As the world got accustomed to Seiko's novel new Astron technology dominating the market in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Japanese watch manufacturer was hard at work on its next innovation to challenge Swiss watch industry dominance, developing the Superior, Grand Quartz, and King Quartz lines – like this 1973 Seiko 3802-7020 dress watch here, with its spectacular Grand Seiko V.F.A.-like Grammar of Design case.
Why V.F.A.? The Seiko 3802’s case looks strongly reminiscent of the Grammar of Design cases used to house the legendary Grand Seiko 6186 V.F.A. series - but without the $10k+ price tag! In fact, the earliest Seiko 3802 examples were sold as “VFA” (“Very Fine Adjustment”) and were adjusted for temperature and in 6 positions.
Seiko's calibre 3802A was an early quartz movement with date function, produced by Seiko's Suwa Seikosha from 1972 through 1981, and it was the Japanese watchmaker's first volume-production quartz movement family. The architecture and design set the template for all future Seiko quartz movements, and it was the premier product that pushed Seiko to the top of the watch industry in the 1970s (much to Swiss detriment) - calibre 38 movements were positioned in the mid-range to superior market segments, including the “QT”, “QR”, “SQ VFA”, and “GFA Superior” lines.
The 38SQ “VFA” line was replaced by the 48GQ “Grand Quartz” and 48SQ “Superior” line. The 38QT “QT” line was replaced by the 08KQ “King Quartz”, 38QR “Lord Quartz”, and 08QT line. The QR line of watches were replaced by the cheaper “Type II” models.
1969 was one of the most spectacular years in Seiko’s storied history. That year, it released the world’s first automatic chronograph, the Calibre 6139 and, separately, the V.F.A. automatic movement – which delivered Seiko’s highest yet level of precision for a mechanical movement.
But Seiko wasn’t finished – it would also release another first upon the world, the first quartz wristwatch. Seiko’s proprietary technology went on to change the way the world told time, and severely tested the dominance of the Swiss, bringing high technology within the reach of all.
Speaking of Grand Seiko design, in the early 1960s, Seiko’s Tanaka created a set of design principles he called The Grammar of Design. In 1962, Tanaka noticed Swiss watches "sparkled brilliantly" and realized the design of high-end Seiko watches could be radically improved through the implementation of "flat and conical surfaces perfectly smooth and free of distortion."
Tanaka’s Grammar of Design made the Grand and King Seiko lines instantly recognizable as status symbols in the hierarchical Japanese business world of the 1960s and 1970s. Tanaka’s rules would go on to fundamentally change Seiko’s design language.
All surfaces and angles of the case, dial, indices and hands had to be flat and geometrically perfect to best reflect light. Following this aesthetic, bezels were to be simple two-dimensional faceted curves. And third, no visual distortion from any angle was allowed, and all cases and dials had to be mirror-finished.
This Seiko 3802 dress watch comes on a leather strap, and with nylon strap, spingbar tool, and rugged travel case.
1973 Seiko 3802-7020 Dress Watch
DIAL: Crisp white Seiko Quartz-signed dial, no imperfections; date function at the 3 o'clock position works correctly as designed. Correct handset - with characteristic baton hand-design, featuring slender hour and minute hands, along with an atypical seconds hand featuring a "rectangle box" at its end. The dial features long, clean, three-dimensional applied minute indexes.
CASE: Stainless-steel case measures 37mm (38mm including crown) x 41.5mm, with matching caseback; 18mm lug width.
CRYSTAL: Hardlex crystal, no cracks or scratches.
BAND: This Seiko 3802 dress watch comes on a dark brown leather strap; it also comes with a light blue, white and red nylon strap.
MOVEMENT: Seiko 3802 calibre hacking quartz movement, manufactured in February 1973. Like all members of the Seiko Cal. 38 family, it was fitted with 7 jewels, a large number for the time and more than most later quartz movements. Because the adjuster was part of the circuit unit, many examples have the later variable adjuster and may therefore be as accurate as higher-end Cal. 38 movements. Cal. 3802A was replaced by the “King Quartz” Cal. 085 later in the 1970s, though this movement remained in production for most of the decade.
CROWN: Unsigned stainless-steel crown.