"Rolex Is At The Top, Seiko Is At The Bottom, No?"

Today's entry was in relation to an e-mail that I received from a fellow collector cum reader at our blog here. I would share the e-mail with the rest of our readers as per the following :

First and foremost, Happy New Year to you too, Datuk Ben. I have profound respect and liking towards the Seiko brand, hence my decision to share my reply over here at the blog.

"Rolex is at the top, Seiko is at the bottom, no?"

I won't personally ranked these 2 brands as per what our reader thought in his aforementioned statement, but I definitely don't agree that Seiko was at the bottom of the barrel. I am a big fan of Rolex watches; and the fact that my family was in the watchsmith business helped me to gain a head start in this horology interest and hobby. So while I have great respect and linking towards the Rolex brand, I dare say that I have the same feelings towards Seiko too.

Not everyone could afford Rolex watches, and certain models actually made good investment given today's economic condition. To me, a Rolex was more than just a timepiece- it was also a cultural heritage that we should preserve and keep it intact for the next generation. That's why you won't find me doing a Blacken on any of my Rolex watches.

Seiko, on the other hand, was what I deemed as the 3C watches- cheap,  cheerful, and colourful! It covered a large spectrum from the very affordable 5 to the more luxurious Grand Seiko. My personal favourites laid in the entry-level SKX007, mid-level Prospex, and upper-level MarineMaster series.

So, while I would not do a Blaken on my Rolex, I would readily source for parts and ideas to transform my Seiko pieces into more personal watches that could build on my watch skills and imagination further. These were some of the Franken Mods that I have pursued in the past :

You could read about some of those more recent Franken Mods here at the following :

• http://andywristwatches.blogspot.com/2019/01/franken-mod-seiko-summo.html
• http://andywristwatches.blogspot.com/2019/01/franken-mod-seiko-skx007j1-planet-ocean.html
• http://andywristwatches.blogspot.com/2019/01/franken-mod-seiko-skx009j1-sumo.html
• http://andywristwatches.blogspot.com/2019/02/next-franken-mod-seiko-blumo-great-wave.html
• http://andywristwatches.blogspot.com/2019/02/next-franken-mod-seiko-apocalypse-sumo.html

Some of the other tasteful mods as seen on Seiko forums :

And some of the Seiko pieces in my collection that I would not dreamed of modding included the MM300 and MM1000 as per the following :

The strap options were as far as my modding would go for these pieces- largely also due to their mono block case construction. These 3 pieces of MarineMaster were the highlights of my modest Seiko collection- and their RRP (Darth Tuna @ USD1,960, 1978-Reissue @ USD2,100, and SLA021 @ USD3,100) meant that all 3 pieces would cost only RM30k. In Rolex currency, one could only get a Submariner at that price.

So, both these brands scratched a different kind of itch in my collection. The Rolex, I would want to preserve in its original condition. The Seiko, I could personalise it as much as I want to. So I would continue adding models from both these brands into my collection over time, no doubt about that.

The bottom line was, I buy watches that appeal to me. I write my opinion about them and I flip some of them. I don't get them for free or under sponsorship from watch manufacturers, so I have to continuously flip the watches to free up some cash for the next piece to write, and to keep the numbers in check. I like both Rolex and Seiko watches. But if Seiko does not appeal to you, then by all means avoid adding it into your collection.

But having said that, since Seiko is cheap, colourful and cheerful, you might owe it to yourself to just get at least a piece for your own trial, to gauge if it sticks or otherwise. And once you caught that Franken Mod bug, be forewarned that your Seiko collection could just grow like nobody's business.