top or flop ? pulsar date command..UPDATE 17/03/2012

[Kasper]

http://forums.watchuseek.com/f29/reduce ... 13959.html

110 dollar..shipment included...deal or not:-)

[retrowrist]

ok,

Looks like a deal, but only if it is fixable obviously. I read the thread, interesting story behind the watch, but I did not read anything as to what may be wrong with the module (Dead Battery). What I really mean is that the case looks in descent condition, and will be useful if there was more wrong with the watch aside from a dead battery.

Anyway,

- Patrick

[SASM]

Take it! And tell the analog guy he´s in the wrong forum. Would have offered more for his P3.

[LED]

As he writes dead batteries have been in there for 15 years the module may well be shot + beyond repair.

[SASM]

@LED Well do you believe him? What a nice fairytale he is telling for just 80 bucks. I think he should make the price of the watch higher again and start to explain a few details about the injuries, friendship and what they have done in the 14 days they stood together...

A P3 Pulsar Date/Command from 1973 bought in Switzerland, the home of Omega? Incredible!

But 100USD is a good price for non-workers. I would pay that for nearly every complete Pulsar with a defective module and good crystal.

[Kasper]

@LED Well do you believe him? What a nice fairytale he is telling for just 80 bucks. I think he should make the price of the watch higher again and start to explain a few details about the injuries, friendship and what they have done in the 14 days they stood together...

A P3 Pulsar Date/Command from 1973 bought in Switzerland, the home of Omega? Incredible!

But 100USD is a good price for non-workers. I would pay that for nearly every complete Pulsar with a defective module and good crystal.

you said it all 84 + 10 euro import duties...is a good price even for a non working p3.

[cobra007]

I wouldn't trust it. A bit strange if you ask me, I don't have a battery but you can buy one on amazon for $5. I guess if you want to sell the watch, for sure you want to get it working as it will increase the value by much more than the $5 battery investment.
I would say, this watch is as dead as a dodo
Michel

[retrowrist]

Kasper,

When you have this watch in hand, do this (if you have the time), post the real-time actual photos of what the inside and the module looks like. I would be interested, if there was an attempt to fix this watch, or if the seller just truly wanted to get rid of it. Anyway, like I said before it looks to be a descent Pulsar case, gold-tone and all, but really, some photos would be really great because there has been some talk about this watch for a few days now.

Anyway,

- Patrick

[Kasper]

offcourse i will do 'unpacking and first view' pictures, so this means you asked the guy that the watch was sold or not...

i bought it the same day that i saw it and knew the price..like i said 110 dollar..all included. it takes 2 weeks to deliver here.

[retrowrist]

Great! I am curious as a Vulcan in Springtime.

- Mr. Spock, oops, I mean Patrick

[LEDluvr]

I hope it is at least repairable Kasper..... we are all waiting with baited breath.

Great! I am curious as a Vulcan in Springtime.

- Mr. Spock, oops, I mean Patrick

As long as it's only Springtime and not Pon Farr time !

[Kasper]

at last after being in customs in belgium for 14 days, it arrives at my doorstep.

after trying for 2 hours to get it open..the results are : FLOP You can't win them all





even the lightsensor has come loose



i let it dry for one day and tried again..and it would not work with that case..so i put it in another case that i use to experiment with..and look..one segment is working.
it's the case with special mirrored gold glass that i've made a few months ago..damn looks nice

[SASM]

The display seems to be OK, so this watch is no flop at all :) Hanno.

[bucko170]

Those original batteries have sure created a mess some heavy cleaning work to do but with a new SASM module it has to be a winner!

[retroleds]

I'm failing to see how that will be a win - acquisition cost + work + SASM module. And you still have a rough case and glass. Market value of less than $300? I have at least 100 cases in that condtion in my scrap gold bin, just not worth the effort to reload. Certainly not with an OEM movement or one of Hanno's. MAybe if you frankenstien a Sanyo board onto it yourself. Or a National Semi board - I agree with Peter Wenzig that if you can live with the slightly smaller display, that is a very bullet-proof board. Once you've replaced their infamously poor quartz crystals.

