the elusive Seiko 7016 Monaco. Years ahead of its time.

Apr 09, 2013,07:40 AM
 

I have now owned my Seiko 7016-5001 chronograph for a couple of months and think it is now time to review it.

 

The Seiko 7016 chronograph, nicknamed the Monaco due to its shape and slight resemblance to the Heuer chronograph with the same name, is something a bit special and very under rated.

The 7016A calibre was produced from 1971-1978 and came in 2 case designs, a round case and this far more popular rectangular case. looking at the serial number on the caseback I know mine was made in February 1973.

 



The first thing that makes this watch unusual is the rectangular case, a shape that is quite uncommon especially with the rounded edges.
At its widest point it is 36mm and lug to lug it is 40mm. its total height is 14mm, but it feels a lot thinner when worn.
 


The case is made up of only 2 pieces. The monocoque caseback holds the movement including the crown, pushers and dial. The top part of the case which includes the integrated lugs, clips over the top and holds the plexi glass in place. Between the lugs there are 2 thin clips which need to be pushed in to remove the top part and gain access to the dial and movement.
The bezel or top of the case is satin finished with polished sides and when in place allows the unmarked crown to sit flush.
 
(as I didn't want to take my own watch apart I would like to thank 'sharpie' from WUS for allowing me to use the next 4 pictures)






(a similar monocoque system was later used by Omega on the Speedmaster 125 and the 1045 calibre Speedmaster.)


The correct plexi glass is now quite difficult to find so care should be taken to ensure it is in good condition. Mine arrived with a scratch across the plexi, but metal polish and a cloth soon removed it and polished the plexi nicely.

 

The dial goes a long way to indicate how special the watch is. My dial is light silver grey with applied markers and a single black sub dial at 6 o'clock. the sub dial has 2 hands, an orange one for the chrono minute totaliser and a white one for the hour totaliser. As far as I am aware this is the first chronograph to feature a mono counter, something that Patek, now famous for their mono counter chronographs, didn't introduce until the mid 2000's.

There is also a quick set bi lingual day and date at 3 oclock.

 

So far what we are looking at is an automatic chronograph with mono counter and day/date made in the early 70's (and only 7 years after Seiko released their first chronograph which was a simple single button 60 second counter). To top it off, what the dial doesn't indicate is that this is also a flyback chronograph.

If anyone knows of another automatic day/date mono countered flyback chronograph of this period I would love to hear about it. Before anyone says 'the Enicar Mantagraph', Seiko supplied both the movement and cases to Enicar so it is essentially the same watch.

 

One thing the dial does not have is a constant second dial, but neither did the Breitling Chrono-Matic and several other auto chrono's of the same period. personally I think this takes nothing away from the watch and simplifies the dial layout.

 

There are more revelations when it comes to the movement specifications.

The 7016A calibre is a 17 jewel automatic with a beat rate of 21,600 or 6 beats a second. At 6.4mm high, when released, it was the thinnest auto chrono movement made and remained so until 1987 when Piguet released a movement which was only 5.5mm high. As with all Seiko movements it is made completely in-house, not that that is overly important.

The only negative point about this movement is that it cannot be hand wound although this is quite common with Seiko movements.

 

The living with and wearing experience is really good. The case sits comfortably on the wrist due to its modest size, rounded edges and hidden crown. my watch came with its original bracelet and a black Di Modell rally strap. both are very comfortable, but I prefer the rally strap which suits the watch very well. 



 


 
To summarise, this is a great looking watch with complications which, I hope you will agree, place it years ahead of its time, so if you like vintage chronographs and see one you should give it serious consideration. I don't think you will be disappointed.
 
I apologise for the poor pictures, but with the plexi on this watch has reflections everywhere and is very hard to photograph.
 
Enjoy
Graham



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Great read, Graham.

 
 By: TdotBean : April 9th, 2013-08:09
These 70s Seiko chronos are such so fabulous. A sort of hidden treasure. Regard Tyler

Thanks Tyler, It puzzles me...

 
 By: G99 : April 9th, 2013-08:15
Thanks Tyler, It puzzles me why they didnt continue the movement as its so advanced for its time. Best G On 9 Apr 2013 16:09, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite > *Posted By:* TdotBean (registered) on April 9th, 2013 - 08:09 > > *Title: Gre... 

Very, very nice review...

