8f56 Help with Seiko Perpetual 8f56 movement.

[jbirkrepair]

Hi, I recently purchased a Seiko GMT Perpetual off eBay. The watch has a 8f56 Movement which is the high accuracy quartz movement. 

The watch was purchased with a low battery (indicated by the second hand ticking every 5 seconds).

I've since replaced the battery and reset the perpetual calendar, the watch was working for about 3 hours and then just stopped. I've since tried to reset the perpetual calendar again and it doesn't do anything just completely dead. 

I recently went to a local watch repair shop and they said it would need a entirely new movement and would set me back £250 for it. It would however be done by Seiko not themselves. 

Any help is much appreciated.

[watchweasol]

Hi under the circumstances and if you really like the watch and the price does'nt look too over the top it would be better to do that,  I have heard some watch repairers charge up to £40 just to pressure test. So its a question of economics, cost of watch plus cost of repair= whats the retail cost of the watch, and if you decided to sell it would you get your money back.   It looks like a nice watch and probably a keeper if so go for it.      Cheers.      

[Chopin]

Were you cautious when replacing the battery ? What type of battery did you use ? Is it correct for the movement ? Is it possible that you may have damaged something in the process or maybe something foreign got into the movement ?

[jbirkrepair]

Hi there! I did everything correctly I followed a repair guide from YouTube on resetting the 8f56 perpetual movement. I didn't break anything at all for a first try I think I did quite good.  

I used a Panasonic CR2412 Cell as I couldn't find a Seiko one. After I fitted the battery and reset the perpetual calendar the watch ran for 3 hours, after that the seconds hand started to stutter. Everything else worked as it should and I could hear it ticking as well. Afte another 3 - 4 hours of the watch stuttering it finally stopped. 

I opened the watch up again and tried to reset the perpetual calendar and nothing happened. I've even tested the voltage from the battery i fitted and that's completely fine. 

 

[jdm]

7 minutes ago, Chopin said:

Were you cautious when replacing the battery ? What type of battery did you use ? Is it correct for the movement ? Is it possible that you may have damaged something in the process or maybe something foreign got into the movement ?

There is only one type of Lithium battery for these modules. Foreign interference is the only plausible explanation. Before giving it to Seiko it should be examined by expert hands, unfortunately there are few when it comes to quartz watches. 

[Chopin]

Have you tried back the old battery ?

[jbirkrepair]

From what I've read the Panasonic Cr2412 should be fine. Funnily enough when I opened the watch up it already had a Panasonic cell inside it. 

I should mention when I purchased it, the second hand was ticking every 5 seconds. Which is the low battery indicator so it was working before I opened it. 

[jbirkrepair]

Hi, Chopin yes I did try the old one and it didn't work. 

[jdm]

2 minutes ago, Chopin said:

Have you tried back the old battery ?

Sorry, what would be the point of that? As the OP indicated:

I've even tested the voltage from the battery i fitted and that's completely fine. 

As mentioned above these movements also have a low charge indicator. There are test procedures which can be done, explained in the technical guide, but generally even knowing what the fault is does not help an owner fixing it.

 

 

[jbirkrepair]

I was wondering if the watch is fixable or something that a specialist could fix.

Though I think I'll either try and source another working watch and swap the movement. Or put it back on eBay as spares and repairs. 

It's ashame because the watch itself is spotless. 

[jdm]

4 minutes ago, jbirkrepair said:

I was wondering if the watch is fixable or something that a specialist could fix.

It's "hardly fixable". Long discontinued, parts are scarce, although Cousins UK has some. It's surprising that Seiko UK claimed to be able to supply a spare module. Really it has failed mysteriously, before giving up on it you could try a line free box, some repairers have it or can be done with a demagnetizer also.    

[jbirkrepair]

I took the Seiko to time piece watch repairs a watch repair company in the UK. They said it would be £250 for a new movement and it would be done through Seiko. But like you I also assumed Seiko wasn't supplying parts for the 8f56 movement.

But what do I know, maybe they do! 

[Chopin]

Take it to an independent and have him check it out thoroughly. He should be able to tell whether something is wrong with it or not. Provided that he's good with quartzes.

I don't think that the movement should just die like that...

[yankeedog]

double check your electrical contacts.

[jbirkrepair]

Me neither, as I said I was ticking along nicely for a few hours before it died. I can still adjust the hands too. Though in the meantime I'll have to find a local place that specialises in quartz. 

[jbirkrepair]

Hi, yankeedog they do seem okay however I'm unable to reset the perpetual calendar so I think wherever the issue lies it starts with the contact pads. 

[watchweasol]

Hi  jbirkrepair  To set these perpetual date watches is quite complex  I suggest you have a look at our founder Marks video on UTube regarding setting up these watches. Apparently the replacement battery should have orientation tabs fitted, the arrow points to the stem. The circuit board is thin and easily broken if you dont observe the correct replacement proceedure, prying the battery out in the correct place is a must.  The seiko battery is CR1612 Lithium   301A-95N1.

[jbirkrepair]

Hi, watchweasol that's some solid advice thankyou. That's the exact video I watched upon doing it myself.

Unfortunately the battery i had was a generic Panasonic branded one so it didn't have any tabs to show me where to put it. I did however look at the battery placement on the video as a reference. 

I do think it's the circuit board that's broken as I can't seem to reset the perpetual calendar anymore. Though the hands of the watch can still be adjusted by the crown. 

I have since found a Seiko Specialist in the UK that's quoted me £126 to fully fix the issue and pressure test the watch. 

My question is this a reasonable price and should I go ahead? 

 

[jdm]

7 hours ago, watchweasol said:

Apparently the replacement battery should have orientation tabs fitted, the arrow points to the stem.

Only the original Seiko battery, with its protective film, has tabs to help installation and cuts to allow electrical contact. Since Seiko batteries are difficult to find (Cousins UK has them, but do not ship bt post internationally) and more expensive, Panasonic (the only other manuf.) is normally used, and do work perfectly, as my daily beater witnesses.