Zaratsu Polishing? What is the Big deal? It is surely just a marketing gimmick hyped up by Seiko to make their GS range seem more “mythical” than it really is. How could anyone tell the difference in polishing anyway? Those were the thoughts that ran through my mind when I was reading all the raving reviews of GS watches. These people must be delusional…I thought.
I have never been more wrong in my entire existence.
My initial encounter with the GS was rather lukewarm as the watch was cocooned tightly in a few layers of shrink-wrap. I impatiently asked the cute sales assistant to undress (the watch) and she looks simply breathtaking in the nude (the watch). The Zaratsu polishing is indeed a sight to behold as it catches the light in amazing ways. It is almost like “black polishing”, which is practiced in the dark arts of haute horlogerie movement finishing.
I could go on forever about the polishing but the GS is a lot more than just its beautiful “skin”. The attention to detail is nothing short of amazing. I am extremely taken by the carefully beveled and multi faceted markers on the dial that catches the light like a diamond.
The Hour and Minute hands are lumed and brushed with a high polish beveling. The second hand is polished to a sublime mirror finish. It really is something that you need to see in the metal to appreciate.
The lugs are nicely beveled and the case is an inter-play of brushed and polished finishing to give it that ethereal shine. The bezel is adorned with a specially developed domed sapphire (similar to Blancpain Fifty Fathoms) that looks incredible due to its crystal like appearance. The bi-directional bezel makes 120 clicks in a tactile manner, allowing the accurate tracking of a 3rd time zone.
The lume on this baby is extremely bright. I like how the numbers are lumed on the Bezel (ala Pelagos). The sapphire crystal is coated with a proprietary anti-reflective coating, which results in a truly “high definition” view of the dial.
The watch comes with a solid case back, which is nicely engraved with the GS medallion. Some might prefer a transparent case back to view the movement but I personally prefer the solid case back to go with the overall theme of a solid tool watch with a magnetic resistance of 60 gauss and water resistance of 200m.
The bracelet is also worth mentioning as the implementation is close to perfection. The fit of the end pieces to the lugs are very precise. It wears comfortably with the GS branded push button release three-fold clasp.
The screw-in crown is positioned at 4 o’clock instead of the usual 3 o’clock to keep it out of harm’s way. As with all GS, the crown is nicely engraved with the GS insignia.
The 9R66 Spring Drive movement powers the SBGE001. The SD movement is a hybrid mechanism, which marriages the best of mechanical and quartz technology. SD eliminates the traditional weakness of the Swiss Lever escapement by utilizing a tri-synchro regulator from the pulse of a crystal (quartz) oscillator. It also eliminates the weakness of the Quartz technology by eliminating the reliance on batteries and the jumping second hand by the use of the traditional mainspring system and a unidirectional glide wheel.
The SD movement could be polarizing but I personally find it to be an innovative step forward as it still retains the “romance” of mechanical movement with the accuracy of a quartz watch. I have worn the watch for about a week now and it has not deviated from my reference SIRIM time! The power reserve is rated at a very healthy 3 days but will remain ticking (or the lack of it) for about 76 hours.
One of the advantages of the SD movement is the continuous sweep of the second hand made possible by the unidirectional glide wheel. The smooth and continuous sweep of the second hand around the dial is almost therapeutic. It is pretty much akin to a miniaturized version of the motor driven sweep second hand in traditional wall clocks.
The GMT complication allows change to the hour hand without hacking the mechanism or moving the GMT hand. It pretty much works the same way as a Rolex GMT. This is a nice function to have for frequent travelers. However, you will be out of luck if you were to travel to countries with half hour time difference such as India.
I am sure you will know by now that I am really enamored by this piece. It is indeed a fantastic watch at a very reasonable price of entry. Highly recommended for the seasoned watch enthusiasts who could look pass the SEIKO badge, and truly appreciate the finer details of watchmaking.
