A picture of the 7 steps in making the Snowflake dial

[Kinnakeet]

I found this on a Seiko forum .... thought it worth passing on hereIMG_4459.jpg


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[SearChart]

Cool stuff, thanks for sharing Michelle!

[stockae92]

Thanks for sharing.

Just for comparison, a "normal" dial would take 5 steps?

[Kinnakeet]

Re- the number of steps ; well apparently GS has a dial that takes 12 steps to make ! I think it’s a champagne colours...?
Anyway I think this display just highlights the hand labour involved.
Oh!- if you notice how Snow Flake is spelled Snow Frake .... well on that forum, someone explained how the Japanese words were translated letter of letter into English,,, and there is no L in Japanese.... I don’t know how true this is ... but it’s kind of endearing!

[Valenciawatchrepair]

Cool. Would love to see the process in action. I was able to hang out at Kirk Dial of Georgia before they closed up shop. I was able to see how they refinish dials. The guy even let me spray a couple of them. Much different than a company like Seiko, but still cool to see. Sadly they close up due to old age.

[MP5]

nice

[Kinnakeet]

Originally Posted by Valenciawatchrepair

Cool. Would love to see the process in action. I was able to hang out at Kirk Dial of Georgia before they closed up shop. I was able to see how they refinish dials. The guy even let me spray a couple of them. Much different than a company like Seiko, but still cool to see. Sadly they close up due to old age.

That would be cool to see ! Also a movement being assembled!
I wonder if GS allows tours of their workshops ?

[pickettt]

Originally Posted by Kinnakeet

Oh!- if you notice how Snow Flake is spelled Snow Frake .... well on that forum, someone explained how the Japanese words were translated letter of letter into English,,, and there is no L in Japanese.... I don’t know how true this is ... but it’s kind of endearing!

Correct, there is no L, but the correct translation from Katakana to Romaji would be "fureiku", not "frake".

[Kinnakeet]

I found a picture ( from the same forum that was posting pictures of a Seiko-Grand Seiko “gala”, in New Jersey I think ),
Of a Spring Drive display-


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[ganand]

Nice, thanks for sharing.

[Chute]

“Snow Frake”

Hilarious !
I remember seeing his before .

Thanks for posting

[yannis]

The attention to detail of GS is on par with the best manufacturers. Thanks for sharing.

[Chute]

I’d like to know how they make the fan shaped power reserve indicator

[Old Expat Beast]

Originally Posted by Kinnakeet

That would be cool to see ! Also a movement being assembled!
I wonder if GS allows tours of their workshops ?

In case you haven't seen these videos about GS and the Spring Drive . . .

http://www.hodinkee.com/articles/ins...ster-craftsman

http://www.hodinkee.com/articles/ins...drive-movement

http://www.hodinkee.com/articles/ins...-comes-to-life

[Kinnakeet]

Originally Posted by Old Expat Beast

In case you haven't seen these videos about GS and the Spring Drive . . .

http://www.hodinkee.com/articles/ins...ster-craftsman

http://www.hodinkee.com/articles/ins...drive-movement

http://www.hodinkee.com/articles/ins...-comes-to-life

Thank you for highlighting these videos!
I’ve enjoyed the “craftsman” one very much , and will watch the other two ASAP.

[gin47]

Interesting content, thanks for sharing.

[arnage]

Originally Posted by Kinnakeet

Re- the number of steps ; well apparently GS has a dial that takes 12 steps to make ! I think it’s a champagne colours...?
Anyway I think this display just highlights the hand labour involved.
Oh!- if you notice how Snow Flake is spelled Snow Frake .... well on that forum, someone explained how the Japanese words were translated letter of letter into English,,, and there is no L in Japanese.... I don’t know how true this is ... but it’s kind of endearing!

Correct, the sunray champagne dial on the sbga001 consists of even more steps than the 011 snowflake. I remember seeing a similar schematic for the champagne that broke the steps down. I have both - the dials are great in their own respective ways

[Old Expat Beast]

Originally Posted by Kinnakeet

Thank you for highlighting these videos!
I’ve enjoyed the “craftsman” one very much , and will watch the other two ASAP.

You're welcome. I hope you enjoy the others.

[Kinnakeet]

Originally Posted by arnage

Correct, the sunray champagne dial on the sbga001 consists of even more steps than the 011 snowflake. I remember seeing a similar schematic for the champagne that broke the steps down. I have both - the dials are great in their own respective ways

I’d love to see that dial !
It’s starting to dawn on me that I’m probably going to own more then one GS someday....

[Kinnakeet]

Originally Posted by Old Expat Beast

You're welcome. I hope you enjoy the others.

I did indeed!
The past six years I’ve been so obsessed with everything Rolex ... til recently, and now that I’ve discovered the Seiko “universe “...I feel like I’m waking up from a restless sleep!

[arnage]

Originally Posted by Kinnakeet

I’d love to see that dial !
It’s starting to dawn on me that I’m probably going to own more then one GS someday....

Hi!
A couple of neat pictures for your reference.
WIth exception of the "macro" pics of the SBGA001 (sorry for the poor photography...), the others are from Felipe on TZ.com; from a Seiko event in 2011

Last pic is a pretty cool one that displays the sunburst and the snowflake dials side-by-side.

THe champagne sunburst definitely changes its luster and composition, depending on angle and lighting. It can go from being a vibrant silver to a darker "champagne" very easily.

I find that in real life, it's much closer to "silver" vs champagne. I don't think there is any formal literature that describes the color as champagne. I might liken it more to Rolex's "rhodium" datejust dial, but with a bit more pop to it.

[Kinnakeet]

Thank you arnage!
The colour shifts are cool- like two different looks in one watch.
To think that those dials ( and all the steps involved) are done by hand .

I love the hour markers on your watch and the snowflake’s: they are cut differently from other GS models , and oh my how they catch and reflect light !
( in a similar way a Rolex DD with baguette diamond markers does!) The high polishing on these GS markers is crazy amazing .

[HogwldFLTR]

Great couple of posts on the dial making; strangely though more complicated the SunLay dial is much less popular on this forum!!! I guess it's too much like the standard DJ/DD dials!!!

[Dantelito22]

Insightful. Shows the level of detail and processes that go into creating these pieces. Thanks for sharing.