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Thomas owns a Grand Seiko, Thomas owns a Grand Seiko...

2K views 13 replies 12 participants last post by  Horology 
#1 ·
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Na-naa-na-naa-na! Thomas owns a Grand Seiko! :yahoo:


Wow, pardon my enthusiasm, but I never thought I would EVER own a Grand Seiko. :wacko:


The most expensive watch I ever bought was the 1972 King Seiko 4502-7001 Hi-Beat at US$450.


And the Grand Seikos that were mechanical and in decent condition were always US$2000 and more!


And yet, somehow, this lovely EMS bag arrived Friday from Japan! :happy:



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Inside was very familiar grocery bag...



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Cool! My local Japanese newspaper has been delivered! :eusa_clap:



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And inside that expected plastic-bagged bubble-wrap bundle...



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Inside the bubble-wrap there appears to be a well-protected watch!



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And there it is! Wow, not just any GS, but a 1969 Hi-Beat Grand Seiko 6146-8000, with an automatic, 25 jewel, 36.000 bph movement.


Often just called the "61 GS", it holds a prestigious position in the Seiko line-up history, as it was the first Hi-Beat Grand Seiko produced, and only 36,000 were made.


In his article for the Monochrome web site, Seiko’s Affinity to Hi-Beat Movement, Evan Yeung says:

"To say that the 61GS was not only Seiko’s first, but archetypical automatic 10 beat per seconds model is an understatement; to date, the 61GS remains one of the finest achievements by the brand. It was essentially one of the best, if not the best automatic movement Seiko has ever made."



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Here is a closer look, I like the angled hands and hour markers, with the black stripes.


When the seller went to pack this watch for shipping, he noticed it was not running. So he gave it to his watchmaker for a movement cleaning and lubrication. I shudder to think what was done in the two days it was away, but at least the seller assured me the watchmaker knows vintage Seikos and would not damage the movement.


As a plus, the watchmaker seems to have removed the white spotting that was on the hands, markers and day/date window! I like that! :13:



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The wonderful GS crown-view...



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The non-crown side...


(We need to make a name for this side! Since it is the non-"crown" side, how about the "commoner side"? :-D The "peasant side"? The "subject side"? Come on, help me out here!)



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Since I had to touch that messed-up mesh bracelet to show the case-back anyway, I took that rusty, broken thing off and replaced it with a shiny, black cowrocodile strap I had nearby. ;)



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And here are some movement shots from the seller:














I am so proud and thrilled to have this, such a famous Grand Seiko model, in fine condition, for less than US$600!


The dial has some light staining and a hair-like mark between the 6 and 7 hour markers, but it still seem like an excellent bargain. Someone said I could consider it my "Beater Grand Seiko"! Bwahahaha! :rolleyes:



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What are your thoughts? Did I do okay? :undecided:


Thanks for clicking in!


- Thomas
 
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#9 ·
Congrats Thomas,

your vintage collector is getting nicer every day!
I like that model a lot, in fact I was able to acquire one of these earlier this year, too :)

Enjoy!

Best
Hermann
 
#13 ·
Thank you for the info!




Thank you for the heads up, I am wearing through the holiday as a honeymoon, but I do plan on sending it off at some point soon for s precautionary movement service.


Someone commented on one of the fora that I could send it back to Seiko and they can do a complete refurbishment back to original condition, but I am skeptical about that. I will send an email to check however.


And I have been wearing it now for over four compete days, and when I checked against the atomic clock, it is only four seconds fast!! :D Woohoo! I love watching the second hand too!


- Thomas
 
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