SEIKONAUT: Nautilus Inspiration and its Story
The Patek Philippe Nautilus, the Rolex Submariner, and possibly just a handful of other watches in the history of horology have made as deep and enduring an impact in the modding world. Unsurprisingly, for many watch aficionados today, these two have emerged as the holy grail models and are commonly used as inspiration during watch builds or mods.
But the Nautilus didn’t make a big splash at first. When it was introduced in 1976, there wasn’t a lot of fanfare or expectation surrounding it. Sales were sluggish in the early years until a women’s version was produced 4 years later, followed by a smaller-sized variant a year later.
Despite being a steel sports watch, it cost far more than watches made of 18-karat gold by Patek Philippe that came before it. It truly cost up to a third of the average annual wage in the United States, making it the most expensive sports watch of its time. Even their catchphrase for the product, “One of the world’s costliest watches is made of steel,” played on the absurd notion of a steel watch with a high price tag. The Nautilus is currently the brand’s spokesperson, and its followers have an insatiable need for it.
The Simple Start
It didn’t take years to conceptualize and design the Nautilus watch. The well-known tale goes that it took just five minutes from conception to presentation to the Patek Philippe executives before this era-defining timepiece was born. Gerald Genta was able to create this in what appears to be a very short period of time.
In a 2009 interview with author of horology Constantin Stikas, Gerald gave a brief account of the origins of the Nautilus. He was dining alone at a hotel restaurant at a Basel Trade Fair in 1972 when a group from Patek took a seat across from him. He came up with the famous ship porthole-looking watch on the spot after asking a waiter for paper to sketch on.
What is the "Nautilus" Look?
The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and the Patek Philippe Nautilus had a lot of similarities in their early drawings, but there was enough to distinguish the Patek piece from the Audemars Piguet.
The bezel’s octagonal form has rounded corners and is held in place by lateral screws. The face’s design was inspired by a ship’s porthole. The prominent “ears” on the sides are another feature. These ears serve as both a hinge on the left side of the case and the case’s customary crown guard on the right.
Why is there a hinge? The watch only has a front opening, which explains why. It has a monobloc body rather than the detachable caseback found on other watches of the era. The 120m water resistance rating for the Nautilus was attained by doing this, which was seen as a marvel. The movement must be brought out of the front if you need to service it for any reason.
The building material of the nautilus was not simply regular steel, but rather a nickel, chromium, and molybdenum alloy. The watch is extremely durable and an excellent option for a wristwatch geared toward athletics because it is made of the same material as WWII tanks. Additionally, to being more lightweight than other steel materials, it can handle high pressure and temperatures. The Nautilus’ qualities were undoubtedly appreciated by the watch’s target demographic of brisk businesspeople.
A Forgotten Seiko
Gerald Genta was an exceptionally prolific watch designer, producing hundreds of thousands of designs over many years for many watch manufacturers and private clients. One of these models, known as the Seiko Credor Locomotive, was created in 1979 for then-Seiko president Reijiro Hattori. It is not surprising that some of these pieces may fade from view. With its octagonal bezel and visible screws, it has an instantly recognizable design language.
The Seiko Credor Locomotive has a striking similarity to the Royal Oak and Nautilus, but unlike those watches, which were respectively inspired by a diver’s helmet and a ship’s porthole, the Seiko Credor Locomotive has that inspiration right there in the name. The parts of this watch by Gerald Genta were inspired by railroads.
Unfortunately, only 5000 units were ever made, and they were only available to Seiko’s most ardent enthusiasts.
The Seikonaut
In addition to the Seiko Credor Locomotive, Seiko also produced a watch collection that is referred to as the “Seikonaut” since it resembles the Nautilus quite a bit. It belongs to the SNKK4X series.
Without a doubt, the porthole-shaped case attracted comparison to the Nautilus, and you might claim that it is just missing an octagonal bezel from being a replica. The Seikonaut was an immediate success with Seiko enthusiasts because it still has the Seiko 5 charm and is reasonably priced. Despite the series’ ending, demand for the watch never decreased. The Seiko 5 Sports range includes the SNKK4X series, which is distinguished by its compact design and relatively thin body. It has Seiko’s Diashock technology installed inside and the enduringly popular 7S26 movement. If you can get it on the secondary market, it’s a workhorse watch that you can wear every day for many years before it needs maintenance and is a terrific deal around $200. It is also easy to replace the movement with an NH36 to add winding and hacking capabilities.
Nautilus Modding Journey
If you want to capture the feel and the look of the original Nautilus, you will want to go for one of our Seiko compatible Nautilus inspired parts. Even if it may not be the same alloy that was once used in tanks, the appearance and quality are flawless. Choose your desired caseback, dial, hands, and crown, and your very own Seikonaut mod is ready. You can mix and match with different parts to make you own, one of a kind Nautilus inspired piece.
About The Author
Pamela Tabago is an Information Specialist at Watch-Modz LLC. She is passionate about everything related to watches, from the best automatics to modding a Seiko.
She brings her data-driven experience in informative writing and her love for watches to the blog. She also provides watch-related content for other modding enthusiasts like herself.