Seiko 7A38 - by the numbers

Seiko7A38 wrote: ↑Sun May 23, 2021 10:07 am

Seiko7A38 wrote: ↑Sun May 16, 2021 10:08 am What follows blue SATurdays ? Red SUNdays, naturally. ...

My almost NOS condition Cartier Ferrari Formula Cal. 531 model # F6434801 gets an outing this weekend.

No apology for re-posting my Cartier Ferrari Formula Cal. 531 model # 6434801. It's deliberately intended to be topical.

Wearing this well-worn beater gold-tone 7A38-7260 SAA100J, fitted with a cheap Lizard grain leather strap this morning, while I'm working on another. This is the one that survived the 'cull', per my post in the old forum's model thread, back in June 2020. Both watches had suffered significant loss of gold plating from their bezels and lugs. With hindsight, I'm not sure I made the right choice as to which one got 'the chop'. I suspect I was probably swayed by the strap colour.

This is the post I was referring to:


It was indeed the more well-worn of those two 7A38-7260's, on the right, which simply for expediency's sake, I robbed of its dial / movement to use in the sample case build. Then I swapped the straps over, which may have confused you. Note the last sentence of my second post. Call me a sentimental old Hector, but I've just re-constructed it !!


Apart from fitting a movement to the sample case dial (which is probably what I should have done in the first place), it's also been treated to a better secondhand bezel. Still no better than a beater, but a better beater than it was before.

Just briefly trying on this Loris Azzaro H900 this morning - for no other reason than you might have guessed, I've just replaced its battery. This one hardly ever gets worn, because apart from being borderline fugly, it's fitted with the original Loris Azzaro branded blue shark strap, which I've already had to make one (superglue) repair to (bottom LH).


These watches were manufactured by C.G.H. (a.k.a Yema / Seiko France), for the French fashion house Loris Azzaro, so naturally they use the Shimauchi V906 re-branded 7A38 movement. Some examples were sold as perfume promotions.


The watch case is basically the same one used in Kamatz 51xxxx's, but fitted with a different bezel and domed crystal. Incidentally, I'm still looking for a blue dialed version of the H900, which I'm certain must exist, because it was Loris Azzaro's favourite colour. so if you ever see one offered for sale, please let me know.

Possibly an odd choice of mid-week wear - a JAZ N8YZ669 Panda. Just wanted to show that mine don't go unloved.

I’ve got to add this subdued WRUW watch to get away from Paul’s “Disco” rendering above…
Seiko 7A38-706B. Purchased from Italy a few years ago thanks to a heads up by Paul.


And I can’t forget the buckle.

Paul's post reminded me I hadn't posted a shot of a recent 'off piste' acquisition, that he kindly helped me with (by once again acting as forwarding agent). It's the distinctly odd two-tone 7A34-7000 S23172J, with the 120° date window.


I bought it on a whim, off eBay in the States last month. It's generally in average worn condition and everything works as it should, but there are a few minor niggling issues. The crystal has a couple of almost negligible scratches, but it's not a standard flat 31.0mm Ø crystal, as I'd expected. Transpires it's a 'special' with a shallow domed profile, Seiko p/n 310W70JK01, which appears to be unique to the 7A34-7000. It might not be immediately obvious (at the time shown in my photo), but the hour and minute hands are out of alignment, relative to each other by a few degrees. Someone has evidently pulled and re-fitted them at some point and in doing so left a couple of small marks on the dial surface. The 1/10s sub-dial hand is not the original, but a generic replacement. Frankly I'm annoyed with myself, for failing to spot these flaws in eBay seller's primary image.

Ok, I think I’ve got this resizing thing down. I’m using picResize, selecting 50% and then sending it to my “photos”. Open up Imgur and download the picture, hit ‘copy to post link’ and come back to the forum.
Let’s give my Seiko 7A38-7060 a try.



