# Seiko ............ from India



## Wheelnut69 (Dec 20, 2017)

What's the score with multitude of eBay watches purporting to be Seiko (all from India) for around £15?

Are they blatant fakes or refurbed watches?


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## borobiffa (Mar 9, 2013)

I don't have an answer, but I've noticed the same thing (I'm currently looking for a yellow face seiko chronograph and there's loads of seikos from india clogging up the listings). Without wanting to hijack your thread, I've also noticed that there are lots of Breitlings that are available from Japan - again not sure if these are fakes or refurbs - any experts out there?


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## Mart (Sep 2, 2010)

India has a bit of a reputation for poorly executed 'refurbs' available at rock bottom prices. Caveat emptor


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## RWP (Nov 8, 2015)

Got a Seiko five from India given to me on here. Put a new second hand on it and a new crystal. Runs like sewing machine, dates fro 83. :thumbsup:


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## Wheelnut69 (Dec 20, 2017)

RWP said:


> Got a Seiko five from India given to me on here. Put a new second hand on it and a new crystal. Runs like sewing machine, dates fro 83. :thumbsup:


 Have you took the back off to see what's there?


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## RWP (Nov 8, 2015)

Wheelnut69 said:


> Have you took the back off to see what's there?


 Back off  . I only discovered by accident the day changes by pressing the crown in. The watchmaker had the back off.....Seiko 5 movement as expected, probably not originally in that watch but it is also OK. 

.


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## Wheelnut69 (Dec 20, 2017)

So is the consensus that they're parts bin refurbs rather than fakes?


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## Perlative Cernometer (Jan 1, 2018)

Seem to be a complete gamble tbh, I'm sure there are decent sellers but there is a thriving market of marriages of whatever working parts come to hand with some distinctly non original paint jobs on the dials as often as not. I went through a few of those cheap Indian auction watches just to test the waters and I don't think I got anything that kept usable time, and opening them up there were faces that obviously didn't quite fit cases, case backs that only approximately fitted the fronts, and handmade tin spacers to keep the movement in place. Having said that I went for older Swiss name stuff, Seiko 5s are probably a better bet than buying Swiss brands from there as they're plentiful enough that you'll probably get a roughly matching case and movement, and they do survive neglect pretty well. Don't spend any more than you're prepared to lose and you could come away with a bargain.


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## Chromejob (Jul 28, 2006)

Wheelnut69 said:


> What's the score with multitude of eBay watches purporting to be Seiko (all from India) for around £15?
> 
> Are they blatant fakes or refurbed watches?


 They're known as sources for "franken watches," i.e. a Seiko watch resurrected from parts from different models, repainted dials, et al. Can't paint every seller in India with this brush, that wouldn't be fair, but it seems common. Proceed with extreme caution.


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## WRENCH (Jun 20, 2016)

I've bought three watches from India. Two were utter garbage. One, a Seiko 5 coincidentally, was unmolested and worked perfectly well. It looked unworn.


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## niveketak (Jun 11, 2016)

If you look at enough of them you will see a hell of a lot of the cases are exactly the same whether it has Seiko or Ricoh watch parts in it. They also frequently have a mask around the face usually grey as the movement doesn't fit so well. I had one of each bought in my very early days of collecting and both worked fine until the rotor started catching on a loose bit of metal in the watch.


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## scottswatches (Sep 22, 2009)

If anyone is unsure why so many need redials then you should factor in usually poor servicing combined with high humidity experienced in much of India. So the watches fill with condensation, which wrecks the dial and as you can see that bit they repaint it.

The movement you can't see, so it is often left.

Best of luck


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## longplay (Sep 27, 2017)

Allwyn, an Indian watch manufacturer, produced watches using a licence from Seiko -- so what you're likely seeing is rebadged Allwyns because Seiko is a better-known brand. The movements were basically the same.

The easiest way to tell is by looking at the logo and checking for a movement reference at the bottom of the dial.

More often than not they come in loud colours too -- colours not usually available in the Seiko range and I assume designed to appear to the colourful Indian market (greens, reds, yellow, light blues).

Citizen did the same (under the state-owned HMT brand) and you can find a lot of Citizen Eagle 7s from there too. Similar story but I find it harder to tell real from fake.

There are a few other brands India seems to be notorious for tweaking -- I've seen plenty of Favre-Leuba's with the incorrect movement in.

Not saying these are bad per-se, but just go in with your eyes open.


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## Wheelnut69 (Dec 20, 2017)

longplay said:


> Not saying these are bad per-se, but just go in with your eyes open.


 No real intention of buying one - they're not my cup of tea. Just curious really.


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## RWP (Nov 8, 2015)

Wheelnut69 said:


> No real intention of buying one - they're not my cup of tea. Just curious really.


 Fun for peanuts........mine is great


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