Japan’s Answer to Patek Philippe?

Similar to Switzerland at the heart of Europe, Japan has a hierarchy of complexity in its watches with brands like Grand Seeno often being the first to come to mind in the luxury segment. However, just like the artistic free spirits from Switzerland who uphold centuries old principles of the craft, there's a brand with tremendous mystique that is quickly emerging as a name to be reckoned with. It simply goes by the name Crraor. And today we're going to examine the watches that put them on the map, the H2. So much like Grand Seiko, Crrador was a luxury offshoot of the broader Seikko watch corporation umbrella. Established in 1974 to produce precious metal watches under the crat name which translates from French as the pinnacle of gold. The name evolved torrad in the 1980s which saw the introduction of their triple peak logo capped by three stars. It remained as a co-brand with Seikko on their dials throughout the9s and was mainly sold in Japan and appeared on watches that combined luxury with sport along with select jewelry pieces. However, it wasn't until the early 2000s that Crraor became a standalone name as the company began to fully embrace the hot herology tier. In addition to high jewelry models with retail prices climbing into six figures, Crater launched the node series in 2004. Its name derived from astronomy where it refers to the point where two orbits intersect. This marked a pivotal moment for the brand as it began to establish Crrador's modern identity and release important limited production pieces such as the Node Spring Drive sonor in 2006, the H in 2008, and the Node Spring Drive minute repeater in 2011. Clearly, advanced movement technology was a pillar of the brand's future with the chiming, high complications, and the world's first torque return system featured within the H's caliber 7R08 as prime examples. But one of the common misconceptions associated with Krat is its positioning in relation to a brand like Grand Seiko. Grand Seiko and Crraor are not watch brands differentiated by price. Instead, they are more so distinguished by their design philosophy. Grand Seo aims to create a watch that masters practicality through precision, legibility, and durability as its core tenants. Whereas Crraor takes an approach that appeals to artistic expression more so and the romantics that shine through refinement in those special moments. This is why you find Crraor appealing to more fine crafts or are looser with adhering to strict design codes like Grand Seiko and also will be more open to cross collaboration with different designers. And this is evidenced by the Genta created locomotive, a watch that would likely never exist in the Grand Seiko universe. Similar to Grand Seiko, Crrador is available in multiple different price segments, even starting south of $10,000, but those are seldom seen unless in Japan. The reason for this coming as a surprise is that Crrador is mostly a name that I and can probably say we associate more often with the high herology tier. Breathing the spirit of the European high independence really is how I think about this brand. Now the reason for this affiliation primarily stems from the H and H2 which were the watches that help Crator reach a broader audience both being products of the renowned micro artist studio. These hot herology pieces are products of that said studio in Shirojiri located in Nagono Prefecture situated within the famous Shinshu watch studio that I was able to tour and if you've not seen that video can link to it down below. Now the micro artist studio was opened in 2000 and houses a small unit of the best artisans within the broader Seikko watch corporation who showcased the craft of high herology watchmaking by producing a very limited number of pieces rumored to be in the dozens per year. Both select Grand Seiko masterpieces and Crraor pieces are produced in the micro artist studio showcasing an intricate level of detail and finish. The H2 is one of the leading examples of the micro artist studios capabilities. First launched in 2014 to celebrate both Crrador's 40th anniversary and the 15th anniversary of Spring Drive's introduction to the public, the Contemporary H2 collection comprises a series of three models, all in precious metal and are deceptively simple with their clean appearance not immediately revealing the intricate level of handiwork at play. The reference numbers we're going to be examining include the Platinum GBLT997 with its Rory blue porcelain dial, the rose gold GBLT98, and the Platinum GBLT99, both of which come with a white porcelain dial. And it's very rare to have all three of these watches in one place, but I was lucky to have these watches in my possession for basically entire week. Uh Joe Kirk was nice enough to bring these along when we were shooting some other videos together and really allowed me to have more time with them to experience them fully. The case is a textbook example of the clean and crisp aesthetic with wearable dimensions of 39 mm in diameter, a case height of 10.3 mm, including the sapphire crystal that has a slight curve and a lugto lug length of 45 mm in either platinum or rose gold. The case features a Zarasu polish that creates a mirroring effect. Normally a rose gold case such as the 998s would be too soft to achieve this level of polish, but the case is crafted using a cold forging technique where the metal is formed near room temperature