Seiko SARB035 - best place to buy from

[Plastic]

After looking for a while for a watch I can wear every day to work with a suit I think I am going to purchase the Seiko SARB035. I'd be grateful if you could advise as to where is the best place to buy from. I believe they're imported so I presume I'd need to pay tax. All help appreciated.

[beechcustom]

I bought one in February from http://www.seiyajapan.com/. Excellent service! It got sent out pretty much straight away (UK customs took about 7 days to process and send it out to me once it had landed in the UK). You will absolutely certainly incur customs and handling charges though since Seiya is completely honest when marking up the package (some suppliers put fake values on to reduce or avoid customs charges). Also, Seiya's wtahces all come with the original and complete packaging, unlike some other suppliers.

My Sarb035 came to me at just over 301GBP after customs and handling charges were added.

EDIT: By the way it is a Japanese Domestic Market model and is not sold in the UK, so your only option for a new one is to import. Great choice of watch IMO. It's certainly dressy but I've actually strated to wear mine with jeans and a t-shirt so I'd say it's pretty versatile.

[robert75]

I bought my SARB 33 (Which is the black version of the 35) From Chino Japan. No problems at all and an authorised dealer so all cards were stamped etc. Took about a week to arrive however, recently I had a look at the website as I was thinking of getting another watch from him and it says he doesn't ship to Europe so you may want to drop him an e-mail to confirm this.

Another Japanese seller who is also on ebay is shoppinginjapan. Not bought from them but the prices seem very good.

[MackThePen]

I have bought from Seiya on more than one occasion - the service is excellent; if you have any questions beforehand he gets back to you quickly. Delivery to the UK was a matter of days, but there was the issue of paying Import Duty - if I remember correctly I paid when I collected from the Courier depot, but you can also pay on-line.

Andrew

[bva]

Also bought from Seiya. Great service and fast delivery to Australia.

[MackThePen]

I should add that I have always found these higher grade (?mid grade) Seikos to be excellent value, and first class quality. I currently use a Seiko Spirit bracelet on my Tudor, because the quality is much better than Tudor's own offering. The only down side (for me) is that the watches are a bit thicker than Swiss offerings. However, hand winding is a joy, making ETAs seem quite agricultural in comparison.

Andrew

[Glen Goyne]

You could consider solojapan on eBay, he ships from spain so no additional taxes. He has good reviews on ebay and other fora. I have a watch on its way from him, hasn't yet arrived so hard to make a firm recommendation. His price was great.

[jp-t853]

Always worth a look on ebay for UK sales. This one was a bit odd but looked like a bargain

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Seiko-Sarb...vip=true&rt=nc

[Zigster]

Always worth a look on ebay for UK sales. This one was a bit odd but looked like a bargain

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Seiko-Sarb...vip=true&rt=nc

I'll let you know what it's like when it turns up!

Seriously - the wife puts the kybosh on me buying a new watch at the moment (I might sneak one in later this year for my birthday) so I decide to try out one of those flavour of the month Orients. For some reason, I get sidetracked and end up putting in a last minute bid on something different: a SARB035.

I agree the wording of the advert was a bit odd (why show it with a clearly ill-fitting strap?), but good feedback on the seller and some details such as purchase price and amount of import taxes paid made it sound above board. I'll find out later this week ...

There was another one sold an hour or so later - slightly cheaper but posted from Denmark , I think.

[jp-t853]

Excellent.

I saw it yesterday and was very very tempted. I had a busy evening and forgot about it until lunch time today.

Glad you got it with no other bids involved.

[himmelblau]

The only down side (for me) is that the watches are a bit thicker than Swiss offerings.

Am I reading this wrong? The SARB035 case thickness is 11.2mm and the thickness of the case on a Rolex 16200 DJ is 12mm.

[himmelblau]

Zigster,

Enjoy your SARB035. if you wish to wear it on a leather strap the lug width is 20mm, having the bracelet and a leather strap gives you two very different watches.

