Last week I met up with the Grand Seiko UK team at Japan House in South Kensington, London. The brand has taken up space in the cultural center and brought its latest European limited edition. Although the light was bright and the anti-reflective crystal worked for a long time, I managed to get a few decent shots.
Earlier this month, we previewed the latest Grand Seiko European limited edition model. The rose gold SBGY040 and stainless steel SBGW321 models are inspired by koi ponds. Although I wasn’t in the Japanese Garden, the tranquil setting of Japan House was a good place to put these clocks.
New Grand Seiko Europe limited model
Let’s take a quick look at Grand Seiko’s latest releases. SBGY040 is a 38.5mm elegance model in 18K rose gold. It features a dark blue dial with a wave pattern and is powered by the hand-wound 9R31 Spring Drive caliber. The movement has a 72-hour power reserve and is accurate to within ±1 second per day. Only 20 pieces of the SBGY040 will be produced and will be sold exclusively at Grand Seiko boutiques in Europe or online. Price is €31,100/£26,890.
SBGW321 is a 36.5mm stainless steel watch with a red dial inspired by carp scales. This heritage model uses the famous 9S64, which is accurate to +5/-3 seconds per day. Grand Seiko will produce 300 of these and will sell them in boutiques, online and at authorized retailers in Europe. Priced at €6,100/£5,920, it’s more affordable.
practical notes
Both watches impressed me personally. It sounds like a broken record, but Grand Seiko really knows how to create beautifully textured dials. On this day, I saw two animals with different patterns and colors. The steel SBGW321 was popular for several reasons. The 36.5mm case has a snug fit, with sharp angles and mirror polish.
The dial also differs between the photo and the real thing. Dark raspberry tones, but not overly metallic. Depending on the angle, it reminds you of Japanese lacquerware. Also, the small bumps within the alternating rectangular areas of the dial are worth looking at with a magnifying glass. The Grand Seiko UK team also set up microscopes, HD cameras and large screens to show us the details.
SBGY040’s domed crystal made it very difficult to take photos under the bright lights of the venue. Still, the dark blue wave dial was just as appealing. The rose gold case also makes the 38.5mm C case smaller than the steel case in the Elegance collection. The dial color and case material made the SBGY040 feel like the more premium option of the two European-only models.
The SBGW321 features a traditional stainless steel caseback with Grand Seiko lion engraving, while the SBGY040 flaunts a 9R31 Spring Drive movement. Even though it’s essentially one plate, it still looks great because it’s all set with gemstones. Additionally, there is a power reserve indicator near the barrel. By the way, all the models I looked at were non-runners set to 10:08:42.
We would like to thank the people at Grand Seiko UK for their hospitality. The latest European limited edition will be worth a look when it arrives in boutiques in November. Currently, additional information can be found here for SBGW321 and here for SBGY040.
