Grand Seiko Spring Drive Divers (Steel and Titanium)
Discussion
I have just spent some time trying on the Grand Seiko Spring Drive Divers in Steel (rrp £5200) and the version in Titanium (rrp £6000) as I was intent on buying the Titanium version.
Have to say that I am somewhat disappointed with both watches.
Firstly, the Titanium watch was very very light - too light I feel. If I compare it to a similar watch in Titanium (Tudor Pelagos that I have on order) then it is very light. The lightness affects how it sits and feels on your wrist. The steel one was obviously much heavier possibly too heavy.
Quality wise IMHO, their bracelets and external watch finish are not on a par with the latest Rolex e.g. my DSSD. For example the glidelock bracelet on my DSSD is much better made and easier to use. Both the steel and titanium braclets on the GS have a similar gliding adjustment but it feels flimsy by comparison with the DSSD.
I cannot comment on internal finish of the watches as neither watch has a crystal back although clearly the timekeeping on both Grand Seiko would be superior to Rolex (or any other Swiss automatic)
Shame really as I was looking forward to wearing a new watch this afternoon.
Have to say that I am somewhat disappointed with both watches.
Firstly, the Titanium watch was very very light - too light I feel. If I compare it to a similar watch in Titanium (Tudor Pelagos that I have on order) then it is very light. The lightness affects how it sits and feels on your wrist. The steel one was obviously much heavier possibly too heavy.
Quality wise IMHO, their bracelets and external watch finish are not on a par with the latest Rolex e.g. my DSSD. For example the glidelock bracelet on my DSSD is much better made and easier to use. Both the steel and titanium braclets on the GS have a similar gliding adjustment but it feels flimsy by comparison with the DSSD.
I cannot comment on internal finish of the watches as neither watch has a crystal back although clearly the timekeeping on both Grand Seiko would be superior to Rolex (or any other Swiss automatic)
Shame really as I was looking forward to wearing a new watch this afternoon.
The titanium Grand Seiko is 137g (official) against a Tudor Pelagos' "about 170g" as one owner claims on WUS – Tudor don't feel it worth giving full and proper specs.
Given that the Pelagos is charged with a depth rating of 500m (2.5x more than that of the Grand Seiko), it shouldn't be any surprise it is a heavier watch.
No doubt the thickness of the bracelet links are adding to the 33g difference, as Rolex tend to oversize their bracelets.
The clasp mechanism is a point often raised, but the reality is most buyers don't actually dive with their diver's watch, or even go into water much deeper than waist height!
These GSes are more akin to Subs than DSSD and Pelagos, or Perrelet Seaquest, or Ball Deepquest, etc.
You didn't like what was on offer, ah well – can't please everybody all of the time.
Given that the Pelagos is charged with a depth rating of 500m (2.5x more than that of the Grand Seiko), it shouldn't be any surprise it is a heavier watch.
No doubt the thickness of the bracelet links are adding to the 33g difference, as Rolex tend to oversize their bracelets.
The clasp mechanism is a point often raised, but the reality is most buyers don't actually dive with their diver's watch, or even go into water much deeper than waist height!
These GSes are more akin to Subs than DSSD and Pelagos, or Perrelet Seaquest, or Ball Deepquest, etc.
You didn't like what was on offer, ah well – can't please everybody all of the time.
PJ S said:
The titanium Grand Seiko is 137g (official) against a Tudor Pelagos' "about 170g" as one owner claims on WUS – Tudor don't feel it worth giving full and proper specs.
Given that the Pelagos is charged with a depth rating of 500m (2.5x more than that of the Grand Seiko), it shouldn't be any surprise it is a heavier watch.
No doubt the thickness of the bracelet links are adding to the 33g difference, as Rolex tend to oversize their bracelets.
The clasp mechanism is a point often raised, but the reality is most buyers don't actually dive with their diver's watch, or even go into water much deeper than waist height!
These GSes are more akin to Subs than DSSD and Pelagos, or Perrelet Seaquest, or Ball Deepquest, etc.
You didn't like what was on offer, ah well – can't please everybody all of the time.
I went with every intention of buying one.Given that the Pelagos is charged with a depth rating of 500m (2.5x more than that of the Grand Seiko), it shouldn't be any surprise it is a heavier watch.
No doubt the thickness of the bracelet links are adding to the 33g difference, as Rolex tend to oversize their bracelets.
The clasp mechanism is a point often raised, but the reality is most buyers don't actually dive with their diver's watch, or even go into water much deeper than waist height!
These GSes are more akin to Subs than DSSD and Pelagos, or Perrelet Seaquest, or Ball Deepquest, etc.
You didn't like what was on offer, ah well – can't please everybody all of the time.
