Seiko Meets Street Culture With The 5 Sports HUF Limited Edition SRPL33
Partnering with liftestyle brand HUF brings skateboarding and street culture to Seiko's humble sports watch.
Seiko’s humble and fun 5 Sports series of watches are revered for their value-for-money, and often fresh combinations of colours and styles. Through numerous limited edition, the Japanese powerhouse also likes to have a little fun with the platform, resulting in some very visually impactful watches, tying in watchmaking with pop culture, movie starts or even fashion and lifestyle. One such collaboration is the new Seiko 5 Sports HUF Limited Edition SRPL33, which is made in collaboration with Keith Hufnagel, the famous American skateboarder and founder of HUF, a lifestyle and streetwear brand.
The Seiko 5 Sports HUF Limited Edition SRPL33 relies on the familiar traits of the 5 Sports collection, with a 42.5mm wide steel case that tops out at 13.4mm in height. The crown is positioned at 4′ so as to not dig into your wrist too much. On top, the Hardlex crystal is surrounded by a unidirectional rotating bezel fitted with the black, red and silver insert from the SRPK13. The finishing is a mix of brushing and polishing, and the watch is rated to a water resistance of 100 meters.
For the dial Seiko and Keith Hufnagel/HUF have opted for a silver sunray-brushed one, similar to the one in the SRPK09. This time around, however, the LumiBright inserts for the markers and hands appear to be beige, and the central seconds hand is lacquered in lime green. There’s also a lime green HUF logo, and the sloped minute track has a lime green section, paired with a blue section. The day-date window is framed by a faceted applique.
The Calibre 4R36 automatic is covered by a green-tinted see-through caseback with HUF’s logo in the centre, in keeping with the colour pallet of the brand. While this is a pretty well-known movement, it often raises eyebrows for its specified accuracy. Seiko rates it as being regulated to run within a deviation of +45/-35 seconds per day, but by experience, we can attest that it’s often regulated to a closer bandwidth. The finishing is very industrial, so the green-tinted crystal adds something fresh to the back of the watch.
The Seiko 5 Sports HUF Limited Edition SRPL33 comes on the same three-link stainless steel bracelet with a folding clasp as previous models did. Limited to 7,000 pieces, it’s available from December 2024 onwards (until sold out, obviously) for a price of USD 380. Can’t argue with that value-for-money-wise!
For more information, please visit SeikoWatches.com.