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Seiko 5 Actus 6106-7410 (Sold) - with unworn Hirsch Duke M strap

€ 305.00

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Category 5Actus Tags Sold
This watch
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Manufacture: Seiko
Model:             5Actus
Reference:      6106 7410
Movement:     Automatic
Jewels:           23 jewels
Serial No.:      96XXXX
Case:               Helmet 36x45x12mm without crown
Crystal:           Acrylic, Serial#: 300T12ANS0
Dial:                Grey/Champagne Sunburst
Lugs:              18mm lugs
Production:   1969-06
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The Seiko 6106 5Actus was a product line launched in the '60s and continued in the '70s, it consisted of both Seiko 5 Actus and the regular Actus - with an emphasis on styling. This particular innovative design was targeted at the baby boomers of that time but remains in demand with vintage watch collectors right up to the current day and age. It is after all the very first Helmet design, which would be reiterated in the 6139 helmets. And let us not forget the UFO style 5Actus 8410, which would be applied to the 6138 UFO, its dial features just the hour markers! Seiko did this occasionally, but not to the other light grey 8410 variant. To me, looking at, it signifies a nice break from tradition.
So the 5Actus seems to come in both rather conventional and "mod" designs, but the "mod" Actus was not as radical as the Advan and Vanac mod styles. The 5Actus shown below however could be considered radical design for the reason stated above, not only that but also for being waterproof (a big deal in those days). For the young it stated in the adds "go anywhere, do anything!"
This hip(ster) product line used 6106 and 7019 movements - there may be others, but these two are the most common. Both were reliable automatic movements. The only real difference between the two movements is that the 6106 used two screws to hold the winding rotor in place. Date languages used were English/Japanese only. Strangely enough then the Latin word Actus used for this watch, meaning a unit of length, progress, moving through, series/sequence, act, performance (of play), delivery, action, or deed...
This 23 jewel 6106 hackable but no manual wind (!) movement was introduced in 1967 with its first iteration, the Kanji only day date 6106A with sweeping seconds and a power reserve of 46h. It was revised twice in the next two years adding a day quickset, the 6106B appearing in 1968 and the 6106C in 1969. The 6106C (this watch!) only has the dual language day wheel, Kanji and English. All three however have the quickset feature to set the day and date by pushing the crown in by two discrete steps (first push date, second harder push day). It is of course very practical to not have a big crown if pushing and time adjustments are the only things you will ever do.
The finishing on this watch is exceptional. Indeed, the Seiko 6106-7410 Helmet (or the 8410 UFO for that matter) is a true sixties classic for a number of reasons. First of all, apart from that uniquely avant garde case design, the dial is so well spaced out that the bezeled day/date window is somehow hardly obtrusive. This may be to the relief of the firm resistance some have when it comes to watches with these indicators paired. Finally, on the versions with applied indices, the chunky highlighted hands look sporty but classy at the same time.
Writing? There’s not that much and the little that’s there is purposeful and well distributed. The label “SS,” for instance means Second Stop and indicates the hacking feature. Some call it the “Seiko Spirit.” When pulling the crown to set the hands, all time automatically stops.