Seiko service

[Golden Ellipse]

Good afternoon all. When your Seiko needs a service, where do you send it? Official service center or an independent?

[Old Expat Beast]

I use the official service centre for modern service and five-yearly monobloc-case battery replacement/pressure testing on Tunas, and Michael Young (classicwatchrepair.com) for vintage pieces.

[scarlet knight]

I brought my Seiko chrono to Seiko service in Mahwah, NJ last year. The screw collars around the pushers are stuck. It is as clear as day. They sent the watch back to me and stated that they could not find anything wrong. They literally do not screw open.

[SunTzu]

Originally Posted by scarlet knight

I brought my Seiko chrono to Seiko service in Mahwah, NJ last year. The screw collars around the pushers are stuck. It is as clear as day. They sent the watch back to me and stated that they could not find anything wrong. They literally do not screw open.

My Arnie reissue chrono buttons are literally welded closed around the threads. I can not unscrew them even if a gun was pointed at my head. I wrapped in a cloth and tried pliers! Sent to Seiko in Mahwah at the start of the pandemic and almost 6 months later they got back to me indicating it's unrepairable and will be replacing with a new one under their warranty terms. That was 3 weeks ago. Waiting for an update on when it will be mailed.

I would not trust Seiko at all with any repair including battery and pressure testing. I have a trusted third generation watchmaker whose work and ethics are impeccable and he handles every Seiko repair/service/restoration. Plus he doesn't charge me for batteries/gaskets/pressure testing on my quartzs. We'll see when my Tuna needs a battery.

I would seek out a trusted independent watchmaker to handle the work.

[HogwldFLTR]

So what is the service interval on a Spring Drive; does anyone know off hand?

[Old Expat Beast]

Seiko Service Centre in Hong Kong is great. It's operated by Thong Sia, which has been the Seiko distributor and service agent for Seiko here and in SE Asia since the early 1960s. They do free battery and PT on GS and charge about $20 for Tunas, which takes about an hour or so on a good day. They also used to make the Stelux bracelets for Seiko, and are located in Stelux House, where there are usually some interesting Seiko displays. You can see the watchmaker workstations, too, and they're much friendlier than the RSC.

[toxicavenger]

Originally Posted by SunTzu

My Arnie reissue chrono buttons are literally welded closed around the threads. I can not unscrew them even if a gun was pointed at my head. I wrapped in a cloth and tried pliers! Sent to Seiko in Mahwah at the start of the pandemic and almost 6 months later they got back to me indicating it's unrepairable and will be replacing with a new one under their warranty terms. That was 3 weeks ago. Waiting for an update on when it will be mailed.

I would not trust Seiko at all with any repair including battery and pressure testing. I have a trusted third generation watchmaker whose work and ethics are impeccable and he handles every Seiko repair/service/restoration. Plus he doesn't charge me for batteries/gaskets/pressure testing on my quartzs. We'll see when my Tuna needs a battery.

I would seek out a trusted independent watchmaker to handle the work.

Unfortunately a lot of service times in the US have been like that. NJ was actually shut down for quite a while due to the governor's orders.

[AEC]

Originally Posted by Old Expat Beast

Seiko Service Centre in Hong Kong is great. It's operated by Thong Sia, which has been the Seiko distributor and service agent for Seiko here and in SE Asia since the early 1960s. They do free battery and PT on GS and charge about $20 for Tunas, which takes about an hour or so on a good day. They also used to make the Stelux bracelets for Seiko, and are located in Stelux House, where there are usually some interesting Seiko displays. You can see the watchmaker workstations, too, and they're much friendlier than the RSC.

Sounds pretty neat. I wish there were more of this in the world (okay, selfishly, in the USA).

[HogwldFLTR]

Originally Posted by HogwldFLTR

So what is the service interval on a Spring Drive; does anyone know off hand?

I'll assume wear it till it breaks is the planned interval. I can't find a thing on line.

[HogwldFLTR]

OK, I found a lot of information on WUS with answers from Grand Seiko.

https://www.watchuseek.com/threads/f...rvice.4203962/

[Golden Ellipse]

Good resources all, thanks. My son has run his Seiko 5 into the ground. So we are going to send it back in for service...time to reinforce the object lessons about “repair not replace” and the cost of service. :)

[Jim M]

Picked up a vintage H558-500A orange Arnie recently from him that he did all the work on and it is just fine.

I have used Duarte at NEWW (New England Watch Works) in past but understand he is no longer doing service.

Look Jack up and ask.

[JTL31]

Originally Posted by HogwldFLTR

OK, I found a lot of information on WUS with answers from Grand Seiko.

https://www.watchuseek.com/threads/f...rvice.4203962/

Thanks for posting this Lee! Much appreciated