The watch that started it all…
Admittedly, this wasn’t my first watch. I got into watches when I was in seventh grade. I remember for my birthday my parents bought me a Nixon Scout (A590 1131). But the first watch I had that really fueled the fire was my Seiko SRPB55k1, affectionately know as the “Samurai”. I had been interested in the watch for while before I bought it. At the time I didn’t know where to look to buy watches, so I couldn’t find this particular watch in stock anywhere. While driving to New Smyrna Beach one day my wife and I stopped by a mall and there was a small jewelery store inside that was selling a Seiko Prospex with a blue and red bezel that looked great in person, and that I almost bought right then and there. However, I really wanted the black and gold version, so I stayed strong and waited. But finally, in October of 2021 while I was in Florida for a friend’s wedding, I found one! We were at a pool and I was browsing the internet looking for this watch, and I happened to stumble upon one in the most unexpected of places. After five minutes and an order confirmation from K-Mart, I had to play the waiting game. Not only did I need to make it back to Washington state, but I had to wait a couple weeks before it ended up shipping. I ended up picking it up for $516.89 after shipping and taxes.
This watch is one of my most sentimental pieces. It was my first automatic, and the first nice watch I had ever owned / bought myself. Up until that point I think the nicest watch I’d ever had was a Christmas present Nixon Corporal Stormtrooper, which you can still find on ebay for around $100. Now it spends most of its time in my watch box, occasionally coming out when I feel a black watch is appropriate.
I wish I could say I wore it as a tool watch from the day I got it, like I have with my Pelagos 39, but the reality is I was scared to damage the watch. I instead wore my Garmin Instinct Tactical everyday (which I have since sold to a close friend).
