Hands-on with the Seiko Prospex ‘Winter Speedtimer’ Mechanical Chronograph SRQ045J1 Watch
Friday - 10 March 2023
The new Seiko Prospex “Winter Speedtimer” Mechanical Chronograph watch is inspired by the black stopwatches created by Seiko for the 1972 Winter Olympics. The limited edition watch is powered by the Calibre 8R46, which features a lightweight escapement for enhanced precision.
The clue is in the name when it comes to Seiko Prospex watches – they’re watches for pros! A combination of robust cases, legible dials and reliable movements equates to a line of tool watches for those leading extreme lives. It is home to the Turtle, the Tuna and more, and will never let you down, especially with top models in the range offering a staggering 1000-meter water resistance. The Prospex name is a combination of two words: “professional” and “specifications” and offers more than just rugged dive tools alone. The range appeals to hikers, bikers, swimmers, sports professionals, adventure-seekers and mountain climbers to name just a few. Also belonging to the range is the recently released Seiko Prospex Speedtimer Mechanical Chronograph, based on the black stopwatches produced by the Japanese watch brand for the 1972 Sapporo Olympics.
At the time when Seiko became elected to organise the 1964 Summer Olympics, Rolex was already the event’s official timekeeper – but Seiko wanted to secure itself the same position. There was a problem, however. The Japanese brand didn’t have time to go building a watch from scratch. Time passed and in 1962, the Olympic Technical Committee met to decide upon an official timekeeper once more. Seiko presented the committee with six different stopwatches and to cut a long story short, the Olympic Technical Committee elected Seiko as the official timekeeper, not just because it was due to be held in Tokyo that year, but because there were several significant functional advantages to these instruments. These first 89ST stopwatches were finished in white, yet the 1972 models were produced in black to reduce the glare and reflection from the snow and ice during the 1972 Winter Olympics.
The new Seiko Prospex ‘Winter Speedtimer’ Mechanical Chronograph SRQ045J1
The new Seiko Prospex ‘Winter Speedtimer’ Mechanical Chronograph SRQ045J1 is limited to just 600 pieces worldwide and takes inspiration from these former Seiko Speedtimers. It features a matte sandblasted dial with orange and white shots of colour, housed within a black 42.5mm case. The model celebrates Seiko’s success in developing accurate timing instruments for professionals and the Seiko Watch Corporation’s well-recognised design codes for legibility, functionality and visibility. The Speedtimer has a vertical clutch and column wheel that enables for smoother chronograph performance and the precise measuring of elapsed time. Whilst the original Speedtimer was powered by the Calibre 6139, the new Seiko Prospex Winter Speedtimer is governed by the Calibre 8R46, hand-assembled by specialists at Seiko. Its escapement is both lightweight and strong since it uses MEMS technology to enhance stability and precision. The movement also provides a power reserve of 45 hours
The recently released Seiko Prospex ‘Winter Speedtimer’ Mechanical Chronograph SRQ045J1 watch sits on the wrist at a height of 15.1mm and has been crafted from stainless steel with a hard coating in black that makes the case harder and more resistant to scratches, dents and other external factors. This 100-meter water-resistant case is topped with a piece of dual-curved sapphire crystal glass that is not only scratch resistant but anti-reflective too. On the reverse of the case, a transparent exhibition caseback puts the automatic movement on show whilst it performs.
Underneath the double domed sapphire crystal glass front of the new Seiko Prospex Speedtimer Limited Edition watch is a matte black dial with red flecks of colour showing at each hour location. The red colour is also repeated at the 30-minute counter at 9 o’clock. Across the other side of the dial is the small second sub-dial at 3 o’clock. Nestled in between these two features is a date window at 6 o’clock, balanced by the proud Seiko lettering in white at 12 o’clock. The Presage X logo can be seen down towards the south of the dial, where a set of central sword-shaped hands travel. These hands have been treated with Lumibrite, as have the hour markers and are surrounded by a legible tachymeter scale around the very edge of the dial. This feature is perfect for measuring distance based on speed. To use the feature, simply press the chronograph pusher to start the stopwatch function and then wait for the object to pass the finish line, pressing the pusher again to stop the measurement. Measure the tachymeter scale marker against the adjacent second hand to tell you the speed of something.
The new Seiko Prospex Speedtimer watch is completed on a black calfskin leather strap and a black-coated stainless steel folding buckle but can also be fitted on a black-coated stainless steel link bracelet. If you’d like to add one of the 600 pieces of the new Seiko Prospex ‘Winter Speedtimer’ Mechanical Chronograph SRQ045J1 to your collection, you can speak to a member of our Jura Watches on 01335 453453
