Grand Seiko Heritage Collection

Looking at this watch, you will recall all the opinions about the brand and the model, the polarized camps of "European versus Japanese," "Is Seiko Grand Seiko," "Is Spring Drive automatic," and so on. The very fact that the brand has provoked such discussions speaks volumes. But yes, Grand Seiko is indeed a worthy opponent to all the European high-end watches with which it is often compared, and yes – Grand Seiko has nothing to do with Seiko – it is a separate brand, a separate philosophy, and a completely different approach from the manufacturer. Superb finishing, unique detail, and excellent quality emanate from every part of this watch, and the fact that the samurais from Seiko have invented not just a new movement, but a completely different approach to powering these watches of theirs only adds to the "wow" effect. In fact, frankly, the only thing by which you can see the difference with the naked eye is the way the hand glides smoothly around the circumference of the dial, rather than jumping from marker to marker, as is the case with most other movements. Someone "uninitiated" might wonder what is so special about this watch. We will try to bring some clarity to this matter – this is truly a well-constructed watch, with a truly unique dial, with beautiful hands and the great heritage of the brand. All of this places it in that elite group of timepieces that enthusiasts call "watches for close inspection" – because you need to set aside a lot of time, as with each passing hour and minute you will like it more and more and find new reasons for fascination... The incredible hour markers, the insanely polished hands, and last but not least, the Zaratsu finishing of the entire case – all of this is truly from another world. This offering is for those fans of Japanese watchmaking who do not want to pay more for the much-sought-after "Snowflake" or simply do not like its dial design. We present to your attention a model from the same Heritage series, but in a larger case and with a cleaner dial. Presented for the first time at Baselworld 2017, it automatically became sought-after and pursued by all fans of the brand around the world. The classic silver color of the dial, the hour markers, and the hands are finished by hand by highly skilled masters using a technology employed in the centuries-old production of samurai swords and passes a final approval by a single master craftsman! All this is possible mainly due to the small volume of watches produced, which Grand Seiko provides to the market – the total annual volume of all the brand's models does not exceed 35,000 pieces! In the design of this watch, the manufacturer has not tried to make it very different by adding any decorations, additions to the case, more crowns, or disproportionate bezels – and it is precisely with this simplicity that the watch looks very thoroughbred, and from this also comes the biggest criticism of these watches from the "Seiko followers" – according to them, this watch is "too European" – for them this is a minus, but personally for me, this is a great advantage. The watch's bracelet is in the so-called "Oyster-style" with three brushed links (and this is another difference compared to the Snowflake), and what truly distinguishes Grand Seiko from Seiko are the detail and the materials used for the dial. Such attention and precision in the craftsmanship of every marker, hand, and inscription is rarely found even in the most established brands and models with centuries of tradition. Inside the watch beats the brand's in-house caliber 9S61 Automatic with 35 jewels, a power reserve of 72 hours, and operating at a frequency of 28,800 vibrations.