Seiko Tool watch part II

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CarloDWC
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Seiko Tool watch part II

Post by CarloDWC » Wed Jun 24, 2020 3:19 pm

This must be the most involved project I have done in several years... First of all the cogs started spinning last year when I got my hands on a Seiko Turtle with a top hat sapphire crystal. I actually liked it more in person that I ever did in pictures, I made that a military tool watch.

After that I really wanted to do another one with similar looks and started looking for another watch with such sapphire crystal already installed. The reason being that I do not have the tools and equipment to do crystal installations and I never done one anyway, also if I bought the watch and parts it would cost an arm and a leg and my meager budget could not afford it.

After many months I finally was able to find one of those and it was affordable enough for me to be able to buy it. It seemed perfect, it had a top hat sapphire crystal, coin edge bezel and even ceramic bezel insert, although the insert was 1-12 rather then the usual diver which I prefer.

I received the watch and found out that I could not even turn the bezel. After several tried I was able to remove it and found out that the reason it was not spinning was a botched crystal installation. The crystal gasket was 1/4 out of the case and sitting above the edge between the bezel insert and the crystal, so of course the bezel was "wedged" and would not turn. I did what I never done before, pushed out the crystal, reseated the gasket which was out of shape and re-installed the crystal in the case with the gasket in the right place. It took all the patience I could master because the gasket seemingly did not want to be in there at all... :lol:

That of course was not the only obstacle, the crystal would be pressed down at an angle and basically crooked, one side higher then the other... Well, after very patiently trying over and over several times I was able to get the whole assembly in place. I did not measure it but the crystal sits pretty straight and the gasket is all in place. It was a PITA but it was worth it, I now knew what it takes to do these things.

While the watch case was almost ready I still did not have the dial and hands I wanted, also the bezel needed a replacement with a diver insert. Can you believe that these all black inserts are hard to find? I mean on Ebay they only had the full bezel/insert for $90 or so. Any other insert that was black and ceramic was only available from China, Singapore and Hong Kong which with the pandemic in full roar made shipping a long and painful affair. :shock:

I finally found a half black and half grey which seemed fine for the military looks, so I decided to use the bezel I had on the military project for the new one and install the grey/black one on the military watch.

Of course while I am recounting this as a short deal it actually took 3 weeks to do all these steps above with the watch. :banghead:

In the meantime I ordered the parts, dial and hands from the only place that had the ones I wanted, Singapore. They were shipped in April... :o

At the end of May I got the dial and now, 23rd of June I finally got the hands... 2 months wait. :rolleyes: :grin:

But at last I finally had the parts and did the assembly, dial onto the movement, hands, swapped cases with the military watch, greased the gaskets, screwed in the case back and finally the 2nd tool watch project was completed, the first one slightly updated. :grin: I also have a President type bracelet and got that one on the watch as well. So now it is a pretty good looking tool watch in my opinion... :thumbsup:

Here below are a few pics I hope you enjoy. :grin:

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tmw
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Re: Seiko Tool watch part II

Post by tmw » Wed Jun 24, 2020 3:35 pm

Looks great.

And yes. Setting the gasket and crystal in a turtle is a pain and very hard to get to sit correctly and evenly. Sometimes it takes lots of patience (but the flatter the crystal with a big press tends to do it the cleanest).

I miss the 6309 crystal placement design.
Stan, don’t you know the first law of physics? Anything that’s fun costs at least eight dollars”
-- Eric Cartman

“To absent friends, lost loves, old gods, and the season of mists; and may each and every one of us always give the devil his due.”
― Neil Gaiman, The Sandman

I bought a cheap watch from a crazy man
Floating down canal
It doesn't use numbers or moving hands
It always just says now
Now you may be thinking that I was had
But this watch is never wrong
And If I have trouble the warranty said
Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On

- Jimmy Buffett

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bedlam
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Re: Seiko Tool watch part II

Post by bedlam » Wed Jun 24, 2020 5:26 pm

Really nice. The mod highlights what a great case the turtle has.

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HapaHapa
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Re: Seiko Tool watch part II

Post by HapaHapa » Wed Jun 24, 2020 6:15 pm

Outstanding job, Carlo!!
The Hapa

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CarloDWC
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Re: Seiko Tool watch part II

Post by CarloDWC » Wed Jun 24, 2020 6:19 pm

Thank you for the kind words. I love the New Seiko Turtle case, it looks and wears great on my wrist. :thumbsup:

Also it can be customized in so many different ways that doing it is just fun... :grin:

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toxicavenger
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Re: Seiko Tool watch part II

Post by toxicavenger » Wed Jun 24, 2020 8:48 pm

Looks great Carlo! Just a heads up I have had to have a few crystal times domed crystals sanded down to fit correctly.

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CarloDWC
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Re: Seiko Tool watch part II

Post by CarloDWC » Thu Jun 25, 2020 2:29 pm

Thank you Terry. I don't really plan to get into installing crystals. It was a pain in the rear just to handle that which I did only because I had to... kind of had the necessity level to do it so I could have a watch I could use... :lol:

It was a good to learn though, in fact I did not mind this in the end. But I can see that it could be a delicate thing to do. Whoever did it before me evidently did not know what he was doing and did not even look at the final result. The gasket out of place was definitely visible with the naked eye... :banghead:

But since I have a watch that I can use now I am pretty happy. :grin: :thumbsup:

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mattcantwin
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Re: Seiko Tool watch part II

Post by mattcantwin » Thu Jun 25, 2020 3:44 pm

Came out great! :clap:
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CarloDWC
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Re: Seiko Tool watch part II

Post by CarloDWC » Fri Jun 26, 2020 8:52 am

Thank you Matt.

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