Grand Seiko
Grand Seiko Spring Drive 41 mm Slate Quartz
Photography on request
Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Grand Seiko · Spring Drive
Grand Seiko Spring Drive 41 mm Slate Quartz
Reference 63526OR.70
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Grand Seiko
- Collection
- Spring Drive
- Model
- Grand Seiko Spring Drive 41 mm Slate Quartz
- Reference number
- 63526OR.70
- Year / era
- 1993 · 1990s — mechanical revival
- Complication
- Minute repeater
- Movement
- High-beat automatic
- Case material
- Quartz TPT
- Dial type
- Slate grey
- Strap / bracelet
- Milanese mesh
- Water resistance
- 150 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 41 mm
- Case thickness
- 8.8 mm
- Case material
- Quartz TPT
- Bezel
- Octagonal with 8 hexagonal screws
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Slate grey
- Hands
- Mercedes hour hand with Chromalight display
- Indexes
- Printed minute track with applied batons
- Bracelet / strap
- Milanese mesh
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 150 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 81F — High-beat automatic
- Movement type
- High-frequency automatic
- Frequency
- 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 45 hours
- Number of jewels
- 40 jewels
- Complications
- Minute repeater
- Functions
- Perpetual calendar, leap year
- Watchmaker
- The calibre is built in-house and adjusted in five positions before delivery.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1993 – 1997
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Thin secondary-market supply — pricing is set piece by piece at auction.
Designer
Gérald Genta
Gérald Genta (1931–2011) trained as a goldsmith in Geneva and became the most influential watch designer of the 20th century. Working freelance, he sketched the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak overnight in 1970, followed by the Patek Philippe Nautilus, the IWC Ingenieur SL and the Bulgari Bulgari — defining the integrated-bracelet luxury sports watch as a category.
Historical significance
Grand Seiko Spring Drive 41 mm Slate Quartz sits within Grand Seiko's Spring Drive line, introduced in 1993. It carries the house codes established since 1960 — quartz tpt case, slate grey dial and high-beat automatic — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The case is finished by hand, alternating polished and satin-brushed surfaces in a single pass so the edges stay razor sharp.
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
The House
Grand Seiko
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1960
- Founder
- Seiko / Daini & Suwa Seikosha
- Headquarters
- Japan
- Tier
- Premium
- Major collections
- Heritage, Evolution 9, Elegance, Sport, Masterpiece, Spring Drive
- Signature technologies
- Proprietary case-hardening and polishing · Certified chronometer regulation
- Famous movements
- High-beat automatic · Spring Drive · Automatic, Swiss lever escapement · Automatic chronograph
- Notable watches
- Grand Seiko Heritage 37 mm Ice Platinum (1960) · Grand Seiko Heritage 42 mm Black Stainless (1963) · Grand Seiko Heritage 37 mm Slate Ceramic (1969) · Grand Seiko Heritage 44 mm Skeletonised Ceramic (1975)
Brand history
Grand Seiko has spent more than 66 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Heritage, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Seiko / Daini & Suwa Seikosha established Grand Seiko in 1960, working from Japan at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Grand Seiko calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1960
Seiko / Daini & Suwa Seikosha founds Grand Seiko in Japan.
1969
The quartz era forces Grand Seiko to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Grand Seiko enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Grand Seiko continues to produce Heritage, Evolution 9, Elegance and other icons in limited numbers.