Seiko Quartz Complete Service:
* Overhaul or replace the movement
* Check Crystal
* New Power Cell (watch battery or kinetic capacitor)
* New Case-back Gasket & Sealant
* Seal the Stem and Crown
* Clean & lightly polish case & band (if possible)
* New stainless steel spring bars (if needed)
* Recalibrate perpetual calendar date (if applicable)
* Genuine Seiko parts
* BfW's Seiko Warranty is one (1) year!
* * * We only utilize genuine Seiko parts! * * *
SEND IT TODAY (via USPS Priority Mail)
Service for your SEIKO Mechanical Watch will include a factory-type Overhaul:
* Overhaul - complete disassembly of the watch
* Cleaning of the case, band and movement
* Lubrication of the movement and reassembly
* A new mainspring is installed
* Additional parts are installed upon reassembly
* Timing adjustment using a digital timing machine
* Case and metal band are lightly polished
* Stem and crown are sealed
* Caseback gasket is replaced
* New spring bars are installed (if required)
* Time trail for 24-48 hours
* Any irregularities will require a repeat of the time trial
* Your watch does not leave until it works perfectly!
* If your Seiko is more than 20 years old, see below!
ADDITIONAL SEIKO SERVICE:
Crystal Replacement - Genuine Seiko & generic glass crystals & sapphire crystals available.
Band Replacement - Genuine Seiko & generic watch bands available.
NOTICE: We are unable to service some Seiko watches which are older than ten-years of age due to parts discontinuation. For example, older Seiko quartz chronographs, and Seiko quartz watches with model numbers (first four digits of eight-digit number on the case back) "7T32" or "7123" or "8123" have limited to no part availability. Also, we do NOT service LCD (liquid crystal display) watches of any type. Other models may be problematic, and this list is not all-inclusive. If you are in doubt about parts availability for your older Seiko watch, please check with www.askthewatchmaker.com before sending the watch in for a non-refundable repair estimate. We will do our best to verify parts availability before you send it; however, it is always a possibility that a watch may be non-repairable. Our estimate fee is non-refundable. If you are unwilling to spend $25 plus the cost to ship us your watch to determine its repairability, then do NOT send it.
SEIKO KINETIC REPAIR LEVELS available at KineticRepair.com:
Please NOTE: If your watch is a "kinetic" it will have this printed on the dial, or it may have "auto relay" on the dial.
Mail your Kinetic for repair today!
CLICK HERE
BfW also can repair:
~ Seiko Perpetual Calendar Watches
~ Seiko Mechanical & Quartz Dive Watches
Seiko Vintage Mechanical Service:
Let's examine why a vintage, mechanical Seiko watch may take many weeks or months to PROPERLY REPAIR.
1. One reason is that the entire watch HAS to be completely disassembled.
In the photo above you see a vintage mechanical Seiko. Note that it is COMPLETELY disassembled to allow for closer INSPECTION of worn or defective parts.
There is a long and closely held secret by many watchmakers in America. It is rooted in the U.S. history of watchmaking from the 1960's & 1970's. This was a time when competition for mechanical watch repair was at its zenith (prior to the quartz watch explosion), pressure to repair a watch quickly was overwhelming, and the cost to have a watch "overhauled" was almost nothing.
To meet these market parameters, watchmakers developed an efficiency "technique" to repair your watch. This technique was called the "swish and lube." What this involved was removing only your dial, hands and date disk (also seen removed in the above photo), and then the remainder of the ASSEMBLED movement was placed in an ultrasonic bath.
If the customer was lucky, the mainspring would be replaced. The movement was then immersed in a final rinse, called Solo Lube, to take the place of hand oiling all the friction points and pivots in the watch. If the watchmaker felt like it, the balance pivots might be hand-oiled. The movement was reassembled, and hastily regulated, recased and then out the door. All for about $8-15, and in about a week! What a deal?
A customer unwilling to wait for a quality repair might definitely appreciate this. So much so that he might not also mind taking his watch back for service AGAIN in 12 months or less - about as long as it would run before requiring more "service." Only the next service might require more intensive repairs, as poorly or non-lubricated critical parts might now require outright replacement. And this would complicate the repair, and increase the cost. To solve this dilema the watchmaker of the day would simply tell the customer, "Sorry, your watch can't be repaired as there are no parts." This would hide the poor service history, and end the customer's potential complaint. Since most watchmakers worked in a jewelery store, the counter staff would simply tell this customer to buy a new watch. "There are some on sale right over here."
However, this efficient technique was FAR from effective. Effectiveness is defined, in watch repair terms, as returning the watch to its factory-rated operating condition. When a watch is properly serviced, its service interval is much longer than 12 months, somewhere on the order of 5-10 years would be more the norm.
If a watch can be repaired to achieve this dramatic service interval, then why wouldn't all of TODAY's watchmakers repair watches to this standard?
Answers - Greed, lack of modern training, poor ethics and ignorant and impatient customers.
2. Critical and worn parts have to be REPLACED to PROPERLY SERVICE a mechanical watch, and to provide the best, long-term insurance that the watch will perform well into the future.
In the photo above the watchmaker is holding a RED pointer (actually a specialized Bergeon tool in its own right) to show you a "barrel complete." This factory Seiko part, still in its unopened package, is NO LONGER AVAILABLE for this watch. The old barrel is visible in the lower right of the photo.
Also visible in the top of the photo are a new crystal and a new crown and stem. The stem for this particular watch is NO LONGER AVAILABLE; however, the owner of this particular watch had NO PROBLEM waiting for the parts to be located.
But why is a "barrel complete" so important to the proper servicing of a watch?
Good Question!
A barrel complete houses the automatic mainspring of the watch, a very sophisticated piece of machinery. "Complete" means that the mainspring was installed and torque tested at the Seiko factory, and meets the rigid requirements for service in this particular movement. THIS IS THE HEART of the watch! In conjuction with the rest of the overhaul and proper service, a new barrel, barrel cap, arbor and automatic mainspring, this OLD Seiko will operate according to its design specifications. The alternative would be to remove the old mainspring, clean it and reuse it. Any wear patterns that might affect operation or timekeeping would just have to be "ignored" by the watchmaker, and perhaps the owner wouldn't really notice the difference.
But the watchmaker at BestFix would know the difference, and he like's to sleep nights knowing he and the other watchmaker's at BestFix have performed the best job they could possibly do - no matter how long it takes to do it right - EVEN ON A SEIKO watch!!!!
3. Factory assembly guides are utilized to insure the watch is repaired to factory standards.
Here you can see a page from the Seiko factory technical assembly guide for this base caliber movement. The 6106A is the base caliber for the 6119C being repaired in the disassembly photos.
So how long does it take to do the repair properly? And why might your vintage mechanical Seiko take many months to repair?
PARTS AVAILABILITY!
Watch parts are now so hard to come by that many watchmakers have retired and/or quit the trade or are planning to quit. One of our complaining customer whined to the BBB, "I sure wish there was a watchmaker in my town. I wouldn't have to send it off to an internet place and get pigged in a poke." We have an answer for that one. If there WAS a watchmaker in your town, HE could not get parts, or YOU would be too dang impatient to wait for the repair, then complain to the BBB. Eventually, all the ignorant and unfounded complaints from Psycho Seiko owners would put him out of business.
Why are parts so hard to order? To be certain, it is NOT for the lack of good suppliers. Two reasons prevail:
1. In the case of a vintage mechanical like the compaling customer's Seiko, the part manufacturer no longer finds it profitable to make or stock the parts. Can you blaim them? We can't. Watch repair is A BUSINESS. When parts are no longer available, most watchmakers will REFUSE to service a watch. At BestFix, we "thought" we were doing customers a truly unique service by accepting these "difficult" watches. Little did we know we would also be accepting "difficult" customers.
2. New parts on high-end watches have restricted parts accounts by the manufacturers, designed to protect the manufacturer's name and to protect the consumer from the type of watchmaker we have already described.
Many vintage mechanical Seiko's require parts that have not only be special ordered, but quite literally "hunted" down by the watchmaker. We utilize many sources at BestFix in order to locate parts that are no longer available. This takes TIME, and most of our customers can appreciate this. Are you one of them?
If not, PLEASE DON'T SEND US YOUR WATCH!
4. Take a look at how small these parts are!
A dime is pictured with this Seiko's parts. Look very closely and you can see the shock jewels (tiny specs in the photo) which have to be hand-oiled and then carefully placed back into position within the mechanical plate and bridges inorder to restore this watch's proper functioning.
We emphasize the micro world in the above photo so that you can gain some appreciation of our task as a watchmaker. Remember, there are some dishonest "watchmakers" who do NOT completley dismantle your watch. They are "swish and lubing" it. They don't want to take the time or the RISK of dismantleing the movement, or they simply don't know how to, or both. But they most certainly will TAKE your money and repair your watch in a time frame to your liking, say a couple of weeks.
Now on to you, the reader and potential patient customer. Please ask yourself the following question BEFORE sending us your watch:
CAN I WAIT FOR QUALITY?
If your answer is "yes," we would love to have you as a life-long customer. If your answer is "no" or "it depends," then feel free to shop elsewhere. We don't need or want your business.
BestFix Watch Company is a state-of-the-art watch-repair facility. If you have any questions, call us at 940/483-1238 between 9am. and 5 p.m. Central Standard Time, Monday through Friday. The shop is closed on Saturday and Sunday.
For a faster reply use the ASK the Watchmaker Form.
BfW Co.
704 Pennsylvania
Denton, TX 76205
service@bestfixwatch.com
940/483-1238
Copyright © 2006-08. All Rights Reserved.
Seiko is the registered trademark of Seiko Corporation of America.
Not affiliated with Seiko in any way.
Trademarks used here are the property of their respective owners.
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