 
 By: KIH : April 9th, 2013-08:35
.. thank you Graham! I am sure SEIKO appreciates such a long term fan like you! I would like to make some review of some of my SEIKOs, too..... Thanks! Ken

Thanks Ken, I've been meaning...

 
 By: G99 : April 9th, 2013-08:38
Thanks Ken, I've been meaning to do it for ages, but other things got in the way. I have a 1964 citizen to review soon, but i'll let you review some seiko's first. Best G On 9 Apr 2013 16:35, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite > *Posted By:... 

Terrific review!

 
 By: SteveG : April 9th, 2013-09:03
of a very special watch! Mine says 'Hi' ...  

Thanks Steve. Yours is a...

 
 By: G99 : April 9th, 2013-09:06
Thanks Steve. Yours is a beauty in pretty much perfect condition. Mine on the other hand wasnt quite 'fifty quids' as Vlad would say, but it was a bargain for what it is. Best Graham On 9 Apr 2013 17:04, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite >... 

Beautiful Watch and Dial...

 
 By: SALMANPK : April 9th, 2013-17:48
How is the bracelet? comfortable to wear? S

Thanks very much! The bracelet

 
 By: SteveG : April 10th, 2013-07:48
as you can probably see is a folded-link style, so it is not up to Seiko's usual level of comfort...but it does fit and look very nice.

Thank you for this great review ...

 
 By: nilomis : April 9th, 2013-10:17
Lord, I deep regret that I passed one of those years ago. Very cool watch. Cheers, Nilo

Its my pleasure Nilo. I...

 
 By: G99 : April 9th, 2013-10:19
Its my pleasure Nilo. I love showing my watches to our members and when its something like this its even more of a pleasure. I bet you wont pass on it next time you see one :) Best G On 9 Apr 2013 18:17, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite >... 

Great review!

 
 By: DaMctosh : April 9th, 2013-10:22
Thanks for sharing this beaut, Graham, and the nice nuggets of info. Really love the subdial, makes for an easy intuitive read and with the possibility of doubling as a very readable second time zone if needed. It does make one wonder why this was not con... 

Thanks buddy, Re second time...

 
 By: G99 : April 9th, 2013-10:27
Thanks buddy, Re second time zone, you would have to bear in mind its a 30 minute totaliser, but the hour would work fine. Best G On 9 Apr 2013 18:22, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite > *Posted By:* damien (registered) on April 9th, 2013 ... 

Thanks, Graham. After the co-axial hour and minute counters, the quirkiest aspect . . .

 
 By: Dr No : April 9th, 2013-11:49
. . . of the design is the linear portion of the chrono seconds track . Minute sections of elevated (or sunken) track are fairly common, such as the El Primero's in the vicinity of the date aperture at 4:30, but I've never noticed as broad a section as yo... 

Do you know Art, i've...

 
 By: G99 : April 9th, 2013-11:56
Do you know Art, i've never noticed that before. So much for getting used to it before reviewing it :) Best G On 9 Apr 2013 19:49, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite > *Posted By:* Dr No (registered) on April 9th, 2013 - 11:49 > > *Title: T... 

Great job

 
 By: cazalea : April 9th, 2013-17:29
Finding and reviewing a Seiko I've never seen anywhere but on SteveG's site. And most of his seem unimaginably remote and perfect (those I have chased and caught a few ...) Cheers, Mike

Its my pleasure and i'm...

 
 By: G99 : April 10th, 2013-01:13
Its my pleasure and i'm glad you enjoyed it. Its good to review a very affordable, elusive and advanced watch from a brand that is only really recognised on the forum for its modern pieces. Best Graham On 10 Apr 2013 01:29, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:... 

Fantastic Review Graham

 
 By: SALMANPK : April 9th, 2013-17:47
I was not aware of these Chronographs from Seiko, I'll re-reading your review many times over in the coming months, a classic, should be archived. S

Its very kind of you...

 
 By: G99 : April 10th, 2013-01:15
Its very kind of you Salman, especially to consider it should be archived. I think it goes a long way to show that some vintage watches are perhaps more advanced than other modern pieces. Best Graham On 10 Apr 2013 01:47, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* ... 

Great review G, you have an uncanny knack..

 
 By: dreamer8 : April 9th, 2013-19:59
and luck finding these rare and interesting watches. One I would love to have in my collection. Cheers,dreamer

Thanks dreamer, Everyone has to...

