Today, we’ll be taking a look at a brand I hadn’t run across until I was informed of a sale going on at Touch Of Modern – J. Springs.
Fret not – J. Springs is not a new brand (established in 2001), nor is it a wild-card when it comes to quality, as they’re actually a subsidiary of Seiko. As such, it’s not surprising that we’ve got Seiko movements powering the watches. Basically, I see this as a way for Seiko to try out different styling exercises without impacting their core lineups.
They have a mix of automatic and quartz models (full lineup here). Within the automatic lineup, I think my favorite is the Modern Classic line. This is powered by a Seiko automatic movement (I can’t determine the specific caliber), and has a hardened mineral crystal up front, mineral crystal display back, and 100m water resistance rating.
Astute readers will have noted the second crown on the 43mm stainless steel case. This is controlling the inner bezel, which interestingly is giving you a perpetual calendar of sorts. If you look closely at the chapter ring, you’ll see that the days of the month (1-31) are aligned with the days of the week (Sun-Sat). This gives you a quick (and handy) reference if you want to look up one value based off of the other. Perhaps not something you use every day, but it’s a neat trick that adds value to the watch without increasing cost too much.
And when it comes to cost, the automatic lineup comes in around the $300 – $350 in terms of MSRP. The astute web surfer can easily find them for well under $300 (depending on your model of preference), including over on Amazon. Or, if you hurry, you can catch Touch Of Modern’s sale (here) before it ends later today.
Let us know in the comments what you think of the J. Springs lineup. We’re looking into getting some review samples in, so you can tell us if there’s a specific model you’d like us to take a closer look at.
