The past few weeks have seen me descending further and further down the rabbit hole that is Pulsar watches. Having a strong penchant for identifiers of all varieties, I was immediately drawn into a swirling cloud of Pulsar collections, references, calibres, case numbers and serial numbers. From this whirling dervish of information I have recently emerged, armed with what I believe to be a rudimentary understanding of the Pulsar watch identification system, comprised primarily of the watch reference, the calibre, and the case number.


Reference
The Pulsar reference is listed on archived versions of the official Pulsar websites and on those of various retailers across the web. This is the official identifier of each watch and seems to have been, according to my research so far, utilized as far back as 1979. It most frequently appears on a small tag attached to the watch band or bracelet of new pieces, or in promotional advertising by vendors. To date I have not encountered the reference on either the dial nor the caseback of any Pulsar watch.


Calibre and Case Number
The calibre or movement of the watch is identified by a code on the caseback. Following the calibre is a dash followed by the case number. At this point in my research, it seems the case number is an identifier of the physical watch case itself. The combination of both the calibre and the case number seem to be fairly specific, however it does not seem to account for variations like colorways. I have encountered the combination of calibre and case number being given as the actual reference, but from my research so far this is not accurate.

SOURCE: https://pulsarwatches.com.au/customer-service/after-sales-service

One of the first questions I had about Pulsar when I began this watch journey a month or two ago, was regarding their current status. It didn't take a long time on the Internet to determine that the main site had been located at pulsarwatches.com, however this page is currently unreachable. I subsequently discovered the Australian Pulsar watch site at pulsarwatches.com.au, only to come across the following message: Since it's launch in 1972, Pulsar watches have stood for a real value, quality brand of the Seiko Watch Corporation, however, Pulsar Watches are no longer manufactured, and have made way for the truly global 'ALBA WATCHES'. Alba watches offer the same exceptional value, style and quality you would expect from SEIKO Watch Corporation. We encourage you to click below to discover the Alba range of timepieces.

The copyright date on the site is 2021 by Seiko Australia. The New Zealand Pulsar site, pulsarwatches.co.nz has the same copyright date and holder. Further research via the Internet Archive Wayback Machine revealed a 2019 copyright date on the European Pulsar site by Seiko Watch Corporation, in an August 2022 snapshot of the site. A mid-August 2022 snaphot of pulsarwatches.com displayed the same copyright information. The United States Pulsar site has a 2018 copyright date to Seiko Watch of America, as given in a mid-November 2018 archive.

Considering this information, it seems reasonable to conclude that the Pulsar brand went out of production circa 2019. I am looking forward to digging deeper into this portion of Pulsar history and getting some firm dates recorded. Who knows? Maybe Seiko will revive the Pulsar brand in the future...only time will tell!

The first question that likely comes to the minds of watch people and non-watch people alike when visiting Pulsar Time Blog for the first time is, "Why Pulsar?" The answer is quite simple. My Grandfather wore a Pulsar. My Dad wears a Pulsar. And, as of a few weeks ago, I too own a Pulsar. I guess you could say that it's a family thing!

This site currently has a bit of a 1990's vibe, and for that I do not apologize. It will not always remain that way, but here at the beginning of the Pulsar Time Blog I feel it is an appropriate choice, for two main reasons. First, it was in that final decade of the 20th century that many companies began establishing their own presence on the World Wide Web. The earliest archives for pulsarwatch.com on the Internet Archive Wayback Machine are from this era. Second, I believe it to be quite appropriate to start out using this style, considering the inspiration behind Neocities itself. Of course the site will not stay like this. It will evolve organically from the current look to something more contemporary. Perhaps even then, however, there will still be trace amounts of the DIY-grassroots feel that made the early days of the Internet so much fun!

Due to the business of the season, I have not yet written or uploaded some of my intended posts for this blog. For instance, one question that most will have is, "Why Pulsar?" That question is easily answered, but I would like to present it in a post entitled A Tale of Three Pulsars in which I will give in detail the reason for blogging about this brand. Keep an eye out as I may be able to get this put together soon!

Welcome Pulsar enthusiasts, watch collectors, those interested in all things horological, and the random web surfer (do people still remember how to do that?) who ended up here after one too many wrong turns on the World Wide Web! This site is currently under construction (if the title of this post or the animated gif didn't already give that away!). I'm just starting to get moved in here, so please pardon the mess. Look for more content in the days and weeks ahead as I get settled in. Thank you for stopping by and I am excited to start this journey with you into the world of Pulsar watches and the Pulsar brand.

For those of you who remember personal web pages of the 1990s and early 2000s, do you recall the plethora of "under construction" gifs like the one used for this post? For a quick jaunt down memory lane, (or for those who are too young to have experienced the "old web"), have a look at Jason Scott's collection of "under construction" gifs or browse the gif collection over at GifCities.