Seiko Lord Marvel J14038 / J14049

sdre
Posts
2,502
Likes
7,579
Been quiet lately due to RL commitments.. however as always, I have been on the hunt for Interesting watches with some form of history and this brings me to the Seiko Lord Marvel J14038 (steel case) and the J14039 (14k gold plated)

@bigsom has been a source of inspiration on this and i would like to thank him for it.

Owning Grand Seikos are a joy and it would seem natural to look into older vintage GS as a another form of collecting. However, vintage 44GS/57/62GS... Their prices have gone up quite Abit. While I think they are still fun to collect (at a reasonable price point) I decided to delve deeper which brings me to the 3180, the first Grand Seiko.

Looking at market prices and apparently many redial models left me in want, so I decided to get a SBGW253 just to cover that. Lovely watch which hits home on many attractive points....

But it wasn't a real real vintage GS... So I decided to look into it Abit further and found the first carved dial Seiko.

J14038/J14039

I swore to never wear gold but these burnished gold is so nice. They go under the radar and in some lighting looks almost rose gold.

DSCF4601.jpg IMG_20200904_172905-01.jpeg IMG_20200907_101242-01.jpeg IMG_20200904_103804-01.jpeg IMG_20200823_090927-01.jpeg IMG_20200825_144421-01.jpeg IMG_20200714_084454-01.jpeg IMG_20200822_221051-01.jpeg


Hope everyone enjoys this as much as I did.
 
kip595
Posts
870
Likes
1,573
Thoroughly great set of pieces. I hope to find an early steel LM myself at some point. Thanks for sharing!
 
bigsom
Posts
1,320
Likes
10,694
Beautiful photos man! These carved dials are just really lovely. The markers for these were also planted by hand.
 
18k LM carved (1 of 2).jpg IMG_20200912_121325.jpg IMG_20200914_093435.jpg LM carved on black epsom contrast (1 of 1).jpg 18k LM carved (1 of 2)~2.jpg
b-lilja
Posts
262
Likes
522
So Japanese...hard to put my finger on why - but yet so clear. Awesome.
 
sdre
Posts
2,502
Likes
7,579
b-lilja b-lilja
So Japanese...hard to put my finger on why - but yet so clear. Awesome.
A friend said the same thing. The design language is so clear and distinct.
 
sdre
Posts
2,502
Likes
7,579
great video on Seiko's history and the Marvel/Lord Marvel
 
Tony C.
Posts
7,981
Likes
27,942
Good stuff! And one of my favorite vintage Seiko model lines.

This NOS example has the original tags and wax/plastic button, which reads "OF BEST QUALITY" on one side, and, like the case back, "SPECIALLY INSPECTED" on the reverse.

SLM11.jpg

SLM12.jpg
 
michael22
Posts
1,790
Likes
2,001
Tony C. Tony C.
Good stuff! And one of my favorite vintage Seiko model lines.

This NOS example has the original tags and wax/plastic button, which reads "OF BEST QUALITY" on one side, and, like the case back, "SPECIALLY INSPECTED" on the reverse.

SLM11.jpg

SLM12.jpg
Awesome. Is there an S on the crown?
 
sdre
Posts
2,502
Likes
7,579
Tony C. Tony C.
Good stuff! And one of my favorite vintage Seiko model lines.

This NOS example has the original tags and wax/plastic button, which reads "OF BEST QUALITY" on one side, and, like the case back, "SPECIALLY INSPECTED" on the reverse.

SLM11.jpg

SLM12.jpg
incredible !!!

only 1 of the gold LM has its original crown... pity about that >.<
 
bigsom
Posts
1,320
Likes
10,694
Tony C. Tony C.
Good stuff! And one of my favorite vintage Seiko model lines.

This NOS example has the original tags and wax/plastic button, which reads "OF BEST QUALITY" on one side, and, like the case back, "SPECIALLY INSPECTED" on the reverse.

I think you'd love a carved dial if you enjoy the later mk4+ dials. Also if you don't mind smaller watches a mk1 carved with S logo dial!
 
Tony C.
Posts
7,981
Likes
27,942
bigsom bigsom
I think you'd love a carved dial if you enjoy the later mk4+ dials. Also if you don't mind smaller watches a mk1 carved S dial!

I'm sure that you are correct. I've flirted with the carved dial versions previously, but never landed one. I actually prefer, in some respects, the variety of the "regular" Marvel line. This is not a great photo (from the original seller):

SMarv21.jpg
 
sdre
Posts
2,502
Likes
7,579
Tony C. Tony C.
I'm sure that you are correct. I've flirted with the carved dial versions previously, but never landed one. I actually prefer, in some respects, the variety of the "regular" Marvel line. This is not a great photo (from the original seller):

SMarv21.jpg
looks silver gilt as well... very very very rare to find Seiko with black dials....
 
bigsom
Posts
1,320
Likes
10,694
sdre sdre
looks silver gilt as well... very very very rare to find Seiko with black dials....

For a S logo marvel especially (ie I would be wary of any black dialed marvel).

That said S logo marvels (pre LM) are such cool watches and there are a lot out there. Just have to be ok with 30-31mm some of the transitional cases I believe get up to 33mm. The really nice ones are the S logos with SD markings.
Edited:
 
sdre
Posts
2,502
Likes
7,579
bigsom bigsom
For a S logo marvel especially (ie I would be wary of any black dialed marvel).

That said S logo marvels (pre LM) are such cool watches and there are a lot out there. Just have to be ok with 30-31mm some of the transitional cases I believe get up to 33mm. The really nice ones are the S logos with SD markings.
was educated on the SD markings on that Seiko video i posted. So much going on which people didnt know of....

I had the Seiko Silverwave with SD as well.... didnt realize it was SD until yesterday :whipped:
 
chows99
Posts
563
Likes
1,356
Been very quiet recently as I have somehow achieved Nirvana with my grail acquisition last year.

However, I got back into the hunting game after reading up on the intricate craftsmanship & history of the Lord Marvel 1st Gen with the carved dial. Learnt alot from online materials and selfless & kind sharing from @sdre and @bigsom. I am blessed to be part of this community.

With patience and a stroke of luck, i was offered this Lord Marvel 1st Gen Mk2 dial. I am enjoying it so much and now to pair it with a nice and supple taupe epsom leather strap!
 
IMG_2241.jpg
Spinakerr
Posts
75
Likes
274
Thanks for posting up this info and the pictures - I recently spotted a Lord Marvel in a job lot of broken Seikos in Japan and then turned up yesterday. Amazingly, the Lord Marvel is in very good condition, dial is almost unblemished - its the J14068, a mk3 with different lugs.





Looking forward to getting this one running - missing a jewel and likely dried solid.
 
13 More Posts...
Sign up or log in to reply...