Seiko Dive Watch Accuracy

[StevenN]

My almost 17 year-old Seiko automatic 7002-7009 dive watch (it appears to be identical to the SKX173 except that it lacks a day display, just the date) usually gains about 2 minutes a day unless it's very cold, like when I'm cross-country skiing/snow camping, in which case it sometimes loses a bit. So I'd say 10 seconds a day is excellent. I've never taken it in to get it adjusted because I'm afraid whoever did the work would damage the seal, so I just live with it. But if I were going to buy a new dive watch today, it would be an Eco-drive, as I've always assumed that a quartz battery-powered watch will crap out at the most inconvenient time.

Guy

Thanks for the info! It's nice to get feedback from others with the same watch because I always wondered if mine was a lemon (it's not) or if that is what I would expect for accuracy. I love the watch, it looks great on the gray Maratac band that I wear it on and I do get the occasional compliment on how good it looks.
I just have to check it daily to see where it is on the current time (now 7 seconds slow).

 

[drdaddy]

My almost 17 year-old Seiko automatic 7002-7009 dive watch (it appears to be identical to the SKX173 except that it lacks a day display, just the date) usually gains about 2 minutes a day unless it's very cold, like when I'm cross-country skiing/snow camping, in which case it sometimes loses a bit. So I'd say 10 seconds a day is excellent. I've never taken it in to get it adjusted because I'm afraid whoever did the work would damage the seal, so I just live with it. But if I were going to buy a new dive watch today, it would be an Eco-drive, as I've always assumed that a quartz battery-powered watch will crap out at the most inconvenient time.

Guy

I left my Eco-drive at home when I was diving overseas, and yep - you guessed it. My quartz battery powered watch stopped - battery dead. However, I found a great guy, over there, who not only put a new battery into it, but also had a pressure test machine!!! He certified* it to be waterproof, which is better than most of the so called jewelers will do around here.

*Since then, when I returned to his country, I brought him a number of dead battery quartz dive watches. I wish I could find someone like him around here. Oh, and it only cost me about $10 a watch - never a failure to 120 ft deep.