Results for Spring Drive (9R65 / 9R86)

Introducing Grand Seiko’s Gem-Set Spring Drive Masterpiece for 2021

For a deep dive into Grand Seiko’s evolution and philosophy, click here.

Introducing the Two-Tone Grand Seiko Spring Drive Chronograph GMT SBGC240

Introducing the Grand Seiko Spring Drive GMT ‘Champagne Diamond’ SBGE267G

To end the year 2020, Grand Seiko releases this new limited-edition watch exclusive to the Thong Sia Group.

The Grand Seiko Spring Drive Chronograph

One of my favourite watch making house is the often overlooked Seiko. They have a long history and tradition of making fine timepieces as well as of innovation. But most collectors focus too much on Swiss timepieces. But yes, Virginia, excellent watches do come from outside Switzerland. Germany, and increasingly England, and of course Japan.Read More

Slender and springy - the Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGY003

Editor’s note: There’s something in the air at Grand Seiko. The brand is busting out new designs left, right and centre. It’s an exciting time to be a fan of Japan’s premier watchmaker. Case in point, the Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGY003 …   Grand Seiko has just announced its latest releases at Basel 2019 … ContinuedThe post Slender and springy – the Grand Seiko Spring Drive SBGY003 appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

Introducing: The Grand Seiko SLGA009 "White Birch" Spring Drive Caliber 9RA2

A 2021 favorite makes its return, with a movement frosted for the winter.

The Most Attainable High-Beat Automatic Watch is One You Can Wear Ever

If you’re not familiar with high-frequency movement calibers, or “high-beat”, as they’re also known, you can think of them as a sort of final boss within mechanical watches. That 5 Hertz heartbeat translates to a hypnotic ten ticks per second, and apart from Grand Seiko’s Spring Drive, which is an entirely different an

Tissot Introduces the PRC 100 Collection with a New Solar Powered Movement

There are a number of watchmaking technologies that are tough to appreciate until you’ve actually spent considerable time with a watch. Grand Seiko’s Spring Drive comes to mind, especially if you’re inclined to constantly check your watch’s accuracy. The consistency over time of a Spring Drive movement is kind of mindblowing if you’re used to “normal” mechanical watches. Similarly, high accuracy quartz, from any brand, is tough to wrap your arms around until you’ve gone months without needing a reset because your watch is keeping time to within a second or two. And ultra-thin watches deserve a mention here as well. A watch that you literally forget you’re wearing because it’s so thin can be a special thing when properly executed.  But in terms of actually making your day to day life easier, there are few technologies that match the practicality of solar powered timekeeping. There are a bunch of brands that offer watches with solar movements, and for some it’s really become their stock-in-trade. Today, Tissot expands their solar offerings with the new PRC 100 Solar collection, bringing an aging collection up to date with some modern tech that should have broad appeal to both the mass market and the most sensible, practical, enthusiasts among us.  The PRC 100 was originally introduced in the mid 2000s and is easily identified by its dodecagonal bezel. PRC is an acronym that stands for “Precise, Robust, and Classic,” which seems like the right canv...

The ABCs of Time - How Are Mechanical Watches Wound? A Comprehensive Guide to Automatic and Manual Movements

There are basically two types of watch movements – mechanical and quartz. The latter is powered by a battery or a combination of solar and rechargeable cells, while the former is powered by one or sometimes multiple mainsprings with no electrical input. There are also grey areas like Grand Seiko’s Spring Drive or Accutron’s Electrostatic […]

Pre-Owned Picks: For Less Than $5,000 You Can Own The Best Of Japanese Watchmaking With Grand Seiko

From Spring Drive to 9F quartz here are five examples from the Hodinkee Shop.

IN-DEPTH: The Longines Conquest V.H.P. GMT “Flash Setting”

The story in a second: A rare case of quartz having legit enthusiast appeal, albeit in a clever, and very novel, fashion. Say “it’s quartz” and countless watch nerds cringe; however, there have been some exceptions to the rule over the years. Of course, Grand Seiko Spring Drive calibers get a pass on account of … ContinuedThe post IN-DEPTH: The Longines Conquest V.H.P. GMT “Flash Setting” appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

Winners announced: IG mini-contest: #SpringDriveSunday

We ran a mini-contest on Instagram (@Deployant) with hashtag #SpringDriveSunday. We announce the winner for the prize of a Seiko Spring Drive lapel pin.

