I am not positive but I think you're reading the quick start wrong. A fully charged capacitor will still have a 6 month reserve, give or take, at which point it will not run but, if you pick it up and juggle it a bit after 3 years, it will immediately start running much like a regular auto will when it gets any tension on the mainspring. It will still have to be worn an appropriate amount of time to get it up to any meaningful reserve but it will start running immediately within that 3-year period.

What happens after the 3 years I'm not sure. Maybe it will need to be worn much longer to get it to power up and run.

That's the way I've always interpreted the quick start function.

 

I kept this 5M45 kinetic Age of Discovery GMT lumed dial model for many years. Didn't want to get rid of it but did not have a way to charge it. All the Seiko chargers were long gone. I read all the posts on how to charge the kinetics and opted to find and ship a used Phillips candle holder found online in the UK. Had to get an adapter for the Japanese plug system but that was easy.
This proved to work great! Not sure about the newer mvts you quoted above, but if all else fails, find the used Phillips like this...
Charging up time depends how long you want to wear the watch. 5 hours would be good for me since I wear it only for a few hours at a time, switching over to other watches in the rotation.
Philips candle charger by toypoodleKimi, on Flickr
lumed dial by toypoodleKimi, on Flickr

 

I usually wear my Kinetic twice a week and it's been running since I bought it. Recently I had a few watches serviced and added them to the rotation and the Kinetic is definitely running down and recently showed to be at the 10 second mark of reserve so I wore it every day for a week (5 days at work) and it was back up to the 30 second mark. Not a big deal to wear it one week now and then in my opinion.

 

@ kevinkar:
yes, perhaps wishful thinking on my part in regard to the 3-year period. But it does give me confidence when the manufacturer indirectly says that it is okay to let the watch sit that long without any motion, or external charge by a device. Not that I am going to try that out. Anyhow, I think we all agree to not let it come to that. Kinetics want to be worn, and that is what I am going to do.

@ wongthian2:
I thank you for the idea about repurposing a Philips candle holder to charge Kinetics. Somehow, I cannot bring myself to get and use one of those. But not a problem really – as I very much like to wear my only Kinetic.
And thanks for the photographs – that is a interesting and lovely Kinetic you have. Love it.

 

Took my SUN025 to watchmaker recently to see if he could fix the non-functioning power reserve indicator button (I think I broke it by pressing it incessantly, haha). He said he's never seen a broken power reserve indicator button like that before, his first time seeing that. It would cost at least $100 to fix if watch is sent back for repair, and he recommended that I just wear it as-is.

I talked about kinetic a bit with him, and he said some people still look and ask for it. Alas, they are all but discontinued at this point, maybe because Seiko now favours Spring Drive when it comes to mechanical-quartz hybrid (which I think makes sense to Seiko business-wise, as it is the more upmarket option).

I wear two kinetics a day everyday on average (one for work, one for home). I keep SRH015 as minimally scratched as possible, and wear it at home. Overall, I like my kinetic watches the most. They feel like the best of both worlds - rotor charging fun of mechanical, without mechanical's need for periodic servicing, and all the benefits of quartz. I love being active while wearing them, and seeing them charge up.

 

Thank you so much for sharing some of your Kinetic experiences and wearing habits.
Yes, it is tempting to push that power reserve indicator button more often than needed I kind of disciplined myself to use that function only once a month or so.

Yes, it seems that Seiko is focusing much more on Spring Drive, a fascinating technology I have to admit. Although very unlikely, it may trickle down to more affordable models but I don’t count on it. I enjoy my Kinetic – as well as my regular quartz watches and one eco-drive watch, plus 2 automatics). Sometimes I try to put myself into the mood that I had before I visited this forum and others – everything was magic, independent of the particular technology employed.

 

I own a seiko sun023. While I love this watch, it's definitely the last kinetic I bought. This technology is for 1-2 watch collections. If you don't wear it multiple times weekly issues start to come to surface, capacitors go bad etc... I'm actually thinking of servicing it & selling, because I feel bad for ruining it by letting it sit in the case. It's fixable yes, but not the watch for me. Just warning you

 

Thank you for the well-meant warning. I have 8 watches, not counting 2-3 fun pieces. Fortunately for me, the Kinetic is a favourite – so it will be worn regularly.
I looked up the model you have – wow! That is quite an impressive watch and classified as Prospex. I hope you will figure it out for you, I mean the price for servicing and still getting a sales price that will make it all worthwhile. Good luck with that.