[bucko170]

Winner as in 'happy with original purchase', you know me I'm not one to piss on anyone's parade

[bruce wegmann]

I don't know, as far as I can tell, this one flops like a dying fish... Personally, I NEVER buy anything on eBay unless..
1. It's absolutely, positively in good working condition (cosmetic issues, I can deal with).
2. It's something really valuable that's going rediculously cheap (doesn't happen often, but DOES happen, 3 times so far).
3. It's a model I don't have, or in a box I don't have (almost never happens any more).
4. It's something in better condition than what I have (again, almost never happens any more).
5. It's solid gold (working condition doesn't matter when the value is embodied in the watch itself).

Finally...

6. Never "panic bid". Another of whatever it was will be along eventually...maybe even a better, cheaper one. Think or say what you will about eBay; it's greatest virtue is the sheer number of things for sale at any given moment (currently, for example, there are over 1.000.000 "watch" listings).

Haven't been disappointed since I started following those rules. Really, I'm amazed at the amount of money I see being spent on "possible" or "maybe" watches in the hope of somehow hammering them back into working condition. Just my opinion, but seems like an unproductive expenditure of resources...still, if you simply enjoy the tinkering, I guess it's better than blowing the cash on booze or drugs.

[retroleds]

Winner as in 'happy with original purchase', you know me I'm not one to piss on anyone's parade

Well, you make a good point Mick - if kasper is happy, then it wasn't a flop. The Sale price wasn't torture ($80?) and if you are planning on making a number of home-brewed mods and wear it rather then sell if, then who cares about value? I was thinking in the terribly boring seller/collector vein. I made a major non-reversible modification to an expensive, brand new guitar a few weeks ago -someone told me I am a fool, I have ruined the value. To which I countered, "but what of the value to ME, I enjoy it now?"

Wife : "do these pants make my arse look fat?"
Husband:"Yes, but I like that."
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

[retrowrist]

I agree with Bruce Wegmann on the eBay issue.

I have had nothing but bad experiences on eBay lately. The last Seiko I bought, I spent way to much on, and I was sorely disappointed. Although a 0662 is somewhat rare, the module was not in good working condition, and I have tried to fix it without any changes.

I think you have to have really a lot of time and experience to fix any electronics at the engineering level. As far as Kasper's Pulsar, I think it was a risk to buy from the start because who knows what would have been inside of the case after 15 years. It looks like the batteries did leak, and I wonder if those batteries were the mercury kind. If I was wealthy, I would do as Bruce Wegmann said, and ONLY buy guarantees. NOS is pretty much a guarantee, but they are almost all very expensive.

Like I have said before, eBay sellers arn't always accurate about an auction they have listed.

Anyway, this thread is very interesting.

- Patrick

[bruce wegmann]

