The New Seiko 5 Sports 1968 Re-Creation Continues the Story of the Brand’s Famous Sports Watch

Choose between “Ash Blue” and “Pepper Black” for the new Seiko 5 Sports 1968 Re-Issue watch, now available to order here at Jura Watches. 

Five decades is a long time to uphold excellence in a watch. But Seiko does it effortlessly with the Seiko 5 Sports line. For fifty years, the Japanese manufacturer has been delivering performance reliability and durability in the form of the Seiko 5. But that doesn’t mean to say there haven’t been some improvements made to its design or a gradual evolution of the collection as a whole. Great things have happened within this collection, including a re-birth. All the while, the changes haven’t compromised the appeal of the watch to collectors. Let's look at the new Seiko 5 Sport Re-Creation 1968 watch.

Where It All Began

Lovers of mechanical watches find the 5 Sport to be an endearing design. The watch was born in the 1960s following the popular Sportmatic 5, which arrived in 1963. The Sportmatic was a success in itself, since it was designed by Ren Tanaka and marked the brand’s first automatic watch with a day date feature. Two years later, Seiko released the Seiko 5 collection – a breed of watches that met special criteria.  But the real focus behind this design stemmed from an idea to produce an affordable, good-quality watch for the younger generation. 

To pass these aforementioned criteria, the watch needed to be sufficiently water-resistant. In the case of the Seiko 5, the brand wanted it to at least be able to survive a quick swim. The watch also needed to feature an automatic movement. At the time, the watch was powered by the 7s26, which featured a bi-directional winding design that had been made by Seiko masters, AKA the Magic Lever. The movement was also composed of 22 jewels and provided a power reserve of 40 hours. It offered a day-date complication, which was another one of the Seiko 5’s must-have features. The day date feature was positioned on the dial at 3 o’clock. The variations supplied to Japan had the different Chinese symbols displayed in the aperture, showing the days of the week at a glance, while the English version featured the traditional two-digit date and the first three letters of the day.

The Seiko 5 Sport also needed to have a recessed crown at 4 o’clock. This unusual location for the crown made a watch more comfortable during robust pursuits. Seiko also felt it made it easier for the wearer to set the time. One other reason for the position was believed to highlight the efficiency of the Magic Lever component. The 4 o’clock crown has become a signature design element in many Seiko watches, adding to its easily identifiable design. On top of all of these features, Seiko 5 watches promised a robust case and bracelet. The bracelet itself was a great accompaniment for the watch since it was designed for water-based activities. It was a more practical option as opposed to a leather band.

The Seiko 5 Sports Arrived, The SKX Left

In the year 2019, you may recall the Seiko 5 undergoing some significant changes. The watch was renamed the Seiko 5 Sport and was launched around the same time that the popular SKX was discontinued. That said, some design codes did make it into the Seiko 5 Sports watch, but not all. In fact, the watch lost its ISO-certified spec, but some parts are compatible with the former models, making it a fun and enjoyable hobby for enthusiasts to modify their watch. Since the re-release of the Seiko 5 (or indeed the Seiko 5 Sports watch), the brand has partnered with several alliances, one of them being the Street Fighter Collaboration and another being the Brian May Red Special watch. The dial of the latter, based on the artist’s electric guitar, was a huge hit for collectors and one of our favourite designs here at Jura Watches. This time, Seiko is releasing a new reimagined version of the first 1968 Seiko 5 model. It comes with many of the same traits and characteristics, albeit with some improvements made to its case and lugs.

The New Seiko 5 Sports 1968 Re-Creation Watches

The new Seiko 5 Sports 1968 Re-Creation Limited Edition watch celebrates what likely got many of us into watch collecting in the first place: a sturdy mechanical movement, enhanced water resistance, a luminous legible dial, and a fortified crystal front. Of course, Seiko has made advancements in the field of mechanical performance and materials since then. The designs, both old and new, celebrate the youth of the watch-collecting world. These new models have a vintage-esque feel with a retro-shaped case and a choice to make between two different dial colours. Choose between the “Ash Blue” colour – a blue-grey tone that is very fitting for the era in which the watch was born, or a “Pepper Black” colour that looks just as retro. These two different dial colours are protected by a curved piece of Hardlex glass. Both models are also 200-meter water resistant and feature improved lugs and a crown for optimal functionality. In addition to this, the stainless steel link bracelet bears solid links that better curve to the contours of the wrist, promising comfort for hour upon hour of wear. But if you want to change the look of the new Seiko 5 Sports 1868 Limited Edition watch, you can also switch it onto the additional leather strap, which looks just as nostalgic.

The “Ash Blue” iteration has a compelling shade, captured by the unique Seiko 5 bodywork. The case and rotating bezel have a striking silhouette crafted from brushed stainless steel and is water resistant to 100 meters. The Hardlex crystal glass protects a legible dial with luminous coated baton hour markers and hands and a red central second hand. In addition to this, the day-date aperture is located at 3 o’clock against a black background and the Seiko logo sits at the top of the dial. Powering the hands around this dial is the tried and tested automatic 4R36 movement, which provides a 41-hour power reserve.

The “Pepper Black” takes the same form, with a 38.5mm diameter and a case depth of 12.4mm. The watch comes fitted on a stainless steel bracelet with one of Seiko’s robust and highly functional three-fold clasps engraved with the brand logo. As mentioned, you can swap the style of the new Seiko 1968 Reissue watch over with a classic black leather band. Both of the two new models are also limited to 9,999 pieces.

To get your hands on one today, call and speak to our sales team here at Jura Watches on 01335 453453 or email us a question at help@jurawatches.co.uk