Dom will never see it coming.
It's neon orange. The International Space Station will see it coming.
Introduction
Unfortunately it’s a bit of a slow week this week, but given how good the last couple of weeks have been, perhaps a bit of breather was inevitable.
Unquestionably the most exciting listing of the week doesn’t even come from the Grand Seiko category, but I kinda telegraphed it in the chat already, so it won’t be a surprise to everyone. Having said that, I hope you still enjoy the commentary on the listing - which actually got updated during the course of writing this newsletter!
If you don’t check out the chat regularly by the way, you really should, as there is quite the community of like-minded collectors building over there. We’ve recently been discussing some pretty major upcoming changes to the Substack that will be fully revealed in the next monthly summary newsletter that is due to be sent out early next week!
Dominic Toretto
Grand Seiko 5646-7040
First up this week is a perennial favourite around these parts - the final reference to be released in the 56GS series, and the only vintage Grand Seiko with Arabic numerals on the dial, the 5646-7040.
It would be nice if the photos were of decent resolution and maybe even in focus in order to get a better idea as to the quality of the piece (and it certainly doesn’t help that they seem to have been taken on a carpet, whose reflected texture could be hiding all manner of issues with the case), but from what is provided, I can’t see anything majorly concerning.
The seller states that the watch has been overhauled and is “a working item”, although he doesn’t specifically state that the quickset day/date mechanism is functional.
So, a bit of a risk with this one perhaps, but it’s such a fascinating reference, and frankly one of these belongs in every collection of vintage Grand Seiko because it’s such an outlier!
Grand Seiko 5645-8000
This is one of those interesting Grand Seiko’s from the early 1970’s whose dials started out blue, but over the years have completely desaturated to a dark grey colour.
Although originally this would have come on a bracelet, I thought it was worthwhile including this one because it appears to be in such good condition. However, that does come with a caveat because the seller is very open about the fact that the case has been repolished. Whoever did it though, would appear to have done a very good job indeed.
So - if you’re not a stickler for original condition, and just want to pick up a damn fine looking watch, you could do a lot worse than this one!
The same seller also has a cap gold 5645-7010 that has undergone the same refurbishment. Again - a really attractive watch.
The early box for the first Grand Seiko
Ok let’s get it out of the way and list what is missing here.
The second “key” swing tag that identifies the movement serial number, the plastic wallet for the certificate, the metal price ticket, and the cleaning cloth.
Oh. And the watch of course. Which is quite the disappointment!
There has only ever been a single example of a full set selling on Yahoo with this early box, but the box alone is so rare, and collectors so desperate to acquire an example, that I have no doubt there will be an almighty fight for this one.
I suspect it very unlikely that someone out there has the correct watch for this (what a coup that would be!), but it is possible that there are a couple of people with watches and certificates in the correct date range, in which case this set is extremely valuable.
Or, someone might just chase it in the hope of one day finding a watch and certificate to go with it.
One thing that is very intriguing about this listing is that clearly it also includes the original retailer warranty booklet.
The document on the right of this image is, I would imagine, the original retailer warranty. I’m assuming we are seeing the reverse side of it here, because it doesn’t actually state the retailer’s name, just provides their address (in Nagoya) and phone number, along with the information that they deal in watches, precious metals, and glasses.
On the left is something I have not seen before, and I think it’s a warranty card to be filled in and returned to Seiko - the address is for Grand Seiko staff at the Hattori watch store in Ginza.
It’s a real shame we don’t have more photos of these two documents, but I suspect they have not been provided because they contain personal information. A friend in Japan is reaching out to the seller to find out if at least we can have the date the watch was sold, because this would be extremely interesting to know.
Items like this can be really important in establishing the timeline of what existed, and when. My own full set’s certificate is dated February 23rd 1961, with the watch having a movement number of 605950, the case serial number dating the watch to December 1960, and the certificate number 802890.
Here, although we don’t have the watch itself, we at least have the movement number - 605581, certificate number - 803999, and the certificate date - May 10th 1961.
