Direct from Grand Seiko’s Micro Artist Studio at Seiko’s Shiojiri workshop in central Japan (birthplace of the Spring Drive Minute Repeater, Sonnerie and Eichi watches for Credor) Grand Seiko this week adds a rose gold and dark-dialed companion piece to the much-touted platinum-cased Grand Seiko Spring Drive 8 day first seen last year.
Powered by the same Spring Drive caliber as that earlier piece, this new iteration is meant to echo the night sky in the mountains that surround the Micro Artist Studio. To conjure this image, Grand Seiko sprinkles the black dial with specially painted and plated ‘stars.’
A closer look at the dial of the Grand Seiko Spring Drive 8 Day Power Reserve: SBGD202
While we haven’t seen the watch in person yet (Grand Seiko has just announced the new piece), I fully expect a breathtaking visual treat that rivals the sparkly white dial of the earlier edition. Here, the dark dial accentuates the glittering ‘stars,’ all of which also relay light from the five-faceted hands and hour markers. Grand Seiko’s typically perfect razor-edge polishing, called Zaratsu, ensures a terrific mirror finish that in just about any light generates brilliance on all Grand Seiko cases, lugs and buckles.
The Grand Seiko Spring Drive 8 Day Power Reserve: SBGD202
Caseback of the Grand Seiko Spring Drive 8 Day Power Reserve: SBGD202
The Spring Drive hybrid manual-wind/quartz controlled caliber here offers eight-days of power reserve by combining three barrels under a strong one-piece bridge to deliver precision equal to plus-or-minus ten seconds per month. Seiko says the unusual bridge reduces shock and also ‘ensures the precise positioning of each wheel in the gear train and maximizes the efficiency of the transmission of power from the barrels.”
The 2016 Grand Seiko Spring Drive 8-Days, in platinum
Thanks to the watch’s sapphire caseback, the wearer can see the Mt. Fuji-shaped bridge as well as red rubies and blue screws meant to mimic the lights of the city of Suwa situated directly below the Grand Seiko Micro Artist Studio home.
Price: $42,000 (available in September).
Specifications: Spring Drive 8 Day Power Reserve: SBGD202
Case: 42mm 18-karat rose gold with box-shaped sapphire crystal and anti-reflective coating; Screw see-through case back and 4,800 A/m magnetic resistance:
Movement: Spring Drive Caliber 9R01, manual winding with 8-day power reserve (192 hours), accuracy: ±0.5 second per day (±10 seconds per month). Power reserve indicator on back.
Strap: Crocodile with 18-karat rose gold buckle with three-fold clasp with push button release