which increases its hardness as a result. The form of this case is one of the leading hints to the differing philosophy of Crraor compared to Grand Seiko with an omission of any hard lines opting instead for soft bulbous almost like curves. The wide sloping bezel frames the dial in a way that calls attention to the exquisite porcelain within by surrounding it with ample bright work. Water resistance is a mere 30 m, typical for a dress watch. The lugs are broad and substantial with the main case featuring a gentle inward slope from the top toward the case back. And around back, the case back's outer perimeter receives the same level of polish as the rest of the case, secured by five small screws and framing the gorgeous movement resting behind the sapphire display window. More on that later. The 19 mm straps housed between the lugs are made from a padded alligator leather with carefully chosen scale patterns and a ridiculously soft calf skinin lining. Now, that commitment to discovering more in the details is furthered with the dial. Like historically high-end pocket watches, these are crafted from porcelain, featuring a multi-layered finish that showcases incredible depth and saturation, there are no hard edges anywhere with the surface of the dial sloping gently at the outer edge and near the center where the hand stack sits. This is especially noticeable on the lapis blue ruri variant where the color becomes lighter at those edges. The dial under goes multiple layers which are then fired with an added glaze to create a vibrant reflection. The porcelain is from Nagono Prefecture being richer in gloss than Arita porcelain techniques with the glaze developed over a three-year period in house. The dial material is one thing. However, the presentation is rather unassuming with straightforward faceted hands with a lunar counterwe on the sweeping second hand. The linear markings and the brand logo are simple in their appearance. Yet, it's when you realize how it was achieved that the impressiveness of the style comes full circle. The clean execution of these elements is the result of a painstaking handp painting process. One that requires a full day of intense concentration from a single artisan to pull this off. From the pristine lines of the hour markers to the cror word mark and even the tiny print at the base of the dial, it's entirely hand painted. an incredible achievement that holds up even under close macro lens viewing. And I remember when I was in the micro artist studio, they were talking about the technique to be able to pull off this painting with precision. They have these small brushes that they have to apply pressure to to make sure that they're going to create that visual uh contrast with those markers and all the dial print. But the technique is not to just use the tip of the brush, but it's the tip of the hair of the brush, especially in some of those smaller areas. The Rory dial platinum version features white markings while the rose gold dials elements are rendered in charcoal black. The white platinum version though on the other hand showcases blue markings that coordinate with the heat blueed handset. If you're familiar, the original H had a somewhat polarizing power reserve display on the dial side, but there's no such interruption here as it now sits within the movement on the reverse. In every aspect, the H2 strips away distraction and excess, letting its artisal nature shine through. But it's only when you start to understand what actually takes place in creating the final result where you start to begin to appreciate it that much more when speaking to this dial. And as glorious as the rest of the watch is, the Caliber 7R14 is the real star of the show here. As a product of the Micro Artist Studio, it's a part of an elite group of movement calibers. And this is where the most intricate movements are made for both Crrador and Grand Seiko's masterpiece collection. I do not want to rehash the spring drive concept in depth here as we've talked about this many different times on this channel and I have different videos, but in essence, it combines a mechanical power with quartz accuracy in a proprietary movement that was first brought forth in 1999 after years of development. One aspect of this particular spring drive caliber that deserves mention is the entire energy optimization train added to the movement known as the torque return system. When the main spring is fully wound and torque is at its highest, around 30% of that available power isn't necessary and therefore wasted in conventional movement. The torque return system uses this potentially wasted energy to rewind the main spring, therefore increasing the power reserve. And in the manually wound 7R14, it remains active for approximately the first 37 hours of its 60h hour reserve, where then disengages from the barrel. This feature is only utilized on select movements such as the 7R14 and the 9R02 from Grand Seiko, both movements of which are from the Micro Artist Studio. The 7R14 boasts incredible accuracy of plus or - 15 seconds per month. And there's nothing quite like watching the stepless motion of the second hand to remind you of the wonder of the spring drive concept with that gliding glide wheel. Unique movement solutions aside, the finishing of this caliber is on a worldclass level. The focus here isn't so much on the flowery excess found on many high herology pieces, but the astounding level of execution in