Vintage
Epilogue presents a comprehensive overview of the Seiko Pogue, reference 6139-6002, emphasizing its unique blend of design, technical innovation, and historical significance. His detailed analysis, supported by personal acquisitions, offers collectors a deeper appreciation for this vintage chronograph's enduring appeal and its place in horological history.
Seiko Pogue - 6139 6002, 1969-78
The 6139 is truly exciting. It has all the elements of a legendary watch: a design story, a human story and a technical story.
In terms of design, I find it so titillating the mix of a bicolour tachymeter bezel, an inner rotating bezel and a day-date display. This is absolutely bonkers considering that the concatenation of complications mixes elements from racing, diving and dress, all the while lacking a seconds hand.
Mixing these elements isnโt without its technical challenges. It is said that the Pogue is among the first automatic chronographs produced and sold to the public across the planet. This in competition with Zenith, Heuer, Breitling and Hamilton-Buren. Moreover, the watch also has an extremely intricate crown that controls the time, day, date and inner bezel. Pushing the crown inward, while varying pressure, changes the day and date, turning the crown activates the inner bezel, and finally, pulling on the crown changes the time. Not bad for an automatic chronograph from 69!
In terms of human story, the 6139 is just as exciting and derives its nickname from the audacious Colonel who brought it up to space along with his NASA approved Speedmaster. Colonel Pogue had used the 6139 in training and found it legible and reliable, both rational reasons for bringing a watch to space.
This is my first Seiko but my nth vintage piece. In comparison, the Pogue keeps very good time and is just as charming as my Lemanias and Jardurs. If I had to say one thing though is that the finish is a bit rough but Iโm starting to see that this comes with the territory.
I mentioned that the Pogue had all the characteristics of a legend. Unfortunately, I think this isnโt completely true due to the high number of units produced. That being said, the ones made in 69 and distributed to the Japanese market, also known as JDMs, are rarer and a good target for collectors looking for pearls. At least, this is my understanding.
Enough waffle, below are some pictures of my two recent acquisitions. These are not rare models, however I initially focused on getting unpolished pieces as I like the sharp geometric shapes, each with their own individually polished surface.
Hope you enjoy the text and pictures. I think I might have more 6139s to show soon!
The Seiko 6139 chronograph movement, introduced in 1969, was a significant development in automatic chronograph technology. It was one of the world's first automatic chronographs to feature both a column wheel and a vertical clutch mechanism, innovations that contributed to its precise operation and smooth chronograph engagement. This movement was designed for robustness and reliability, reflecting Seiko's engineering capabilities during that era.
The 6139 caliber powered a variety of Seiko chronographs, often housed in distinctively styled cases that became popular among collectors. Its integrated design meant that the chronograph functions were built directly into the movement, rather than being modular additions. The movement typically featured a single sub-dial for chronograph minutes and a day/date complication.
For collectors, the Seiko 6139 series represents a pivotal moment in chronograph history, offering advanced technical features at an accessible price point. Its historical significance as an early automatic column wheel chronograph, combined with its diverse range of case and dial variations, makes it a sought-after vintage reference.
Best wishes Alkiro
Is the diver on the far left the Schwarzenegger Seiko? Looks great!
The Seiko collection also has Citizen divers. Mostly focused on the time period of these divers. Late 1960's early 1970's. Bill
At one point I wanted to start a complete collection but never got around to it, I just have this one which I love and is a rare model known as the 6139-600x "Half Moon". S
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