The good and the (not so) bad of the Grand Seiko SLGC007 Tentagraph
Zach BlassAt Watches and Wonders Geneva 2025, the Grand Seiko SLGC007 Tentagraph made its debut, the second Evolution 9 Tentagraph watch (at least the second-ever regular production model available worldwide). But is this new Grand Seiko SLGC007 better than the original SLGC001? Is the Tentagraph too big and bulky? Let’s run through it all together.
The case
The Grand Seiko SLGC007, when compared to the original SLGC001, is an identical watch, the only exception being its new “snow blue” dial, which we will get to in a bit. Kicking things off with the case, it’s once again forged in Grand Seiko’s robust yet lightweight high-intensity titanium and measures 43.2mm in diameter, 15.3mm thick, and 51.5mm lug-to-lug. These are certainly sizeable numbers, but, in my personal experience wearing a Tentagraph for a few months, there’s a welcome difference between how the dimensions read and how they wear. In short: it doesn’t wear as big as you might think.
A larger diameter does not really bother me, especially when it is not a far cry from a more familiar 42mm measurement. Thickness and lug-to-lug are more likely to make or break the fit of a watch, in my mind. At 51.5mm lug-to-lug, its lug-to-lug measurement is 2.5mm longer than a Grand Seiko Snowflake – a watch I own that gets plenty of wear time. That’s a little over a millimetre on each side of the lugs. I would never diminish extra millimetres as nothing; watchmaking is a game of millimetres. They more often than not make a world of difference. That said, with the subtle case camber and curvature of the Tentagraph’s Evolution 9 case, it honestly wears smaller than you would perhaps initially expect. It’s a big watch, but not too big.
The thickness is where you notice a bit more of an overpowering presence, but, again, I found the 15.3mm manageable and never had any issue getting the watch out from under any dress shirt sleeves. Would I have preferred the watch to be 40mm in diameter, less than 15mm thick, and less than 50mm lug-to-lug? Absolutely. But I have to stress that my wear experience was nothing short of very pleasant. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.
The interesting disconnect with the Tentagraph is that, although being titanium, it actually has quite a heft to it. Its weight is listed as 154 grams, whereas the Snowflake is listed at 100 grams. I can’t break down the weight by component, but, again, as someone who has had ample time wearing both a Tentagraph and a Snowflake, it feels like pretty much all of that added 54 grams of heft is felt strictly in the case. If you were to articulate just the bracelet in your hand, it would feel as light as you would expect titanium to feel, but holding the case of the watch, it begins to feel like a stainless steel watch in weight. This is likely due to the sizeable modular chronograph calibre within. But, getting to the point, what this translates to is something that feels very ergonomic and centred on the wrist. All of the gravity and heft of the watch feels distributed right in the centre of your wrist while worn, and it feels great in my opinion.
Just to ensure we’ve ticked all the case boxes before we move on, the SLGC007 is (expectedly and very handsomely) Zaratsu-polished. It is 100 metres water-resistant with a screw-down crown (but not screw-down pushers). Normally, I would never think to swim with a chronograph, the pushers typically a point of vulnerability. You cannot, unless explicitly stated by the brand, depress a chrono pusher underwater. But the pusher action has enough resistance to feel like it would not depress accidentally, but not so much resistance that the experience is no longer smooth, crisp, and luxurious.
The dial
This is the main change the SLGC007 brings to the fore. A black ceramic bezel with a white tachymetre scale frames the dial, which in this new execution is described as “snow blue”. It ultimately appears a silver grey with a very subtle blue tint. Not only is the dial colour different, the chronograph counters this time around contrast with the broader Mt. Iwate-patterned dial, executed in black, creating the so-called “panda aesthetic” that watch collectors enjoy.
One thing I really liked about the original SLGC001 and its rich, overtly blue dial was that the 4:30 date window was perfectly colour-matched to the dial. In this newer execution, Grand Seiko has reverted to a standard black-on-white date disc. I won’t say that this scheme completely interrupts the dial, but I also can’t say that it is completely seamless either. At this more elevated price point within the Grand Seiko catalogue, I think people would hope for a better blend of the date indication into the dial. Even if it did not have a faint blue tint to it, I think a light silver or grey date disc could have made a subtle but strong difference in the name of dial cohesion for us sticklers out there.