[Backward point]

Coincidentally, mine arrived* today. Or rather I went and collected it from Parcelfarce and paid them £61.something for VAT and "Handling Charge".

First impressions? It's superb. Slightly smaller in diameter than I'm used to, but looks and feels like a quality product. Beautifully finished case, with a combination of polished and brushed finishes.

The bracelet is nice and solid, with solid end links, but adjustment is by means of Seiko's irritating pin and collar system, so involves lots of swearing.

I never intended to keep mine on the bracelet anyway, and I'm lining up a mid/dark brown leather strap, but for the time being i've put it on a brown Hirsch croc.

The slightly creamy dial, when viewed under a loupe, is a thing of wonder.

It's a Grand Seiko on a budget.


* Edited to add that mine came from Creation, who have it on offer at the moment.

[beechcustom]

People are suggesting putting the Sarb035 on leather. I agree, it does look good on leather, particularly those of tan and brown hues, but even they are nowhere near as nice as the original bracelet IMO. Plus, a word of warning to anyone who is as DIY challenged as I appear to be:

I found swapping the bracelet over to the brown Hirsch Liberty strap I had bought for it to be nothing short of a traumatic experience. Having realised that the bracelet was the way to go I had an equally difficult time trying to get it back on the watch. In fact, the bracelet never seated into the lugs properly and there was always some suspicious movement of the end links whenever I flexed my wrist.

As it turns out, the bracelet was actually faulty (seperate issue - it was faulty centre links not the end links) so it was replaced under warranty by Seiko UK. My watch, on its new bracelet, is now solid and good as new. Had it not been for this warranty work though, I don't think the original bracelet would be seated properly to this day. I even took it to an experienced watch repairer and they failed to seat the end links correctly too so there must be something particularly awkward about this design. Indeed, when I spoke to the manager who was dealing with my repair at Seiko UK, she agreed that it was a very fiddly task! I certainly won't be attempting to take the bracelet off again!

One other thing, new Sarb035s like mine have the updated 6R15C movement in them that is apparently a better timekeeper than the older 'B' movement. Not sure when the upgraded movement first made it into the Sarb035 but worth knowing if you are considering a used model.

[himmelblau]

Agree about fitting and removing the bracelet and would suggest using this type of tool, or something similar:

[robert75]

People are suggesting putting the Sarb035 on leather. I agree, it does look good on leather, particularly those of tan and brown hues, but even they are nowhere near as nice as the original bracelet IMO. Plus, a word of warning to anyone who is as DIY challenged as I appear to be:

I found swapping the bracelet over to the brown Hirsch Liberty strap I had bought for it to be nothing short of a traumatic experience. Having realised that the bracelet was the way to go I had an equally difficult time trying to get it back on the watch. In fact, the bracelet never seated into the lugs properly and there was always some suspicious movement of the end links whenever I flexed my wrist.

As it turns out, the bracelet was actually faulty (seperate issue - it was faulty centre links not the end links) so it was replaced under warranty by Seiko UK. My watch, on its new bracelet, is now solid and good as new. Had it not been for this warranty work though, I don't think the original bracelet would be seated properly to this day. I even took it to an experienced watch repairer and they failed to seat the end links correctly too so there must be something particularly awkward about this design. Indeed, when I spoke to the manager who was dealing with my repair at Seiko UK, she agreed that it was a very fiddly task! I certainly won't be attempting to take the bracelet off again!

One other thing, new Sarb035s like mine have the updated 6R15C movement in them that is apparently a better timekeeper than the older 'B' movement. Not sure when the upgraded movement first made it into the Sarb035 but worth knowing if you are considering a used model.

That's interesting because I have just sent my SARB back to Seiko UK to be looked at. I like the fact you can log in and check where they are up to with the repairs but I will be interested to see what they do with the movement.

[beechcustom]

That's interesting because I have just sent my SARB back to Seiko UK to be looked at. I like the fact you can log in and check where they are up to with the repairs but I will be interested to see what they do with the movement.

