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Old 2 June 2023, 09:37 PM   #1
mongrelnomoad
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Show us your vintage Grands and Kings!

King and Grand Seikos from the '60s and 70s are such amazing unsung watches - achingly beautiful, technologically legendary, and still, after so many decades, incredibly accurate. I've been collecting for quite a few years, spending too many days in Tokyo hunting them down.

Current state of the collection -

Left to right:
Top - Grand Seiko First carved SD dial, Grand Seiko 43999 Chronometer SD Dial; GS4420-9000 late Daini dial; GS4520-8000; NOS GS4520-8000; GS6145-8000

Bottom - King Seiko First SD dial, King Seiko 44-2000, King Seiko 4420-9990 Chronometer, KS45-7000, KS4502-8000, KS5246-6010 unibody.

Let's see yours, and share the love!

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Old 2 June 2023, 10:20 PM   #2
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Just... wow!
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Old 2 June 2023, 10:47 PM   #3
mongrelnomoad
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Just... wow!
Thank you!
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Old 3 June 2023, 09:17 PM   #4
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Nice collection.
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Old 3 June 2023, 09:25 PM   #5
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Nice collection.
Thank you.

Still waiting for someone else to post theirs!
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Old 3 June 2023, 09:29 PM   #6
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What an incredible collection OP

For some reason the first one (top left) really catches my eye. It’s beautiful
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Old 3 June 2023, 11:31 PM   #7
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What an incredible collection OP

For some reason the first one (top left) really catches my eye. It’s beautiful
I must admit it's the one that hit me in the feels the most too. I'm not usually one for gold watches... These really aren't very common and it took me a long while to actually find one in the wild in Tokyo, but as soon as I had it on my wrist, I just knew...

There are many amazing watches in Seiko's back catalogue (Goldfeather, Marvel, Crown Special, Cronos Special, Lord Marvel) but the Grand Seiko First was the first Seiko explicitly tasked with not just matching the best from Europe, but exceeding it. It feels astonishingly special in-hand.

It came in 14k gold-cap and platinum (unicorns) and had three dial variations during its three year run. The first was the printed logo (1/2 year), the second the hand-carved dial (1 year) and finally the applied logo (2 years), with the rarest being the printed and the most common (by far) being the applied.

Printed:


Carved:


Applied:

(All above images from The Grand Seiko Guy.)

Mine dates to 1960, the first year of production, and is one of the second-wave hand-carved dial models. The technique was so challenging, with such a high failure rate, that it necessitated a change to the later applied dial.

Forgive the bad photos... I really need to upgrade my camera from the iPhone!









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Old 3 June 2023, 11:36 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by mongrelnomoad View Post
I must admit it's the one that hit me in the feels the most too. I'm not usually one for gold watches... These really aren't very common and it took me a long while to actually find one in the wild in Tokyo, but as soon as I had it on my wrist, I just knew...

There are many amazing watches in Seiko's back catalogue (Goldfeather, Marvel, Crown Special, Cronos Special, Lord Marvel) but the Grand Seiko First was the first Seiko explicitly tasked with not just matching the best from Europe, but exceeding it. It feels astonishingly special in-hand.

It came in 14k gold-cap and platinum (unicorns) and had three dial variations during its three year run. The first was the printed logo (1/2 year), the second the hand-carved dial (1 year) and finally the applied logo (2 years), with the rarest being the printed and the most common (by far) being the applied.

Printed:


Carved:


Applied:

(All above images from The Grand Seiko Guy.)

Mine dates to 1960, the first year of production, and is one of the second-wave hand-carved dial models. The technique was so challenging, with such a high failure rate, that it necessitated a change to the later applied dial.

Forgive the bad photos... I really need to upgrade my camera from the iPhone!









Incredible photos and information here ... thank you very much!

Sent from my SM-G960W using Tapatalk
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Old 4 June 2023, 07:35 PM   #9
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Pleasure. :)
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Old 6 June 2023, 03:52 AM   #10
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In an attempt to lure some other owners from the shadows, I'll keep going.

Today I was wearing one of my two 4520-8000s. This is the last of the fully handmade Grand Seikos, a generation where both factories - the main Suwa factory in Nagano, and the 'second' Daini factory in Tokyo - were producing their own watches based on their own high-beat 36,000 beats per hour movements.

Suwa produced the 61xx series of automatic movements, while Daini (its factory logo is the thunderbolt at 6) produced the 45xx series of manual wind, resulting in thinner more elegant watches. These proved less popular as the world was moving on to self-winding.

The basic design is similar to the famous GS44 that immediately preceded it, just slightly more compact (36mm instead of 38mm) with more refined details such as the black markers and striped hands. Movements manufactured with the best parts (sporting the moniker 4580, and subsequently placed into 18k hand-hammered cases, and steel VFAs) were sent to the Neuchâtel observatory challenge in Switzerland, where they so threatened the Swiss in 1966 that the contest was cancelled. In Geneva in 1968, the 4580 movements beat every single other mechanical watch to take 4-10th places inclusive, only beaten by the Beta 21 Quartz. The Swiss cancelled ALL contests thereafter. I wonder why...

They're much more common that the First above, and certain other references (such as the GS44, GS62), but rarer than the GS61s, and with a little bit of searching and some luck, they can be relatively easily found in decent condition.

