On September 17th, I bought my Holy Grail Watch, the Seiko SBBN017, on Amazon, via a Japanese seller. This was a reward for selling 8 watches on eBay.
The watch was supposed to be shipped in 2 days. Five days later the watch still hasn't shipped. I emailed the seller and inquired about the delay and he said he would check the inventory and get back to me.
This is puzzling because on the Amazon webpage, it said there were 5 Tunas available from this seller. But the seller doesn't know what he's got.
Discouraged, I requested an order cancelation, but received no reply. Unlike items purchased from Amazon, a cancellation doesn't occur automatically on unshipped items. In my case, I have to wait for the seller to respond.
I would like to buy a Tuna, to arrive in time for my birthday in October, from another vendor but I can't until the current Tuna matter is resolved.
I suppose I could wait till tomorrow and if nothing happens, I could call my credit card company and cancel the order.
Jonny made an interesting point when informed of my dilemma. He said a lot of these sellers look for the cheapest deal they can get before selling it to the Amazon customer. I don't know if that's the case, but it wouldn't surprise me.
Meanwhile, my Grail is in limbo.
Very troubling. I hate when stuff like this happens.
Posted by: Angelo | September 22, 2013 at 05:04 PM
Take what I said with a grain of salt, but a couple things got me thinking: one, the fact that they said it would take up to six weeks (I think) to get here. Secondly, I've heard of companies doing what I described.
Think about it: a person in Japan could have an online business for Japanese watches. They have a set price that they know is above what they can get it for, and then when someone orders it they purchase it and ship it. So if you spend $1K on a Tuna, maybe they can find it for $800. After expenses and such, that's a $150 profit for them - without having any inventory to deal with.
I could be wrong, but I imagine that there are companies that do that, especially with the international internet market.
If you want to order direct from a reputable Japanese dealer, look at SeiyaJapan or Higuchi inc (where I got my Sumo). Both are very highly regarded among the online forums and watch community.
You might end up spending a few more bucks than the cheapest Ebay or Amazon seller, but you'll get your watch in about a week. Unfortunately neither have it in stock right now, though.
You could also go the Watch Recon route. You'll probably have to get the older SBBN007, but I think the differences are very minor and just cosmetic. But you'll save $2-300 that way, if you don't mind a used watch.
Posted by: jonnybardo | September 22, 2013 at 06:05 PM
For example, this one sold for $680 or less - and it was in excellent shape with just one tiny scratch:
http://forums.watchuseek.com/f29/fs-seiko-tuna-sbbn007-mint-condition-890393.html
Posted by: jonnybardo | September 22, 2013 at 06:09 PM
Big lume with day and date and even a funky bezel guard, I can see why this is an important one for you. Hope your seller gets their sh*t together..
Posted by: StarHalo | September 22, 2013 at 06:30 PM
Any more news on the lost Tuna?
Posted by: Gary | September 23, 2013 at 01:05 PM
I requested a refund per their invitation to do so. I await official refund before I make my next move.
Posted by: herculodge | September 23, 2013 at 01:32 PM
I'm like the goldfish in "The Cat In The Hat." I don't like this, not one little bit.
Posted by: Angelo | September 23, 2013 at 03:42 PM