On December 18, 1960, Japanese watchmaking giant Seiko released the first Grand Seiko timepiece, which became legendary for reaching new heights of precision, durability, legibility, and ease of use. This year, the Grand Seiko brand ? once Japan?s best-kept horological secret, now a worldwide phenomenon ? celebrates 60 years by releasing a host of new models and calibers. So far, we’ve covered four limited editions with signature blue dials and three models re-creating the very first Grand Seiko watch. Today, we drill down into the two brand-new Grand Seiko calibers debuting this year, and reveal the watches that will contain them.
The Grand Seiko SLGH002 houses a new Hi-Beat caliber in its yellow-gold case.
The new Grand Seiko Hi-Beat Caliber 9SA5 is the latest evolution of the groundbreaking 9S mechanical caliber introduced in 1998, noteworthy for combining a 36,000-vph frequency with a lengthy 80-hour power reserve. Grand Seiko’s watchmakers set out “to strike the perfect balance between precision, power, and size” in the new movement, which also delivers a precision rate of +5 to -3 seconds per day. It achieves these results thanks to three technical advances. The first is an in-house-developed dual-impulse escapement, in which the wheel transmits power directly to the balance for increased efficiency. Another is a newly developed free sprung balance that is more resistant to shock and friction than its predecessor and uses an overcoil rather tha...