Zach Brass
Watches and Wonders Geneva 2025 debuted the folding version of Grand Seiko SLGC007. The second Evolution 9 Ttergagraph Watch (at least the second standard production model in the world). But is this new Grand Seiko SLGC007 better than the original SLGC001? Is your voice too loud and bulky? Let’s run it all together.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqnj4nekwuw
case
The Grand Seiko SLGC007 is the same watch when compared to the original SLGC001, with the only exception being the new “Snow Blue” dial, reaching a bit. Starting things with the case, it can be forged again into Grand Seiko’s robust yet lightweight high-strength titanium, with a diameter of 43.2mm, thickness of 15.3mm, and lug-to-lug of 51.5mm. These are certainly quite a few numbers, but in my personal experience, since I’ve been wearing Titagraphs for several months, there’s a welcome difference between how you read the dimensions and how you wear them. In short, it doesn’t wear as big as you think.
The larger diameter is really not bothering you, especially if it’s far from the more familiar 42mm measurements. Thickness and lug-to-rug are more likely to create or break the fit of the watch in my mind. With a 51.5mm lug-to-lag, the measurements for the lug-to-lag measurement are 2.5mm longer than the Grand Seiko Noflake. This is a little more than the millimeters on either side of the lug. I didn’t reduce any extra millimeters. Watchmaking is a millimeter game. They often don’t create a world of difference. That being said, the subtle case camber and the case curvature of Titograph evolution 9 makes it honestly wearer than you would expect at first. It’s a big watch, but not too big.
Thickness is something that you notice a little more overwhelming presence, but again, it was 15.3mm manageable and didn’t have the issue of attracting attention from under the sleeves of the dress shirt. Would you prefer to have a diameter of 40mm, less than 15mm thick, and less than 50mm up to lugs? absolutely. However, I have to emphasize that my wear experience is not very comfortable. Don’t knock until you try it.
An interesting cut from the entograph is that it is titanium, but in reality it weighs quite a lot. Its weight is listed as 154 grams, while the snowflake is listed as 100 grams. Although you can’t break down your weight with components, once again, as someone who spent time wearing both foldable and snowflakes, I feel like almost everything about the 54 grams of extra weight is felt strictly. When you make just the bracelet clear in your hand, it feels as light as titanium feels, but it holds the watch case and starts to feel like a stainless steel watch. This could be due to a substantial modular chronograph calibre inside. But once it reaches the point, it feels like it’s very ergonomic to translate, and it’s wrist-centric. All of the gravity and weight of the watch feels distributed in the center of the wrist while wearing it.
To make sure you checked all the case boxes before proceeding, the SLGC007 is painted Zaratsu (expected and very handsome). It is 100 meters water resistant with a screw-down crown (but not a pusher under the screw). Usually I never think of swimming on a chronograph. Pusher is usually a point of vulnerability. You cannot do it unless you push the underwater of the Chrono Pusher, unless it is explicitly stated by the brand. But there’s enough resistance to pusher action to feel like you’re not accidentally depressed, but there’s no resistance to the fact that the experience is no longer smooth, crisp, or gorgeous.
Dial
This is the main change that SLGC007 causes to occur on the front. The black ceramic bezel with a white tittle scale is described as “snow blue” in this new run. In the end it looks like a silvery gray with a very subtle blue tint. Not only is the color of the dial different, but the chronograph counters this time in contrast to the wider rock patterning dial run in black, creating the so-called “panda aesthetics” that watch collectors enjoy.
One thing I really like about the original SLGC001 and its rich, fuzzy blue dial is that the 4:30 date window perfectly matched the dial. In this new run, Grand Seiko has returned to the standard black date disc. I’m not saying that this scheme completely disrupts the dial, but I can’t say it’s completely seamless either. At this higher price range within the Grand Seiko catalog, I think people want a better blend of date displays on the dial. Even without the faint blue tint, I think the light silver or grey date disc could have made a subtle but significant difference in the name of the agglomeration of our stickler dial.
To conclude the dial overview, there is a wider, sportier Evolution 9 handset and facet applied time index, with hours and minutes hand plus a time index filled with all Lumi-Brite (Seiko’s proprietary Lume compound).
bracelet
The bracelet remains the same as seen in the original SLGC001. It extends to a twin-triggered triple clasp with subtle taper with a 23mm wide 5-piece link high-strength titanium bracelet. The broad bracelet posture also plays a role in the ergonomic and central feel of the wrist. I’m happy to know there are drilling holes for fine tuning. Finding the perfect fit between half links, full links and clasp holes is not a problem. Certainly not for me and my 6.5 inch wrists. (It’s worth noting, however, that I’m not the “wrist model” of these practical photos. It would be Marcus and Pietro.)
Movement
The debut of the moment-powering caliber 9SC5 is a major milestone for Grand Seiko, representing the first fully mechanical chronograph caliber of the Japanese brand. To sum up the meaning of the Titagraph, it replenishes 10 beats per 10 seconds, the next T, automatic, and chronograph graphs after a 3-day power reserve. The 72-hour power reserve for such a high-beat exercise is a very impressive level of endurance, and the quote for this three-day period is that the chronograph function is actually being executed continuously. So, in reality, most of us don’t just run chronographs all the time, but our power reserve is close to 80 hours.
Viewable through the exhibition’s caseback, the 9SC5 boasts all the impressive developments from the 9SA5, which serves as the base caliber. It has its own high-beat dual impulse escapement, fleece pulling balance and Grand Seico’s first overcoil hair spring. Over 80,000 computer simulations with its shape. A GS-specific chronograph module has been added above, and while some people are similar to the modules found on the Seiko NE88 (including our own Borna Boschunjak), Grand Seiko has revealed that there are considerable differences in durability and component materials.
Part of the reason the watch is thicker is that modular movement requires the modules to stack on top of the base caliber. In terms of its wide diameter, what lies in the “disability” is the grand sense of Seiko’s perfectionism. Despite its modular movement, the Grand Seico designs the pusher perfectly in alignment with the crown, and the system that allows this to increase the width of the diameter slightly.
verdict
To answer the question raised at the beginning of this review, I think the original blue dial is my favorite, but the one I’m most likely to buy is this new Grand Seiko SLGC007. There are too many blue dials in the collection, and there are no panda dials in the collection. I’m pretty keen on SLGC007 to turn the Panda dial back into my wear roster. American tariffs have resulted in a recent price increase across Grand Seiko’s lineup. So the tick graph for Grand Seiko SLGC007 is USD 14,700.
Many of you will say it’s a lot of money, and of course. But I think it’s a lot of watches. Despite my kind of testimony, I know that some of the people reading this find it difficult to metabolize larger sizes. But I’m the one who has a tick graph on a very extended loan, it is very comfortable to wear, look good, driven by a caliber that packs a very serious watch under its strap, and its diamond-cut bevel bridge, stripes and river-inspired architecture.
Foldable price and availability of Grand Seiko SLGC007
Grand Seiko SLGC007 is now available for purchase from Grand Seiko retailers. Price: US$14,700, US$21,000
Brand Grand Seiko Model Evolution 9 Titagraph Reference SLGC007 Case Dimensions 43.2mm(D) x 15.3mm(T) x 51.5mm(LTL) Case Material High Strength Titanium Water Resistance 100m, Screw Down Crown Crystal (S) Sapphire Front and Back Dial Snow Blue Ticlet Case Match Mutick Move, Inch Move Move Match Mutick Minna 72 Hours Function Time, Minna, Minna, Small Seconds, Date, Chronograph Availability Now Price 14,700 USD
$21,000
