6 of the Best Seiko Automatic Military Watches

There’s something about a military watch that keeps timekeeping fans coming back for more. Whether it’s the rugged design, robust construction, or simply the easy-to-read dial, military watches appeal to buyers no matter their tastes, age, or budget. 

If you’re shopping in the budget watch market, there’s no better brand out there than Seiko. The Japanese heavyweight strikes a balance between high quality and affordable prices, and luckily for us, they have a range of great military watches too. 

In this article, we’ll look at six of the best Seiko automatic military watches. We’ll compare each one on their design, specs, and price to help you pick the best one for you.

Let’s go! 

#1 – Seiko 5 Sports Military Automatic Gents SNZG13J1

To get us started with our look at Seiko automatic military watches, we’ve picked out a classic military watch in the Seiko 5 Sports SNZG13J1. This is the first of a few Seiko 5 Sports models with the range super popular at this price point as it combines stylish design, automatic movements, and a great price. 

This model, in particular, is great for those who like a field/military styling on a solid stainless steel bracelet. The dial itself is easy-to-read thanks to the clean black finish and large white numbers, with small features such as the red-tipped minute hand rounding off a stylish package. 

Alongside this, the 42mm piece combines 100m of water resistance, a Hardlex crystal, and a good quality automatic movement to ensure the performance matches the good looks. The SNZG13J1 comes in at a great price, too, with the watch commonly found around $200 – and, at that price, that’s a bargain!

#2 – Seiko 5 Sports Men’s Watch Tan 39.4mm SRPG35

If, instead, you’d prefer something with less metal and more of a rugged feel, the Seiko 5 Sports SRPG35 model should be right up your street. 

This model really embraces the tan color palette, with the tan-colored nylon strap matching effortlessly with the watch’s large numbers and hand accents. When you bring all of this together, you get a really lovely finish with the day/date window sneaking in at the 3 o’clock position to round off the stylish yet functional dial. 

Much like our first watch, you get 100m of water resistance, a Hardlex crystal, and a good quality automatic movement to back up the performance. The good news is the great value also follows suit, with the slightly smaller (39.4mm) SRPG35 model coming in at $210. 

#3 – Seiko 5 Sports Men’s Watch Green 42.5mm SRPD77

Our next Seiko 5 Sports piece moves us slightly towards the dive watch genre with the amphibious SRPD77 model. 

The combination of dive watch design themes and nylon strap makes it a great military/dive hybrid, with the gorgeous dark green colorings helping it stand out from the crowd. On the dial, you’ve got large, luminous hour markers, with the arrow/baton hand combination making the watch super easy to read. 

Of course, with any good dive watch, you’ll get a handy uni-directional rotating bezel – great for keeping track of time. Alongside this, you’ll get a slightly more powerful, 41-hour automatic movement, a hardlex crystal, 100m of water resistance, and a day/date window to round off the 42mm package.

Those enhanced dive specs do drive the price up a little, but the good news is that the SRPD77 is still commonly found just under the $250 mark – a great bargain for dive/military watch fans! 

#4 – Seiko 5 Sports Automatic Black Dial SRPE69K1

Our next pick is perfect for those who’d like a more tactical military look and feel. The all-black SRPE69K1 switches up the classic military design styles in favor of a darker and moodier feel while still delivering outstanding performance. 

This 40mm watch brings together our previous two watches, combining the traditional field watch case and band stylings with dive watch themes on the dial. It creates a really nice blend, with the matte black finish appealing to those who like something a little different. 

You’re still getting all the features you’d expect with this model, including an automatic movement, 100m of water resistance, a Hardlex crystal, and a handy day-date feature. But arguable the best news here is the price, as this is the cheapest watch we’ve seen so far at just $180 – it doesn’t get much better than that! 

#5 – Seiko 5 Black Dial Black Canvas Automatic SNK809

For our fifth pick, we head back to the Seiko 5 range with the SNK809 model. This is the perfect Seiko automatic military watch for those on a budget who still want good quality and easy-to-read design. 

The 37mm piece is definitely best for those with smaller wrists, with the stainless steel case and black canvas strap creating a very military look and feel. On the dial, the combination of black dial, white markings, and large hands make it easy to read no matter the conditions.

You get a 21 jewel automatic movement, day/date window, 30m of water resistance, and a Hardlex crystal with this model, which gives pretty good durability given its small size. As we mentioned at the start, this is great for those on a budget, coming in at just under $100. For that price, you won’t get a cheaper automatic military watch anywhere! 

#6 – Seiko Prospex Alpinist Black Textured Dial SPB159

From cheapest to most premium for our last Seiko pick – the Prospex Alpinist SPB159. Frequent readers of the Watch & Bullion blog will know that the Prospex range is one of our favorites from Seiko, with the dive range also throwing up some fantastic military/adventure watches such as this Alpinist. 

The dial really does look excellent, with the patterned black backdrop acting as the perfect canvas for the gold markings around the outside. The large numbers combine nicely with silver hands to make the watch easy to read and provide a very premium feel. 

Specs-wise, you’ll get a super high-quality automatic movement alongside an upgraded 200m of water resistance, sapphire crystal, and a calfskin band. All of this comes together to drive a price of $650, which, while it may seem expensive, is well worth it for this premium Seiko automatic military watch. 

Summary 

When it comes to Seiko automatic military watches, the good news is that there are loads to choose from. Whether it’s a model from the Seiko 5 range, a dive watch crossover, or a premium explorer watch, there’s bound to be something that takes your fancy. 

We’ve only scratched the surface in this article, so do take some time to do some research until you find the perfect Seiko automatic military watch for you! 

Featured image source.