I have two - one is NOS, and this is my 'beater', a dateless 4520-8000 from September 1968. It feels thoroughly modern, and the razor-sharp finishes, and polished vs brushed surfaces even on this obviously used example, put almost every modern watch to shame. Serviced a year ago, it's keeping ~2sec/day.

Anyway, hope you enjoy the quick history lesson.







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Old 6 June 2023, 01:34 PM   #11
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Incredible photos and information here ... thank you very much!

Sent from my SM-G960W using Tapatalk
The font on the dial is so classy.
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Old 6 June 2023, 06:55 PM   #12
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Thank you for the info on the GS vintage 4520 -8000 very classy!
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Old 6 June 2023, 07:12 PM   #13
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My 4520-7000
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Old 6 June 2023, 07:56 PM   #14
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Gorgeous! Any closeups of the linen dial and the turtle case? I’ve been looking for a good one for ages… they’re very difficult to find in good condition.
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Old 6 June 2023, 10:15 PM   #15
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Hopefully this will help
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Old 6 June 2023, 10:46 PM   #16
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King Quartz
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Old 6 June 2023, 10:49 PM   #17
mongrelnomoad
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Gorgeous! Live the linen and snowflake dials…

Enjoy them in good health.
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Old 10 July 2023, 01:46 AM   #18
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I’ll bite




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Old 25 July 2023, 06:09 PM   #19
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Picked this up in a job lot auction; it's a little rough around the edges but it runs OK and I rather like it. The case is worn but original and the case back medallion still looks good.

IMG_20220817_214039 (Custom).jpg
IMG_20220817_214117 (Custom).jpg
The one gotcha is the crown is a replacement.
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Old 25 July 2023, 06:33 PM   #20
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Great watch. Made in 1971 at the Daini factory. The 45 movement inside was one of the finest of its day, Swiss or Japanese.
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Old 25 July 2023, 06:48 PM   #21
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I'd advise you to invest in a clear caseback.
Not only do you get to enjoy the GORGEOUS movement but also preserve the good medallion that gets worn from wear.

The watch collective Co on Instagram makes one in Steel with sapphire, I just had a giveaway on my channel and gave one to a lucky winner.

Since I got my KS45 YEARS ago, the only available option was a hand made from Japan, made in brass and with a mineral crystal that I payed $150 for .

Now I switched to this one.

To me still the best looking Grammar of Design Seiko ever made!!



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Old 25 July 2023, 06:56 PM   #22
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Here's a couple of "fancy" photos of mine.
Check out the complexity of the case lines and mix of straight and curved lines
Still takes my breath away!
And under 10mm thick!

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Old 25 July 2023, 07:42 PM   #23
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Duplicate post - now removed
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Old 26 July 2023, 01:20 AM   #24
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I recognise that photo from Substack ;)

What an amazing collection. If you had to keep one, which would it be?
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Old 26 July 2023, 01:22 AM   #25
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Here's a couple of "fancy" photos of mine.
Check out the complexity of the case lines and mix of straight and curved lines
Still takes my breath away!
And under 10mm thick!
Love the KS45. Strange how two so similar watchers (KS45s and GS45s) can feel so different in the hand and wear so different on the wrist.
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Old 26 July 2023, 01:22 AM   #26
mongrelnomoad
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I'd advise you to invest in a clear caseback.
Not only do you get to enjoy the GORGEOUS movement but also preserve the good medallion that gets worn from wear.

The watch collective Co on Instagram makes one in Steel with sapphire, I just had a giveaway on my channel and gave one to a lucky winner.

Since I got my KS45 YEARS ago, the only available option was a hand made from Japan, made in brass and with a mineral crystal that I payed $150 for .

Now I switched to this one.

To me still the best looking Grammar of Design Seiko ever made!!



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They’re great! I’ve got a few floating around but never get around to fitting them. I’m a big fan of the little plastic sticker method of preservation.
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Old 26 July 2023, 01:27 AM   #27
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I recognise that photo from Substack ;)

What an amazing collection. If you had to keep one, which would it be?

:)

It would be between the Arabesque or the 43999 SD, simply because I doubt I’d find a better example if I sold them and later looked to reacquire them.

But in terms of one to keep and wear, my first vintage GS… the 45GS no date on the orange strap… sentimental fav.

Which for you?


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Old 27 July 2023, 04:13 PM   #28
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Originally Posted by Watch-Geek View Post
I'd advise you to invest in a clear caseback.
Not only do you get to enjoy the GORGEOUS movement but also preserve the good medallion that gets worn from wear.

The watch collective Co on Instagram makes one in Steel with sapphire, I just had a giveaway on my channel and gave one to a lucky winner.

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Thanks for the tip - I can't find the IG seller, but the thetimecollective website shows KS45 display casebacks - is that the same people?

Thanks, Ewan
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Old 27 July 2023, 04:33 PM   #29
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Thanks for the tip - I can't find the IG seller, but the thetimecollective website shows KS45 display casebacks - is that the same people?
Ah, answered my own question - they're on IG as thetimecollectiveco

:)
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Old 27 July 2023, 04:35 PM   #30
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Ah, answered my own question - they're on IG as thetimecollectiveco



:)
Yup

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