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29 August 2020, 04:52 AM | #1 |
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Seiko / Grand Seiko servicing
I'm curious about service as pertains to some of the increasingly more expensive Seikos that have been released of late.
I'm a huge Seiko/Grand Seiko fan. I have an SLA017 and I love some of the other SLA models released recently. The SLA037 is gorgeous (I've considered flipping my 017 for one), and the Presage enamel dial spring drive watches that came out last year look awesome IMO. All that being said, these watches are all firmly in Grand Seiko territory pricepoint wise, and I'm not sure how I should feel hypothetically having a e.g. $6,300 watch serviced next to a $200 watch (as great as some of those $200 watches are!) does anyone have any thoughts on this or info on how seiko actually handles this? do some of these SLA watches with effectively GS movements actually get serviced by GS? and sorry if there's already been a thread on this! |
29 August 2020, 08:24 AM | #2 |
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I believe knowledgeable owners ship them to the factory service center in Japan. My sense is we should avoid the service center in the USA.
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29 August 2020, 10:27 AM | #3 | |
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$5-6k across the globe is pretty expensive; particularly if it's not a huge issue with the watch... |
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29 August 2020, 12:04 PM | #4 |
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29 August 2020, 12:10 PM | #5 | |
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I don't understand how a $200 watch sitting next to a $6300 even matters. Indy's work on watches in the whole price spectrum, why can't Seiko? |
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29 August 2020, 08:28 PM | #6 |
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Just sharing the impression I get from reading posts on this topic in other watch fora. From the reading I did, it sounded like Seiko owners were in agreement on this. I don't have direct experience using Seiko USA's service center.
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29 August 2020, 08:30 PM | #7 |
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29 August 2020, 08:38 PM | #8 | |
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For Seiko watches, I haven't discovered who the candidates are in the US, but I'm pondering the question you asked in your original post, and thus the reading I've been doing just in the past few days. |
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30 August 2020, 01:05 AM | #9 | |
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well my points wasn’t literally that they’re sitting near eachother; my concern is more about whether the people servicing the watch are used to servicing the $200 watches. and as to indies, I normally wouldn’t take a $6,300 watch to an indy that predominantly works on $200 watches. if I’m getting a rolex serviced at an indy I take it to an indy who has a track record of working on rolexes. if honda suddenly started making honda branded cars at ferrari prices with ferrari-like parts I don’t think it would be that weird to have questions about whether you’ll be taking it to a regular old Honda service center, would it? |
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30 August 2020, 01:06 AM | #10 | |
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let me know what you come up with! |
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31 August 2020, 02:52 PM | #11 |
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The forums tend to regurgitate things without have real life experiences. Don't believe everything you read.
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31 August 2020, 02:55 PM | #12 |
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There are a lot of indy's (including the teo I employee) that work on all brands in all price ranges. Both of my indy's are Rolex/Omega certified. Heck some of the top Rolex indy's also work on lower tier brands. It doesn't equate to inferior service.
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1 September 2020, 01:26 AM | #13 |
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any recommendations in NYC? :)
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1 September 2020, 01:39 AM | #14 |
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And Chevy dealers work on Aveos and Corvettes. I agree - why would it matter? I'm sure Seiko has that sorted.
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1 September 2020, 02:40 AM | #15 | |
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Absolutely. I work for a well known Japanese company. The Japanese culture for quality is such that if they give an AD the certified Grand Seiko service agreement, wether or not your watch is sitting next to a 200$ is not relevant. And service is as important if not more than sales in their eyes. If you gain customers through design and technology, it’s through service that you keep them.
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16710 GMT Master II "M" , SD4000, GS Snowflake, Stowa Marine Original. |
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1 September 2020, 04:01 AM | #16 |
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Email the US Service Center in NJ. They are pretty responsive and they just started the operation again after the COVID-19 shutdown.
I have asked about GS side they firmly said all GS pieces are worked on by GS trained master watchmakers, and my experience (2 watches so far) has been great. They did the job right, and honored my requests such as not polishing and returning replaced parts. I think it's worth asking what their protocol is for high-end Seiko pieces (and where that line is). |
18 September 2020, 11:54 PM | #17 | |
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20 November 2020, 01:20 AM | #18 |
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Not wishing to start a new thread-
I have a $200 Seiko, and it needs service. It is a 20 years old Big 12 Championship Game watch, with the 8F32 Perpetual Calendar (Quartz) movement. From my own tries to reset the calendar, the movement seems “bad” (to use a technical term). I don’t know a local Seiko shop (Dallas-Fort Worth), and fixing this is beyond any local jeweler’s capability. I see that Seiko Service USA says they service this movement for $116 (I would be happy with a total bill under $200). From your experiences, what can I expect? Do they do good work on cheaper watches? Do they pile on extra repairs? Any cautions or encouragements? Thanks, and I’ll hang up and listen. |
20 November 2020, 07:13 AM | #19 | |
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18 December 2020, 06:11 AM | #20 |
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Thanks! I mailed it (1999 Big 12 Championship Game Seiko Perpetual Calendar quartz) December 3, USPS Priority. Late December 6, I received an email that it had been received. The movement service and cyclops crystal replacement was quoted at $177, which I happily paid (another independent repair shop quoted me $490; I assume they didn’t know what they were doing and prices accordingly to give them time to learn, or maybe they just didn’t want the business). December 9, I received an email saying it was in work and it was mailed back December 13. I received it in the mail today and it looks and runs great! Very happy and thinking about sending more watches there.
I’ll make a new post with pics of my Seiko B12 CG watches. |
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