Introduction
For those who might have missed it, a couple of days ago I sent out my monthly update newsletter for November, explaining some changes that will be in effect going forward.
I would recommend that anyone who hasn’t get around to reading it yet take a look, because there are some quite important changes that are going to be implemented on this “Stack” going forward.
The first of those kicks off today, in that in future the weekly Friday newsletters will not be forwarded onto free subscribers after a week’s delay. Instead, just the first newsletter of each month (of which this is one!) will be sent to all, but with a paywall after the first recommended listing.
For more details on the changes, you can click through to that monthly summary here -
Until December 1st, I am running a 20% off promotion for those currently on free subscriptions who would like to move to a paid subscription in order to continue to receive all the content that I publish. 1 Here is a link to that promotion -
Typically the run up to Christmas can be a very interesting one with regards the listings that appear on Yahoo Japan Auctions. Whilst there are no real standouts this week, there are nevertheless plenty of watches featured below - as usual falling into the categories of the “good guys” (that you may well want to consider adding to your collection), and the “bad guys” (that you most certainly want to avoid, although having said that, there is one watch in the bad guys section this week that is extremely intriguing…). I also feature an absolute cracker of a “It’s not a vintage Grand Seiko, but I like it”, and a very rare carved logo dialed transitional first Grand Seiko that is appearing in Sotheby’s auction in Geneva on Sunday 5th November.
Right, with that introduction out of the way, let’s get right into it!
Deckard Shaw
Grand Seiko 6146-8050 white dial
Although not the most coveted example of this reference that you could hope to come across (most are after one of the coloured dial variants), this one makes the cut this week because at least it comes with a fairly substantial (the seller lists it as being suitable for 18-19cm wrists) bracelet, and - with a caveat on full judgement due the low resolution photos - appears to be in overall good condition.
The inclusion of the Hi-Beat 36000 box is interesting, because there is one school of thought that feels by the time this reference would have come to market (it was first launched in the December 1972 issue of Seiko sales), all regular Grand Seiko references would have been supplied in the same, non-36000 branded, box. Naturally there is no way to ascertain whether this is actually the box that the watch was originally sold with, but it’s a nice bonus.
It’s very possible that the photos provided aren’t doing this one justice - certainly the case looks very sharp, the dial clean, and the crystal unblemished - but there is always a risk when relying on low resolution images like the ones provided.
The seller states that the watch is in good running order, having been overhauled in August 2023.