Seiko tunacan7/25/2023 The outer case protector that wraps around the side of the watch is a special shape created with unique Seiko ideas and techniques. Monjugawa: And it was perhaps these very features that brought to mind a can of tuna. It had specs that enabled extreme shock resistance and immersion-proof features. Kishino: The original watch had no case back and was a one-piece case construction that could only be opened from the front. And if you turn over a tuna can the round bottom has a watch-like shape. The watch bezel is a metallic color and this also is reminiscent of a tuna can. It’s quite bulky and the diameter and thickness balance struck some Seiko fans as looking like a can of tuna. It’s a simple design that brings to mind a sliced off portion of a pipe. Monjugawa: First of all, the diver’s watch with outer case protector that is nicknamed the “Tuna Can.” This is the best known of all the watches that have nicknames. Today, he designs for the Japanese market.Ĭlick on the illustration! Verification: Why was this watch given this nickname? The Tuna Can Story He also designed for the WIRED brand which is popular among young people in Japan. Kishino joined Seiko in 2006 and has designed many watches destined for the international market with Seiko’s youthful customers in mind. Today, he sets and oversees the overall design direction for Seiko, with a particular focus on PROSPEX. Monjugawa joined Seiko in 1992 and for many years designed Seiko watches destined for the international market. But how on Earth did this actually come about? Satoru Monjugawa and Takumi Kishino from our Design Center Department exchange some imaginative interpretations of this phenomenon. Our fans came up with them spontaneously, all on their own. And with a starting price around $256 they won’t be terribly expensive, either.In places unknown to us here at Seiko, and without our awareness, it seems there are certain Seiko products and models that are so popular that our fans have given them their own nicknames, such as “Tuna Can,” “Monster,” “Samurai,” and “Turtle.” Of course we, as the designers, did not come up with these nicknames ourselves. No worries, though: a proxy shopping service means you can smuggle these stateside and make all your G-Shock-wearing friends envious. The rest are all full-time models in the lineup, though they appear to be Japan exclusives right now. Seiko is making five SBEP references, with two of them - SBP007 and SBP009 - being limited pieces. This sounds silly on a fully digital watch until you realize the progression of minutes is shown not just on the analog display but also on a minute track on the outer edge of the display, allowing you to use the bezel as a makeshift timer if need be. (Sounds familiar, right?) One of the few vestiges of the Tuna’s analog roots is the rotating diving bezel. It’s water-resistant to 200 meters, boldly-sized at 49.5mm in diameter and features a solar-powered movement with alarm, world time and timer functions. While it may not have been Seiko’s intent, the final product looks poised to go toe-to-toe with Casio’s G-Shock line. The new SBEP is not without precedent - Seiko made the H558-5009, an analog-digital hybrid version of the Tuna back in the ’80s - but this is the first time we’ve seen the watch go fully-digital. The big, chunky, tuna-can-shaped “Tuna” diver has been a stalwart analog watch in the brand’s lineup since its introduction decades ago, but for 2018 the watchmaker is taking it in a bit of an unexpected direction by introducing a digital version, the SBEP series.
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