All About the Seiko SKX031 aka The Poor Man's Submariner

The Rolex Submariner can be seen as the “ideal watch design,” which is why so many watches pay homage to it. Not everyone can afford the real thing, or even most of the homages though as it is always sold and marketed as a luxury watch.

But there are some budget-friendly pieces that may have been overlooked - like the Seiko SKX031. While the Seiko homage piece isn’t a legendary Swiss-made diver, it is their timeless tribute to the Sub which costs just a fraction of the price.

Like many Seiko Mod Watches, the OEM SKX031 takes cues from a famous watch. Unlike a SKX007 mod, the SKX031 uses many of the same overall specs that the Rolex Submariner sports, especially visually. 

The Seiko SKX031 – A “Submariner” for Everyone

Born in 1996, the Seiko SKX031 immediately strikes you as a Submariner homage with Seiko’s unmistakable influence. The timepiece features a large dial with a rotating bezel and high-contrast color scheme. 

In addition, the bold hands and hour markers stand out brilliantly against the black background, and also have a thick coating of lume for better visibility in low-light conditions.

Source: Fratello Watches

The case of the Seiko SKX031 is made of stainless steel with a diameter of 39mm and a thickness of 12mm. The crown is located at the 3 o’clock position and screws down for extra security. 

Unlike the well-known SKX007, the SKX031 moves upmarket with its applied logo and indices. The hour and minute hands are essentially the same as the 007, but the 031 swaps the lollipop second hand for a white-painted hand with a slender arrow tip.

In addition, there’s a simple wave logo on its screw-down case back which is similar in some ways to other Seiko divers. 

Source: Carousell

The heart of the SKX031 is the well-known 7S26 day-date movement, which is loved by many Seiko fans. In addition to a power reserve of 43 hours once fully wound, the movement also has a 21-jewel design and beats at 21,600 BPH giving you a smooth 6 ticks per second.

The front of the watch is protected by a Seiko Hardlex crystal glass, which is a proprietary mineral glass used by Seiko.

The watch uses a comfortable, thick rubber and fastens with a buckle-style clasp but there are variations available with a stainless steel strap if that’s what you prefer. 

Moreover, the strap can be replaced with just about anything you can imagine as it uses 22mm lugs. 

Lastly, the water resistance rating of the Seiko SKX031 is 100m, which is suitable for recreational surfing, swimming, snorkeling, sailing, and most water sports.

A Brilliant Rolex Homage

As mentioned, the SKX031 has been around for decades and is a clear homage to the Rolex Submariner.

Unlike the other homage watches, the SKX031 retains as much Seiko design originality as possible while giving the flavor of the Rolex Submariner to the owner. 

Known as the “Seiko Submariner”, the watch also comes with the un-Seiko-like crown at 3:00, versus the 4:00 that a SKX007 and many other Seiko divers use. The case design is very similar to the Sub, and looks great.  

In addition to the general case design, the bezel insert is “hashed” for the first 15 minutes, which also shows the Submariner influence on the SKX031.

Of course, the SKX031 also has some big Seiko influences, like the hands, and the classic Seiko diver dial. It clearly isn’t a Rolex knock-off, and gives Seiko fans a version of a classic diver design that is uniquely Seiko. 

Build the Best With Seiko 

As a full line maker, Seiko creates watches for everyone. Although the Seiko SKX031 was introduced as a lighter choice than the legendary SKX007, it has some relatively high-end features, especially given the price point. 

Seiko mods let you take watch mod parts, and make just about any watch design you want, including a Rolex homage. You can use SKX007 Parts to make a Rolex homage, but we have loads of OEM Seiko spare parts that are also perfect for your next build. 

When you put your time and effort into a custom watch build, use the best Watch spare parts in the market - which we stock at namokiMODS. Check out our catalog for lots more.

Happy modding!