Seiko 7A38 - by the numbers

Compared to some of the speculatively over-priced 7A38-7010's listed on eBay recently (read spectacularly in the case of Ninjawatch) documented on the previous page, this tidy all-original example offered for sale earlier this week, on Spanish forum Relojesparatodos for 120 Euros, represented something of a bargain: http://www.relojesparatodos.com/vb/threads/531195-Seiko-7A38-7010-excelente.

Hola compañeros,

vendo esta maravilla de crono de cuarzo, concretamente la primera máquina crono cuarzo analógica del mercado, datando de Noviembre de 1983; Seiko 7A38-7010. 

Esta máquina monta 15 rubís y no tiene ninguna parte móvil de plástico, constando de función de contaje de décimas de segundo y fechador completo. 

El reloj se encuentra en muy buen estado y es todo original; 

- Caja con acabado arenado original de fábrica, con muy pocas marcas de uso para un reloj con 30 años de antiguedad. 

- Brazalete Seiko Quartz original. A mí, con 18 cms de muñeca, me sobran 3 agujeros del microajuste. 

- Cristal original con algún pelillo mínimo que en la muñeca apenas se aprecia. 

- Reseteo perfecto.

Una maravilla en concepto de fiabilidad y resistencia para uso diario. 

Su precio es de 120 euros, y no puedo aceptar cambios ya que el dinero tiene destino. 

Un saludo a todos y gracias por leer.

Thanks to forum member Julio for giving us a heads up here: http://www.seiko7a38.com/apps/forums/topics/show/12316936

The thread was finally updated as 'Vendidio' (Sold) yesterday evening, but I suspect it was probably sold earlier in the week.

An auction for another 7A38-7010 that was listed (albeit not particularly well) on eBay Germany last week ended a few minutes ago.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231144664929

Seiko Uhr Cronograph Quartz Silber

The German eBay seller's description was nearly as poor as the listing title, but it was subsequently added to:

Ich trenne mich von meiner ca 30 Jahre alten Seiko Uhr.

Sie ist voll funktionsfähig. 

Bei fragen einfach ne Mail schreiben.

Viel Spaß bei bieten.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Am 26.01.14 hat der Verkäufer die folgenden Angaben hinzugefügt:

Es handelt sich bei Silber um die Farbe und nicht um das Material.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Am 30.01.14 hat der Verkäufer die folgenden Angaben hinzugefügt:

Die Uhr wird mit original Verpackung geliefert.

Not easy to tell from the single darkish photo, but it appeared to be in pretty decent original condition. I did place a couple of lower bids on it, but rather than antagonize a forum member who I knew would be sniping it, I left it for him - to pick up a comparative bargain.

It sold for 147.47 Euros (approx. £121) after 16 bids:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231144664929

It's been a good few months since I've updated this particular topic and I guess I may have omitted to mention one or two sales. 

So I'll make amends by adding this 7A38-7010 fitted with an incorrect replacement bracelet that was listed on eBay last Saturday:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/281452161273

GORGEOUS GENTS VINTAGE SEIKO 1980S QUARTZ CHRONOGRAPH SPLIT DAY/DATE WATCH.

SUPERB WATCH WITH MINIMAL WEAR.

RECENT NEW BATTERY & FULLY WORKING.

QUICKSET DAY & DATE WORKING FINE TOO.

DAY & DAY WINDOWS ARE SPLIT WITHIN THE CHRONOGRAPH MINI DIAL

LIPPED TACHYMETER STYLE RAISED BEZEL

FULLY WORKING CHRONOGRAPH MINI DIALS

LOWER SECONDS SUB DIAL

SCREW ON STAINLESS REAR CASE

BLACK DIAL WITH WHITE HANDS & MARKERS

BRUSHED STAINLESS CASE & STRAP

QUICK RELEASE CLASP

MEASURES APPROX 40MM ACROSS THE CASE

ONE OF THE EARLIER ANALOGUE SEIKO CHRONOGRAPH QUARTZ WATCHES

DATING FROM THE EARLY 1980S

GREAT VINTAGE SEIKO CHRONOGRAPH 

NO RESERVE

You'll notice there's little mention of the bracelet in the above description, but check the Seller's Notes:

Yeah. So three wrongs make a right ? The bracelet fitted is clearly not a very good match (IMHO) and likely off a 1980's Seiko digital.

