3 Fantastic Vintage Grand Seiko Watches

July 7, 2024 at 10:40 pm

Seven years on from its split from parent brand Seiko—and many watches and press releases later—the contemporary Grand Seiko brand is well-understood. The Japanese brand makes hand-assembled luxury watches, often priced around the $10,000 mark, with limited editions costing more, and quartz models less. With dial designs inspired by nature, from wind-sculpted snow to silver birch bark, their modern ethos is clearly the self-proclaimed “Nature of Time.”

When Grand Seiko launched in 1960, however, the focus was solely on precision with no mention of snow or trees. The high quality was there, and Grand Seiko watches were certainly considered luxury items at the time, but the company was driven by a determination to outperform Swiss Chronometers. The Grand Seiko watches of this early period were purely mechanical, with mechanical movements that match the quality of Swiss chronometer standards. They were generally co-branded Seiko, something Grand Seiko would never do now.

These vintage Seiko watches were produced from 1960 to 1975 for the Japanese domestic market. With the relaunch of the Grand Seiko brand worldwide, there is now renewed interest in collecting these vintage models, which were produced to the same and sometimes higher standards than Grand Seiko mechanical models today.

Grand Seiko 4420-8000

First, we have the reference 4420-8000, or 44GS, as Grand Seiko now refers to it. This is the only vintage reference the modern brand often highlights as the original source of ‘Grand Seiko Style’. This concept, related to but not the same as, The Grammar of Design set forth by Seiko’s famous designer, Taro Tanaka, defines a distinct style that separates Seiko from Swiss timepieces.

The 44GS is certainly a good-looking watch whose 38mm size works well in the modern setting and whose distinct Zaratsu-polished flanks still garner attention. The low-beat, manually wound movement is both reliable and precise. Due to the recent spotlight garnered by the modern brand, prices have risen for the 44GS, so you can expect to pay around $5,000 for a good, serviced example from a dealer.

Grand Seiko 6145-8000 (61GS) in 18k

The next vintage heavy hitter on our list is literally heavy—being cased in solid 18-carat gold. The solid gold case, still in the Grand Seiko Style, houses a high-beat automatic movement running at 10 hertz (36,000 vibrations per hour). Such rapid oscillations, more than most watches today, give exceptional positional stability, which adds up to better precision from day to day.

Although over 50 years old, these watches are still easily capable of running within the same 8 seconds per day maximum error of today’s Grand Seiko standard (-3s to +5s per day). Expect to pay around $8,000 for a good example that has retained its well-defined edges.

Grand Seiko Chronometer

The final example is the very first model Grand Seiko produced in 1960. Sometimes referred to as the Grand Seiko First or simply the Grand Seiko Chronometer, this model has no co-branding on the dial and features traditional dress-watch aesthetics. A multitude of dial types and transitional models are available, making the hunt a minefield, so stick to trusted vintage dealers or auctions.

Almost all were produced with gold-capped cases, meaning the steel case is wrapped in a thin layer of gold. Dials are subject to spotting with age, so expect to pay around $10,000 for the most desirable variant with an engraved logo dial in good, clean condition. For those with deeper pockets, a small number of platinum-cased versions were produced between 1961 and 1963, but those can be very hard to find.