 
 By: G99 : April 10th, 2013-01:17
Thanks dreamer, Everyone has to be lucky at something, it seems the only thing i'm any good at is picking up affordable watches :) Best G On 10 Apr 2013 03:59, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite > *Posted By:* dreamer8 (registered) on April... 

7016!

 
 By: BDLJ : April 9th, 2013-20:26
Great review, G. As you know, I've hunted Mantographs, missed on a bargain round case, forgot to bid on a square case that went for a song....I found a square case in a watch shop last weekend, but in typical fashion it had seen the polishing mop and all ... 

Good luck with your search...

 
 By: G99 : April 10th, 2013-01:20
Good luck with your search Ben and i'm glad you enjoyed the review, not that any of it was new to you :) I've seen Mantagraphs in the past, but they are very thin on the ground. One day... G On 10 Apr 2013 04:26, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watch... 

Not convinced Graham...

 
 By: nikolaj : April 10th, 2013-00:25
That this beauty is for you. I'd say that you are ahead of its time (by approx 9 years?) and you ought to pass it on to someone whos birthday is within weeks of that of the watch... :D Seriously, Very nice review G. I have been waiting for this since you ... 

Big time thanks nikolaj, but...

 
 By: G99 : April 10th, 2013-01:33
Big time thanks nikolaj, but you are very wrong :) this is just right for me as if fits into my small ensemble of watches 'just that little bit special regardless of age'. I have a 1972 omega seamaster chronometer with 751 day/date movement in that ensemb... 

Your review was well worth the wait...

 
 By: nikolaj : April 10th, 2013-01:36
and it was worth a try to get the watch from you :) I am happy to hear that more from you is in the pipelines. All the best! Nikolaj

I have a few pieces...

 
 By: G99 : April 10th, 2013-01:40
I have a few pieces to review, one in for service which will be back soon. I will endeavour to do 1 a week. Best G On 10 Apr 2013 09:37, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite > *Posted By:* nikolaj (registered) on April 10th, 2013 - 01:36 > > ... 

It is surely a stunning chronograph, Graham.

 
 By: ling5hk : April 10th, 2013-04:50
What surprises me is that it is also a flyback chronograph. Enjoy the watch. Regards Ling

Thanks Ling, I find it...

 
 By: G99 : April 10th, 2013-04:52
Thanks Ling, I find it strange that they havent made a big feature of the flyback function which is something rarely seen even on todays chronos. Best Graham On 10 Apr 2013 12:50, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite > *Posted By:* ling5hk (r... 

Hey ! I've seen this Seiko before !

 
 By: bimbeano : April 10th, 2013-14:11
This is a great review Graham ! A lot of information for a watch-novice like me, though i must admit i will forget most of it during the coming weeks ... Why ? Would ou ask ? Unlike most forum members i didnt grow up with watches but more with chocolate, ... 

Yep, you have to be...

 
 By: G99 : April 10th, 2013-14:15
Yep, you have to be active to keep it going, but a service will cure that :) On 10 Apr 2013 22:11, "www watchprosite" *Alert from:* www:watchprosite > *Posted By:* bimbeano (registered) on April 10th, 2013 - 14:11 > > *Title: Hey ! I've seen this Seiko be... 

Thanks Graham for a great review..........

 
 By: Topcat30093 : April 11th, 2013-22:26
That is a super looking watch :) I have been a long term fan/supporter of Seiko for longer than I care to remember. In fact my very first watch, that I bought myself was a Seiko chronograph and though long time gone. The memory of it always stayed with me...  

Thanks Topcat, Seiko have always...

 
 By: G99 : April 12th, 2013-01:56
Thanks Topcat, Seiko have always been a big part of my life. My dad wears one, i wore one for years before starting to collect. I have learnt so much more about them in the last few years that has shown me how good they were and still are. Best G On 12 Ap... 

Nice one, TC

 
 By: BDLJ : April 12th, 2013-06:01
I only have a solitary "Proof" dialed Seiko. A Sportsman...and they don't even rate it in metres. :-) Your two chronos...almost make me want to depriotise the 7016.

I have a new holy grail!

 
 By: John Mishanec : April 17th, 2018-13:00
Love the review and pictures. I now have a new holy grail, to find the right Seiko Monaco 7016-5001. Prices seem to be going up and they are relatively hard to find so now is the time to act.

Graham, a pleasure to read you!

 
 By: renerod : April 18th, 2018-14:26
Great post with lots of detailed information about a great watch! Cheers! René