 

One of my many watches, never given me any problems, looks good, V. accurate, bombproof, I luvvit, no problem keeping it charged, my only GMT 👍🏻

 

It's amazing how our tastes change over time. Five years ago, when I started down this rabbit hole, I would have dismissed this watch out of hand.

It's big.
It's busy.
It's just plain ugly, no way would I ever buy something like that.

Yet now, even though all those descriptors still apply, I think it looks badass, and I'm tempted to get one! Definitely not my usual style, but something I can now appreciate and enjoy, that would definitely stand out in my collection. Wear it in good health Snaggletooth!

 

Yeah, it's one my favourite pieces, but still doesn't see a lot of wrist times

 

I had the official Seiko kinetic energy supplier and you can only set it for either a 30 mins or 3 hours charge. It also made a very high pinch whine when charging. So if you can't find one anymore you're not really missing out.

 

Of course, I am not telling Kinetic owners anything new, so please take i just as a friendly reminder :

From the user manual (5M82/5M83/5M84 Calibres):
“Wearing the watch continuously for 12 hours will accumulate approximately one additional day of power reserve. If you wear the watch every day for 12 hours a day over a month, for example, approximately one month of power reserve will be secured in the KINETIC E.S.U.”

I always come to the same conclusion: Just wear your Kinetic(s) as much as possible, or do the recommended swinging by hand, when wearing on the wrist is not possible on some days. Not a big deal for me. And do not expect to bring your watch to full charge rapidly. I guess this is easy to say for me as I have only very few watches. If it feels like a burden, I think it is better to sell it or give it away to a one-watch friend or relative who will wear it regularly.

 

The current manual says "Wear the watch daily for at least 10 hours", and walking approximately 720m / 500 swings adds 2 days to the power reserve.
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It’s good job that Kinetics tend to be good looking because when the are part of a collection they tend to demand more care than other watches.

 

I wear my SKA 347 Kinetic at least twice a week. I have never waited to let it stop, but am getting at least 110 hrs of power from one day of wear. This might also include a buildup from some weeks with more wear. Accuracy is really good as expected I do not use instant start, and never need to set it.

 

A friend gave me an old Kinetic that hadn't run for a few years to see if I could revive it. It is a 2007. Changing the battery/capacitor seemed fairly straightforward (~$20 part) and I managed to do that (losing one of the little bracket screws in the process, but the one remaining seems to be holding the battery in place). Now running fine. I shook it while watching TV for about 15 minutes which took the charge to 6 months.

Of course now I want one! Browsing the sellers forum to see if one will come up. The bracelet style on this one seems a little funky. The current one is too small for me to wear in case my friend offers it to me to keep. Are their any aftermarket options for this style?

 

A friend gave me an old Kinetic that hadn't run for a few years to see if I could revive it. It is a 2007. Changing the battery/capacitor seemed fairly straightforward (~$20 part) and I managed to do that (losing one of the little bracket screws in the process, but the one remaining seems to be holding the battery in place). Now running fine. I shook it while watching TV for about 15 minutes which took the charge to 6 months.

Of course now I want one! Browsing the sellers forum to see if one will come up. The bracelet style on this one seems a little funky. The current one is too small for me to wear in case my friend offers it to me to keep. Are their any aftermarket options for this style?

View attachment 17303520

If he offers it to you, contact Seiko re additional links. They can often be reasonable.
I assume the model number is the same as mine. SKA347

 

The Kinetic on the left was my daily watch from 1999 to 2008, when it finally needed a capacitor replacement. After some years in a drawer, I finally sent it off to Seiko Service to have it done. It has resumed its trouble free performance. Esthetically, this watch is no longer my style, but it's titanium and light as a feather, accurate, and reliable. That's hard to beat. (BTW, the watch was beginning its calendar change cycle when I took the picture, which is why the date is out of alignment.)

The much bigger SKA371 has a sapphire crystal upgrade and is 11 years old this month according to the serial number. So far, although it's on the original capacitor, it shows no sign of needing service.

Lately, these two are worn maybe for a week or so every six months. Whatever the risks, they're acceptable to me based on actual performance.