Looks good from here.
And Paul I noticed that slightly scratched domed crystal and remembered I had two Seiko crystals 320W10GN00. I was going to send them along but in my diligence to ‘add lightness’ they didn’t make it! However I see now that that watch calls for a 31mm crystal.
(I’ll send them along later)

Here's another distinctive but decidedly fugly watch that passed through Paul's hands en route to me two years ago. My collection of Kamatz's runs into dozens, but this is my sole example of the scarcer, elusive 519000 'Tango Charlie' variant*, to date. I really must get around to touching up the missing bezel numbering sometime.


Incidentally, I'm still not sure of the rotating bezel's function. It's presumably some sort of elapsed flight time calculator. I asked the question on the professional pilot's forum, PPruNe.org years ago, only to be met with stony silence. However I later learned from this helpful reply in a thread on TZ-UK, that VS means 'Stall Speed'.

*At least 2 other versions of the 'Tango Charlie' exist, with different bezel VS number ranges (120 - 130 and 160 - 170).
Edit: make that 'at least 3'. I'd forgotten that I'd also found another 519000 variant with a 140 - 150 bezel on Instagram.

Afternoon swap for a rather more attractive Kamatz 518000 'Oscar Bravo'. Or at least I think it's less ugly, anyway.

Wearing one of my old firm favourite Yema Spationaute III Aragatz's, nicknamed 'Grande Blue' (for obvious reasons) on this slightly hazy blue SATurday morning. The matching blue shark strap is a French made Fleurus 'Requin Véritable'.

Speaking, as I was earlier, of Yema Spationaute III Aragatz's with yellowed lume; something that I personally regard as a less desirable attribute, here's by far my yellowest example of the breed, which naturally goes by the pet nickname of 'Old Yeller'. The garish yellow (tricoleur lined) gommatex strap is a Morellato 'Kajak'.

I should first confess that I'm not actually wearing my NOS JDM 7A38-6050 SJS058 this red SUNday morning, but thought I'd post a couple of wrist shots I took recently (showing the correct day / date).


After a 6 month lapse, I've recently started working on my Instagram feed again. I'm gradually uploading them in model number order. When it came to the 7A38-6050, having searched through my folders, I decided I needed a better photo of my second NOS example. I wasn't satisfied with the wrist shots I'd taken earlier this year, so last weekend, when the subdued natural daylight seemed ideal, I had another session. I ended up taking dozens of photos. The above were my best results. The first is almost devoid of the usual annoying reflections in the crystal, so I uploaded that to Instagram.

After my recent rash of re-branded variants, I thought I'd start the new week / month with a few 'classic' Seiko 7A38's.
Some of these watches will already have been posted earlier in the thread. Not in any particular order of preference, but I'll begin with the stainless 7A38-7020 SAA009J, which has certainly been 'flavour of the month' for the last year.

Seiko7A38 wrote: ↑Mon Nov 01, 2021 10:35 amSome of these watches will already have been posted earlier in the thread.

These couple of photos aren't any improvement on my previous wrist shots of my stainless 7A38-7000 SAA007J's. Quite the opposite. This is my best condition example, which I wasn't sure if I'd posted before. They hardly do it justice.

Slightly later than usual (I delayed hoping the sun might eventually break through later this morning). Fat chance - if it wasn't too early in the season, the overcast skies are looking like it might snow. Here's a couple of wrist shots of one of my better 'second string' examples of the 7A38-7010 SAA001J, which Simon serviced for me last year.

Some may not consider this a 'classic' 7A38, but the stainless 7A38-7289 SAA109J has become one of my firm favourites.

One of my better examples of 7A38-7070 SAA031J 'diver', an early production version, with the 'polished edge' hands.

Wearing this diminutive, but ever popular classic 7A38-6000 SAA039J on this dull overcast blue SATurday morning.

From the smallest 'diver' to the largest @ 43mm Ø, I'm wearing my stainless 7A38-6020 SAA041J for this red SUNday.