#TBT Will A Seiko, Mido, Or Oris Become My Vintage Summer Beater?

It’s a significant work overload rather than economic conditions that made me acquire the smallest number of watches this year that I have in the last five years. Is it an opportunity for my Seiko 62MAS, Mido Rainbow Diver, or OG Oris Star to become my vintage summer beater?

I’ve always had a long list of candidates for the next #TBT. All the new acquisitions I made brought so much excitement that each watch had to steal its slice of the available wrist time. And many of them made it into a #TBT story without much waiting. The curiosity and novelty were so intense that there were so many watches I simply had to wear. Consequently, many watches that I was so excited about years ago simply didn’t make it to my wrist for quite a while.

Luxury problems

I realized recently that, for the first time after quite a few years, I think much more about what I really want to wear this week or next. It may have never crossed your mind, but keeping new vintage-watch inspiration coming at a weekly pace, no matter how exciting it is, can be pretty stressful.

As I mentioned initially, due to ambitious company plans set for this year and next, I have less and less time for endless night raids through auctions. Two lively kids also take the last bits of willingness to stay up a bit longer at night to look into new vintage discoveries.

On the positive side, this unintentional slowdown of watch acquisitions created more space to look deeper into my reserves. I have watches that I bought five years ago, but I haven’t found time to feature them yet.

Seiko 6217-8001 — the Big Crown 62MAS

I spend way less time on Instagram than I used to a year or two years ago. I’m saying that to apologize that I am not going to check my profile now to see if I wore the mighty Seiko 6217-8001 last year even once. I almost feel guilty and ashamed I didn’t take it for a spin for maybe a year. Well, I guess that it may have something to do with its place in the safe. It sits in the corner in the lowest drawer. When I feel like having something from my “old stock” on my wrist, I often make my selection after running through the first shelf…

Strong points

It’s a fantastic skin diver with flat lugs that sits on my wrist perfectly. I remember putting it on my wrist for the first time like it was today (not even yesterday). I was stunned by how wearable the 62MAS was. If you look at the pictures, I do not have to highlight that I scored one in fantastic condition. It needed some love and care upon arrival, but it is sharp and has no scars on the case. The lume is perfect, which is not typical for the 62MAS, a piece that has become a collectible watch. Other nice details are the big crown and a perfectly visible dolphin on the case back.

Image Source: Anthony Cable, plus9time.com

An amusing oddity

Until I got my first Japanese watch with an original or period-correct strap, I had never realized how short Japanese straps are. In my archive article about the 62MAS, you can see what the original strap should look like. My piece came with a Tropic strap, which is a great choice for hot summer days. Apparently, it is shorter than typical straps, and for many, it may be an instant showstopper, but I don’t mind it at all. On the contrary, it underlines its origin for me.

Mido Rainbow Diver ref. 5907

I’ve also named this one the dearest watch in my collection. I wore it the day my daughter was born, and I wore it the day I got married. And just for that day, I put the original Bonklip bracelet down and fitted it with a gray suede strap to match my attire. But suede didn’t last long on it. I missed the Bonklip and how practical it was. It looks unwearable, but the opposite is the surprising truth.

I have never minded leather straps (my favorite) in hot weather. But the last two super hot weeks made me unstrap the watch I had on a few times and put it on my office desk for a while, something I never do. Looking at it made me think not only of Tropic straps but also fond memories of my Mido Rainbow ref. 5907 on this bracelet. I wrote an essay on it here. The Bonklip is so underrated. If you’ve never had one yet, go and get one ASAP.

Obviously, it’s not just a bracelet that brought this watch back into my consciousness. The Rainbow dial is light-years away from the 1960s standard. It’s daring, creative, full of energy, and just so refreshing. The Mido Rainbow is a happy watch that will make you happy too. Its free spirit with perfectly saturated colors makes it the perfect match for any colorful outfit you decide to pull off during hot days. This watch is hard to beat, and indeed, it’s hard to find anything comparable. You may not want to use it for what it was designed to do, but I already committed to wearing it more often this summer.

Oris Star

This is a “nobody puts Baby in the corner” kind of watch. If you put the Mido Rainbow next to it, it looks like the battle is lost already. But for me, the original Oris Star was one of my most surprising acquisitions in terms of wearability. The headline of my introduction article on the Oris Star may sound a bit too aspirational, but the actual watch is a bright example of how to make a simple, functional design rich in details.

The hands are a masterclass in design, and I would not be surprised if the guys at Unimatic said that they love them too. I gave ten kudos to RJ for managing to persuade Oris to remake the same hand design for the Fratello × Oris Divers Sixty-Five Limited Edition. The lume pip here is more admirable than the one on any Submariner, and the “Oris” stamping on the clasp is pure vintage class. Like the other two candidates for my vintage summer beater, the Oris Star also has a great fit on my wrist. And it’s not just true for me. In the last two years, a few collectors have decided to get one. All of them were equally excited about how it looked and felt.

Last thoughts

None of these three watches have been on my wrist recently, but after much deliberation, I took them from their safe space to put them in active focus. I haven’t decided which one will get the most wrist time, but it will probably sort itself out in the weeks to come. Would you choose the Seiko 62MAS, Mido Rainbow, or Oris Star as your vintage summer beater? Let me know in the comments.