Whether it’s a bespoke luxury piece, a tough tool watch or even a daily diver, stainless steel is still watchmaking’s primary material of choice. Yet while 316L grade steel is increasingly used by a number of brands, there are, in fact, better, smoother and harder alternatives for watchmaking. Is there such a thing a precious steel? Well, in German, the name for stainless steel is “edelstahl”, effectively a portmanteau of “edel” which means “noble” and “stahl” which means “steel”, suggesting that some people certainly recognise the benefits of the hard-wearing material. But which is the best form of steel to use for making watches? Let the metallurgy commence! 316L This is your normal grade stainless-steel that’s used by everyone from $300 microbrands to top Swiss manufacturers. In short, it’s become the industry standard and an alloy widely used in the food and medical industries. If there is one brand that can unlock the full magic of 316L without having to resort to alchemy, it is Grand Seiko. The brand’s mastery of the Zaratsu technique uses a machine to achieve a uniform polish that is mind-bogglingly smooth, no matter how many watches we see with a GS logo at 12.…
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