A cheap GMT with one important asterisk
By Kenji Watanabe, Osaka ยท
The asterisk first. The 4R34 inside the SSK001 is a so-called caller GMT, which means the crown adjusts the 24-hour hand on its own, not the local hour hand. That is perfect for an office worker who calls colleagues in another time zone. It is less convenient for a traveller, who must reset the main hour hand by turning through every hour, and the date along with it. Seiko is not hiding this. Many buyers just do not read that far.
With that understood, it is very good value. 42.5 by 13.6 mm, black dial, a 24-hour bezel, date, 100 m, Hardlex, steel bracelet, 41 hours. It looks like a proper GMT, it wears like the other 5 Sports models, and at 475 to 495 dollars it is the least expensive mechanical GMT I can name from a major Japanese maker.
I would buy it to track my brother in Vancouver. I would not buy it as a travel watch for many flights a year. For that, save for the Citizen Series 8 or wait and see what Seiko does next.