We can all agree that Seiko is bigger than Citizen. The former having more of a cult following than the latter. Seiko is also credited for the quartz movement that almost destroyed the watch industry in the 70's - 1979 if I remember correctly.
Seikoholics will also readily defend Seiko for anything and everything negative you can say about the brand.
I don't hate Seiko. Seiko has had more wrist time in me than any other brand. Casio probably in 2nd place, followed by Citizen.
Why do I think Citizen is better than Seiko? It is because of a particular watch or rather watch lineup.
Seiko enthusiasts are a lovely bunch. They profess their love and devotion to things Seiko akin to religion. They can spot a "Feiko" from a mile away and, while some are very welcoming to the modding community, are very critical when it comes to copy cat watches. While Seiko themselves doesn't even bat an eyelash on watches that imitate their legacy, Seikoholics are the self proclaimed gatekeepers that supposedly protect the brand and save the people from these wannabe monstrosities that, in my honest opinion are not that bad...in terms of looks anyway.
Before you scroll down and look at these monstrosities, there are a few things that we need to understand.
The Island is a reality survival show hosted by "survival expert" Bear Grylls. Participants, who are supposedly regular Brits who have little to no experience in island survival, are marooned on pacific islands with only a handful of supplies and are expected to work out their survival on their own.
For 6 weeks, participants are to survive by building shelters, starting their own fires without modern means, hunting for food, and gathering fresh drinking water. The show is filmed entirely by the participants themselves with emergency response teams supposedly nearby on another island to provide support if needed. Bear explains it as an experiment. To show whether or not modern day Brits, who are so used to modern conveniences still has what it takes to survive.
From the first time I laid eyes on it, I knew I had fallen for the Seiko Alpinist SARB017. With it's beautiful green dial, the gold cathedral hands, and the inner rotating compass bezel, I imagined the day I would have it on my wrist.
Fast forward a few years and still the watch eluded me. A year more and it was discontinued. My heart sank as I saw the prices skyrocket to oblivion. And it was then I realized I would never have one, unless someone gave me one as a gift, or I happen to chance upon untold sums of wealth, both of which are unlikely to happen.
This is the Citizen Cosmotron Special. It's an electro-mechanical watch from the 70's. It has a special movement that is battery powered, but regulated by a balance wheel instead of a quartz crystal. While Seiko went on to develop the quartz movement around the same time, Citizen was dishing out these unique watches that, as far as I can tell, no other watch manufacturer made.
Buying watches online is a bit of a gamble. Sometimes you win, sometimes you loose.
I bought a quartz watch recently. It's made by Citizen, or at least I hope it was legitimately made by Citizen. I was attracted to the dial and the caseback. This watch has a stainless steel case and a screw down caseback. Not the typical quartz watch I am familiar with from this brand. Usually, quartz watches from Citizen, at least at this price in the used market, usually have base metal case and snap on casebacks. This one is different.
I use this for more formal occasions, but recently I wondered, "Maybe it was meant as a field watch and not a dress watch." There are a few reasons why I think this is a field watch.
1. It has large numerals. The dial features large numbers in black - very visible against the silver dial.
2. It says "Water10BarResist" on the dial. 10 Bar means 100 meters of water resistance. While I don't believe that to be accurate, I'm pretty sure the watch is at least splash proof.
3. Screw down caseback. Typically, a quartz dress watch has a snap on caseback. A screw down caseback means the movement is more protected from potential ingress of water. To me it also means a better quality watch overall.
Whether it was meant as a dress watch or field watch, this piece is pretty. I'm confident it can handle both being in a party and out and about in the field.