I would have to give Kasper's Date/Command 2nd Place Award for Worst Leaking Battery Damage. I have seen an Omega TC2 with the inside encrusted with sickly-green goop that resembled the alien microbes in the Andromeda Strain. The module was actually crumbling to bits, and the corrosive electrolyte had even lightly etched the inside of the glass. Believe it or not, it IS possible to remove this and neutralize the alkaline residue (this is a MUST, if another module is going into that case!). This watch had clearly been sealed and neglected for many years; in such an environment, battery chemicals can work much evil magic; free alkali can even dissolve gold.
However, that said, it is an error to always equate -cosmetic- condition with -working- condition. Some of the worst beat-up Pulsars I have seen functioned perfectly, and new-looking ones were as dead as the dinosaurs. Much depended on whether it was stored with old batteries in it, or not. And, there is the issue of static electricity, which has probably killed more digital watches than leaking batteries (and, without doing any cosmetic damage, which accounts for the new-looking dead ones).
Now, aside from the sad fact that there are NO "guarantees" on eBay, mostly for the above reasons, the use of the term "NOS" should NOT be construed as a description of perfect condition. It is, rather, a description of the history of the watch, that is: Purchased by a retailer for re-sale to the public, but never sold, and stored away. Many European watch sellers call this "dead stock", or unsold-and-unsellable. There is no unambiguous inference that can be drawn about what the watch still looks like (I have seen NOS watches that were badly stored, and were in terrible cosmetic condition!). All the gold watches I got from New York were, in the traditional sense, NOS, but, with handling and storage, only a tiny minority (half a dozen or so, out of nearly 70) were still in "mint" condition. So, while NOS is commonly used interchangeably with "mint" (another overused but at least condition-explicit term), it really should not be. The pictures are the best guide to what is being offered...and you need to look closely at what they're showing. In general, the higher the price of the item, the more pics I like to see (check out some of the Patek and Rolex listings...it's almost pornographic!) If you don't see enough, ask for more, and if the seller declines, spend your money elsewhere, unless you already see something that makes it clear to you that this is still a good deal (with LEDs, especially, I think it should be mandatory that the readout be switched on in such a way as to show every segment and digit illuminated).
Oh, and finally, you don't need to be "wealthy" to put some really nice things in your collection; just careful, and selective...and patient (a little luck doesn't hurt, but the first three things are completely within your control; the luck part isn't).

[retrowrist]

bruce wegmann,

Thanks for the accurate description on NOS, and it makes since to. The definition you made of NOS is right. I bought some things described as NOS, and all turned out ok, I guess I was lucky (one of your criterion). Anyway, I certainly am not wealthy or lucky, but Careful or patient...maybe? But, how can one be careful? How would you possibly get a winning bid for a MINT 0634, when it is announced to the ebay world, and everyone knows about it? Look...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-SEIKO-L ... 256dcaba89

Here is what I am trying to say. If I know that a watch looks MINT and all functions are working like the one in the above auction is, then everyone else should...right? Does luck come in when the seller miss-list it in the wrong category? Does careful come in when a person wells-up all their PayPal funds, waiting for a MID/low priced BIN listing shows up and grabs it? Does a patient eBayr finally get that rare Rolex LED when 10 years go bye, and it finally shows itself for a 7-day listing?

I have had such poor luck bidding on eBay, that I am discouraged and very reluctant to bid on watches any longer. I do trust people in this forum to buy from, not because all of you are my friends, but because there is a since of ethics here, that does NOT exist on eBay at times. Now, I realize that I am comparing oranges to apples to a certain extent, but still, when I hear other people say, "Wow, I go this descent 0634 on eBay, and I picked it up for $5.00 USD!" They then put a battery in it, and WOW, it works and it turns into a great deal! I would be totally satisfied with this strategy, and outcome and live with it every time, but it seems beyond my reach for some reason. I am sure the book "eBay mastering" has already been published, so I will not bother trying to devote my entire life to the study of mastering eBay, before that happens, I will give up the hope I could ever win anything of worth, and probable love it.

Sorry to ramble on, but I am starting to learn my lesson the hard way, and may have to go cold turkey.

- Patrick

[retroleds]

Well, understand there is also a certain amount puffing that some people do, " I got that P4 for $150". Which was ok, until I checked the number and realized the guy was referencing a piece that I had won. Idiot!

But yeah, takes luck and a lot of diligence. Personally I don't like to brag about the great deals, as it would work against my sales and frankly would just dishearten some people, which is unnecessary. DId I really get a fully boxed Wells for $75 on a BIN - yep, had only been up 8 minutes. Did I get a flawless Novus (the one with the rectangular glass from edge to edge) for $33 - yep, person took picture with cell phone or something, looked like hell in auction, I thought I was just buying a module. But those are the good ones - have also bought several thousand dollars worth of duds.

Weirdest auction I was surprised capped out so freakin early: about 3 years ago some guys was selling a box of Pulsars, 30+ pieces. All looked like hell. I won it for $900-ish. The lot contained: 18 working P2 & P3 movements, 2 working green movements, a couple of wrking P4s and 2 solid gold(case, #2975) P2s. You have to play to win.