King Seiko was a luxury brand of Seiko from 1961 to 1975. It was positioned directly below Grand Seiko in terms of pricing, quality and accuracy. While the brand was initially created as Daini Seikosha’s alternative to Suwa Seikosha’s Grand Seiko, by 1969, both factories were creating watches for both ranges and King Seiko was firmly established as Seiko’s second, purely-domestic, luxury line.
The 5626-7000 has become one of the most iconic King Seiko watches ever produced. The 5626 movement with 25 jewels is a hi-beat 28800 bpm which hand winds, hacks and features a micro-regulator - all of this was far superior to other high end Seiko movements of the time. The dial is minimal with polished silver bar hour markers with applied Seiko and KS logo's. At 3 o'clock the day/date window can be utilised in English or Japanese Kanji. In pure stainless steel the case is simple and sharp, the case back features a gold KS medallion.
Personal Comments:
I have a King Seiko 5626-7000 in my personal collection and absolutely love it. It's understated, subtle and a "if you know, you know" watch. I travelled through Japan with this on my wrist and got a ton of compliments through out city to city. I firmly believe King Seiko is the thinking man's watch - while it's relatively under the radar in comparison due to modern Grand Seiko it sure was one of the most sought after watch brands through the 1960's-1970's.