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Mortuus Fakeuus
My Green-Dialed NOS Seagull ST5 + the Perfect Strap
I usually put these "photo essay" type posts in the Vintage Watch forums, but given the brand-new appearance and operation of this beautiful NOS Seagull ST5, I thought I'd change things up a bit and put this particular post here in the Asian Watches threads. I am extremely pleased with the way this watch ultimately turned out, and I hope you'll enjoy having a look at this latest Seagull acquisition of mine as much as I enjoyed putting it together. I think the pictures of the 'final product' are some of the best watch photos I've ever taken, but, as the guy behind the lens, objectivity on my part is pretty nigh onto impossible, so I'll rely on y'all to be the judges of that particular claim.
By way of a quick recap, I found this watch in the downtown San Diego (or, to be perfectly accurate, the "Gaslamp Quarter") Salvation Army Thrift Store, where it became the Salivation Army Thrift Store when I came upon this little ditty, wrapped in about six layers of cigarette smoke-smelling saran-style bubble-wrap...go ahead Conj; give those new teeth of yours a workout and say that five times as fast as you can…
The green/white "two-piece NATO" – which, to me, is a contradiction in terms, but what the hey, I'll hang widdit – came out of my own, personal Miscellaneous Watch Crap Dept, a place where I 'semi-hoard' items that may, at some point, come in handy, should I find myself without a strap for a watch of a certain color, etc. (And, no, I do not hoard those clear, rubbery, plasticky little discs that cover/protect your watch crystals when you first buy them...mind you, I've thought about it a few times, but when I saw that Android's Wing the Watchmutant was actually selling them on SHQP, I decided that only someone with a really sick, twisted mind would hoard those.) Anyhow, this was my longish way of saying that that ugly green and white, two-piece nylon strap wasn't something I actually went out and bought for this – or any – watch. It was just sorta, well, there when I needed it. That's my story, and you know the rest...
Okay, Mr. Smartass Mortuusness, I can almost hear someone saying to me, if you didn't buy that strap for something, then just how did you come to have it in the first place, hmm? (Jeebus, everyone's a fucking investigative reporter these days, aren't they?) And my answer is simple: since they put me on that new medication, I no longer hear any of those voices anymore, including yours...yeesh!
Still, if you look past the awful green/white nylon, and just at the watch itself, it’s a very attractive shade of green, and while you can’t exactly say that this particular shade ‘goes with anything,’ the way a black or white dial does, it’s still a pleasant enough looking piece that you can’t help but think that it’d look perfect with just the right strap…
…which my good WL friend (and Honorary Old Fart), Anthony, aka “AJC,” recommended to me. Carried by the very good folks at Clockwork Synergy, one of several outstanding sellers I’ve routinely used on feeBay since becoming a collector, this “aged,” NATO-style leather strap with subdued steel fittings, looks amazing with the high-shine stainless steel and green dial on the ST5.
Take a look:
The aged leather plays perfectly with the 35+ year-old NOS Seagull watch, giving the total package the look and feel of a vintage military design, or even something you might find in one of the few remaining and hard-to-find genuine military surplus stores still in business these days. (As a “baby boomer” growing up in the 1960’s and 70’s, I recall seeing those “War Surplus” stores – as my dad and other Veterans of his age called them – all over the place, but nowadays, with most of the WWII and Korean War Veterans having departed, they aren’t at all so common any more.) This is certainly a watch I would have proudly worn with my wartime flight suits and desert camo’s, both during Operation Desert Storm and the Global War on Terror. (Of course, the USN specified the type of watch that had to be worn in the cockpit, but off-duty was another thing entirely…this would have been killer cool, back in the day.)
Wanna see some more?
Sorry, but no "innards" shots this time, gents...
Special thanks to my buddy, Andrew/AJC, for finding this amazing, perfect strap. And, as Old Smarmy Mort usually says around this time in his "photo essays," thanks for dropping by and having a peek. As they'd say at the late, great Grace Brothers Department Store in London, I hope you were well-served, and thank you for your custom.
By way of a quick recap, I found this watch in the downtown San Diego (or, to be perfectly accurate, the "Gaslamp Quarter") Salvation Army Thrift Store, where it became the Salivation Army Thrift Store when I came upon this little ditty, wrapped in about six layers of cigarette smoke-smelling saran-style bubble-wrap...go ahead Conj; give those new teeth of yours a workout and say that five times as fast as you can…
The green/white "two-piece NATO" – which, to me, is a contradiction in terms, but what the hey, I'll hang widdit – came out of my own, personal Miscellaneous Watch Crap Dept, a place where I 'semi-hoard' items that may, at some point, come in handy, should I find myself without a strap for a watch of a certain color, etc. (And, no, I do not hoard those clear, rubbery, plasticky little discs that cover/protect your watch crystals when you first buy them...mind you, I've thought about it a few times, but when I saw that Android's Wing the Watchmutant was actually selling them on SHQP, I decided that only someone with a really sick, twisted mind would hoard those.) Anyhow, this was my longish way of saying that that ugly green and white, two-piece nylon strap wasn't something I actually went out and bought for this – or any – watch. It was just sorta, well, there when I needed it. That's my story, and you know the rest...
Okay, Mr. Smartass Mortuusness, I can almost hear someone saying to me, if you didn't buy that strap for something, then just how did you come to have it in the first place, hmm? (Jeebus, everyone's a fucking investigative reporter these days, aren't they?) And my answer is simple: since they put me on that new medication, I no longer hear any of those voices anymore, including yours...yeesh!
Still, if you look past the awful green/white nylon, and just at the watch itself, it’s a very attractive shade of green, and while you can’t exactly say that this particular shade ‘goes with anything,’ the way a black or white dial does, it’s still a pleasant enough looking piece that you can’t help but think that it’d look perfect with just the right strap…
…which my good WL friend (and Honorary Old Fart), Anthony, aka “AJC,” recommended to me. Carried by the very good folks at Clockwork Synergy, one of several outstanding sellers I’ve routinely used on feeBay since becoming a collector, this “aged,” NATO-style leather strap with subdued steel fittings, looks amazing with the high-shine stainless steel and green dial on the ST5.
Take a look:
The aged leather plays perfectly with the 35+ year-old NOS Seagull watch, giving the total package the look and feel of a vintage military design, or even something you might find in one of the few remaining and hard-to-find genuine military surplus stores still in business these days. (As a “baby boomer” growing up in the 1960’s and 70’s, I recall seeing those “War Surplus” stores – as my dad and other Veterans of his age called them – all over the place, but nowadays, with most of the WWII and Korean War Veterans having departed, they aren’t at all so common any more.) This is certainly a watch I would have proudly worn with my wartime flight suits and desert camo’s, both during Operation Desert Storm and the Global War on Terror. (Of course, the USN specified the type of watch that had to be worn in the cockpit, but off-duty was another thing entirely…this would have been killer cool, back in the day.)
Wanna see some more?
Sorry, but no "innards" shots this time, gents...
Special thanks to my buddy, Andrew/AJC, for finding this amazing, perfect strap. And, as Old Smarmy Mort usually says around this time in his "photo essays," thanks for dropping by and having a peek. As they'd say at the late, great Grace Brothers Department Store in London, I hope you were well-served, and thank you for your custom.
It's never too late, though, Mr. O. (Ah, poetry...) Hope you enjoyed it!