Past2Present Watches

SPECIFICATION

Reference: 5605-7020
Movement: calibre 5605A Automatic
Age: September 1968
Case Size: 35mm
Case Thickness: 10mm
Lug to Lug: 40mm
Lugs: 18mm
Condition: Used vintage watch
Box and Papers: no
Case Material: Stainless steel
Warranty: 12-month mechanical UK warranty

POINTS TO MENTION

  • In great pre-owned condition, with light wear from use
  • Case and bezel have some light scratches and marks
  • Vertically brushed dial
  • Date only model
  • Fully serviced automatic 25 jewel movement
  • Original metal quickset gear
  • Paired with a unworn black genuine leather strap

THE WATCH

The date-only Lord Matic has an appeal that is easy to overlook. In the late 1960s Seiko was making the automatic wristwatch a dependable part of ordinary Japanese life, and the Lord Matic offered a more considered version of that idea. It was smart without needing to be formal, a watch that would fit into the working week rather than sit at home awaiting an occasion.

The 5605 belongs to the early years of the range, when Seiko was still giving the LORD MATIC name plenty of space on the dial. The simplicity is part of its charm. There is a date when you need one, and very little else asking for your attention.

A BIT OF TRIVIA

Five years before this Lord Matic, Seiko had introduced the Sportsmatic 5, bringing the movement, case, dial and bracelet together as one carefully designed watch. It was so successful that in 1964 it became the first wristwatch to receive Japan's Good Design Award. That was an important step towards the idea behind Lord Matic: quality wasn't just an accurate movement, but the pleasure of an entire watch designed to work well in daily life.

OUR THOUGHTS

There are days when the simplest watch is the most satisfying one to choose. This Lord Matic has an easy clarity about it: a silver face, the date when you want it, and enough mechanical interest to make you glad you chose a vintage automatic. We like the idea of it becoming the watch you instinctively reach for, not because it's trying to be impressive, but because it feels like the right companion for the day.

PAST — Every watch has one
The story doesn't begin when a watch arrives at Past2Present. Some have survived remarkably untouched. Others carry decades of wear. Cases soften, dials change, bracelets acquire their marks and movements tell their own mechanical story. Those signs of age aren't necessarily faults to remove. Understanding what should be preserved and what needs attention is part of understanding the watch.
PRESENT — When it reaches us
This is where Past2Present enters the story. Every watch is selected individually and then assessed as a watch, rather than simply treated as another piece of stock. Its movement, case, dial, hands, crown, crystal and general condition all help determine what happens next. Sometimes a watch needs considerable work. Sometimes the most important decision is knowing when to leave something alone.
THE PEOPLE — Past2Present is small by design
There isn't a warehouse full of anonymous watches behind the website. There are people. Buying, researching, photographing, preparing, servicing, packing and talking to customers are all parts of the same small business.
THE BENCH — Where past becomes present
This is one of the things that makes Past2Present different. The workshop isn't something outsourced at the end of the process. It's part of P2P. Mechanical watches are inspected and, where appropriate, serviced and prepared here before they are offered for sale. The objective isn't to erase fifty years and manufacture something that looks new. It's to make a vintage watch ready to be worn again.
OUR APPROACH — Preserve rather than erase
A vintage watch should look like a vintage watch. We value originality, honest condition and sympathetic preparation. A mark acquired during a watch's life can be part of its history; removing every trace of age isn't automatically an improvement. The same philosophy runs through the workshop, our descriptions and the way we present our watches. We would rather explain something than hide it.
FUTURE — The next chapter isn't ours
Eventually the watch leaves our hands. That's why each P2P watch isn't simply sold and forgotten. Its Digital Logbook records the watch and gives its next custodian a place in its continuing history. We bring the watch as responsibly as we can from its past into the present.
Where it goes next is yours.