Seiko 7A38 - by the numbers

Perhaps we should start a 'Darwin Awards' thread in the eBay section, because this incompetent idiot evidently deserves one. If you're not familiar with this expression, which is common internet parlance for crass stupidity, I suggest you may want to check out: https://darwinawards.com

Yesterday morning, a UK eBay seller listed this well-worn 7A38-7180 as a 10-day auction with an opening bid price of £39.99 as 'Spares / Repair'. In their description, they have written: Missing right top button. Yes, in their photographs, something is definately missing from the 'top right' side of the watch, except it's not a (pusher) button, but the crown - which should be at the 8 o'clock position (i.e. bottom left). Yup, they've re-installed the dial / movement upside down in the watch case.

Little wonder it doesn't work any more !

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/312567108043

Vintage Seiko Chronograph Quartz 7A38-7180 Spares/Repair

Missing right top button, otherwise needs a new battery, sold as is not working.

Seiko7A38 at April 11, 2019 at 2:28 AM

This guy is truly unbelieveable !!! 

The following day (Monday evening), deluded US eBay seller sandersj85 re-listed his 7A38-7180 yet again ! This time as a 'Buy-it-Now' for 'only' $350 ! 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283445441543

The deluded US eBay seller sandersj85 subsequently reduced his 'pie-iin-the-sky' Buy-it-Now price twice in the following days, from $350 down to 'only' $260 (bearing in mind with the exception of his first blatantly obviously shilled auction, it had never legitimately been bid to anything like that figure).

In the early hours of this morning, he ended this latest re-listing (as he's done many times before) as item allegedly no longer available. Could this finally be the last we've seen of it ? 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283445441543

At the risk of repeating myself ....

This guy, US eBay seller sandersj85 is truly unbelieveable !! 

He re-listed his 7A38-7180 yet again at the weekend - reverting back to a 7-day $0.99 low-start auction with the previous ludicrous $650 Buy-it-Now option.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283458481786

Needless to say, somebody else probably took great delight in placing an opening bid and killing the absolutely ludicrous Buy-it-Now option. At the time of writing, bidding has reached the dizzy heights of $11.50.

Meanwhile, back in the real world ....

The 10-day UK eBay auction for the well-worn non-running 7A38-7180 ended on Saturday morning, selling for £59 after 7 bids.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/312567108043

The most recent 7-day auction listing for a 7A38-7180, by deluded US eBay seller sandersj85 ended in the early hours of this morning, with bidding @ $202.50.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283458481786

Needless to say, it was obviously shilled once again, from $100 up to the final bid price, won by the same Zero-feedback bidder (with 100% activity), who had won at least one of the previous auction re-listings. I wonder how many more times he's going to try and pull this stunt.

Seiko7A38 at April 1, 2019 at 6:07 PM

Speaking of laughably ridiculous over-optimistic asking prices ....

Earlier this evening, linguistically challenged UK eBay seller forpik listed yet another 7A38-7180 in average worn condition, with an equally risible 'pie-in-the-sky' Buy-it-Now price of £380 - and currently no option to make an offer.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233185994309

Seeing as UK eBay seller forpik had listed his ludicrously over-priced 7A38-7180 on the morning of April 1st, I did think about throwing in a quip about it being an April Fools' joke.  Seems he was serious and stuck by his guns. Much to my disbelief, that 7A38-7180 appears to have sold in the early hours of this morning, when somebody hit the Buy-it-Now button. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233185994309

As confirmed by the eBay Purchase History. The mind boggles. 

Buyer's Remorse or just plain old-fashioned Common Sense kicking in ? UK eBay seller forpik's ridiculously over-priced 7A38-7180 is back again, re-listed earlier this evening, with the risible 'pie-in-the-sky' Buy-it-Now price now slightly reduced from the previous £380 down to £350.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233217090224

Once again, less than 24 hours later, I find myself scratching my head in disbelief.  UK eBay seller forpik's slightly less ridiculously over-priced 7A38-7180 appears to have sold again, late last night.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233217090224

Checking the eBay Purchase History, it was supposedly bought by exactly the same eBay ID as last time - j***9 (658). 

Meanwhile, deluded would-be US eBay seller sandersj85 has once again re-listed his 7A38-7180, for the nth time, in a manner that actually almost borders on reality: this time as a Buy-it-Now for $200, with the option to make an offer. Thing is, will anybody in their right mind, dare venture to make an offer after witnessing all his prior shenanigans. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283473886587

This 7A38-7180, in much better than the usual average worn condition, was listed this morning by an Italian eBay seller with a sensible Buy-it-Now price of 199 Euros, or the option to make an offer. It may need a replacement crystal and sticky pushers sorting out, but in terms of wear to the vulnerable black chrome plating, this decent example has fared better than most. There's some loss on the 12 o'clock end of the watch case and slight rubbing wear to the rim of the bezel and the ends of a few bracelet links. This one deserves to sell quickly.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/293089726185

Seiko 7a38-7180 PVD cronografo molto ricercato con movimento 15 jewels di alta qualità. Non comune referenza con rivestimento PVD, in condizioni molto buone, segni di uso molto leggeri (i pvd si trovano di solito molto usurati). Movimento che funziona perfettamente (start, stop, split, reset), tiene il tempo benissimo. Leggeri segni su vetro. Tasti un po' induriti.

