Seiko Sportsmatic Deluxe Cal.7605A c1961

Seiko

Seiko Watch Corporation is a renowned Japanese watchmaker, founded in 1881 by Kintarō Hattori in Tokyo. Known for its innovation and precision, Seiko has a rich heritage of crafting high-quality timepieces, ranging from luxury models to accessible everyday watches. The company introduced the world’s first quartz watch in 1969, revolutionizing the watch industry. Seiko’s diverse portfolio includes mechanical, quartz, and solar-powered watches, often celebrated for their craftsmanship, reliability, and advanced technology. With a commitment to excellence, Seiko continues to be a leader in the global watch market, blending tradition with cutting-edge innovation.

Description

In 1964, Seiko launched the 5 Sportsmatic Deluxe, which was an enhanced version of the 5 Sportsmatic. All the Deluxe had a stainless steel case and a dedicated pusher to set the date. The position of the crown and the pusher can be slightly different and the first models had their pushers slitted. At that time, Seiko modified its way to name their movements and adopted a 4-digit naming convention.

The example we have here is a fully original, unrestored and untouched Seiko Sportmatic Deluxe with a highly sought after black dial, this watch carries a stainless steel case and the high grade calibre 7605A, 23 jewel automatic movement. All of the aspects of this watch are simply outstanding

The Dial

This remarkable watch carries a beautiful, fully original cross-hair black dial with incredible steel features. The steel ‘cube’ hour indices are swept by very clean steel ‘dauphine’ hands. All of which, look simply stunning against the black dial and the stainless steel case. This dial also has the addition of a date window at three that carries a cyclops window.

The dial is simply signed ‘Seiko Sportsmatic’ at the top of the dial below 12, ‘Deluxe Diashock 23 Jewls’ just above 6 and ‘Japan 7605 8020RAD’ at the very bottom of the dial.

This dial is original and unrestored and has been left untouched by our restoration team due to its superb condition. Usually, we restore the dials of the watches we sell, however we decided in this case to leave it alone, due to its unusually good condition and to retain its originality and charm for those who prefer this. It also helps to contrast with almost all of the other watch dials you see on our website, which have been restored. The hands, likewise, have also been left in their original untouched condition.

Please note, studio lights, professional-grade digital cameras, and macro lenses can be very unkind to an unrestored vintage watch dial. Also the dial here measures less than 1.25 inches across, so the image you’re seeing may be between 5 – 25 times larger than the watch itself. Therefore please keep in mind you are seeing many tiny flaws which cannot be seen, or will be very hard to see with the naked eye, even under close examination. Suffice to say, on the wrist, in natural light, this dial looks much better and carries a great deal more charm than the photographs portray.

The Movement

The movement within this watch is the Seiko, calibre 7605A, 23 Jewel automatic movement which is in sparkling condition and has been fully overhauled and serviced by our vintage specialist watchmaker. This means the movement has been completely disassembled, cleaned, inspected and rebuilt using only the correct original parts where required before careful calibration and testing. Upon returning to stock, the watch is now running to within +11 seconds per day which is truly outstanding for any vintage watch of this age!

With care and with regular servicing, say every 4 years, we would fully expect this watch to run quite happily for many decades to come. We are therefore more than happy to offer this watch with our 12 months’ warranty* and to assist with servicing again in the future.

The movement is correctly signed ‘Seiko’, ‘23 Jewels’ along with the movement calibre number 7605A.

*Please note – our 12 months’ warranty is only applicable if the list price is paid.

The Case

The incredible stainless steel case measures an oversized 37mm, excluding the correct unsigned crown which is offset on the side of the case and placed at 4. This watch carries a very thin, plain bezel which gives the dial a larger feel when worn on the wrist. This case really is in tip-top condition from every aspect.

The case has been carefully inspected for fatigue marks and there are none. It has received a light clean and gentle hand-polish, simply to remove any tarnish and to bring back to the almost new condition you see here. Even under close examination, there are no scratches, dings or signs of wear, visible to the naked eye which leads us to suspect that this watch has seen little, if any, use. The case-back is of full thickness having never been inscribed.

The inside of the case back is correctly signed ‘Japan’ and the exterior of the case is correctly signed with ‘water-proof’**, ‘Seiko’ and the case serial number 6801811.

**Please note – even though this watch was specified as waterproof when new and the rubber seals have been replaced on the case-back and crown, the water-resistance of this watch has not been tested and is not guaranteed.

As ever, our standard advice applies: Vintage watches should be kept clean and dry at all times.

The Strap and Buckle

The watch is fitted with a high quality black leather strap which we believe matches perfectly with the dial and bezel, along with a plain stainless steel buckle, which we feel suits the watch perfectly. If, however, a different colour or style of strap is preferred, please let us know and we will do our best to oblige, free of charge. We carry tan, conker, dark brown burgundy and black straps in stock, in plain, padded leather, alligator, crocodile or lizard skin.

Box and Papers

Although there are no original papers with this watch, the reference numbers, markings, signatures and hallmarks are all correct, dating this watch to c1961.

Detailed particulars will be included with our receipt for your interest and security. A separate insurance valuation for the replacement value of this watch will also be provided at the time of sale along with our unique ‘Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee’ which states: “If this watch proves to be anything less than 100% genuine, authentic and original, a full refund will be given at any time”.

This watch comes complete with a high quality double watch leather pouch.

Payment and Delivery

If you would like to pay by bank transfer, we will be pleased to assist you with this and pass on a 3% saving to you. Paying by bank transfer for a 3% saving will not affect your 12 months warranty. Similarly, if you wish to pay by International SWIFT or Bank Wire Transfer we will provide you with our BIC / Swift number and our IBAN number.

Please check the import duties and any taxes your government may apply, these are different for each country and, unfortunately, out of our control.

We understand there may be some ‘loopholes’ that may help you avoid these charges; however, attempting to use these could impact our ongoing ability to serve our growing international customer base.

For those who happen to visit London on occasion, we are, of course, more than happy to store your watch until we can meet you in our offices in Kensington, London, and hand your watch directly to you there.

As with all our watches, this watch will be sold under our 14 days no-quibble sale or return policy.