Grand Seiko
For the latest restoration story click here
Grand Seiko 3180
In 1960, Seiko realised their ambition to produce ‘the best possible practical wristwatch’ through the creation of the first Grand Seiko in 1960, fitted with a refinement of the Seiko Crown movement. This new 3180 calibre combined the movable stud of the Lord Marvel with the larger balance wheel and barrel of the Crown. The liberal smattering of Diafix jewelling and fully jeweled barrel arbor raised the jewel count to 25. The movement was certified as accurate to +12 to -3 seconds a day and offered a power reserve of 45 hours. It was the first watch from Japan to be compliant with the standard of excellence of the Bureaux Officiels de Contrôle de la Marche des Montres. Around 36,000 3180’s were produced between 1960 and 1964, the majority with gold cap cases but a number also in platinum and an even smaller number in steel.
For a full account of the restoration of this 1963 example, please click here.
Grand Seiko 5722-9990 Self-Dater
In 1964, the team that created the 3180 wanted to take the quality, performance and refinement of that first watch and add a dash of practicality: this came in the form of a calendar function and an improvement in the water resistance to 50m. The result was named the Grand Seiko Self-Dater, fitted with a development of the 3180 and named the 430. This new movement incorporated a quickset date, accompanied by an increase in jewel count from 25 in the 3180 to 35. By 1965 the 430 movement had been renamed the 5722A with the watch itself receiving the numeric model designation of 5722-9990. Further refinements were to come in the B revision of the 5722, most notably a rise in beat rate to 19800 bph. This second generation hand-wind Grand Seiko sustained until 1967 when it was replaced by the Daini-produced 44GS.
For the full account of the restoration of this 1965 example, please click here.
Grand Seiko 6245-9001
In July 1966, the first automatic Grand Seiko was launched in two versions: the 6245-9001, with a 35 jewel automatic movement featuring a date complication; and the 39 jewel 6246-9001 whose movement featured both day and date complications. This new watch made a supremely confident and distinctive visual impact with its mirrored, multi-faceted case, Grand Seiko’s “Zaratsu” polishing and bezel-free case construction providing an unimpeded view of the beautiful dial and handset.
The 62GS was marketed at the time as featuring the first Grand Seiko automatic caliber and while the movement was certainly rather special, it was not in truth a new design but rather the end result of a long process of refinement of the 62 series movements dating back to the 603 calibre fitted to the early Seikomatic watches. Indeed, both of these 62GS models had been available as Seikomatic Chronometers since mid 1965 running at an elevated beat rate of 19800 bph and their transformation into Grand Seikos coincided with Seiko’s decision to create a new Grand Seiko standard in time-keeping with the promise of an average daily rate range of -3 to +6 seconds per day.
For the full account of the restoration of this 1968 example, please click here.
Grand Seiko 5722-9011
The final iteration of the Grand Seiko Self-Dater appeared in 1967 in the form of the gold-cap-cased 5722-9011. This model employed the 5722B calibre, a second refinement of the original Grand Seiko 430 low-beat movement used in the early Self-Daters. This B-variant of 5722 runs at an elevated rate of 19800 beats per hour.
An account of the restoration of this late 1967 example will appear in due course at adventuresinamateurwatchfettling.com
Grand Seiko 4420-9000
By the end of 1967, the extended reign of the 57GS as the pre-emminent hand-wind Grand Seiko was drawing to its end. Its replacement was introduced the same year in the form of a brand new Daini-produced Grand Seiko 4420-9000 featuring a B-variant of the 4420 King Seiko movement. Effectively, the King Seiko 4420-9990 (see here) had evolved into a Grand Seiko, with a new Taro Tanaka-designed case presenting the new Grammar of Design style that would feature as the signature Grand Seiko design for the next few years and form the inspiration of numerous Grand Seiko and King Seiko progeny.