The Tudor Pelagos is priced at less than half the price of the GS and yet the bracelet/clasp is much better. The point I was making about the adjustment mechanism has nothing to do with wearing it over a wet/dry suit but relates to the ease of making everyday adjustment. Yes I do dive and always dive with one of my dive watches. Fine adjustment of fit on the wrist (and varying it when required) is achieved on the Rolex Glidelock and on the Pelagos by an easy slide adjustment. The GS does not have this feature and the adjustment is for over a wetsuit. Furthermore, the mechanism is cheap feeling particularly on the Titanium GS. When extended the mechanism is exposed which looks odd.
I agree about the comment of buying one of these pre-owned. The salesman admitted that they did not retain value well when compared to other brands such as JLC/Rolex etc.
andy tims said:
Very happy with my steel one and apart from the glidelock bracelet I believe the fit and finish is on a par with Rolex. That said I wouldn't pay RRP for one.
I think on my examination that the steel version is the best of the two. A divers watch is meant to have a certain weight and feel to it and in this respect the steel one fits the part. I also think that the finish and look of the steel one was better.On price, I had no intention of paying RRP but there was little point talking about discount as they did not impress me that much.
On balance, IMHO both are £3k watches not £5.2K or £6k. In contrast, the Pelagos is a bargain even though I have negotiated a sizeable discount on this so even more of a bargain.
I went to the Seiko dealer in Singapore, when I lived there, with every intention to buy the Ti diver...
Tried it on and, although a beautiful piece, I too was surprised (there's a thread on here from like 3yrs ago, by me) how light it was!
I got that almost slightly uneasy feeling about paying that much money for something so light. I know that the point is for it be light but it just didn't feel 'right' and I was looking for more 'heft' for my money.
It was also the same price-ish (at the time) as a DSSD (which was quite unloved back then) and I couldn't see past that, to be honest.
Could be a good buy 2nd hand but I think they hold money well, if you can find one. The Seiko dealer didn't seem to be massively forthcoming with discounts at the time, either!
So, I have tried the Ti diver and owned most of the Rolex divers and I am with the OP on this one, it's just a difficult feeling to put into words!
Tried it on and, although a beautiful piece, I too was surprised (there's a thread on here from like 3yrs ago, by me) how light it was!
I got that almost slightly uneasy feeling about paying that much money for something so light. I know that the point is for it be light but it just didn't feel 'right' and I was looking for more 'heft' for my money.
It was also the same price-ish (at the time) as a DSSD (which was quite unloved back then) and I couldn't see past that, to be honest.
Could be a good buy 2nd hand but I think they hold money well, if you can find one. The Seiko dealer didn't seem to be massively forthcoming with discounts at the time, either!
So, I have tried the Ti diver and owned most of the Rolex divers and I am with the OP on this one, it's just a difficult feeling to put into words!
GC8 said:
Surely the lack of weight is part of the appeal? Why else would we buy titanium watches?
Oh - I agree completely! It's the ethos of the watch and probably a biug selling point as I find my DSSD a bit weighty!But, and this is why it's so difficult to put into words, you kind of expect more heft per £ - It's part of the diving watch appeal, for some.
Not a great analogy but imagine going into buy a gold chain. The heavier it is, the more expensive it is as there is more gold and gold is heavy! Imagine if you found a really light gold chain, would you expect to pay more for it? Hope you see what I mean?!
Beautiful watch and I'd love one. It's not a big 'name' thing for me but I couldn't get past how much more 'value' I perceived the Rolex DSSD to have.
I have a large titanium Oris which is no longer available, due I believe to people wanting more weight when they were paying one of Oris's higher RRPs which was ironic, I thought.
Annoyingly I cant remember its weight, but it is brilliantly light considering its size, which can be seen in the picture below: it dwarfs the Seiko dive which it is alongside.
Annoyingly I cant remember its weight, but it is brilliantly light considering its size, which can be seen in the picture below: it dwarfs the Seiko dive which it is alongside.
R26Chris said:
I have a Ball DeepQuest and even though its titanium it still has "heft". Not sure how heft is defined but it definitely has it!
More material due to the thickness of the sold block machined case and thick sapphire glass, and bracelet, to withstand the silly depth its specs indicate – 3000m212g – according to this owner's review..... http://forums.watchuseek.com/f257/ball-engineer-hy...
bobbybee said:
Personally I always find it funny that people equate heft = quality. Must be in the mind set along the lines of Victorian engineering, chunky means strong
That's what I'm getting at - I think 'quality' is the wrong word, I think it's more value for money!Like I said, for me it's perception of value as it is clearly a quality item. I just couldn't take one at the same price as an equivalent Rolex!
Not sure I get the weight thing...
I have a Seiko Sportura Titanium chrono and its light...92g vs. 163g for my Omega Seamaster. Granted the SMP feels heavier when you first put it on, but after a few minutes there's no way I could tell the difference.
Or are some of the watches mentioned here significantly heavier than that?
I have a Seiko Sportura Titanium chrono and its light...92g vs. 163g for my Omega Seamaster. Granted the SMP feels heavier when you first put it on, but after a few minutes there's no way I could tell the difference.
Or are some of the watches mentioned here significantly heavier than that?
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