When it comes to quartz movements Seiko is definitely on top. Even if Citizen currently holds the prestige of the most accurate quartz movement, Seiko has history on its side. Of course, Seiko is largely responsible for upending the Swiss watch industry in the 1970s, starting with its Astron, but it continued developing its quartz movements throughout the decade. Seiko’s Superior Twin Quartz movement, the Cal. 9983, was unmatched at the time, with an incredible accuracy of ±5 seconds per year!
And when Grand Seiko stopped producing mechanical watches in the mid-1970s, the brand continued to produce the Grand Quartz line, which sat right under the Superior line with an accuracy of ±10 seconds per year. When Grand Seiko was relaunched in the late 1980s, the first series was the 95GS, featuring the 9581 and 9587 movements; quartz movements. Five years later, in 1993, this led to the launch of Grand Seiko’s 9F quartz movement, starting with the 9F83 movement in three models, then the 9F82 movement in 1995. The 9F83 quartz movement was the first in a long line of Grand Seiko quartz movements that are still used in their timepieces today. It is extremely accurate, with ±10 seconds per year accuracy, and a quartz oscillator that vibrates at 32,768 times per second. Many watch collectors are averse to quartz, but this one is handcrafted and made to truly bear the Grand Seiko standard. Along with the 9F8x movement, the 9F62 movement, a smaller movement, was released in the late 1990s, first in the ref. SBGX018 in yellow gold and SBGX019 in white gold.
The Grand Seiko SBGX261 and the Grand Seiko 9F85A movement
Today, along with the 9F movement, Grand Seiko also has the 9S automatic movement and the 9R Spring Drive movement in its arsenal. While many may not consider Grand Seiko’s quartz movements to be anything special, those like myself, who appreciate the history of Seiko quartz, particularly the Grand Quartz line, see it as an evolution in what was once a top-of-the-line Seiko series.
By: Andres Ibarguen
Read more:
See Anthony Kable’s Grand Seiko database: https://www.plus9time.com/gsdb/.
“Quartz.” Grand Seiko, https://www.grand-seiko.com/ca-en/about/movement/quartz.
A vintage Seiko Grand Twin Quartz 9943-8030 for sale on Toronto Vintage Watches.