If I was consdidering bidding on this further (and I'm not), one other thing to be wary of is that a lot of the running is being made by a newly-created zero-feedback bidder u***n (0). Could possibly be a shill - or maybe just an over-enthusiastic newbie.

See: http://offer.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewBids&item=281452161273

That UK eBay auction for the 7A38-7010 fitted with a (pretty obvious) non-original replacement bracelet ended yesterday evening:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/281452161273

Even though the seller had failed to mention the model number anywhere in his title or description - and certain forum members had difficulty finding it, as a result, the listing still appears to have attracted a fair amount of attention, selling for £134 after 36 bids.

Erstwhile fanatical Australian 7Axx collector Stuart Lennard (a.k.a. ex-forum member 'ginny') has resumed the thinning down of his collection, overnight listing another eight 7Axx's on eBay: a mixture of 7A28's, 7A48's and 7A38's including this tidy-looking 7A38-7010.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/121452936679

I've only bothered including half his 10 uploaded photos, because (again) many are very similar and typically lacklustre.

NOTE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE EXPRESS $42.00 (WITHIN AUSTRALIA EXPRESS $13.00) 

SEIKO 7A38-7010 IN ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC CONDITION 

ALL FUNCTIONS WORK AS THEY SHOULD 

CRYSTAL LIKE NEW. LONG BRACELET 

Customer is responsible for additional if any custom fees ,brockerage fees , duties and or taxes.

SORRY ...DUE TO POSTAGE REGULATIONS I CANNOT SHIP WITH BATTERY 

I AM HAPPY TO COMBINE POSTAGE

I expect it will be this one, which as far as I remember is the only 7A38-7010 Stuart owns, purchased at the beginning of February ....

Seiko7A38 at February 1, 2014 at 1:32 PM

Not easy to tell from the single darkish photo, but it appeared to be in pretty decent original condition. I did place a couple of lower bids on it, but rather than antagonize a forum member who I knew would be sniping it, I left it for him - to pick up a comparative bargain.

It sold for 147.47 Euros (approx. £121) after 16 bids:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231144664929

Looking at Stuart's photos, it was indeed in 'pretty decent original condition'. Pity he hasn't managed to clean it since. 

Stuart Lennard's (a.k.a. ex-forum member 'ginny') eBay auction for his 7A38-7010 ended in the early hours of this morning:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121452936679

It sold for $273 (US rather than Australian) equivalent to £170.31 after 33 bids.

This tidy example of a 7A38-7010, listed this morning by a Spanish eBay seller, looked all too familiar as soon as I clapped eyes on it.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/261630389976

Rare SEIKO Military Style 7A38-7010 Quartz Chronograph

“All original” SEIKO 7A38-7010 Chronograph from 1983 stainless steel Quartz Mens watch 

In very good condition small signs of use, very slight. 

Chrono perfect stop/reset to zero, running perfect, and keeping time.

ALL ORIGINAL: DIAL--BEZEL-HANDS-CROWN-PUSHBUTTONS-CRYSTAL-BRACELET

- Please to look into the pics 

-Rare Vintage SEIKO 7A38-7010 Chronograph from 1983. -Watch is in excellent condition with minor marks. 

-Quartz movement is running perfect, and keeping time. 

-Day/Date 

-Stainless steel bracelet will fit up to a 18,5 cm. aprox. wrist, and has removable ---links for shortening. 

-Buckle is marked "SEIKO SQ". 

-Chronograph starts, stops, and resets to zero. 

-Dial is flat black with glossy sub dials. White hands and markers really pop against the black background. 

-All button functions working. 

-Case is sand blasted. 

-Size 43X39mm. 

-Not polished (original condition)

In case you might be wondering where I got my instant sense of Deja Vu from, you only need to scroll back to the top of this page.

It's the very same 7A38-7010 s/n 3N0750 which sold on Spanish forum Relojesparatodos for 120 Euros at the end of January. 

This average condition 7A38-7010 fitted with a leather strap in place of the original braclet was listed yesterday evening by a Mexican eBay seller. Apart from the strap, the over-optimistic Buy-it-Now price and the Fedex shipping charges, there's something else ....

