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|  | | | Customer Reviews: | | | Average Customer Review: ( 51 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
39 of 39 found the following review helpful:
 Best beater watch ever!!! Jul 18, 2008
By Paul Francis
I purchased Seiko Orange Monster so that I wouldn't mess up my Rolex during weekend excursions. Now I find myself wearing it during the week. Its looks and functionality demand more and more wrist time and I am happy to oblige. The Orange Monster (OM) steers away from the "classic" diver's watch design that we have become so accustomed to. I think it has a contemporary classic appeal. This watch is an attention getter. I always receive compliments when in public.
Case/Crown
The case is constructed from 316L solid stainless steel and is very large (42 mm) and heavy. You will know when this timepiece is on your wrist. When viewed from the wrist, the watch has a deep profile. It is a little less thick than my Sea Dweller so I am going to guess that is somewhere in the 13 mm vicinity. The case back is decorated with Seiko's SCUBA emblem design which is quite attractive. The 20 mm lugs are a bit angular but I like the masculine look of them. Lug holes are drilled through making bracelet changes an easy task. It also should be noted that the case is constructed in such a fashion that is rises to protect the bezel and crown. This design does not affect the operation of the bezel and is a very well engineered touch. The screw-in crown is large and solid feeling. Lastly since this is such a large watch, the crown has been moved to the 4 o'clock position so that it sits as far out of the way as possible from the hand (when the hand is bent backwards).
Movement
It is fairly accurate for an automatic (+15 secs per 24 hrs) beating with a 23 jewel 7S26 movement designed and fabricated in-house by Seiko. Power reserve for me is around 40 hours. The second hand sweep is a little less smooth (21,500 bph) than my Rolex Sea Dweller (28,800 bph) but for the price paid it is totally acceptable. I wish it had a manual wind feature but all it needs is a couple shakes if left alone for over 40 hours. It lacks hack mechanism (where you pull the crown out and the second hand stops) but I am not on a Navy S.E.A.L. team and I have no need to synchronize my watch to the exact second to anything.
Dial/Hands/Date
The watch has a great looking dial that is uncluttered and very easy to read. The orange color used on the dial was first introduced by Doxa as their research proved that orange is the easiest color to read as light conditions deteriorate underwater. Hour markers are over sized which is a "signature" for this model. Lume is the best I have ever seen on a diver (with exception of my Luminox which uses radioactive Tritium gas filled tubes for markers). Minute and Hour hands are beefy and well lumed. Seiko also has designed the hands so that if the minute hand directly overlaps the hour hand, both are viewable. This is a thoughtful feature as anyone who has ever looked at their watch and thought "where did my hour hand go?" will surely appreciate the foresight with which they designed it. The OM includes a Day/Date window that is very legible. The date can bet set to either Spanish or English and the usual black text for weekdays is blue for Saturday and red for Sunday. Date changes do not occur instantly at midnight like on some of the higher end ETA movements. It takes roughly 4 hours (10 pm - 2am) for the date change to occur. It also should be noted the chapter ring (the edge of the dial) curves upwards along she side wall of the case. This gives the watch a deep three dimensional feel and is just one more extra step that Seiko took while designing this incredible watch.
Bezel
Bezel action is smooth and expensive feeling. The one-way ring has 120 indents, making it extra precise as it divides each minute by a factor of two. There are large indents along the outside of the bezel, making operation (even with gloves) a cinch. It was a very good design on Seiko's part for them to have the markings on the bezel engraved into the bezel rather than printed. This will add to the longevity of the watch. I like the fact the bezel is a tad higher than the crystal as it provides a bit of protection for the glass
Crystal
Seiko uses a proprietary compound developed in-house called Hardlex which is less scratch resistant than sapphire crystal but also less brittle. I have smacked the watch on its crystal a couple of times and there is not a single blemish on it...yet! Crystal is also slightly domed and it refracts reflections in a way that make it easy to read in sunlight (sort of a workaround to anti-reflective coatings).
Strap
The watch came with Seiko's rubber dive strap. It has stainless steel hardware and robust pins. I would be willing to wager that this is not a natural rubber compound as it does not attract dust. It seems a little stiff but I only wore it for a few days so it might take a little longer than that to break in. I put a NATO strap on mine and now it is perfect for wake boarding, mountain biking, and general weekend mayhem.