Do you mind me asking what the problem is?

[robert75]

Do you mind me asking what the problem is?

No problem, I found the accuracy not up to spec. I did a fair bit of research online and mine seemed out so I sent it back to be looked at. As I say, mine was from an authorised dealer so there were no issues I contacted Seiko and they said just send it back and they would look at it. With it being a JDM movement I will be interested to see what they do as they sent me an official letter back saying they have the watch, it usually takes 10-12 days to repair/look at and if it should take longer they will be in contact. I phoned Seiko today and the lady said they were checking the accuracy now and that will take a few days then they will go from there.

I cant really fault how they are dealing with things so far so if you are buying I wouldn't let this put you off I have had several Seiko watches and I may well get a Grand Seiko pretty soon.

--edit--

Sorry just realised, you were not the one looking to buy!

[beechcustom]

No problem, I found the accuracy not up to spec. I did a fair bit of research online and mine seemed out so I sent it back to be looked at. As I say, mine was from an authorised dealer so there were no issues I contacted Seiko and they said just send it back and they would look at it. With it being a JDM movement I will be interested to see what they do as they sent me an official letter back saying they have the watch, it usually takes 10-12 days to repair/look at and if it should take longer they will be in contact. I phoned Seiko today and the lady said they were checking the accuracy now and that will take a few days then they will go from there.

I cant really fault how they are dealing with things so far so if you are buying I wouldn't let this put you off I have had several Seiko watches and I may well get a Grand Seiko pretty soon.

--edit--

Sorry just realised, you were not the one looking to buy!

Thanks. When I first got my Sarb035 back in Feb I was getting ZERO +/- over 24 hours (checking against the pips on Radio 4). Astonishing but this didn't last and after a few weeks it was at -14secs over 24 hours. This was still within the Manufacturer's stated accuracy so I didn't take it further. Now I have it back from Seiko UK after having the bracelet replaced it appears to be at -5secs over 24 hours. How bad was yours for accuracy?

BTW: I'm happy with the overall experience I had with Seiko UK. There was an epic initial wait for parts followed by some unecesarry to-ing and fro-ing but they refunded all my postage so fair play to them. The manager who got involved towards the end was great.

[Plastic]

Thanks everyone for all the information. Its really useful. Its interesting to hear about the bracelet issues. Is it the same for sizing the bracelet? I've never tried so is it worth trying or just best to take it to the local jeweller?

[beechcustom]

Thanks everyone for all the information. Its really useful. Its interesting to hear about the bracelet issues. Is it the same for sizing the bracelet? I've never tried so is it worth trying or just best to take it to the local jeweller?

I don't mind admitting that I gave a man some money to do it for me. He said it was a bit of a bitch cos they are uncommon 'pin and collar' types. Seems like nothing is straight forward on these JDMs.

[James.uk]

I was talking to a chap recently who has a Seiko AD in a non EU customs area... Who is willing to pop over the border and post from the EU, and give a discount. Mainly because someone on here is interested in a SARB033.... I haven't got round to doing anything about it yet, but if anyone is looking, a few more on the order might do everyone a favour with the prices.

[himmelblau]

I don't mind admitting that I gave a man some money to do it for me. He said it was a bit of a bitch cos they are uncommon 'pin and collar' types. Seems like nothing is straight forward on these JDMs.

Until receiving my SARB033 I had always had my local jeweller remove links. (My Omega Seamaster Pro 300 uses pins and collars) As he is now closed, I removed the links on my SARB033 myself and found it to be very easy, so much so, that I sized the bracelet on my GS which uses screws and pins myself.

When sizing the SARB, make sure to be careful with the collars.

[Plastic]

I was talking to a chap recently who has a Seiko AD in a non EU customs area... Who is willing to pop over the border and post from the EU, and give a discount. Mainly because someone on here is interested in a SARB033.... I haven't got round to doing anything about it yet, but if anyone is looking, a few more on the order might do everyone a favour with the prices.

