Seiko Sportsmatics, and a new land speed un-record for watch
Jan 7, 2015 0:23:40 GMT -8
Groundhog66, lordflagpolecrabtree, and 2 more like this
Post by J. F. Sebastian on Jan 7, 2015 0:23:40 GMT -8
Hi folks! It's been quite a while since I posted around here, hope that everybody is keeping well and had a good holiday period.
Cast your minds back, if you will, to the depths of October 2014 when the Wrist Sushi sale event had been organised to try to get us listed on Watch Recon. I bought a nice looking black Sportsmatic from russtmurray, who sent them on to me via Canada Post's surface mail, who advised him it could take up to 6 weeks to arrive. Well, we waited those 6 weeks and nothing turned up. Russ was great about this and sent me a full refund for what I paid. Half way through December he checked in with me to see if maybe it had shown up late, but no joy. I told him I'd let him know if a "Christmas miracle" occurred, but the 25th came and went, and by this point I really didn't expect to ever see the package.
Well, never say never, because a few days ago the damn thing turned up! It shipped on the 8th of October 2014 and arrived January 5th, 2015, after a trip of just a little under three months. Russ is in Calgary, Alberta and I'm all the way down in Auckland, New Zealand: just shy of 12,000 km as the crow flies, so I figure this thing traveled at an average of about 5 km/h to get here, or about 3 mph. If it weren't for all the water, it might as well have been carried on foot! There's a crazy thought...
Well, better late than never, here she is!
I think this watch looks really great on this bracelet, it ever so slightly dulls the longing for that SARB033 that I'll never be able to justify paying for.
A wrist shot:
There's a wee bit of wabi on the chapter ring and on the dial between 12 and 2 o'clock, but it's not too and really just adds a bit of character. Apart from this, it's in pretty good condition! Seems to keep time well enough, a little fast but within the realm of what I reckon I can regulate out.
Quite happy overall, the only thing that threw me a bit is that I wasn't prepared for how darn small the crowns on these are:
This, combined with the lack of quick set on the date makes setting one of these a bit of a pain, so I think what I'll do is wear it for a few days each month, and just wait until the actual date happens to match the day it last stopped, that way I only have to set the time.
Now, I just have to say that not only did Russ do the right thing by refunding me as soon as the shipping deadline passed (and Russ, I've just now sent the full amount back to you a few minutes ago!), but he also outdid himself by slipping something extra in the package. He told me from the start that he'd throw in another non-running Sportsmatic with a few missing parts he had lying around, which I was happy enough to take so I could tinker with an automatic movement. However, there was actually a third Sportsmatic in there as well, running just fine and on a nice leather band (possibly with an aftermarket chapter ring? I'm not sure). I wasn't expecting this at all, but because it had been 3 months since the actual sale, I convinced myself that maybe I did remembered him mentioning this as well, but I just went back through the whole message thread and, nope, this is a pure bonus! I don't have a photo of this one, but I'll have to take one to upload soon. So a big thanks to Russ for his generosity, and a big thanks to Wrist Sushi for facilitating the sale!
Cast your minds back, if you will, to the depths of October 2014 when the Wrist Sushi sale event had been organised to try to get us listed on Watch Recon. I bought a nice looking black Sportsmatic from russtmurray, who sent them on to me via Canada Post's surface mail, who advised him it could take up to 6 weeks to arrive. Well, we waited those 6 weeks and nothing turned up. Russ was great about this and sent me a full refund for what I paid. Half way through December he checked in with me to see if maybe it had shown up late, but no joy. I told him I'd let him know if a "Christmas miracle" occurred, but the 25th came and went, and by this point I really didn't expect to ever see the package.
Well, never say never, because a few days ago the damn thing turned up! It shipped on the 8th of October 2014 and arrived January 5th, 2015, after a trip of just a little under three months. Russ is in Calgary, Alberta and I'm all the way down in Auckland, New Zealand: just shy of 12,000 km as the crow flies, so I figure this thing traveled at an average of about 5 km/h to get here, or about 3 mph. If it weren't for all the water, it might as well have been carried on foot! There's a crazy thought...
Well, better late than never, here she is!
I think this watch looks really great on this bracelet, it ever so slightly dulls the longing for that SARB033 that I'll never be able to justify paying for.
A wrist shot:
There's a wee bit of wabi on the chapter ring and on the dial between 12 and 2 o'clock, but it's not too and really just adds a bit of character. Apart from this, it's in pretty good condition! Seems to keep time well enough, a little fast but within the realm of what I reckon I can regulate out.
Quite happy overall, the only thing that threw me a bit is that I wasn't prepared for how darn small the crowns on these are:
This, combined with the lack of quick set on the date makes setting one of these a bit of a pain, so I think what I'll do is wear it for a few days each month, and just wait until the actual date happens to match the day it last stopped, that way I only have to set the time.
Now, I just have to say that not only did Russ do the right thing by refunding me as soon as the shipping deadline passed (and Russ, I've just now sent the full amount back to you a few minutes ago!), but he also outdid himself by slipping something extra in the package. He told me from the start that he'd throw in another non-running Sportsmatic with a few missing parts he had lying around, which I was happy enough to take so I could tinker with an automatic movement. However, there was actually a third Sportsmatic in there as well, running just fine and on a nice leather band (possibly with an aftermarket chapter ring? I'm not sure). I wasn't expecting this at all, but because it had been 3 months since the actual sale, I convinced myself that maybe I did remembered him mentioning this as well, but I just went back through the whole message thread and, nope, this is a pure bonus! I don't have a photo of this one, but I'll have to take one to upload soon. So a big thanks to Russ for his generosity, and a big thanks to Wrist Sushi for facilitating the sale!
