The New Seiko Polar GMT SSK059

While the SKX case design of the present-day Seiko 5 Sports lineup predictably grabbed headlines upon their release, things really blew up when the brand launched the SSK series in 2022, bringing a mechanical GMT movement to the under $500 price tier. Naturally, models like the SSK-001 and SSK-003 sold like popsicles at the beach in July, but since then, another pillar of this collection has emerged in the form of the SSK-023, part of the Seiko 5 Field subcategory. Now, plenty of enthusiasts were sucked into this new take on the accessible GMT, which infused a fixed stainless steel bezel with a 24-hour marking scale and orange accents. On top of it all, it was wrapped up in a well-sized, fully brushed package that retails for under $500. So, collectors being collectors naturally wondered, why don't they release a polar version of this watch? Well, if that was your question, Seiko finally has you covered, and today, we look at that Now, although this watch is new, Seiko did tip its hand in early 2024 when a white-dialed SBSC-009 was released in January as a Japan-only model, just a month after the black SSK-023 was announced for the world market. Fans outside of Japan were left scratching their heads about why Seiko would treat them so cruelly, and while I'm partly being dramatic there, the outcry made sense. The white dial or polar inspiration from the Explorer family is certainly here, and switching up the color seamlessly integrates into the design. Now, whatever the reason was for not rolling out this variation to the broader global landscape, cooler heads have prevailed at Seiko HQ, and the international version of the polar SSK, the SSK-059, has finally arrived after two years. Now, was it worth the wait? Since the big news with this release is the new dial, it only makes sense to start there. Now, if you've seen the SSK-023 before, the SSK-059's dial will look very familiar. The format is virtually the same, except the colorway is going to be inverted. Where the black dial carries an all-business demeanor, the 059 is more of a light-and-bright approach, a look that is equally at home in summer or winter. This is just a handsome watch, period, and the fact that it retails for under $500 points to big things for the Polar 5. The dial offers a slightly grained matte white dial finish, a frosty backdrop for that almost slate-looking minute track, while a more silvery gray is used for the applied geometric hour indices, raised Arabic hour markers, and the inner 24-hour scale in military format. The raised Seiko wordmark and Superman 5 logo below 12 are also rendered in a silver, as is the automatic script above 6, with the GMT printed below in a vibrant red-orange. There's a silver frame surrounding the shallow beveled date window, offering a bit of extra detail and dimension. And as far as nighttime legibility goes, Seiko did make an odd choice of not to loom the Arabic numerals, but rather just the small dots located within the square and triangular indices at the dial's outer reaches. The material illumination is exceptional per usual from Seiko, however, as a result of the limited real estate, the presentation falls short of the norm of the brand. Nevertheless, the Lumibrite within the pencil handset does quite well and is easy to read. The orange GMT hand boasts a good amount of glow too, with the matching arrow-tipped second hand to a lesser degree. Maybe it's the particular shade of the orange on the hands, but it really does bring a vintage feel to the dial that recalls classics from the late 60s and early 1970s. So if you believe there's no school like the old school, this is going to be a compelling Seiko 5 for your taste. The functional aesthetics, the fixed bezel, and the full brush on the finishing all conspire to stir up those vintage feelings. Case dimensions are 39.4mm across by 47.9mm from lug to lug, with a well-disguised 13.6mm case height, making for a good wear experience on the vast majority of wrists out there wearing true to its diameter. Circular brushing on the case front transitions right into the horizontally brushed case sides, reinforcing that tool watch mission statement. Likewise, the fixed 24-hour bezel firmly plants the look among action-ready classics of the past, punctuated with the surprising detail of a radial brushing embellishment, and even getting hit with some subtle polish on the side of that bezel. In total, that is the one area of this case that looks a step up from the rest of the presentation, and it absolutely feels its price, if not better, with the rest of that presentation. Several other factors fill up the plus column, including the drilled lugs and an unsigned push-pull crown at three that offers a low profile and a good amount of grip, not to mention a 100m of water resistance. Protecting the dial is a gently domed Hardlex mineral crystal, adding a minimal amount of height to the case compared to more dramatically boxed versions. Still, the subtle dome adds to the vibe in a way that is likely going to appeal to those that have already bought into this throwback design. This Hardlex glass is going to be much better than sapphire in dealing with reflections. The trade-off is that it will not be as resilient in scratch resistance. Where the Seiko 5 Sports range is class-leading in many ways, one area where these feel just a bit more aligned to their price is going to be the bracelet. Though this one is, I would say, serviceable and does pair well with the overall package. I like this one a lot more than some of the other Seiko bracelets out there. Just the brushing and the fine-linked design, it integrates really well and does look the part with the overall package. The solid pin-adjusted links are far more substantial than those found on the Seiko 5s of the past, but it's just a single brushed link that actually spans the width of the bracelet rather than five individual ones. A clever illusion that does the trick visually. However, it's the clasp that is going to show the most obvious cost-saving measures with its fully-stamped construction and four holes of micro-adjustment that will require tools to adjust. Having said that, the dual push buttons and signed flip-lock are reassuringly secure. Never one's feeling that they would present an issue. And if you do feel like changing things up, the drilled lugs and the 20mm width are going to make things easy to swap out that bracelet. So Seiko 5s have long been loved for many reasons, and one of the previous generation's attributes was the legendary durability of the 7S26 calibers used throughout much of the