Throwback Sundays: Six Recommendations for a Chronograph from Our Archives (Part 1)

Six recommendations for a chronograph part 1. Rolex Daytona, Omega Speedmaster, Grand Seiko Spring Drive Chronograph, IWC Top Gun, Tudor Heritage Chronograph

INTRODUCING: The new Grand Seiko SBGC238 Limited Edition Spring Drive Chronograph is futuristic, aggressive, brilliant

I am beginning to run out of synonyms for the scope of Grand Seiko for 2020, with yet another impressive reference being pulled out of what seems to be a very deep hat. This time we are looking at the Grand Seiko SBGC238, a limited edition of the largest most angular case possibly ever from … ContinuedThe post INTRODUCING: The new Grand Seiko SBGC238 Limited Edition Spring Drive Chronograph is futuristic, aggressive, brilliant appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

Texas Special: Grand Seiko x Timeless SBGE249 Spring Drive GMT “Blizzard”

A blizzard in Texas? That would be the Grand Seiko x Timeless collaboration, the SBGE249 Spring Drive GMT.

Watches & Wonders: Grand Seiko’s Nature-Inspired SBGZ011 Spring Drive Limited Release Shows The Shape of Water

Deep in the heart of a primeval forest lies a waterfall whose fresh spring waters are unspoilt by man, and whose mystic beauty is an endless source of inspiration - for the band of artisans who quietly engrave by hand some of the most intricately detailed watches in the world. It’s not a Studio Ghibli movie: the Tateshina Falls are real, located in central Japan’s Nagano Prefecture, which is also home to Grand Seiko’s Micro Artist Studio. And at Watches and Wonders 2026, a limited release pays tribute to this serene locale with a Spring Drive model that, according to Grand Seiko, “conveys time’s eternal flow in nature.”  The Masterpiece Collection SBGZ011 takes Grand Seiko’s sharp-edged 44GS case - rendered in platinum - and imbues it with hand-engraved lines from lug to lug, around the bezel, and entirely within the dial (save for a thin minute ring). These dashed silver lines flow in colliding swirls, bursting forth and blending into each other with seeming chaos; Grand Seiko suggests that they represent spring water bubbling forth from below the earth’s surface. On the bezel and the case’s flat surfaces and intersecting ridges, the patterns appear even more dramatic, resembling petals of a monochromatic flower. And on the dial, the white-gold hands and markers provide smooth, brilliant contrast, while the Grand Seiko and Spring Drive logos are carved and inset in their own boxes.  The manual-winding Caliber 9R02 is Grand Seiko’s thinnest Spri...

Grand Seiko Debuts New 40mm Spring Drive U.F.A. Ushio 300 Diver

The Japanese watchmaker unveiled its smallest dive watch at Watches & Wonders. Here's what you need to know.More

Introducing the Grand Seiko SLGA025 “Atera Blue” Spring Drive

Introducing: The Grand Seiko SBGD205 Masterpiece Collection Spring Drive 8 Days Jewelry Watch

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

Introducing: The Grand Seiko SBGE249 Limited Edition Spring Drive GMT (Live Pics & Pricing)

The latest Grand Seiko limited edition sports a dial inspired by a Japanese blizzard.