Seiko 7a38-7180 PVD, high quality 15 jewels movement. Nice condition, light signs of usage (not so common with pvd watches). Small marks on the glass,pushers a bit sticky. The movement runs well, chrono functions (start, stop, split and reset) working fine.

The above 7A38-7180, in better than average used condition, listed by an Italian eBay seller 2 days ago sold, reasonably quickly as I'd surmised, earlier this morning, although not for the Buy-it-Now price of 199 Euros.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/293089726185

WatchCount.com's look-up tool reveals it sold for a best offer of 160 Euros.

Seiko7A38 at May 5, 2019 at 9:09 AM

Meanwhile, deluded would-be US eBay seller sandersj85 has once again re-listed his 7A38-7180, for the nth time, in a manner that actually almost borders on reality: this time as a Buy-it-Now for $200, with the option to make an offer. Thing is, will anybody in their right mind, dare venture to make an offer after witnessing all his prior shenanigans. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283473886587

It would indeed appear that a few brave souls ventured to make offers on deluded US eBay seller sandersj85's latest re-listing for his much re-listed 7A38-7180, but all were declined or allowed to expire.

One can only assume those offers were all for less than $165, because that's the figure he was tendering as a counter-offer at one point (kindly forwarded to me).

It seems he eventually got lucky, early yesterday morning, when an eager mug punter hit the Buy-it-Now button and evidently paid the full $200 asking price. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283473886587

As would appear to be confirmed by this WatchCount.com search result:

Hopefully that really is the last we've seen of it, once and for all, this time !

Another well-worn 7A38-7180 was listed yesterday afternoon by a UK eBay seller, with a 'pie-in-the-sky' Buy-it-Now price of £150 or the option to make a lower more realistic offer. It didn't come up in any of my saved searches, because of the seller's typos in the title (duplicated in the description).

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362664690107

WELCOME TO MY EBAY!

ESTABLISHED IN 2008 - BUY WITH CONFIDENCE

THIS LISTING IS FOR:

A VINTAGE SEKIO CHRONOGRAPH 7838-7180 circa 1980's

CASE DIAMETER 37 mm DIAMETER

FULL WORKING ORDER

SLIGHT SCRATCH ON GLASS

GENERAL WEAR AND TEAR

NO BOX

BOX IS JUST FOR PICTURES

PLEASE READ:

ALL ITEMS I LIST ARE GENUINE. I DO NOT SELL REPLICA OR FAKE ITEMS

EVERY LISTING DESCRIPTION IS ACCURATE

ITEMS OF AGE WILL HAVE SIGNS OF WEAR AND USE

ANY DEFECT OR DAMAGE WILL BE MENTIONED IN THE LISTING

ITEMS SOLD FOR SPARES OR REPAIR ARE SOLD AS SEEN

NO RETURNS ACCEPTED

RETURNS ARE ONLY ACCEPTED IF THE ITEM DOES NOT MATCH THE DESCRIPTION GIVEN

This 'spares or repair' job lot pairing of a 7A38-7180, in typical well-worn condition, missing its crown and a stainless 7A38-7270, were listed this morning, by a UK eBay seller, as a 10-day auction, with an opening bid price of £40. The 7A38-7180 appears to be the same watch, case-back serial number 740175 cited at the top of this page under 'Darwin Awards', but at least now with the dial / movement installed the correct way up.  Although the 7A38-7270 has potentially bigger issues, being a rather more desirable model, it's likely to determine the pair's final selling price.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/123792999796

Two Seiko 7A38s for restoration / spare parts

The silver coloured one 7270

Time function works but chrono doesn't. Comes with a bracelet to fit approx 6.5" wrist, I believe this bracelet is original to the watch. The crystal is very scratched and the case has some scuffs but no major scratches. There are some small dings along the straight edge where the case meets the bracelet.

The black and gold one 7180

Missing a crown and appears not to work at all. The PVD is worn through in a few places on both the watch case and the bracelet. The bracelet appears full length and I'd guess it would be good to a 8"+ wrist.

I've done my best to honestly describe the condition of both watches, please refer to the photos to satisfy yourself as to the condition of the watches. If detail of condition is important do please contact me with questions or requests for more photos before bidding. You are buying two 40+ year old watches that both require work.

