Orient Star is using its 75th anniversary to show a more ambitious side of Orient than the familiar everyday collections many enthusiasts know best.
The Skeleton RE-BR0001N is positioned as the anniversary flagship, bringing together a newly developed hand-wound movement, detailed finishing and a sharply limited production run.
It’s a watch aimed less at casual discovery and more at collectors who want to see how far Orient Star can push its own mechanical language.
At a glance
- Orient Star has introduced the Skeleton RE-BR0001N as its 75th anniversary flagship model.
- The 40mm watch is built around the new hand-wound calibre F9B82, with a silicon escape wheel and more than 72 hours of power reserve.
- Production is limited to 130 pieces, with pricing listed at JPY 1,100,000 and official European and American pricing not yet disclosed.
A flagship skeleton for the anniversary year
Orient Star sits as the higher-end arm of Orient, the Japanese watchmaker owned by Seiko Epson Corporation.
The new RE-BR0001N continues a skeleton-watch thread that runs through pieces such as the 1991 Mon Bijou, the 2021 Orient Star M45 F8 Skeleton Hand Winding and the more recent M34 F8 Skeleton Hand Winding.
For the anniversary model, the watch is shaped around the movement itself rather than treating the openworked calibre as a decorative reveal.
The front view is defined by overlapping circular forms arranged in a three-tiered structure, with rounded apertures that are described as evoking ripples in a Japanese Zen garden.
Those curves are contrasted by hand-inked lines on the bridges and openworked blue-tempered hands for the time display.
A power reserve indicator sits at 12 o’clock, while a hacking small seconds display is placed at 6 o’clock.
The case keeps the focus on the calibre
The stainless steel case measures 40mm across and 9.5mm thick, giving the watch a relatively restrained profile for such an exposed mechanical design.
The lugs are boldly contoured, with brushed flanks set against mirror-polished surfaces executed using Sallaz polishing, also known as Zaratsu.
Orient Star uses a sapphire crystal with Super-Anti-Reflective coating, which the brand says cuts light reflection by 99 percent.
That clarity matters here because the movement is the visual architecture of the watch.
A sapphire caseback continues the open view from the rear, while water resistance is rated at 30 metres.
Inside the new F9B82 movement
The calibre F9B82 is a newly developed in-house, hand-wound movement with 20 jewels and a 4Hz frequency.
Its headline technical feature is a silicon escape wheel, an unusual detail in Japanese mechanical watchmaking, using an optimised patented geometry intended to improve efficiency.
The movement also gives Orient Star its longest stated power reserve to date, rated at over 72 hours.
Finishing is more elaborate than the brand typically offers, including diamond-cut mirror-finished chamfering, hand-applied hairline finishing and blued screws.
For a skeleton watch, that distinction is important because every bridge and edge is part of the dial-side experience.
Details & Specifications
| Brand | Orient Star |
|---|---|
| Model | Skeleton 75th Anniversary Flagship RE-BR0001N |
| Case size | 40mm diameter, 9.5mm thick |
| Crystal | Sapphire crystal with Super-Anti-Reflective coating |
| Caseback | Sapphire |
| Movement | In-house hand-wound calibre F9B82 |
| Jewels | 20 |
| Frequency | 4Hz |
| Power reserve | Over 72 hours |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, hacking small seconds, power reserve indicator |
| Escapement detail | Silicon escape wheel with patented geometry |
| Water resistance | 30 metres |
| Strap | Goatskin leather strap with trifold deployant buckle and push buttons |
| Production | Limited edition of 130 pieces |
| Price | JPY 1,100,000, approximately EUR 6,150 at time of publication |
| Warranty | 10 years, including three complimentary overhaul services during the warranty period |
A strap with a Japanese finishing story
The RE-BR0001N is fitted to a goatskin leather strap that is first vegetable-tanned using natural plant-derived tannins.
It is then finished using the traditional Japanese Chari Happo technique, where the leather is hand-massaged vertically, horizontally and diagonally.
The watch closes with a trifold deployant buckle with push buttons and is delivered in a dedicated presentation box.
Orient Star also includes a 10-year warranty with three complimentary overhaul services during that period, covering movement disassembly and cleaning, reassembly, lubrication, gasket replacement and water-resistance testing.
With only 130 pieces planned, the Skeleton RE-BR0001N is a focused anniversary statement rather than a broad collection piece.
Its appeal lies in seeing Orient Star step beyond accessible mechanical watchmaking and into a more visibly technical, more finely finished expression of what the brand can build in-house.