Grand Seiko Marks 20 Years of Spring Drive 9R

Grand Seiko’s debuted its first-ever Spring Drive movement in 2004 with the cal. 9R65. Now the brand is marking 20 years of the 9R Spring Drive movement family with the Elegance Collection SBGY035 and SBGA499, both sporting striking red dials inspired by the sunlit autumn scenery around Mount Hotaka. Part of the Thin Dress Series, the SBGY035 is flat and elegant, with a domed, textured dial. On the other hand, SBGA499 employs the classic Grand Seiko case and bracelet, matched with a sunburst-brushed dial in red that has the signature Spring Drive power reserve indicator at eight o’clock. The SBGA499 Initial thoughts I am a Grand Seiko fanboy. The brand offers a strong value proposition across its catalogue. Furthermore, Spring Drive is synonymous with Grand Seiko. The hybrid approach of Spring Drive means it boasts quartz-level accuracy despite being having an entirely mechanical mainspring and gear train. The new pair are perfect representations of Grand Seiko’s approach to horology, both good and bad. The two watches are striking, especially since red isn’t a colour often employed by Grand Seiko. The SBGY035 in particular stands out since the textured red dial is uncommon for Grand Seiko and dress watches in general. The SBGY035 That said, Grand Seiko’s limited editions feel too frequent, especially since many are only colour variations of each other. This is a regular criticism of Grand Seiko, but it hasn’t dampened sales of such limited editions, which pro...

Grand Seiko Celebrates 20 Years of 9R Spring Drive

Grand Seiko is celebrating the 20th anniversary of 9R Spring Drive movement with a pair of limited editions featuring dials inspired by the sunrise at Mount Hotaka, a peak near the Grand Seiko workshop in Shiojiri. The first model is the Heritage Collection Caliber 9R 20th Anniversary “Pink Snowflake” (SBGA497) that revisits the first ever watch model with the 9R but with the trademark “snowflake” dial in pink. And the second is the Sports Collection Spring Drive GMT Caliber 9R 20th Anniversary (SBGE305) combining a black ceramic bezel with a dark red sunburst dial. Initial Thoughts The invention of the Spring Drive calibre is arguably one of Seiko’s most important achievements. It encompasses most of the advantages of mechanical movement while retaining the accuracy of quartz. Similar to a fully mechanical movement, it is powered by a spring rather than a battery, while timekeeping is regulated by a quartz crystal. As the first-ever commercially available Spring Drive variant, 9R marks an important feat for Grand Seiko. Nevertheless, despite the two new releases being celebratory models for the 20th anniversary of the 9R Spring Drive movement, they don’t seem to offer anything remarkable or unprecedented. Rather, the choice of a Hotaka mountain-inspired dial for both watches seems cliche, considering how pink and red colour dials have been relatively common in the brand’s catalogue. Plus, the inspiration behind Grand Seiko’s dial seems rather repetitive, a...

Introducing the Spring Drive’s Next Generation: The 5 Days Caliber 9RA2

Grand Seiko launches the next generation of their Spring Drive movement with the 5 Days Caliber 9RA2 fitted into two limited edition timepieces that are inspired by nature.

Grand Seiko Introduces the Spring Drive 5 Days Caliber 9RA2

Having introduced a new design language along with the all-new, automatic 9SA5 last year, Grand Seiko is now doing the same for the Spring Drive. The watchmaker has debuted a pair of Heritage Collection Seiko 140th Anniversary Limited Editions, the “Minamo” SLGA007 in steel and the “Tree Rings” SLGA008 in rose gold. Both are powered by the 9RA2 that’s part of the family of latest-generation Spring Drive movements first seen last year in the Grand Seiko Diver 600 m SLGA001. Just 5 mm high, the slimness of the 9RA5 means the pair of new models are the thinnest Grand Seiko Spring Drive watches to date. Initial thoughts The new models are essentially Spring Drive versions of the self-winding Heritage models launched last year (including an ultra-luxe platinum version and the more recent “White Birch”). That’s a good thing for two reasons. One is the intrinsic appeal of the design, which is vintage inspired and appealing, packaged in a case that’s a good size and easily wearable. And the other is the increased consistency in styling between Grand Seiko’s Spring Drive and automatic models, doing away with the confusing distinction between movements and designs. The “Minamo” SLGA007 in steel But that’s also the downside for the buyers of the limited-edition models (either these or the automatics), since the design has been replicated as a standard-production watch with the automatic movement, and the same will surely be done for the new 9RA2 Spring Dr...

Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 70th anniversary: a proper 1968 re-edition

37.4mm steel, box sapphire, meteor-grey sunburst dial, cal. 1150 with 100-hour reserve. Blancpain marks 70 years of the civilian diver with a faithful re-edition of the 1968 Bathyscaphe. 300 pieces, €14,850.