This is hands-down the best price to performance timepiece produced for under $500.00. I would definitely recommend this watch to anyone with an active lifestyle!!!
15 of 16 found the following review helpful:
Substantial dive watch at a bargain price Jul 16, 2007
By Jeffrey W. Thomas
I bought this watch for daily wear and for diving in locations that I would be nervous wearing my Omega Seamaster. I prefer a watch with some heft to it, so if you don't want a heavy weight on your arm, you would be better served with a titanium watch or a Luminox. Compared to my Omega, the "Orange Monster" has a similar heft and size. From a diving standpoint, the luminous hands are actually more readable than my Omega and the unidirectional bezel is easier to turn when wearing gloves. (Some might think the bezel is a little too easy to turn, but I appreciate the fact that the serrations allow you to turn it while wearing neoprene gloves.) My only minor complaint is that the dial is actually in two pieces: There is a small plastic outer trim ring inside the watch resting on the main dial which looks just a little cheap. Things I love are the heft, the style, the tactile feel of the bezel, the engraving on the back of the case (very classy!) and the quality of the rubber strap. A big plus is the fact that the bezel is slightly higher than the crystal, offering additional protection against accidental scratches. Considering the price, this is my new favorite watch and the one I wear the most. Highly recommended!
10 of 10 found the following review helpful:
GREAT WATCH Sep 03, 2007
By Joseph C. Champ
Well, just to comment on the first reviewers remarks, this watch does not require a battery. It is a mechanical automatic winding watch so I think he submitted the review on the wrong watch or his jeweler lied to him.
Otherwise, this is one of the best automatics that I own. Keeps good time and is comfortable to wear. Everyone must remember a mechanical watch will gain or lose a few minute a month and has to be reset.
11 of 12 found the following review helpful:
a tip for fast monsters Jun 05, 2008
By J. Hutton
"Balto Joe"
First off, this is a great watch and an even greater value. No other true "diver's" watch (a watch must meet an ISO standard to be able to say "diver's" on the face) with an in-house automatic movement comes even close to the Monster in price.
Second, here's a tip that works for most fast running monsters -- assuming you wear the watch daily and are active enough to keep it well wound: When you take the watch off at bedtime leave it on the dresser on its side with the crown pointing up. This slows the movement down enough that it will at least reduce the daily gain, if not cancel it out altogether. You'll need to keep the watch running (preferably by wearing it) for at least a month before it settles in to a predictable daily gain (or loss).
My Black Monster has been running for about 6 months and gains about 6-8 seconds per day on my wrist and gives back 3-4 seconds overnight (crown up!) -- that's a net daily gain of 2-5 seconds. If your daily pursuits require accuracy better than that, you're wound too tight!
My Orange Monster is a little bold for daily wear, and so hasn't run enough to improve beyond a gain of 15-20 seconds per day. Since I have to set it every time I wear it and I don't usually wear it for more than a day, it's relative inaccuracy is a non-issue. Besides, a $200 watch is jewelry, and as a fine piece of jewelry this Seiko is a unbelievable value.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
 Orange Monster Seiko Diver's Watch Jul 05, 2006
By Glen D. Giles
I shopped very carefully for this watch; it was replacing a watch that was 12 years old and my first Father's Day gift. I wanted a watch that would last longer than 12 years (I wear it every day) and that didn't need batteries. The watch case had to be at least stainless steel; my old watch was just pot metal and after so many years the acid in my sweat ate through it and corroded the inside of the watch.
I know people say it's heavy but my other watch was a diver's watch and I don't really notice a difference. I selected the model with the rubber wrist band as I don't care for metal ones. I can't explain why but after about 10 days my skin had an allergic reaction to the rubber wrist band. Nothing like that has ever happened to me before. I didn't do anything about it, kept wearing the watch, and now everything seems to be ok. I guess my skin got used to it?
The luminous qualities are great; they last all night long. My last watch was unreadable in the dark after about 2 hours. I have NEVER looked at this watch and not been able to read it.
It's not a quartz movement and I've discovered it tends to gain about one minute a week. No biggie.
I paid for faster shipping and got it rather quickly. I HATE being w/o a watch. I'm hopeful that because this will never have a dead battery I'll never be stuck w/o a watch again.
See all 51 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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