Every now and then, you will happen upon a member of the watch aristocracy. They don’t draw attention to themselves, keep a low profile. The Grand Seiko SBGD201 is a perfect example of this phenomenon. To look at, it’s a simple three-handed watch in a metal case. Nothing out of the ordinary. In fact, however, it’s a paragon of technical prowess with a unique movement, finished by watchmakers who are obsessed with perfection.
Nevertheless, it has to be said that it doesn’t look like much from the outside. However, in a culture where minimalism has cult status, the dial itself is a masterpiece. It’s a Zen garden of a watch face. But, rather than an expanse of gravel meticulously raked to represent the cosmos, and a bonsai in the corner to denote the natural world, the dial is sprinkled with diamond dust. This sparkling powder produces an effect similar to that of fresh snow, or perhaps of a traditional grenage finish. The baton markers could scarcely be simpler, and that’s deliberate: they are perfect. The hands are the dauphine shape that the brand uses exclusively. The case is typical Grand Seiko – nothing out of the ordinary here either. The inscriptions are laconic, which is quite unusual for a brand that usually has quite a lot to say. But according to the spec sheet, the diameter is 43 mm – and that’s an unusual size for such a simple watch. The watch’s unusually explicit name is also significant, because it tells you everything you need to know: Grand Seiko Spring Drive 8 Days Power Reserve.
The Ref. SBGD201 launched in 2016, was a Seiko/Grand Seiko – it still belonged to both brands. Since then, however, Grand Seiko has won its independence (see article) and the signature on the 8 Days model has changed. It’s also a Spring Drive. In place of a mechanical escapement, its movement incorporates an electromagnetic regulation system that guarantees the calibre 9R01 a precision (in wear) of +/- 10 seconds per month, or 2 minutes per year! But it’s only really possible to gain the full measure of this timepiece by turning it over and looking at the back.
The calibre 9R01 doesn’t look like anything else. First, the graduated power reserve indicator goes up to 8 days. Yes, it’s a hand-wound movement with a 192-hour power reserve, features that are unique to Grand Seiko and to the Spring Drive. It has three series-mounted barrels and a gear system designed to reduce friction by 10%, an advance also achieved by polishing all the moving parts – an extreme attention to detail that can only be described as fanatical. Finally, the bridges are incredible. Or rather, the bridge, since there’s only one. According to Seiko, this provides greater stability, and it also enables the company to give it a shape reminiscent of Mount Fuji (it’s true - look carefully!).
The movement is decorated and assembled in the Micro Artists Studio. A small group of watchmakers in Seiko’s Shio-Jiri manufacture habitually spend months working on Japan’s rarest (from an international point of view) watches, such as the Fugaku tourbillon and the Credor repeaters, which represent the pinnacle of the Seiko group’s collections. They are responsible for chamfering, brushing and polishing the 9R01 the Spring Drive movement in a way never seen before.
Another feature that becomes clear from the back (and which would be obvious once you picked up the watch) is the abbreviation PT950, indicating that the case is made of platinum. You can virtually count the number of platinum watches made by Seiko on the fingers of one hand. Another version is available with a red gold case, with a black gold-spangled dial, a little like aventurine. But this analogy is perhaps inappropriately euro-centric, given that the Grand Seiko Spring Drive 8 Days Power Reserve watches could not be more quintessentially Japanese.