An account of the restoration of this late 1967 example of the 4420-9000 will appear in due course at adventuresinamateurwatchfettling.com
Grand Seiko 6146-8000
The second generation of Grand Seiko automatic followed fairly quickly on the heels of the 62GS in 1967, this time employing a very high beat variant of a new automatic calibre, the 6146A.
The high-beat credentials of the 61GS are entirely authentic in that these movements run at 36000 beats per hour or, to put it another way, 10 beats per second or 5 Hz. In running at such a frenetic pace, high-beat movements are less susceptible to external perturbation and can recover from such more quickly. The down side to a high-beat operation is essentially two-fold: firstly the gear train is under greater stress and relies on modern synthetic lubricants to protect against wear; secondly, a high-beat gear train requires a power source of greater potency and that means a stronger, thicker mainspring. Thicker mainsprings occupy more real estate in the barrel and so provide a shorter power reserve than thinner, longer mainsprings. And in an automatic watch, a thick mainspring needs a heavier winding weight which itself then needs more space.
For the full account of the restoration of this 1969 example, please click here.
Grand Seiko 4520-8000
The Grand Seiko 4420-9000 (see above) was a landmark watch but was destined to survive for little more than a year. By the start of 1969 it had been replaced by a model that retained the same case design but which was powered by a brand new high-beat hand-wind movement, running at the same 36000 bph as the 61GS models introduced a year or so earlier. The 45GS came with two movement variants, the 4522 featuring an instant change date calendar and the 4520, a simpler three-hander. The much thinner hand-wind movement meant that the case had a stealthier profile than the full fat automatic high-beat 61GS.
1969 arguably marked the point at which Grand Seiko as a brand really started to take hold, with the 45GS the fulcrum that inspired an explosion of innovative diversity in the range of Grand Seiko watches that were to follow in that brief but bright period before the onslaught of the quartz revolution put a temporary end to high-end mechanical watches as a breed.
For the full account of the restoration of this 1970 example, please click here.
Grand Seiko 5646-7000
The 61GS line encompassed a diverse range of case styles and sustained from 1968 until 1975. However, from 1971 the 61-series Grand Seikos were being phased out as a new line of Grand Seiko high-beat automatics emerged. This new GS model line was fitted with a refinement of the 56-series automatic movement that had been used in low-beat form in the successful Lord Matic sub-brand and in high-beat form in the automatic King Seiko line, both lines introduced in 1968.
The 56-series is distinguished from the earlier magic lever automatics by its integrated autowinding mechanism sitting at the same level as the gear train and the altogether much more modern design philosophy compared to the legacy approach taken with the first- and second-generation automatic Grand Seikos. The main distinguishing features that separate the KS and GS 56-series variants from the LM are the higher beat rate (28800 plays 21600 bph) and slightly higher jewel counts (25 plays 23 jewels). Additionally, both the (later) KS and GS provide greater latitude for fine regulation thanks to the more sophisticated design of the regulator.
For the full account of the restoration of this 1970 example, please click here.
Grand Seiko SBGV009
In 2014, Seiko released five limited edition watches in an Historical Collection paying homage to the 1964 Grand Seiko Self-Dater. Three of the new interpretations were fitted with Spring Drive movements and the thicker dimensions of those movements and resulting inflated size of the cases resulted in watches that lost a little of the spirit of their inspiration. However, two of the limited edition watches were fitted with the Grand Seiko 9F82 quartz movement. The 9F82 is a development of the Grand Seiko 9F61, the highest end quartz movement in Seiko’s arsenal and one which they boast may be the best quartz movement ever made. It is accurate to ±10 seconds per year and features such innovations as a second hand which stops exactly on each second marker, without any vibration.
The genius of the quartz movement as a choice for this anniversary model is that it has none of the bulk of many of Seiko’s high end modern mechanical movements which in turn then allows the watch case to follow the perfect sizing and proportions of the original.
For the full comparison of the original Grand Seiko Self-Dater with the SBGV009, please click here.
