Sinn Introduces a 100 Piece Limited Edition in Damascus Steel

The 1800 S GG Damaszener, the latest limited edition release from Sinn, is their first watch with a case and dial made entirely from Damascus steel. The use of Damascus steel is seen frequently in the making of blades for swords and knives, but constructing a watch case from the material presents a particular set of challenges. The craft of making Damascus steel is centuries old, and is an elaborate and time consuming process that involves layering different types of steel, forge-welding them together, and repeating the process again and again. The end result is a surface characterized by alternating light and dark bands (the layers of steel that have been folded together). Blades with this pattern are often quite beautiful in appearance, and Sinn has brought much of that aesthetic to the case of the new Damaszener. 

As most watch enthusiasts are likely well aware, a typical steel watch is composed of several distinct parts. The case might have as many as three separate steel components that are pieced together, plus a dial that must be fitted inside, which itself is often made up of multiple layers of material, depending on its style and construction. For this limited edition, the mid-case and dial are a solid piece of Damascus, forged from a single steel block. This was the only way to achieve the desired result of maintaining that organic pattern that makes Damascus special through the dial and case. The case is Tegimented (Sinn’s proprietary tech for scratch resistance) and given a black coating that highlights the Damascus pattern. The dial is accented with 18-carat gold hands and hour markers, an unusually refined touch for Sinn, but feels perfectly appropriate here. 

The case is 43mm in diameter, so this is likely to have some serious wrist presence and heft given the manner in which it was constructed, but it interestingly measures only 10.4mm tall. While this isn’t exactly a dress watch, especially at that size, it has a “creative black tie” vibe to it, and I’d be curious to see how it’s worn in the real world by the 100 Sinn fans who are able to acquire one. Even if this one doesn’t scream “tool watch,” it would seem to be quite robust, with 100 meters of water resistance, a screw down crown, and resistance to low pressure in addition to the Tegimenting of the case. The watch is powered by a Sellita SW300-1 automatic movement.

Sinn also notes in their press release for the new Damaszener that steps have been taken with these watches to guard against corrosion, which is a common challenge when using Damascus. According to Sinn, two types of stainless steel have been used in the forging process, and the end result is a Damascus which is inherently anti corrosive. The case is made by Sächsische Uhrentechnologie GmbH Glashütte (SUG), one of Germany’s great case manufacturers, who in addition to being a longtime manufacturing partner for Sinn, have made cases for A. Lange & Sohne, among others. 

The retail price for the new 1800 S GG Damaszener is $8,940. Sinn