FWIW (not much, in terms of a meaningful individual result), the above 10-day UK eBay auction for a job lot pairing of a 7A38-7180 and stainless 7A38-7270 (both described as 'spares or repair projects') ended earlier this morning, selling for £149.97 after 16 bids.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/123792999796

Seiko7A38 at May 30, 2019 at 11:25 AM

Another well-worn 7A38-7180 was listed yesterday afternoon by a UK eBay seller, with a 'pie-in-the-sky' Buy-it-Now price of £150 or the option to make a lower more realistic offer. It didn't come up in any of my saved searches, because of the seller's typos in the title (duplicated in the description).

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362664690107

I hadn't previously bothered adding an update to this thread, but the UK eBay seller of the above quoted 7A38-7180 ended that Buy-it-Now listing last week, because of an error in the listing. Presumably the principal error was in their over-optimistic pricing. I noted that they'd corrected one other typo, but the mis-spelling of SEIKO (as SEKIO) still remained. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362664690107

They re-listed it almost immediately as a 7-day auction with a sensible opening bid price of £19.99.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362681584418

The 7-day auction ended a few moments ago, with the 7A38-7180 selling for £102 after 15 bids.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362681584418

Yesterday morning, Filipino Seiko collector ditoy_eagle posted a FS advert for a 7A38-7180 on SCWF's Trading post, with a somewhat over-optimistic (and 'FIRM') asking price of $450. 

http://www.thewatchsite.com/8-seiko-citizen-trading-post/330845.html

FS: Seiko 7A38-7180 Black/gold quartz chronograph, Dec. 1987 - $450

Although nicely photographed, it's really in no better than average worn condition, with the usual rubbing wear to the black chrome plating on the bluff ends of the watch case. Seeing this one, reminded me of another similar condition example, posted on the SCWF Trading Post last October, by Australian member Qship:

https://www.thewatchsite.com/8-seiko-citizen-trading-post/322311-fs-260-7a38-7180-black-gold.html

He'd subsequently reduced his asking price from $260 to $230 - that FS advert still hasn't been updated as 'SOLD'. 

Something a bit unusual - which I'm assuming belongs in this particular thread. Yesterday evening, a Polish eBay seller listed a used 'Black 710L' dial (without stating which 7A38 model it was from), with a somewhat over-optimistic Buy-it-Now price of £70. I must admit, when I first glanced at the listing I nearly mistook it for the 707L dial from the 7A38-705A 'Diver'. But of course there's no 'SPORTS 100' logo. Indeed, nothing so exciting; it looks like the 710L dial from a 7A38-7180 - either with a discoloured lower dial plate or badly photographed. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/323869989687

For Sale An Original Dial For SEIKO In Black

Fits For Seiko ref. 7a38-710L Watch

Diameter - 27,8 mm

Seiko7A38 at May 5, 2019 at 8:58 AM

Once again, less than 24 hours later, I find myself scratching my head in disbelief.  UK eBay seller forpik's slightly less ridiculously over-priced 7A38-7180 appears to have sold again, late last night.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233217090224

Checking the eBay Purchase History, it was supposedly bought by exactly the same eBay ID as last time - j***9 (658). 

The saga of deluded UK eBay seller forpik's grossly over-priced 7A38-7180 started as an April Fool's joke, near the bottom of the previous page, when he first listed it on April 1st, with a ludicrous 'pie-in-the-sky' Buy-it-Now price of £380. Four months later, it's back on eBay again, re-listed again this lunchtime - at the same price.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233303575051

Earlier this morning, German eBay seller silversurfer365 (a.k.a. Carlo 'ketap') jumped onto the bandwagon for speculatively over-priced 7A38-7180's, listing this average worn example with a 'pie-in-the-sky' Buy-it-Now price of 299 Euros - or the option to make a lower more sensible offer. I doubt that'll make any difference. Like the majority of his listings, I expect it'll be ended as 'item no longer available'.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/273954172873

Habe noch andere tolle klassische Seikos eingestellt. 7A38

...volle Funktion der Uhrzeit und Chronographenzeiger mit Selbsttest und Justage.

Volle Funktion, frischer Service vom Uhrmacher.

Durchmesser ohne Krone um die 37mm mit Lineal gemessen.

Das Gehäuse, Band und Schliesse haben recht wenig Tragespuren und wenig Abrieb für dieses Modell welches man gut auf ebay hier vergleichen kann.

Just to recap, apart from UK eBay seller forpik re-listing his again yesterday:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233303575051

There's this one, first listed by Dutch eBay seller watches-and-parts, nearly two years ago, at the end of August 2017 - still unsold.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/332361699813

and the latest re-listing, a couple of days ago, by US eBay seller vanman2usa:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/163798113924

That one, is of course the 'Grand Daddy of them all'. The original '4U2Fix' listing dates back well over 10 years !!