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Grand Seiko Evolution 9 Spring Drive U.F.A. Ushio 300 Diver SLGB025

Reference SLGB025. A sheet to take with you: the numbers to check the watch against, what to look at, and what to ask. It does not authenticate anything and it does not tell you whether to buy.

Check the numbers

Measure or ask. A watch that does not match these is not necessarily wrong, but it is a question worth the answer.

Anything above marked not recorded is a gap in this catalog, not a property of the watch. Do not read a blank as a zero.

Before anything else

Mechanically identical to the SLGB023 and everything in that entry applies unchanged. What is specific here is that the green execution is sold only through Grand Seiko boutiques and Master Shops, which makes provenance worth more than usual.

What to look at

1. dial Seconds hand motion
   Correct A continuous glide with no step at any magnification
   Red flag Any stepping, which means the glide wheel is not running as a Spring Drive should
2. dial Green gradient and the embossed Ushio pattern
   Correct An even gradient with the tide pattern pressed into the dial and visible under angled light
   Red flag A flat printed pattern, or a gradient that shifts abruptly rather than smoothly
3. case Unidirectional bezel, 120 clicks
   Correct Anticlockwise only, 120 defined clicks, green fired through the ceramic insert
   Red flag Bidirectional rotation or a pale substrate visible at a chipped edge
4. caseback Papers against the distribution channel
   Correct Boutique or Master Shop paperwork consistent with how this reference is sold
   Red flag Nothing wrong on its own, but worth asking about given the restricted channel

Known issues on this reference

• The seconds hand glides rather than ticks, as on every Spring Drive. A visible step means the movement is not running correctly.
• Boutique-and-Master-Shop-only distribution means a green one appearing well below the going rate deserves the question of where it came from, asked plainly and without accusation.
• High-Intensity Titanium resists the soft scuffing that plain titanium picks up, so unusually easy marking is worth a second look.

Parts that are commonly replaced

• Bracelet links and the diver extension are ordinary service items.
• The ceramic insert is replaced after damage.

Ask the seller, whatever the watch

• When was it last serviced, by whom, and is there paperwork?
• Has the case ever been polished?
• Which parts are not original to it?
• Do you have the box, papers and the original bracelet or strap?
• Why are you selling it?
• Can I see it in daylight, and can I take a photo of the caseback?

What this sheet is standing on

The specifications above are sourced to grand-seiko.com, monochrome-watches.com. What else the catalog does not know.

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