There are many reports online of Seiko chapter ring misalignments, which does not mean that every new Seiko watch has this problem — but it does underscore that there’s a known problem.

Watchmaker Jordan Ficklin previously discussed the Seiko 5 Sports Ref. SRPD77 on camera for Professional Watches, which unfortunately for Seiko, highlights how real the issue is — considering the one they sent us for review arrived with a misaligned chapter ring.

It’s surprising that a company of Seiko’s size lets watches out of the factory, regardless if the factory is located in Japan or China, with such poor quality control tolerances — and yet it continues to happen.

Thankfully there’s a workaround, although it requires a watchmaker to open the case and make the adjustments. And if your watch is within the warranty period, Seiko should be able to make the repair for no charge.