock position we find the ‘DIVER’S 200m’ which goes to show this is an ISO-rated diver’s watch. And finally, at the 3 o’clock position, we have the day and date display that I’ll talk about further into the Seiko SKX review.
The bezel of the watch brings this brilliant splash of colour to the timepiece. The Pepsi bezel is a desired feature and the reason people go for the SKX009 vs SKX007. The Pepsi bezel is uni-directional with a 120 click positioning. The bezel is easy to use and very precise.
Overall I’m quite the fan of this dial setup and display, the deep blue looks really nice on the dial and the Pepsi bezel makes the whole watch stand out.
Movement
The Seiko SKX009 is powered by Seiko’s 7s26 movement, a well recognized ‘workhorse’ of a movement that Seiko are very proud of. The movement was introduced in 1996 and remains a popular movement for Seiko to this day. It’s a fairly simple automatic movement with a quick set day & date display and uses Seiko’s patented Magic Lever system to achieve its automatic bi-directional winding. The movement is non-hacking and non-handwinding. It’s a 21 jewel movement that operates at a 21,600 VPH frequency.
The beauty of this Seiko movement is that it’s cheap and reliable, when your main aim is to produce a quality watch that people can afford, this is an important feature. In terms of accuracy, you can expect to watch to vary from -20 to +40 seconds per day. The power reserve of the movement is rated at approximately 40 hours which I’d say is pretty good.
Type of glass
The crystal on the watch is Seiko’s proprietary Hardlex glass. This is their own improved take on a mineral style glass. Mineral glass offers a fairly good level of scratch resistance, but not to the same level as say a sapphire crystal would offer you. There’s a good reason for going for mineral glass in many cases, though. Mineral glass may not be as scratch resistant as sapphire, but it does offer much better shatter resistance than it. It’s an inevitable trade-off when choosing between the two.
So for the money, Seiko’s Hardlex seems like the ideal choice for this style of watch, and with the aim of keeping the watch an affordable price, I’d say it’s the right glass to go for.
Size
The Seiko SKX009 has a fairly popular sizing setup. The diameter of the case is 42.5mm without the crown, 45.5mm with the crown, whilst the thickness of the watch is 13mm. So as you often find with Seiko Diver’s watches this is a relatively large watch that sits well on most wrists.
If you prefer a smaller watch but like the style of this timepiece, then the SKX013 is a very similar take on the Seiko SKX009 & SKX007 watch, this may be worth checking out for those who have smaller wrists.
Calendar
A key feature on the dial is this day/date display at the 3 o’clock position on the watch. With a white background, the date display really stands out against the black of the rest of the dial. This makes it stand out very well and makes it somewhat easier to read at a glance.
It’s a simple date function and as is common with many other watches you’ll need to adjust it for the varying amount of days in each month.
Watch strap and clasp
There’re a few options available for the Seiko SKX009 when it comes to the straps, and that’s highlighted in the code at the end of the product code. For instance, the watch that’s featured in the main image is the SKX009K2 that uses a jubilee style strap. You could also check out the SKX009K1 that features a rubber strap, this is also a really popular choice to go for.
The SKX009 has a 22mm lug sizing, and if you wanted to go for something different entirely then you can swap out to a difference strap of your choice. Many people have stated that a Nato-style strap going really well with the design of the watch.
As for this model that I’ve got featured with the jubilee style strap, it has a width of 22mm that’s perfectly suited for the case sizing. As for the clasp, it’s a fairly standard fold over style that we’re all used to.
Below is a picture of the SKX009K1 variation of the watch, this one featured the rubber style strap.
Water Resistance:
The Seiko SKX009 has an impressive Diver’s 200m ISO 6425 water resistance rating, this makes the watch suitable for scuba diving at depths not suitable for saturation diving. If you wanted to read up on water resistance ratings this wiki page has everything you need to know. Just look under the ‘ISO 6425 Divers’ watches standard’ heading to learn more about this watch in particular.
Seiko SKX009 Features:
Brand: Seiko
Model: Seiko SKX009
Dial Window Material: Hardlex Glass
Clasp Type: Fold over clasp
Case Material: Stainless Steel
Case Diameter: 43mm
Case Thickness: 13mm
Band Material: Stainless steel
Band Width: 22mm
Calendar: Day & date display
Movement: Automatic Movement
Water Resistance Rating: Diver’s 200m ISO 6425 rated
My Final Thoughts On The Seiko SKX009
Overall I’d say the Seiko SKX009 has to be one of the best bang for buck diver’s watches available on the market. Seiko has done a brilliant job with this watch and for those who prefer the Seiko Pepsi Diver watch, then this is the one to go for.
With a primary aim of making a high-quality automatic Diver’s watch that’s accessibly priced, I’d say Seiko have definitely succeeded here. With an awesome workhorse automatic movement and ISO 6425 diver’s rating you have to agree when looking at the price that you’re getting good value for money.
I Hope you found this Seiko SKX009 review useful and enjoyable, comment below and let me know what you think of it.
Where to buy the Seiko SKX009
I like to stick to listing retailers that I’ve actually had experience buying from in the past. Below I’ve listed some of the top places to buy this watch from, check all for the best price.
This will take you to the main page where you can view the SKX009K1 and SKX009k2 variations with their up to date prices.
Thanks for reading, find more of my watch reviews below.