Look what the cat brought in...

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peterh
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Look what the cat brought in...

Post by peterh »

20190917_154535.jpg
 
Sent from Telford to Kenninghall (Norfolk) on Wednesday (because the shop didn't want to send abroad), forwarded from Kenninghall to me (The Netherlands) on Friday evening.

Pretty much in near-mint condition. Even the bracelet shows hardly any evidence of desk-diving. I paid 179 quid, including a (pretty worn) box, but no papers. It's evidently from post-August 2008, as it says "Swiss made" rather than "Swiss mov't".

The previous owner must have had a surprisingly small wrist, as the bracelet was sized just right for me (the spare links were included), and at 165mm circumference, my wrist is well below average. Makes me think the previous owner may have been female.
 
c3-wrist.jpg
 
Now, all it needs is a nice brown strap.
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by welshlad »

Congratulations, Peter, that looks fabulous! :)
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by Bahnstormer_vRS »

Top notch acquisition Peter.

Just goes to show what a bit of lateral thinking can achieve. Well done and enjoy it.

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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by Amor Vincit Omnia »

That is stunning, Peter! Congratulations.
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by MiniMpi »

Outstanding !
Congratulations Peter, delighted it all worked out.
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by DavecUK »

Very classy looking Chrono....
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by Thegreyman »

That does look in absolutely great condition.
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by Danbailey007 »

Looks great!
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by Amor Vincit Omnia »

A purely personal observation, but I feel I am in the same camp as you, Peter. I have tried the later iterations of both the C5 and C3, and I don’t feel that they hold a candle to the originals. Perhaps they do in terms of overall build quality, but certainly not in terms of aesthetic and design.

I think the Mk 2 versions in both cases were disappointing because of the flattened dials.

Like you, I am very happy to be the owner and wearer of an original in both of those watches. :thumbup:
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by StrapMeister »

That's absolutely fantastic :)
Congratulations :thumbup:
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by peterh »

Thanks, guys! I'm very chuffed with it!

There's one minor blemish at the 7 minute mark, but that's it.
What I can't remember when seeing the 2005 version in the flesh is the matted surface on the sides of the case. I quite like that.
c3 crown.jpg
 
One serious letdown is the lume. I was hoping that, since this watch is probably about as old as my Speedhawk, the lume would be of the same quality. The Speedhawk has fairly slender hands, and the lume dots at the hour markers are just as small, but when exposed to a bright light source for about 10-15 mins in the evening, the lume lasts long enough for the watch to be readable at 5:30am on an autumn morning (which is about when I get up) -- not Seiko-lume-readable, but sufficient. I would have been happy if the C3 lume would've done the same, but in fact, it is every bit as useless as the 2006 Peregrine. Switch the lights off and the lume is nicely bright.
Then look again after an hour and it's as dark as the C5 Mk1.
Which (you guessed it) has no lume.

So, the lume is merely there for decorative purposes.

But I'm still very, very pleased.
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peterh
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by peterh »

Amor Vincit Omnia wrote: Tue Sep 17, 2019 9:08 pm A purely personal observation, but I feel I am in the same camp as you, Peter. I have tried the later iterations of both the C5 and C3, and I don’t feel that they hold a candle to the originals. Perhaps they do in terms of overall build quality, but certainly not in terms of aesthetic and design.

I think the Mk 2 versions in both cases were disappointing because of the flattened dials.

Like you, I am very happy to be the owner and wearer of an original in both of those watches. :thumbup:
... this. :clap:
I just had them in front of me, and I cannot think of a single watch that I find more pleasing to look at. The left one desperately needs a black strap, and the right one definitely needs a strap like the one in the middle... but that's it.
Together with my wife's W1, this is definitely the origin of the species.
 
origins.jpg
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by MiniMpi »

What a trio :clap: 8) 8) 8)
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by Lavaine »

Congratulations on a great acquisition Peter. The C3 Mk1 really is a great watch. Mine doesn't get worn enough, but I think I will wear mine tomorrow, breaking my unwritten rule of not wearing 2 watches in a row from the same manufacturer (wearing the Trident 38mm today).
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Re: Look what the cat brought in...

Post by johnnysharp2 »

Looks great, fantastic value for money. Well done!
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