Seiko 7A38 - by the numbers

This is my latest result of modding my seiko 7A38-7190. Original had damaged case, no bracelet and water damaged dial. I acquired new dial, dial ring and new hands. I have sand blasted the case and new bracelet. I am very pleased with the result.  

If somebody has a dark day/date wheel that would like to sell please contact me via PM

Very nice indeed !  I presume the dial / hands and minute ring donor was a 7A38-704B (or very badly faded 7A38-704A/C) ? 

It probably was from the 7A38-704B. I got the dial and hand set alone, and they are in mint condition. Now I only need dial matching day and date wheels. 

Very nice - I really like the dial and hands on the 704x.

Do you think there are any more of these available from where you got them?

This was the only one among others that had all matching parts

I have managed to get hold of NOS 7A38 black day and date wheels in the past (from Seiko Australia). They still show the Black English / German day wheel p/n 0470695 in stock, but the date ring, p/n 0801594 is now shown as obsolete and no longer available.

Probably your best bet is to look out for a cheap 7A38 donor with black day / date wheels - like a stainless 7A38-7270 for example.

If you really wanted matching day / date wheels, I'm a bit surprised you fitted the dial and hands to this movement, rather than waiting. You now potentially run the the risk of damaging the hands, by pulling and re-fitting them another time - somewhat unnecessarily. 

I must say though, that 7A38-7190 / 7A38-704B is an interesting Franken combination. Not one I'd personally considered myself - and rather a fortunate choice of components. I presume you have the 7A38-704B minute ring sandwiched between the 7A38-7190 bezel and case, exactly where the original Tachymeter ring would have sat. Don't know if you were aware, but in a 7A38-704x (which has no separate bezel), the minute ring fits from underneath, along with the dial / movement assembly. I tried it myself this afternoon and a 7A38-704x minute ring fits perfectly inside a 7A38-7190 bezel - they're almost exactly the same diameter. Lucky fit, perhaps. 

I had to see how it looks all assembled. I am not afraid of damaging the hands because I have proper tools to do the job and hands are just gently hand pressed on shafts. About dial and dial ring I guess I was lucky. The guy who sold them to me had three different dials and only this one was complete. I also got the ring that is a part of 704b assembly but now I don't need it because of a different case layout as you mentioned

I actually hadn't mentioned that additional ring - but I presume you mean the thin metal spacer ring used in the 7A38-704A/B/C. 

Yes the spacer. It probably holds minute ring in center of the case?

I can't remember, off the top of my head, but I think it sits underneath the crystal gasket, and as you say effectively limits the upward movement of the minute ring. I accidentally ordered one a couple of years ago. The description on Seiko's database was a bit vague.

Seiko Oceania still show both parts in stock:

84304723 DIAL RING (UPPER) = The metal spacer ring

84311485 DIAL RING (LOWER) = The plastic minute ring

In fact, what I was supplied with (besides the spacer ring p/n 84304723) was a 7A38-704A/C minute ring. I wrote about in this thread:

http://www.seiko7a38.com/apps/forums/topics/show/7635490-over-priced-incorrectly-identified-seiko-spares-caveat-emptor

I had to see how it looks all assembled.

By the way, I take it from the above - and looking at your photo again, that you might not have a new crystal fitted yet ? 

Rather than a boring flat 31.0mm Ø x 1.5mm flat mineral glass, you might want to consider something very slightly domed. 

You're right. I will get a new crystal. I haven't looked for it yet. Do you have any recommendations where to get it and which one?

You know after I'd written that, I wasn't sure whether there was a crystal fitted to the watch in your photo, or not. 

The 7A38-7190 uses a clear nylon crystal gasket (not black nylon like the 7A38-7270 / -7290, etc) - so I'll blame it on my eyesight. 

I was thinking a domed crystal might work better with the dial, because the 7A38-704x's have a domed (flat bottom) crystal, which gives a slight magnifying effect. Might be worth trying a Cousins p/n DF150CMH310. 

In something of a belated postscript to this thread, Miroslav listed his bead-blasted modded 7A38-7190 on eBay yesterday evening - some 5½ years after he built it and documented it in this thread. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/183865401284

I'll write it up in full in the Heads Up on another 7A38 Franken thread presently, simply because it'll make for an interesting comparison.