Fancy an old Seiko: where to start
Discussion
I fancy getting hold of an old Seiko this year, but where to start? Not bought an old watch before. Budget up to £500. Open-minded about style, although I do like the Pogue. Also open-minded about age, although my taste in watches seems to be 60s/70s. One problem is knowing where to look. I'm not anywhere near clued up enough to take a punt on eBay. Anyone recommend anywhere online to browse, or would I be better off in jeweller/antique shops? What are the arguments regarding restored v unrestored? And are there any other brands I might consider?
Thanks all.
Thanks all.
Have a read of this:
http://forums.watchuseek.com/f281/how-buy-seiko-61...
I would be very wary of buying through eBay, and wouldn't touch anything from the Philippines, as it's more than likely been cobbled together from random spare parts in a back-street sweatshop.
http://forums.watchuseek.com/f281/how-buy-seiko-61...
I would be very wary of buying through eBay, and wouldn't touch anything from the Philippines, as it's more than likely been cobbled together from random spare parts in a back-street sweatshop.
Not really a buyers guide but lots of interesting reading and nice pics here for those who like their Seikos.
https://adventuresinamateurwatchfettling.wordpress...
https://adventuresinamateurwatchfettling.wordpress...
£500 will get a very nice Seiko.
If you're starting out buying vintage, I'd advise that you start low, somewhere in the £100 to £200 range.
You should be able to get something decent for that kind of money, but when (not if) you make a mistake, you've not lost your shirt.
There are an awful lot of New Old Stock watches out there that are junk. In the last two years there has been an explosion of rubbish being pedalled on ebay and etsy. Two years ago, a refurbished watch was an oddity, now an unmolested piece is a rarity. The problem is that most of these are a complete waste of cash. The seller takes any old turd of a watch, has the dial repainted by a retarded baboon wielding a paint roller, cobbles together a barely functioning movement out of broken pieces and slaps the whole kit and caboodle in a case he found down the back of the sofa. All that's left to do is draw an Omega logo on in crayon, slap an extortionate price tag on an label the item as "rare".
Joking aside, whilst the Mumbai specials are easy to spot, and the Ukranian's generally admit to their skulduggery (if you read carefully enough) some of the sellers are churning out large numbers of fake NOS vintage that are harder to spot.
By all means use ebay, a lot of Seikos don't make it out of Japan, so if you want something interesting, it's pretty much your only choice. I can recommend the Japanese seller "Saitama" (or something similar), I had a Goldfeather from him a few years ago and it's good. I've not seen any ads from that seller for a while, they are recognisable as they always post a catalogue picture of the movement and watch to show the model is correct.
Long story short, whatever you buy, get advice. I'm willing to help, but you must understand that I still make mistakes too.
If you're starting out buying vintage, I'd advise that you start low, somewhere in the £100 to £200 range.
You should be able to get something decent for that kind of money, but when (not if) you make a mistake, you've not lost your shirt.
There are an awful lot of New Old Stock watches out there that are junk. In the last two years there has been an explosion of rubbish being pedalled on ebay and etsy. Two years ago, a refurbished watch was an oddity, now an unmolested piece is a rarity. The problem is that most of these are a complete waste of cash. The seller takes any old turd of a watch, has the dial repainted by a retarded baboon wielding a paint roller, cobbles together a barely functioning movement out of broken pieces and slaps the whole kit and caboodle in a case he found down the back of the sofa. All that's left to do is draw an Omega logo on in crayon, slap an extortionate price tag on an label the item as "rare".
Joking aside, whilst the Mumbai specials are easy to spot, and the Ukranian's generally admit to their skulduggery (if you read carefully enough) some of the sellers are churning out large numbers of fake NOS vintage that are harder to spot.
By all means use ebay, a lot of Seikos don't make it out of Japan, so if you want something interesting, it's pretty much your only choice. I can recommend the Japanese seller "Saitama" (or something similar), I had a Goldfeather from him a few years ago and it's good. I've not seen any ads from that seller for a while, they are recognisable as they always post a catalogue picture of the movement and watch to show the model is correct.
Long story short, whatever you buy, get advice. I'm willing to help, but you must understand that I still make mistakes too.
A nice, unmolested 6309-7040 would be my (admittedly biased) recommendation.
As for where to purchase, you're best off on the established watch fora really but this isn't the worst place to look
http://chronocentric.com/forums/chronotrader/
As for where to purchase, you're best off on the established watch fora really but this isn't the worst place to look
http://chronocentric.com/forums/chronotrader/
andy tims said:
A nice, unmolested 6309-7040 would be my (admittedly biased) recommendation.
As for where to purchase, you're best off on the established watch fora really but this isn't the worst place to look
http://chronocentric.com/forums/chronotrader/
How many watches do you have Andy? It seems a never ending supply! As for where to purchase, you're best off on the established watch fora really but this isn't the worst place to look
http://chronocentric.com/forums/chronotrader/
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