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/291329014949

I've only bothered uploading 5 of the seller's 9 photos because most are similar head-on shots, showing very little of the strap ....

But if you scroll through all the close-up head on shots, something not quite right becomes more obvious ....

For whatever reason, someone has pulled the sub-dial hands at some point. The constant seconds hand (with the polished boss) has been incorrectly re-fitted to the 30 minute counting sub-dial.

"The original Seiko p/n Z1118S bracelet is typical Seiko mid-80's folded link construction and prone to stretching."

Hi Paul,

Referring to your post above from last year I have the following question.

Is there any chance to tighten or fix a stretched bracelet in order to return to the original state ???

Regards

Unfortunately not, Ridvan. 

The stretching problem involves couple of factors: The U section joining links (on the underside of the bracelet) tend to open out and the little 'ears' on the ends of them, which help locate the main link sections wear away. If you dismantle one of the adjustment links on your bracelet you'll see exactly the same small part (but with an arrow stamped in it). Obviously, one can carefully squeeze these removable parts up with a pair of pliers, but there's no way of doing this on the main lengths of the bracelet. If you were to try prying one of the folded links open, you'd never get it back flat again.

Seiko7A38 at December 23, 2014 at 2:15 AM

Unfortunately not, Ridvan. 

The stretching problem involves couple of factors: The U section joining links (on the underside of the bracelet) tend to open out and the little 'ears' on the ends of them, which help locate the main link sections wear away. If you dismantle one of the adjustment links on your bracelet you'll see exactly the same small part (but with an arrow stamped in it). Obviously, one can carefully squeeze these removable parts up with a pair of pliers, but there's no way of doing this on the main lengths of the bracelet. If you were to try prying one of the folded links open, you'd never get it back flat again.

Sadly, somehow I expected this kind of answer.  So you have to be an absolutely lucky guy if you can find the original bracelet, but also one in a good condition.  I made a quick search for a replacement bracelet, but annoyingly it's also hard to find a bracelet with this (unique) silver anodised finish ! What you mostly get is a satin or matt brushed finish, but these don't match exactly. 

Well, nevertheless you can't get everything, but life will go on. 

At this point let me thank you very much for your patient help and the great efforts you share on this site !

Regards, Ridvan

BTW - When we will see a Seiko book from you ???   [no joke!]

Checking my eBay watching page, I see that deceptively photographed listing for the 7A38-7010 on a leather strap, by the Mexican seller wristwatchseller, ended on Christmas Eve, sold against a Best Offer:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/291329014949

According to Goofbid's eBay Best Offer History tool it went for $250.

So that'll be someone else looking for a Seiko p/n Z1118S bracelet in the near future. 

This is probably one best avoided, unless you're a fan of patina and wabi - read absolutely desperate for any kind of a 7A38-7010. 

Personally, I couldn't spot a single redeeming feature on this rather poor example listed overnight on eBay in the States. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/351296626473

Here's another one that I really don't want to sell, but it gets no rotation in the collection. 7A38-7010 Vintage Seiko Chrono. Fully functional. Hands reset properly. Keeps great time. Case & bezel are quite good actually. Crystal has several marks. Looks good on wrist and readable. Dial is worn, some text missing, staining around :05 or so on dial and chapter ring. Case is fully cleaned inside and out, with new case back, button, and crown seals. Comes on a modified H601 bracelet. $1 No Reserve. Free USPS priority shipping to CONUS only. No sales outside the USA Please.

Nearly forgot to post the result.  The eBay auction for that poor example of a 7A38-7010 ended late on Friday evening (UK time).

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/351296626473

It sold for $83 (equivalent to approx £55) after 29 bids - a high proportion of which were made by low or zero feedback bidders. 

This 7A38-7010 offered with two non-original replacement bracelets was listed on eBay in the States yesterday evening:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301542267151

1983 Seiko 7A38-7010

Excellent condition. The most obvious wear indicators are in the delicate bezel insert and on the four corners of the case, where you can see some non anodized shine showing through. There are light scratches on the case, but nothing that is distracting, imo. The back is in very good shape, with one small tool mark. The dial and hands are pristine. Crystal is very good.