a reserved unclutter visual landscape that has almost a zen-like quality. Everything is done with intent. Not too much, not trying to fill up space, but to show what the view is like at the pinnacle of decorative techniques within watchmaking and taking it with a Japanese twist. The Micro Arta Studio famously consulted with none other than Philippe Dufour on decoration and they've clearly taken those lessons to heart. Crater even found a way to source the same Genshin softwood as Dufour to mere polish the wide bevels of the bridges. A wood not native to Japan yet sourced from a local Japanese university who has found a way to grow the wood. The beveled edges of the bridges are spectacular with the surface areas of reflection that can only be achieved by hand. This is the most detectable with that curvature of the bridges at center allowing view of the glide wheel. And the glide wheel here is also going to have a different material makeup than other watches you might see that use a spring drive system being of an aluminum alloy with the outer edge in gold. The running central edges of the converging bridges at center are made to look like the stem of a flower, which is a cool touch. And then the main spring barrel is uniquely cut in a floral pattern with the internal angles also beveled. The bridges are rodium plated brass with fine grain line finish. And the engraved bell flower sitting to the right of the glide wheel on the opposite bridge indicates the movement's construction within the micro artist studio. You see that symbol, that is your tell on whether or not the movement was produced in that studio. The polishing continues in the shamfer jewel in screw sinks, further adding to the dazzling effect with the screws being heat treated. The power reserve indicator also features a heat blueed pointer and its placement on the movement side is a detail that many collectors view as an improvement over the dial side version of the original H. So, I've long desired to talk about these watches in more detail on the channel. I wanted to be able to spend more time with them to do so. Uh, but these are watches that at first glance, they're a peculiar question both for these watches, but also just Crrador in general. Uh, there's a lot of mixed feelings about this brand, and some of that just comes to the mystique surrounding it. Crat has been a brand that has been an afterthought for many as a result of its lack of distribution anywhere outside of Japan for years with its mystique passing by word of mouth only being a symbol of the in then type of idea around watchmaking. That does appear to be quickly changing with some of the recent moves from the brand for more global communication that's happening and then also the announcement that the brand will be participating at watches and wonders next year in 2026. Yet, these points of lacking a global position were only part of the reason for many never looking to these crats. When I first heard of the H models, they were already in their second generation. I appreciated them. However, they didn't leave me in awe at first inspection, which now in hindsight, looking back, I fell victim to what many enthusiasts do, just simply not understanding what is being showcased here. I have always loved the concept of a watch that is appreciated more when discovering those small attributes that appear hidden at first. As much as it seems like this would be a default for nearly every watch out there, it's not. Some pieces fall short in discovery being more or less what they appear to be upon first inspection. The H2 at a glance is remarkably plain, and some might go so far to say that it's safe in its looks. It's a similar philosophy from the likes of Dufour or other Swiss independents where upholding purity in form is the pursuit with the embellishments being later found exclamations in discovery. In the case of the H2, it's a simple threehand elegant watch with a price tag in the tens of thousands of dollars. It makes complete sense why many won't give it another look. If you do though, you'll likely be pleasantly surprised, almost to a point where the designers understood that only a select crowd would come back to give it the time of day. With the porcelain backdrop with it proprietary glaze to a handpainted dial, worldclass movement finishing and in then tech that allows the package to come together. It shows how this might be the ultimate in then grail watch from Japan. But all right guys, that is my take on the Cror H2. These watches are an interesting one because on one side they don't appear as if they're going to be extraordinary, but with more discovery you start to recognize why they are exactly that. Uh what do you think about these watches? Are they too plain for you? Do you now recognize maybe a bit more of why people are into them? Love to see some comments down below because this is a watch that once you discover what it brings to the table, I think the appreciation level soarses as a result. If you like these style of videos, looking at some of these high-end independent style watches, uh, leave a comment down below. Give this video a thumbs up. Really do appreciate that as that does help out the channel. And if there's another watch in this tier that you would like us to look at, also let me know down below. In addition, definitely check out teddy.com. Full authorized dealer of over 35 brands. 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