Please let me know if anything happens. Would this effect the warranty?

[Plastic]

Until receiving my SARB033 I had always had my local jeweller remove links. (My Omega Seamaster Pro 300 uses pins and collars) As he is now closed, I removed the links on my SARB033 myself and found it to be very easy, so much so, that I sized the bracelet on my GS which uses screws and pins myself.

When sizing the SARB, make sure to be careful with the collars.

Do you need particular tools. If so, what do you need & where do you get them from?

Finally, Creation Watches. What are peoples experiences.

Sorry for all the questions. I've never really ordered anything Luke this of the net before so just trying to be careful.

[James.uk]

This spurred me on to send him an email. Warranty is international isn't it? Should be no problem.

[beechcustom]

* Edited to add that mine came from Creation, who have it on offer at the moment.

Seiya is still cheaper at 388USD vs. Creation's 457USD.

[beechcustom]

This spurred me on to send him an email. Warranty is international isn't it? Should be no problem.

Yes. Seiko UK asked me to send them a copy of my warranty card. They replaced my bracelet under warranty completely FOC.

[robert75]

Thanks. When I first got my Sarb035 back in Feb I was getting ZERO +/- over 24 hours (checking against the pips on Radio 4). Astonishing but this didn't last and after a few weeks it was at -14secs over 24 hours. This was still within the Manufacturer's stated accuracy so I didn't take it further. Now I have it back from Seiko UK after having the bracelet replaced it appears to be at -5secs over 24 hours. How bad was yours for accuracy?

BTW: I'm happy with the overall experience I had with Seiko UK. There was an epic initial wait for parts followed by some unecesarry to-ing and fro-ing but they refunded all my postage so fair play to them. The manager who got involved towards the end was great.

Yes mine was falling way out of spec going -30 seconds over 24 hours which is 15 seconds out.

Warranty is international so no issues sending it back.

[beechcustom]

Yes mine was falling way out of spec going -30 seconds over 24 hours which is 15 seconds out.

Warranty is international so no issues sending it back.

Ouch. Yeah to be fair that's way out and totally justifies a trip to Seiko UK. Be interested to see how it goes for you. Good luck with it.

[Papa Hotel]

Finally, Creation Watches. What are peoples experiences.

I've had four watches from Creation with no issue, number five is inbound right now. I can't fault them, a dozen others will be along shortly to tell you they've had no issues either but you'll ignore them in favour of the solitary voice blaming a company in Singapore for them getting hit with a VAT charge. That's usually how Creation questions seem to go!

[Plastic]

I've had four watches from Creation with no issue, number five is inbound right now. I can't fault them, a dozen others will be along shortly to tell you they've had no issues either but you'll ignore them in favour of the solitary voice blaming a company in Singapore for them getting hit with a VAT charge. That's usually how Creation questions seem to go!

Papa, I'm presuming ill need to pay VAT or whatever other tax is due. I'm more interested in their service & the quality of the watch. Great to hear they're reliable.

[robert75]

I've had four watches from Creation with no issue, number five is inbound right now. I can't fault them, a dozen others will be along shortly to tell you they've had no issues either but you'll ignore them in favour of the solitary voice blaming a company in Singapore for them getting hit with a VAT charge. That's usually how Creation questions seem to go!

I thought JDM watches on Creation are subject of tax because they are from Japan?

[Plastic]

I have now ordered s SARB035 from Seiya Japan so am very excited about the arrival of my first mechanical watch. Thanks for all the advice everyone.

[beechcustom]

I have now ordered s SARB035 from Seiya Japan so am very excited about the arrival of my first mechanical watch. Thanks for all the advice everyone.

Nice one! I'm sure you'll love it. I've been wearing mine all week so far. I recon you are in for a 10 day wait if my experience is anything to go by. Seiya sent my watch out pretty much instantly but UK customs processing and resending took a week.