I found a new old stock Seiko Z1157 bracelet which is quite similar to the original bracelet, which now seems impossible to find. It has easy to remove links, an SQ clasp. It's not very long, however. Please see pics. I would imagine it would be good up to 7 1/8" or maybe 7 1/4" wrists. Otherwise, you'll want an extender. But it looks great and is comfortable.

In addition, I'm including a funky NOS vintage two tone Seiko "style" bracelet. It's clearly a knock off, but it's OK quality and it's full length for those of you with larger wrists. I was told it's from the same 80s period as this watch. Looks a lot like bracelets you'll find on some of the other 7AXX models.

Replaced the battery with a new Renata 394. Inside is very clean.

Keeping really great time, of course.

Stopwatch functions are all excellent. Resets consistently to zero.

Stopwatch buttons all feel good. All have a nice "click" to them. Not stiff or spongy.

This is a solid 7A38. I'm happy to answer any questions.

Thanks for looking!

Incidentally, that 7A38-7010 should look familiar to some readers, for a couple of reasons ....

I may have omitted to post about it in this thread, but it was mentioned in the Other Watch Forums Sales Corner section ....

when it was first offered for sale on WatchuSeek, back in November last year.

See: 7A38-7010 FS on WatchUSeek - $300 Shipped from Germany

and: http://forums.watchuseek.com/f29/fs-seiko-7a38-7010-quartz-chronograph-1255682.html

Fairly easily recognizable from the Feiko bracelet fitted:

.... and the shallow non-original crown fitted (which I didn't mention at the time), but is clearly visible in the current eBay seller's photos.

It's also been posted in the WRUW thread by Matt (Otosi) fitted with the alternative replacement bracelet that's being offered:

Again, the shallow non-original crown fitted is visible in his wrist shot.

Here's that same 7A38-7010 with the smudged dial printing and dodgy lume, fitted with a non-original bracelet, which was previously offered by US eBay seller dr_billiards at the end of January. Presumably the winning bidder is suffering from buyer's remorse. 

Although it looks slightly better in these photos, I'd recommend any prospective purchaser check out the previous seller's photos.

Note also that the constant seconds hand has since fallen off and is floating around loose. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/161618161124

Up for sale a Seiko sports 100 mens chronograph 7A38 7010 , good overall condition , purchased on Ebay just to small for my wrist . Everything works good and no damage to the crystal , bezel or bracelet other than normal wear for a 20+ year old watch .

The face is showing a bit of discolor and wear on the writing Chronograph which has partially started to fade and the luminous paint on the hands is just beginning to show slight wear in the form of minor pitting. E-mail with any questions or for more pictures.

A couple of belated auction results (of sorts) from earlier in the week:

That dog-eared example immediately above listed by the re-seller tuitfg sold for $81.08 - pretty close to what it went for previously:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/161618161124

The other listing for a 7A38-7010 (with two non-original bracelets) by seller matto- didn't fare much better first time around. 

It was bid to only $91 - reserve not met (presumably by some margin):

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301542267151

It was relisted almost immediately, but now only with the $250 Buy-it-Now Option (no auction). That re-listing was ended early after only two days:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301550923071

So one assumes Matt must have accepted an offer outside eBay. 

This well-used looking 'Spares or Repair' 7A38-7010, missing the top L.H. pusher, was listed yesterday evening by German eBay seller batery_99, who from his other listings appears to be having a bit of a Spring clear-out of 'unfinished projects'.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/161628244965

Ich muss mal wieder ausmisten ;-) 

Überzählige Uhren, die nicht getragen werden und Bastelprojekte, für die ich derzeit so gar keine Zeit habe. 

Zur Aktion kommt hier ein Seiko Quartz Chronograph mit 7A38 Werk. Die Uhr läuft. Dennoch Verkauf als defekt, weil der Crono sich nicht Nullen lässt und einer der Drücker fehlt. An der Uhr ist das originale Seikoband montiert. 

Wie auf den Bildern zu sehen, hat die Uhr Gebrauchsspuren, die sich aber für das Alter in Grenzen halten. 

Viel Spass beim bieten. 

Es handelt sich um einen Privatverkauf unter Ausschluss von Rücknahme, Garantie oder Gewährleistung.

Note although the seller states that an original Seiko band is fitted, in his photo the clasp appears to be the wrong style.