Stop running and let the kittens eat you.

You will be fine.

Introduction

Not the busiest of weeks, but what it lacks in quantity, at least is made up for in quality, and with the bonus of a rather special reference making an appearance over at Loupe This.

Also don’t forget to keep an eye on Christie’s Hong Kong auction on Sunday to see how that platinum cased first Grand Seiko fares.

I’m suffering somewhat from a hangover this morning, hence the slightly late dispatch of the newsletter, and the paucity of the introduction, so without further ado, let the content commence (apologies in advance for any typos!).

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Carol Danvers

Grand Seiko 4420-9000 early dial

Once you look past the obviously incorrect box and certificate, what you’re left with is a rather nice example of the early dial variant 44GS.

The case looks to be very sharp, especially at the lugs, but I’m not entirely convinced you could claim it was unpolished given this image -

Crucially, unlike other examples of this reference that have appeared in recent weeks, the dial looks to be in superb condition, with no visible flaws that I can see (although it must be stressed that these are pretty low resolution images, so there might be small issues that we can’t see).

Whether or not the buckle is original I can’t say, but it’s certainly the correct design. It just looks a little too pristine for my liking, but that’s a relatively minor quibble.

Well worth seriously considering if you have been holding out for one of these.

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Grand Seiko 1964-0010

I’ve said it many times, but even if you don’t have a better half to gift it to and would never consider wearing it yourself, I think any collection of vintage Grand Seiko needs to have one of the ladies 19GS references in it. They are simply exquisite timepieces, and one of these definitely deserves to sit next to your 4520-8000!

This is a super example of the 1964-0010, with a clean dial and a sharp case.

Go on - you know it’s calling out to you, even if it does seem strange to purchase a watch that you’ll almost certainly never wear (even in private in your own home!).

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Case for the first Grand Seiko

Flip it over and…

Form an orderly queue.

The serial number dates it to the last month of production for the first Grand Seiko, August 1963. What the origin of this case is is not clear - usually cases produced as spare parts would include the crown. I have seen cases numbered higher than this on production watches, so it’s certainly not from a run of spares done right at the very end of production.

Coming from that month of course means that it would be correct for either a regular raised logo SD dial, or the AD dial. It will be interesting to see how hard people chase this one!

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Inner and outer boxes for a 56GS

There are actually two listings sat right next to one another for inner and outer boxes for the 56GS this week, both currently with 7 bids.

Here’s the other one.

My recommendation if you’re after boxes for your watches is to always wait until you can pick up both the inner and outer boxes at the same time - it’s almost unheard of for the outer card box to turn up on its own.

Although…

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Outer box for a 57GS

… that’s exactly what we find here, with the outer box for a 57GS. Remember that this box is also correct for the Seiko Liner Chronometer, and the King Seiko 44 Chronometer.

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XQB240 bracelet for the Grand Seiko 5646-7030

Although the watch itself never appeared in catalogues on a bracelet, there is no doubting that this bracelet is specifically designed for the 5646-7030 because of the lug width of 17mm. It’s the only vintage Grand Seiko with 17mm lugs, and the endlinks are a perfect fit -

Note that the sellers states that with the watch fitted, the bracelet will only fit a 16.5cm-17cm wrist. If you are after this bracelet and have bigger wrists, it could be a very long wait indeed before you managed to find some extra links!

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Inner box for a 44GS or 62GS

Unfortunately this one is missing its inner tray, but I’m sure someone will be keen to pick it up regardless. There is another of these available this week (also missing the inner tray), but be warned that the hinge looks to have come away from the box, so perhaps best to ignore.

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Grand Seiko 5645-7005

This one was listed yesterday morning at a BIN price of 387,200 Yen (including sales tax), and I’m quite surprised it’s still available.

It looks to be in superb condition - so many of these that turn up have cases ruined by polishing, but from the photos provided I would be fairly confident in stating that the case retains its original brushed finishing (the fantastic state of the caseback is very encouraging). The dials on these often take on a warm patination over the years, but here it looks much like I would have expected it to have done back in 1971 when it was manufactured.

Importantly, it also has its original 18K buckle, which could set you back in excess of 80,000 Yen on its own were you to need one.

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A Grand Seiko 4580-7000 VFA at Loupe This

Opportunities to pick up a 45GS VFA are few and far between, and it’s very interesting to see one turn up at Loupe This.

Fortunately Loupe This present their watches extremely well, which means you will be able to get a very good understanding regarding the condition of the watch from the provided photos.

Clearly this example has taken a few minor knocks over the years, but it doesn’t to me look as though any attempt has ever been made to refinish it. These cases are absolutely spectacular though when in mint condition, and it is worth noting that Kamil in Poland does a superb job with these should you ever want to bring it back to as-new condition.

It’s definitely a buyer’s market right now, so this might be your one opportunity to pick up this incredible reference for a reasonable price - it will be very interesting to see what it goes for, and who knows when the next one might turn up.

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It’s not a vintage Grand Seiko, but I like it

Citizen Chronomaster Special

Another week, and another feature in this section for a vintage Citizen Chronomaster.

This is listed by the seller who has a penchant for putting together rather dubious sets (and sometimes making wild claims for vintage Grand Seikos with incorrect faceted crystals), but I’ll give him a free pass for this one because it’s an absolute stunner.

Last week someone picked up the base, manual wind, time only reference from this series for a song, and this week we have an automatic day-date “Special” with a somewhat busier dial.

Bidding is already over 100,000 Yen, and I rather suspect there is quite some way to go yet.

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Dar-Benn

The first Grand Seiko with carved logo dial

The poor quality reprinted dial is not the only reason to steer well clear of this one - the caseback medallion is also wrong, being the later version that was only introduced in early 1962, so can never be correct for a carved logo dial.

The seller doesn’t provide a shot of the inside caseback, so it’s unclear here whether the case has been replaced at some point, or whether it’s just an issue with the medallion. Certainly the movement number is in the correct range for a carved logo dial.

But that’s all rather academic - hard pass!

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Grand Seiko 4420-9000 late dial

This week’s sample contribution from our friend is the late dial variant of the 44GS. In this instance, a very very late dial variant.

As usual, my recommendation is to simply avoid anything this guy lists.

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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.

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