There are many vintage Seiko divers popular with Seiko enthusiasts, and the 7548 and 6458 series – the big brothers of the 1984 Seiko 2A23-012B womens diver here – stand out among these. The design of the 2A23 quartz diver, like the 7548 and 6458, is classic and simple, and borrows heavily from the instantly recognizable earlier Seiko 7002 automatic diver.
Some truly gorgeous watches from the same era produced by the same company have quietly slipped under the radar for the simple reason they were designed for the typically slighter wrist, ie: women.
And it’s a shame, because many of these smaller watches feature exquisite details – Seiko found an original, great looking formula for its divers, and stuck with it. The quartz movements Seiko designed for watches like these are tough and reliable.
The Seiko introduction of their SilverWave line in 1961 marked a number of firsts for Seiko: it represented their first diver’s watch, their first watch with an inner rotating bezel, their first use of the tsunami wave symbol on the caseback, and their first automatic watch with a screw-down case back.
There are many vintage Seiko watches popular with Seiko enthusiasts - the long-running SilverWave line is evidence of this - and for good reason; Seiko discovered the secret to manufacturing mass-produced stylish and affordable watches. And it made a lot of them...
As for the Seiko SilverWave line? Per Fratello’s resident Seiko guru Michael Stockton, “...the mid 1960’s [the era of Seiko's original SilverWave watch, the J12082] were a time of tremendous transition. It seemed to be a period of transition away from the feel good, somewhat old-fashioned 1950’s into a more modern, but realistic period."
"Literature, music, art, and technology were all undergoing these same patterns of metamorphoses…California and its surfing culture went mainstream and people became highly interested in all things water or ocean related.”
Seiko’s “sport divers” would become a long-running theme in their watch design that continues to this day. Clearly its SilverWave line were not designed for deep sea / Jacque Cousteau-like dives. At the time, the only really hardcore dive watches were Rolex, Omega, Blancpain, and some limited others. But as noted, water sports during this era became mainstream, and the SilverWave line was designed for snorkeling, swimming, surfing, and other light water sports.
This vintage Seiko diver comes on a dark blue and green nylon strap, and with dark blue nylon strap, rugged travel case, and springbar tool.
Teal 1984 Seiko 2A23-012B Womens Dive Watch
DIAL: Crisp teal Seiko-signed dial, no imperfections; day and date functions - with Kanji Japanese/English day variants - at the 3 o'clock position work correctly as designed. Lume shines brightly.
BEZEL: Bi-directional glides smoothly with some friction, as designed; black bezel insert has no wear, a relative rarity. Seiko font and lume pip at 12 o’clock position glows.
CASE: Stainless-steel case measures 29mm x 31.5mm, with matching caseback. Of note, original caseback sticker remains, an indicator this watch wasn't worn often previously.
CRYSTAL: Hardlex crystal, small chip in crystal at the 10 o'clock position, but otherwise no deep scratches or cracks.
BAND: This 2A23 comes on a dark blue and green nylon strap; it also comes with a dark blue nylon strap.
MOVEMENT: 2A23 calibre Seiko quartz movement, manufactured in December 1984.
CROWN: Unsigned stainless-steel crown.
