Amid the tizzy of novelties — large, small, fanciful, extra-complicated — unveiled at this year’s Watches and Wonders, Grand Seiko took a different direction, zooming in on what, quite literally, makes a watch tick.
In doing so, the brand created something that triumphs its past efforts: a new movement with an accuracy of just ±20 seconds per year.
Yes, you read that right — not per day, week or month, but per year. We’ll get into the specifics later on, but in brief, this incredible feat in the calibre 9RB2 comes by way of some novel manufacturing and production processes.
As for the watches that this hyper-accurate movement is housed in, we have two references in the Evolution 9 collection. The first, reference SLGB001, is a platinum model with a black crocodile strap, limited to just 80 pieces. The second, reference SLGB003, is a lightweight titanium version with a matching three-link bracelet.
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Building up to now
Grand Seiko is no stranger to pushing the boundaries when it comes to watchmaking technology.
A short few years after its establishment in 1960, the Japanese watchmaker introduced its “Very Fine Adjusted” designation for timepieces with an accuracy of ±1 minute a month. The late 1970s marked an exciting foray into what it called “Spring Drive”, combining the mainspring found in mechanical watches with modern electronic watchmaking technology.
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Spring Drive allowed Grand Seiko to create watches with accuracies that had previously been seen only in quartz models. In 2004, the brand released the calibre 9R Spring Drive, raising the bar with a per-month accuracy of just ±15 seconds.
The new calibre 9RB2 takes things to another level. For one, its quartz oscillator is aged for three months. The frequency of each oscillator is measured at different temperatures, providing thermo-compensation data to the low-power integrated circuit (also newly designed).
To further improve stability and minimise the impacts of varying temperature and other external factors, such as humidity, static electricity and light, both the oscillator and sensor are vacuum-sealed. The new movement also boasts an unprecedented feature for the Spring Drive collection: a regulation switch, which allows for adjustments during servicing to keep the watch accurate even after prolonged periods of wear.
Timeless winters
Both references carrying the calibre 9RB2 take inspiration from the Kirigamine Highlands, located east of the Shinshu Watch Studio, where all of Grand Seiko’s Spring Drive watches are crafted.
The watches’ dials feature a textured motif that evokes the frost-covered trees of the highlands during harsh winter months. The titanium model has a silver-tinged blue hue, with a blued seconds hand adding a touch of contrast; its platinum counterpart has a deeper blue dial, with all three hands being silver-toned.
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From a design perspective, the Evolution 9 collection draws from Grand Seiko’s aesthetic codes dating back to 1967, with the 44GS. Hallmarks of the collection seen in references SLGB001 and SLGB003 include a focus on light and shadow, particularly on the dial, with those textured elements and grooved indices.
Turning the watches around reveals the calibre 9RB2’s inner workings through a sapphire caseback. If the “Spring Drive UFA” inscription at 6 o’clock on the dial hadn’t already clued you in, you’re bound to notice the same words, with “Ultra Fine Accuracy” spelt out in full, on the movement’s oscillating weight.
For straps, the titanium model’s three-link titanium strap has a new three-step microadjustment clasp, allowing wearers to fine-tune for comfort in 2mm increments. The platinum watch’s black crocodile strap, meanwhile, comes with a three-fold clasp and push-button release.
The watch cases, both 37mm, have been polished with Grand Seiko’s signature Zaratsu technique. This allows for smooth, distortion-free mirror finishes, which alternate with a hairline finish for added visual interest.
Both new models will be launched in June. The platinum reference SLGB001 is priced at $51,700, and the titanium reference SLGB003 is priced at $14,000. Both will be available at Grand Seiko boutiques; the latter will also be at authorised retail partners.