It’s all rather confusing isn’t it?! The movement number on this one is a few hundred earlier than mine, but the certificate number is roughly a thousand higher, and the certificate date two and a half months later.
What it does tell us of course is that the early box can be found with watches that left the factory possibly as late as May 1961. Which begs the question, where have they all disappeared to?!
Or, as someone wisely suggested to me in a conversation - perhaps the papers shown were not actually originally with the box, and someone has put accessories originally from two different watches together?
Regardless, there are more than enough distinguishing marks on the box to spot if it ever does resurface paired with a watch!
/addendum
Before finishing writing the newsletter, the seller responded to the question asked by my friend in Japan, and has now posted an additional image, and holy moly would you take a look at this -
The left hand document is indeed - as anticipated - the dealer warranty, and the inside of the warranty reveals the date of sale. December 18th, Showa 36 (1961). So this watch was sold exactly one year after the original launch of the first Grand Seiko, which - as I’m sure everyone knows by now - was on December 18th 1960. It also reveals the retailers name - the Hasegawa Clock House.
Also as anticipated, the second document does turn out to be the original warranty card that should have been filled out and returned to Seiko.
I have never seen one of these before! Crazy exciting stuff for a vintage Grand Seiko nerd like me.
It’s not a vintage Grand Seiko, but I like it
Seiko Sales number 139 - January 1970
Something different this week, with two issues of the monthly magazine that Seiko sent out to their dealers from the late 1950’s through to the mid 1970’s.
Originally titled “Seiko News”, the publication was renamed “Seiko Sales” in 1965, and for the last seven years or so I have been slowly putting together what I hope will eventually be a complete collection of every issue from number 1 (dating from January 1957) through to number 198 (December 1974).
209 down (there are many additional supplementary magazines focusing on specific campaigns or sub-brands), 8 to go.
The January 1970 Seiko Sales is certainly one of the standout issues of the entire run, and there is a big overlap between its contents, and the 1969 Seiko Special Luxury Catalogue.
Seiko Sales number 151 - January 1971
The January 1971 issue of Seiko Sales is also one of the most collectible of all the issues, largely because of the watch featured on its cover, and detailed on the inside pages. The issue also includes some Grand Seiko models, so for anyone who takes on the lesser challenge of ‘just’ picking up the issues of Seiko Sales/News that feature Grand Seiko content, this is also one to chase down.
The watch shown on the cover is the mythical 36SQC 011 - the second generation of Seiko Quartz after the original Astron, but a watch that, despite its prominence here, and detailed in the article as being priced at 215,000 Yen, seemingly never actually made it to market.
Just be warned - if you start collecting these now, it will in all likelihood be well over a decade before you manage to complete the set!
Cipher
Grand Seiko 5646-7010
I’m including this one with the bad guys for the simple reason that it is not what it is claimed to be - a dead stock Wako limited edition.
I rather suspect that this might be the exact same watch that was featured in the newsletter from April 8th 2022, not least because the first two digits of the serial number match (OK, so that doesn’t narrow it down particularly well), but because when it was first sold - by the guy who puts these sets together - the price on the price ticket was obviously deliberately hidden in the photos. Here, we see the price ticket in full, showing a price of 51,000 Yen, which is not correct for this reference.
For what it’s worth, this watch was priced at 46,000 Yen. 51,000 Yen was the price of the 5645-7010 in cap gold.
Grand Seiko 43999 SD dial
Once again, it’s the 43999 SD redial that pops up as the first listing from our regular contributor, and it comes with the usual warning to steer clear of anything he lists.
Redone coloured dial summary
I close with the usual reminder to steer clear of any vintage Grand Seikos with coloured dials similar to the above. This is not a comprehensive photo - there are many references that get this “treatment”, so be careful out there.
Very tempted to put in a bid on the boxes because I have a printed dial first (and I realize, likely the “wrong” 2nd gen box with the yellow inner lining). But I feel that this set belongs to a true collector who’s been waiting for this for years, who I hope won’t separate the certificate and guarantee from the rest because movement numbers don’t match!
7040s coming thick and fast! Mine just arrived yest from last weeks auction