So I finally found a "wearable" example of this model!
Jul 18, 2013 2:17:33 GMT -8
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Post by cobrajet25 on Jul 18, 2013 2:17:33 GMT -8
I have had a "safe queen" 6138-7000 for years. I bought it in about 2007 and fixed it up with Jonathan's help. It was a one-owner watch that had sat in a drawer most of it's life. Overall it is beautiful, and I added a NOS 300T28ANS crystal (tough to find...only fits the -7000) and a NOS cursor. But the watch was just that...a safe queen. I was just afraid to wear it. To this day, it sits in a little velvet box in my safe with some of it's finest 6138 brothers.
But I always wanted a 6138-7000 I could wear. One that was nice, but not "too nice". I had looked a few "HHC" examples from the usual suspects on Ebay, but for the money they wanted I thought I could do much, much better. Finally found the one below a month ago on Ebay, out of Ohio.
This watch was NOT CHEAP, but after looking as long as I had I figured it was a decent watch for the money. Seller kinda overstated it's condition, using the term "mint" a lot, but always immediately adding the disclaimer "for it's age". What the hell does "mint for it's age" even mean?? It had a bent stem. A cracked crystal. Some lume is missing from the markers. The bracelet had been polished to a nauseatingly high shine. But it was original, and all there. I finally had to face the fact that this model just doesn't come cheap anymore. My 2007 safe queen was $250...this one was a BIN for $450. How times have changed. As annoyed as I was at the BIN price, I did some checking and the price was not too far out of line. Apparently he had done some checking, too.
The seller didn't put the watch in the mail until ELEVEN DAYS after I had paid...and had filed a Paypal complaint. "Unexpected illness", he said. Bah.
Finding a crystal was a chore, but I discovered (or remembered?) that a very common 300T20ANS can be substituted...if you use your original tension ring. Straightened the stem out. Resealed it. Regulated it. Put in one of Jonathan's re-pop cursors. Brushed the bracelet. Thought about sending it off to IWW for a relume, but I am afraid if I do that it will become another "safe queen"! Still considering it, though...
Overall, I am happy with the watch. The search is finally over!
But I always wanted a 6138-7000 I could wear. One that was nice, but not "too nice". I had looked a few "HHC" examples from the usual suspects on Ebay, but for the money they wanted I thought I could do much, much better. Finally found the one below a month ago on Ebay, out of Ohio.
This watch was NOT CHEAP, but after looking as long as I had I figured it was a decent watch for the money. Seller kinda overstated it's condition, using the term "mint" a lot, but always immediately adding the disclaimer "for it's age". What the hell does "mint for it's age" even mean?? It had a bent stem. A cracked crystal. Some lume is missing from the markers. The bracelet had been polished to a nauseatingly high shine. But it was original, and all there. I finally had to face the fact that this model just doesn't come cheap anymore. My 2007 safe queen was $250...this one was a BIN for $450. How times have changed. As annoyed as I was at the BIN price, I did some checking and the price was not too far out of line. Apparently he had done some checking, too.
The seller didn't put the watch in the mail until ELEVEN DAYS after I had paid...and had filed a Paypal complaint. "Unexpected illness", he said. Bah.
Finding a crystal was a chore, but I discovered (or remembered?) that a very common 300T20ANS can be substituted...if you use your original tension ring. Straightened the stem out. Resealed it. Regulated it. Put in one of Jonathan's re-pop cursors. Brushed the bracelet. Thought about sending it off to IWW for a relume, but I am afraid if I do that it will become another "safe queen"! Still considering it, though...
Overall, I am happy with the watch. The search is finally over!