[Plastic]

Nice one! I'm sure you'll love it. I've been wearing mine all week so far. I recon you are in for a 10 day wait if my experience is anything to go by. Seiya sent my watch out pretty much instantly but UK customs processing and resending took a week.

I was wondering how long it would take. With that wait I may up ordering something else! I want a good quality but cheap diver & was thinking of going Seiko again & ordering a SKX007J3. It looks great & seems really good value. Alternative suggestions are welcome....have thought Orient & Vostock Amphibia as well.

[robert75]

I was wondering how long it would take. With that wait I may up ordering something else! I want a good quality but cheap diver & was thinking of going Seiko again & ordering a SKX007J3. It looks great & seems really good value. Alternative suggestions are welcome....have thought Orient & Vostock Amphibia as well.

Lots of people here have a Vostok myself included. They are what they are, cheap tough watches. Thing to consider though is accuracy, they generally run fast and people have varying reports as to how good they are. I kid you not but when on the wrist my is near spot on but when taken off the wrist and left overnight it starts running fast, nothing massive but considering the accuracy on the wrist its a bit odd. I use it for holidays and sports and its on a decent rubber strap rather than those horrible bracelets so the fact that its accurate on the wrist means I have no reason to sell.

Orient Mako is another good cheap watch. Never owned a Seiko 007 but the Mako for near half the price is a very solid watch, not too sure about the accuracy but for build and quality its an excellent option.

Citizen diver is another good one cheaper than the Seiko but I found the bezel very loose and will move about if brushed against almost anything (Not really a good thing if you are actually diving with it) From what I remember though it was fairly accurate.

[beechcustom]

I was wondering how long it would take. With that wait I may up ordering something else! I want a good quality but cheap diver & was thinking of going Seiko again & ordering a SKX007J3. It looks great & seems really good value. Alternative suggestions are welcome....have thought Orient & Vostock Amphibia as well.

Ha ha you've got the bug! My advice is to sit tight and see how you go with the Sarb035 before you start ordering anything else. Things like case sizes are very personal and subjective so the Sarb's 38.4mm case will be a good starting point. I don't like anything any bigger than that but I have 'average' sized 7 inch wrists.

Divers are the one watch that do justify a larger case but I personally wouldn't go over 40mm. I'd look at the Helson Sharkdiver (40mm) and also our host's PRS-82 (soon to be back in stock I think). Orient Mako is a very good shout too, as is SKX007J but again depends on your wrist size!

I do like the current Rolex Submariner but you are talking much much higher price point obviously.

EDIT: Sorry, you stipulated 'cheap/good value' so you'd have to go second hand for the PRS and Helson. I'd also look at Steinheart Ocean models, again used examples.

[robert75]

Ha ha you've got the bug! My advice is to sit tight and see how you go with the Sarb035 before you start ordering anything else. Things like case sizes are very personal and subjective so the Sarb's 38.4mm case will be a good starting point. I don't like anything any bigger than that but I have 'average' sized 7 inch wrists.

Divers are the one watch that do justify a larger case but I personally wouldn't go over 40mm. I'd look at the Helson Sharkdiver (40mm) and also our host's PRS-82 (soon to be back in stock I think). Orient Mako is a very good shout too, as is SKX007J but again depends on your wrist size!

I do like the current Rolex Submariner but you are talking much much higher price point obviously.

EDIT: Sorry, you stipulated 'cheap/good value' so you'd have to go second hand for the PRS and Helson. I'd also look at Steinheart Ocean models, again used examples.

Just to add, the Seiko SARB is 100m water resistant.

[beechcustom]

Just to add, the Seiko SARB is 100m water resistant.

Good point. A well dressed diver! No screw down crown though so I'd be reluctatnt to take mine swimming.

[Backward point]

I was wondering how long it would take. With that wait I may up ordering something else! I want a good quality but cheap diver & was thinking of going Seiko again & ordering a SKX007J3. It looks great & seems really good value. Alternative suggestions are welcome....have thought Orient & Vostock Amphibia as well.

