>>61407038
probably because 4R is what Seiko foisted on its customers when they worked out that the 6R was too nice for affordable watches
most people look at seiko's under-$1k lineup and go "hmm I could have a beater SKX or I could spend the same amount for a 4R that I'd spend on a watch with sapphire and a 6R except not a dive watch". at that point they go "do I really want a diver with shit internals when I can get a pretty good non-diver for the same price?
if you want 6R in a diver you've got the sumo which is fugly and only has hardlex, or you're spending over $1k and it's still fugly. if you want a good looking Seiko diver with a good movement and sapphire and good design, you're looking at a SBGA029
Seiko is good at doing the Apple thing where they reserve the combination you really want for the super high end, and jack up the price like mad, for no real reason
I mean there should be really no reason they can't put out a great looking 200M diver with sapphire, a 6R15C, and a good looking case in the 44mm range, and a solid link bracelet, for say $750-800, and it would sell like hotcakes, except they're assholes
so anything between SKX and a spring drive is a tough sell, because they want you to constantly rationalize your way up the product lines until they're milking you for everything they can