I acquired two discontinued Orient Star models from the mid 2000s recently. The first one which I’m going to feature in this post is the classic looking WZ0081FD. This piece was discovered unexpectedly at Big Time’s showroom right in the display shelf where they display the current Orient Star models.

Big Time used to have the WZ0011EJ (picture below) which I didn’t find particularly attractive due to the pusher at the 2 o’clock position. Then one fine day, while looking at the new Orient Star models, I saw the WZ0081FD model sitting there instead of the WZ0011EJ. I checked with the boss and was told they brought in a batch of them a few months ago.

What I like about the WZ0081FD is that it does not have a pusher at the 2 o’clock position and it has a nice cream coloured and un-textured dial. Most importantly, it has the “Orient Star” wordings in Gothic font. This font is found on older Orient Star models and I wish Orient could reuse it once in a while on the new classic style Orient Star models.

I believe this model was released in 2005. Compared to the EJ model, the FD model does not come with hack and handwind feature but the date can be set by having the crown at first click position. The EJ model uses the pusher at 2 o’clock for setting the date.

I feel that this watch has the right elements that contribute to its classic look. These include a timeless case design, cream coloured dial, sword hands and a curved crystal. The Gothic font plays a part as well. I have replaced the metal bracelet with a dark brown strap to enhance the look.

Here’s a picture of the full package. I actually like the hour markers on the dial as well.

The side of the case appears to be pretty slim although the overall thickness is around 12.5mm. Watch comes with signed crown as shown below.

Another shot showing the side profile and curved crystal.

The watch has a diameter of 37mm excluding crown. The lug width is 20mm.

Last but not least, the display back showing the movement (46N41).

So there you have it,  another classic style Orient Star added to my collection.

https://yeomanseiko.com/2012/12/30/my-collection-of-classic-style-watches-from-seiko-and-orient/