Time & Date Setting of Seiko

ever forward, but slowly.

Last update: 2024-08-20

Set the Time, Date and Day of the Week

This can be somewhat tricky because of AM vs PM and Date & Day must match. Here are the steps that I followed to set up the Seiko 5 that is equipped with the 4R36 movement.

  1. Pull out the crown to the first click to set the Date & Day: We will set the Date and Day to one day earlier (e.g. Mon 19 to set the watch for Tue 20) and then set the time to accurately match the AM or PM for Tue 20.
  2. Turn the crown counter clockwise to set the date (i.e. 19), and turn the crown clockwise to set the day of the week (i.e. Mon).
  3. Pull out the crown to the second click when the seconds hand is at 12 o’clock position to set the time.
  4. Turn the crown1 to advance the hands until the date changes to the next (i.e. Tue 20 which is the current date and day). The time is now set for the A.M. period. Advance the hands 1 or 2 minutes ahead of the correct time.
  5. Push the crown back in to the normal position in accordance with a time signal.2

Date Adjustment at the End of the Month

It is necessary to adjust the date at the end of February and 30-day months. Adjust the date3 in the A.M. period on the first day of a month following a 30-day month.

  1. The mechanism of mechanical watches is different from that of quartz watches. When setting the time, be sure to turn back the minute hand a little behind the desired time and then advance it to the exact time.↩︎

  2. I set up an alarm on my phone prior to setting up the watch and I set up my watch 1 minute ahead of the alarm. So I pushed the crown back in when the alarm went off.↩︎

  3. Avoid amending the date when the watch is displaying between 9 PM and 4 AM. Doing so may cause damage.↩︎