lineup. Although anecdotal, I have heard and experienced countless instances of well-worn Seikos with their humble 7S26 hearts still beating after 20-plus years without service. Not something that we recommend though. With the retirement of the Shield logo era Seiko 5 lineup, not to mention the discontinuation of the collector favorite SKX diver, the present-day movement successor to the 7S is the 4R series. Inside the SSK059 is the caliber 4R34, a date-only office GMT variant that features an independently adjustable 24-hour hand. Plenty of ink has been spilled on the 4R34 movement, but it really did create an entirely new market for GMT customers. And that can't be overstated. Before Seiko released this movement, a mechanical GMT under $500 from a major brand basically didn't exist. The movement specs stack up like this. It has a beat rate of 3Hz, or 21,600 vibrations per hour. Features hacking and hand-winding, hacking stop in the seconds when you pull the crown Now, Seiko rates the accuracy of these movements between plus 45 seconds a day and minus 35 seconds a day, which is pretty conservative considering examples in the wild typically perform much better. That said, Seiko is not going to be known for their tight ranges of accuracy at this price point. In other words, typical Seiko specs, but for the money, you're getting an in-house movement that are some of the most widely used in the marketplace by volume. And they may not be much to look at, but you can, courtesy of that exhibition caseback. Alright, so now let's unpack, talk a little bit more about this SSK059 and just some of my thoughts. So, I have been a huge proponent of the SSK series GMTs from Seiko and the Seiko 5 collection. What's really strange is, people are very conscious of price when looking at the Seiko 5 models. But for us, and I think for them, the best selling Seiko 5s are actually their most expensive. It's the Seiko 5 GMT. And I think that speaks to why these watches are in a position that is so hard to beat. And we talked about it throughout. These were the watches that made it possible to have a mechanical GMT for the masses under $500 consistently. Now, when we saw the SSK023, it was never going to supplant the success that was those other SSK GMTs with those bicolor bezels. Those are going to appeal probably more compared to this more restrained field DNA that we see here. The same can probably be said from the likes of the GMT Masters and the Explorer series, where you'll see some inspiration in the designs here, while doing their own spin and twist. Now, much of the cons remain the same, and much of the pros remain the same here. I think the biggest things to call out with these watches is going to be the bracelet maybe not being as great. Mostly the clasp though, in these models. I actually like the bracelet on these Field 5 series compared to some of the other 5 series watches out there. Bloom could be a bit stronger compared to what you're used to with Seiko, but the bar is very high when it comes to Seiko, and it's more of an expression of not using as much real estate. And then the movements are going to be more like a Toyota Corolla engine. They just run. If you're looking for the best performance, this isn't going to be a watch to take a look at in that regard from an accuracy standpoint, but if you want reliability and proven caliber at that, these are some of those tested and widely used calibers out there on the market. And if you just want something that's going to run, like if you've ever seen those videos of just putting a cinder block on a Toyota Corolla or a Honda Civic and just letting the thing run until the fumes are going, I mean, that's basically what these watches are and what these watch movements are. It doesn't mean that they're going to be perfect. It doesn't mean that they don't have their quirks, but that is the general approach for these watches and allowing more people to appreciate and have a mechanical GMT at the segment. And that's really where these watches separate the most. And I think with this polar dial, I like calling this thing the Polar 5, I actually think that could stick. I think it's a cool name. I actually like this one more, I think, than the black dial version personally. It doesn't have as much contrast, but it just has a bit more oomph behind the orange pop that comes with that GMT hand. And I've always liked the Polar GMT family, I've always liked a white dial with a touch of color that comes from that GMT hand. And this just speaks to me personally. I remember seeing those JDM models when they were released, I'm like, oh, if those ever came to the States, that would be amazing. Those would like make so many enthusiasts happy and I would love to see those one day. Well, with the SSK059, that day is finally here. And what can you say? It's another class-leading GMT for under $500 from Seiko, the brand that was responsible for even having a discussion about a mechanical GMT under $500, at least for the masses. But all right guys, that's my take here today looking at the Seiko 5 SSK059. This was one that as soon as I saw a white dial for the JDM market in this configuration, I'm like, it has to come to the international marketplace as soon as possible because this looks great. And I think they did a nice job with this watch, a big fan of the SSK GMTs, as you guys know. But what do you think of this one? Do you like this one more than the black dial? Are you sticking with the 023? Which one do you like more? If you've been able to pick this watch up already and have some feelings about it, leave some comments down below as well. That'll probably be a nice helpful point for those that are looking in the direction of this watch. Also check out teddybalder.com, full authorized dealer for over 35 brands. Every purchase from our website comes with quick and fast fulfillment, dedicated customer support and a full factor warranty for all the products that we offer. In addition, if you're ever in the Cleveland, Ohio area, we just opened up a brand new flagship store. So we moved from our previous store to a larger location. We now have four times the space, four times the brands. So if you want to see brands like Seiko, for example, in store, you can do that. We have Seiko Lux, we have Tissot, Hamilton, and 15 other brands in the store. So if you want to check it out. So whether online, in store, we'd love to be able to help you out with your next watch purchase. We'll also keep doing what we're doing here. And we love what we do. You guys, thank you again so much for watching be well, and I'll see you all very soon.