If you're looking for one of the more popular divers, there are several UK suppliers: Yorkshire Watches, Citywatches and so on. They should have them in stock, and there won't be any additional duties to pay.

[redsnapper]

I got my Sarb035 from Amazon.de last September. I have been timing it since Saturday and it's currently lost 30 seconds over the past 4 days.

[Dan83bz]

Creation had these for an even better price a few months ago, I see now it went up, it was just above £200. Combine that with the unlikely chances on getting hit for VAT and you have yourself a major bargain.

[Zigster]

I have now ordered s SARB035 from Seiya Japan so am very excited about the arrival of my first mechanical watch. Thanks for all the advice everyone.

Hope you enjoy it.

Mine turned up yesterday - very quick service from the eBayer from whom I bought it. It's near perfect - my only (minor) complaint is that one of the collars is missing so I wouldn't be able to use all the bracelet links. But I have relatively skinny wrists so two links are unused (with two pins but just one spare collar).

It turned up on an undersized (i.e. 18mm not 20mm), cheap leather alligator print strap which I removed to put on the bracelet. As beechcustom said - it seems awkward to get the spring bars seated correctly. You get that satifsying click that means the spring bar has pinged into the hole, but then it seems to work loose. I assume it is a wonky spring bar but might be something else. I might get a leather strap for it but, at the moment, the bracelet looks good and I'm tempted to keep it that way at least for a while.

First impressions are that, spring bars aside, it's very good quality for the price - looks and feels more expensive than it is. The cream dial looks very nice. Although it is quite a bit smaller than most of my other watches (which are generally 40mm+) it doesn't feel too small. It could become a very good workday beater as it fits neatly under a shirt cuff and looks smart like a Rolex Explorer.

[beechcustom]

it seems awkward to get the spring bars seated correctly. You get that satifsying click that means the spring bar has pinged into the hole, but then it seems to work loose. I assume it is a wonky spring bar but might be something else.

This is exactly the problem I had. Whenever I flexed my wrists the spring bar/end lugs would appear to pop out. Very annoying and disconcerting! I tried to seat the spring bar further into the lug once I'd got the 'click' sound using a cocktail stick. It didn't help though. As I said before, Seiko UK admitted that it was a tricky job and a poor design and even an experienced watch repairer failed to seat them properly!

[PJ S]

Do you need particular tools. If so, what do you need & where do you get them from?

I bought this and used it on my Spring Drive without any hassles or issues – http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B009P01EKG/

[PJ S]

I kid you not but when on the wrist my is near spot on but when taken off the wrist and left overnight it starts running fast, nothing massive but considering the accuracy on the wrist its a bit odd.

Not odd at all – temperature can affect the oil's viscosity, but it's morel likely to be simple positional variance.
Try varying the position you leave your watch off, overnight, for a few days each at a time. You should then be able to see which position causes the movement to speed up or slow down, and can use that to increase or decrease your mean daily deviation.

[Backward point]

Mine turned up a few days ago and I removed the bracelet because I think that it's better suited to a brown leather strap. I didn't want a croc, so I did some searching, and came across this:





It's a Hirsch Highland Calf.

I'm really pleased with it. I like the texture of the strap, which is slightly unusual. The watch itself is superb, and I need to have a go at capturing the lovely subtle texture of the dial - under a loupe it has a starburst finish, but I may need to use a combination of additional magnifying lenses to capture it properly. The shots above were done with my iPhone.

I think that it's a fantastic watch. A Grand Seiko on a budget?

[MakeColdplayHistory]

You could consider solojapan on eBay, he ships from spain so no additional taxes. He has good reviews on ebay and other fora. I have a watch on its way from him, hasn't yet arrived so hard to make a firm recommendation. His price was great.

Am I doing something wrong?
I've just searched on Ebay for 'worldwide' and seller=solojapan and got nothing.

[christopher_p]

Should be this one, no?

http://www.ebay.ph/usr/solojapan

(Edited link to actual page...there were no items listed under the co.uk domain for some reason...)