Founded in 1960 with the sole intention of challenging the idea that Swiss watchmaking was the be-all and end-all of the watchmaking industry, Grand Seiko has endeavored to create some of the most technically astute and wonderfully crafted timepieces possible. Launched in 1966, Grand Seiko came out with their own certification, "Grand Seiko Standard." With a daily deviation of between -3/+5 seconds, it was more accurate than Swiss chronometer testing, which was -1/+10 seconds per day. Following this new standard, two even more accurate standards were created, which Grand Seiko decided to bring to life by launching the VFA collection (Very Finely Adjusted) in 1969. Created under highly rigorous conditions and regulated to within -2/+2 seconds per day, these watches were blisteringly accurate for their time and even came with the guarantee of accuracy to within a minute a month for the first two years of ownership - extremely impressive even by today's standards. An important piece of Grand Seiko's original mission, these VFA timepieces are extremely rare on account of their short three-year production run and relatively lengthy life causing them to be lost to the sands of time.

Offered here we have a VFA ref. 6185-8000 manufactured in 1968. An exceptionally rare model from the VFA collection made from a palladium-silver alloy with a rare hand-hammered texture along its case edges and bevels along the front edge of its lugs, the ref. 6185-8000 is one of the most celebrated models from within the revered VFA collection. Originally offered with a blue dial, this example’s display has aged to black, in line with the majority of VFA examples that remain.

Watch is in good overall condition. Palladium case is well worn, with soft edges. The case sides retain the original "hammered" finish, with some oxidation that has developed on the surface. There are scratches visible on the brushed top lugs and surfaces of the case. The crystal shows extensive areas of wear on the surface (The marks cannot be felt with a fingernail, so they appear to be on a coating surface). Caseback engravings are well worn, but the serial number is visible and is 8D0268, denoting a manufacture date of December, 1968. The movement number is 6185B / 208554. Watch comes with VFA printed on the dial, with a date code of 0.5 engraved on the back. (A picture is included in the image carousel) Watch comes with a service box and original GS style tang buckle.

Please note the following details:

• Crystal was replaced at a 2021 service with Seiko Part # 300W59GA00
• Watch was overhauled in 2021 back to VFA spec
• As seen in the images provided, the balance cock appears slightly less oxidized compared with the rest of the movement. It was not replaced during the 2021 service, but we believe it was replaced earlier in the watch's history.
• The dial fitted on the watch has VFA printed on the dial above the Suwa logo. This is not a common attribute, but is noted in the extensive research done on VFAs by Gerald Donovan. (which is linked below) While we are not sure why only some of the dials have VFA printed on them, we believe that this dial is original to the watch.