some "quick and dirty" research on ebay suggests that this Seiko (0634-5009), or similar model, is still available, in very nice condition in the original box, for around the same $300 purchase price. I am sure that you enjoyed the Seiko, but I am guessing that the Rolex may have been a better investment. As you point out, there's something about good old-fashioned steel!!
By the way, I am not sure that Newman is wearing this Seiko . . . looks a bit different to me.
Jeff
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
:
: : What can you tell us about this "Paul Newman
: Seiko"? Is
: Jeff,
: The Ref is 0634-5019. I bought this
: watch in 1975 as it was the first LCD Chronograph I had seen.
: I was shamefully seduced by the digital read out in tenths of a
: second, so it replaced the Rolex 6238 I
: had been wearing daily since 1968. It cost USD 300 which made it
: about 50% more expensive than it's
: mechanical predecessor. In 1977 I spotted a later Seiko development
: that read in hundredths of a second
: and had an alarm. So I sinned again.
: The two Seiko electric watches are my only contribution to the
: mechanical watch debacle of the 1970s.
: I accept my poor judgement in helping to cause the decline and
: promise never to do it again
: By 1980 I came to my senses and bought a Heuer Pasadena from The
: Timing Stand for USD 300.
: I wore this watch daily untill I got the serious watch collecting
: bug around year 2001.
: A few years ago I thought I would have the 1975 seiko factory
: refurbished as the crystal was
: scratched and the buttons worked poorly. They had no replacement
: parts and the LCD was ruined by
: the disassembly so I turned it into an aquarium like an old
: Macintosh compact computer.
: This story lends credibility to the following quote I saw on a
: forum once.
: author unknown
: Even if a steel part for an old watch is no longer available, a
: watch restorer could make one.
: With the advances of semiconductor technology the
: production lines for the old parts are torn up and thrown away.
: Even if you had the design information of those old ICs there are
: no production lines available to make them any more.
: Of course it is theoretically possible to make them again, but the
: investment needed is many, many, many orders of
: magnitude more than you need to make a steel or brass part.
:
: Electronics is throw away technology, even at the low
: temperatures of watch ICs the doping will wander with time.
: At some point one of the transistors will stop working and.. there
: you have it.
: In 100 years our mechanical watches will all be still working or at
: least serviceable.
: Maybe you will replace the springs with newer steel, but they will
: work.
: The quartz watches all will be comfortably filling a waste heap
: somewhere.
:
: Some illustrations:
: Old soldiers never die!
:
:
: The 1977 Seiko is still running but never worn.
:
: The Little old lady from Pasadena ..........
:
: And finally the USD 219.30 Rolex.
:
