How to Change the Date on a Seiko 5 (Without Damaging It)
Short version: pull the crown out one click and turn it to change the date. Never do this between 9pm and 1am (as shown on the watch). Then pull to the second click to set the time, push the crown back in, and you're done.
We set dates on Seiko watches at the counter almost every day, and the questions are always the same: which click, which direction, and why the date flipped at lunchtime. Here's everything in one place.
Before you start
- Check the time on the watch. If the hands are anywhere between 9pm and 1am, move them out of that window first (pull to the second click and turn the hands to around 6 o'clock).
- Screw-down crown? Most Seiko 5 Sports models have a push-pull crown. Prospex divers usually have a screw-down crown: unscrew it toward you until it pops out before you pull it.
Why 9pm to 1am matters: during those hours the gears are already moving the date to the next day. Forcing the date at that moment can damage the date mechanism or stop it from changing the next night. Seiko's own instructions warn about this.
Seiko 5 with date only, or day and date (4R35, 4R36)
- Pull the crown out to the first click.
- Turn it one way to change the date and the other way to change the day (on day-date models). On Seiko's 4R movements, counterclockwise moves the date. Set it to yesterday's date.
- Pull the crown to the second click. The seconds hand stops.
- Turn the hands forward until the date changes to today. You're now in the morning.
- Keep turning to the correct time. Go a few minutes past, then come back, so the hands sit precisely.
- Push the crown back in. Lock it if it's a screw-down crown.
Setting yesterday's date and then moving the hands past midnight is the trick that guarantees the date changes at midnight, not noon.
Seiko 5 Sports GMT (4R34)
On the GMT models, like the SSK series, the first click does double duty. Turned one way it moves the date, turned the other way it moves the 24-hour GMT hand. Turn slowly and watch which one moves. Everything else, including the 9pm to 1am rule, is the same as above. Set the 24-hour hand last, once the local time is right.
Seiko quartz models
Most Seiko quartz watches work the same way: first click for the date, second click for the time. Quartz date mechanisms are a little more forgiving, but it's still good practice to avoid 9pm to 1am.
THE WATCHES IN THIS ARTICLE
Common problems and quick fixes
The date changes at noon
The watch is set 12 hours off. Pull to the second click and turn the hands forward a full 12 hours. Then set the correct time again.
It's the first of the month and the watch says 31
Normal after a 30-day month or February. Pull to the first click and advance the date to 1.
The date is halfway between two numbers
It was probably set during the 9pm to 1am window. Move the hands to around 6 o'clock, then advance the date one full day. If it stays stuck, bring it in and don't force it.
The watch stopped overnight
Automatic Seiko 5 watches run about 40 hours when fully wound. If you don't wear it for a couple of days, it will stop. Give it a few gentle shakes or wear it, then set the date and time again.
Still stuck? Bring your Seiko to our boutique in Place Longueuil and we'll set it with you so you know how next time.