Seiko may have made its first dedicated divers watch 50 years ago in 1965, but complaints from Japanese professional divers led to the formation of a special development team who were charged with creating the perfect watch for professional divers.
In 1975 team leader Ikuo Tokunaga revealed his solution, a one-piece titanium case with a ceramic-coated titanium shroud that would later be dubbed the Seiko Tuna.
Rather than include a helium escape value, he set out to create a case so tightly sealed that helium wouldn’t be able to enter in the first place.
The Seiko Marinemaster 1000m SBDX014 is the latest and greatest iteration of that concept designed to celebrate the 50-year anniversary.
The inner case is formed from black-coated titanium while the outer shroud is ceramic as it was with the original Tuna, while the gold-coated accents are a tribute to the 1978 Golden Tuna. Inside the 52mm diver beats an automatic movement with 50-hour power reserve.