Rounding out the dial overview, you once again have the broader, sportier Evolution 9 handset and faceted applied hour indexes, with the hours and minutes hands plus the hour indexes all filled with Lumi-Brite (Seiko’s proprietary lume compound).
The bracelet
The bracelet remains the same as seen on the original SLGC001: a 23mm wide five-piece link high-intensity titanium bracelet with a subtle taper that extends down to a twin-triggered three-fold clasp. The wide bracelet stance also plays a role in its ergonomic and centred feel on the wrist. You’ll be glad to know there are drilled holes for micro-adjustment. Between the half links, full links and the drilled holes in the clasp, finding a perfect fit should not be a problem. It certainly was not for me and my 6.5 or so inch wrist. (It is worth noting, however, that I am not the “wrist model” in these hands-on photographs – that’d be Marcus and Pietro.)
The movement
The debut of the calibre 9SC5 that powers this Tentagraph was a major milestone for Grand Seiko, representing the Japanese brand’s first-ever fully mechanical chronograph calibre. To recap the meaning of Tentagraph, TEN stands for ten beats per second, the following T for three days of power reserve, A for automatic, and GRAPH for chronograph. A 72-hour power reserve for a high-beat movement like this is a very impressive level of endurance, and this three-day quote is actually with the chronograph function continuously running. So, in reality, because most of us will not just leave the chronograph running at all times, the power reserve is closer to 80 hours.
The 9SC5, which can be seen through the exhibition caseback, boasts all the impressive developments from the 9SA5 that serves as the base calibre. It has a proprietary high-beat dual-impulse escapement, free-sprung balance, and Grand Seiko’s first overcoil hairspring – its shape the fruit of over 80,000 computer simulations. A GS-exclusive chronograph module has been added on top, and though some have called out similarities to the module seen in the Seiko NE88 (including our very own Borna Bošnjak), Grand Seiko has made it clear to me that there are substantial differences, such as the durability and materials of the components.
It is worth noting that part of the reason the watch is thicker is that a modular movement requires a module to be stacked on top of the base calibre. In terms of its wider diameter, it’s Grand Seiko’s sense of perfectionism that is at “fault”. Grand Seiko designed the pushers, despite the modular movement, in perfect alignment with the crown, and the system that makes this possible adds a tad more width in diameter.
The verdict
To answer the question I posed at this review’s outset, though I still think the original blue dial is my favourite, the one I am more likely to buy is this new Grand Seiko SLGC007. I just have too many blue dials in my collection, and I no longer have a panda dial in my collection, and I am pretty keen on having the SLGC007 be the watch that brings a panda dial back into my wear roster. With the tariffs in America, there has been a price increase that was recently rolled out across the Grand Seiko lineup. Therefore, the Grand Seiko SLGC007 Tentagraph, once US$14,100, is now US$14,700.
A lot of you will say that’s a lot of money, and of course it is. But I also think that it’s a lot of watch. Despite my testimony of sorts, I know some of you reading this will find the larger size hard to metabolise. But, I am telling you, as someone who had a Tentagraph on a very extended loan, it wears very comfortably, looks great, and is driven by a calibre packing some very serious watchmaking under its belt, and with its diamond-cut bevelled bridges, striping, and river-inspired architecture, it’s a very handsome calibre as well.
Grand Seiko SLGC007 Tentagraph pricing and availability
The Grand Seiko SLGC007 is available now for purchase from Grand Seiko retailers. Price: US$14,700, A$21,000
| Brand | Grand Seiko |
| Model | Evolution 9 Tentagraph |
| Reference | SLGC007 |
| Case Dimensions | 43.2mm (D) x 15.3mm (T) x 51.5mm (LTL) |
| Case material | High-intensity titanium |
| Water Resistance | 100 metres, screw-down crown |
| Crystal(s) | Sapphire front and back |
| Dial | Snow blue |
| Bracelet | Case-matching bracelet, three-fold clasp |
| Movement | 9SC5, in-house, automatic, high-beat |
| Power Reserve | 72 hours |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, small seconds, date, chronograph |
| Availability | Now |
| Price | US$14,700 A$21,000 |