2020 Grand Seiko Quartz GMT 50th Anniversary SBGN009
Ref: SBGN009 (9F86-0AD0)
Specification
Lugs : 20mm
Condition : Pre-Owned
Box & Papers : Box & Papers
Case Material : Stainless Steel
Warranty : 12-Months Warranty
Points of Mention
This watch is sold with its original Grand Seiko box and paperwork. The watch comes paired with its original stainless steel Grand Seiko signed bracelet with its Grand Seiko signed clasp, all spare links included. The watch is from January 2020 and is sold in worn condition, but overall fair condition as you can see, a full case & bracelet refurb can be provided at an additional cost. The watch comes with our 12-Months Warranty.
For more photos see here - https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1UwWOvs_x7nIgcpMWd60UPeQHME99XB62?usp=drive_link
4K YouTube video, skip to 9:26 - https://youtu.be/Rj6fpq8fxqs
The Watch
Here we have a 2020 Grand Seiko Quartz GMT 50th Anniversary SBGN009, part of the Heritage range, this limited edition of 2019 pieces commemorates 50 years since the introduction of the world's first quartz watches, the Seiko Quartz Astron in 1969, changing the watch industry forever. The impressively sculptured 40mm stainless steel case's exquisitely polished and brushed surfaces curve over your wrist toward the drilled lugs, and a lug-to-lug of 46.5mm and a case thickness of 12mm give the watch an impressive wrist presence. On the right side is a signed crown sitting slightly recessed, and a smooth bezel holds a dual-domed sapphire crystal above a stunning semi-transparent deep blue dial that has a repeating Seiko quartz symbol pattern. An outer gold-toned minute track surrounds gold-toned 24-hour numerals and applied steel chamfered-edged batons and trapezoid indexes mark the hours that play with the light as you rotate your wrist, at 3 o’clock a framed date window. Elegant dauphine hands are Zaratsu polished with razor edges, complemented by a tapered gold second hand, a golden arrow hand indicates the 24-hour position, and at 12 o’clock we have the gold Grand Seiko motif and at 6 o’clock a gold “GMT”. On the reverse is a screw-down case back with a limited number engraved into it and a deeply embossed medallion in the centre, inside a Quartz Grand Seiko Cal. 9F86 is a top-tiered Quartz movement. Seiko grows their own quartz crystals, and using a higher torque allows them to use these heavier GS hands, keeping their brand aesthetic intact. The watch comes fitted on its 20mm stainless steel bracelet expertly brushed and polished with a push-button hidden signed clasp and also comes with the Grand Seiko presentation box and papers.
Personal Note
I have been fortunate to have sold many of the 9F Quartz models, but none I have struggled as much as I have with this one to photograph! The dial is mesmerising in the metal, a deep blue that borders on black in some lights, then in certain lights this array of Seiko Quartz symbols appears and adds a new layer to the dial... I would recommend seeing our "Drop Video" on YouTube to see this dial in action, photos can not do it justice!
The Brand
The first Grand Seiko debuted in Tokyo in 1960, the reference 3180 was made by Suwa Seikosha. Rather than sending its 25 Jewels Chronometer movement to the Swiss to be tested, Seiko decided to do the testing themselves, the European Chronometer Official Association believed that a chronometer-rated watch had to be independently tested to be awarded that designation. Seiko watches were not independently tested, so they could not be chronometers. The ECOA did what irritated watchmakers do; they wrote a stern letter to Seiko requesting that the designation of Chronometer on Grand and King Seiko watches stop, Seiko obliged and ceased using "Chronometer" on their watches. In response, the Japanese Chronometer Authorization Association was started in 1968 as an independent group to test timepieces to chronometer standards, the Association was short-lived: due to the rise of quartz watches, it closed in 1983. Today Grand Seiko movements are tested over 17 days in 6 positions compared to COSC testing over 15 days in 5 positions. In 1985 Suwa Seikosha became Seiko Epson Corporation, and in 2017 Seiko announced that Grand Seiko would become an independent brand.