Tudor has launched 4 new Black Bay dive watches this year already: Black Bay 925, Black Bay Gold, Black Bay Ceramic and now the Black Bay 58 Bronze. This is Tudor's first all bronze Black Bay and includes the same movement as in the Silver and Bronze versions, a new dial for the BB58 with 369 numerals and it also has a brand new clasp called "T-Fit". This is an on the fly micro bracelet extension system with 8mm of extension. Although 8mm isn't much, it does go a long way to fixing one of the biggest flaws of the BB range. Now they just need to remove the faux rivets and we have a near-perfect watch.

What size is it?

The new Sub is  41mm...but put down your pitchforks, its slimmer and less beefy than the case on the previous generation 114060. If anything, the case is more reminiscent of the enthusiast-favourite pre-ceramic reference 14060(M). While not yet confirmed by the press release (Rolex don’t like people putting straps on their new watches), from the pictures, it looks like the new Sub has retained its 20mm lug-width - hoorah! 

The difference in lugs between the previous no-date and the new one.

What metals/colour variants does it come in?

Ok, so we’ve got: a black no-date in steel (125060), a black date in steel (126610LN), a black dial green bezel in steel (126610LV), a black dial blue bezel in white gold (126619LB), a blue dial with blue bezel and gold accents in steel and yellow gold (126613LB), a black dial black bezel in steel and yellow gold (126613LN), a black dial black bezel in all yellow gold (126618LN) and finally, a blue dial blue bezel in all yellow gold (126618LB).

The glorious new Ref: 126610LV

Has it got a new movement?

Yes, the old 3135 and 3130 and their sub-par 48-hour power reserve have been ditched for the new 2020 Rolex Calibers 3235 (date) and 3230 (no-date). The headline changes come in the form of the addition of the Paraflex shock-absorber and an extended power reserve of 70 hours - that’s much more like it!

What is the Paraflex shock-absorber?

Paraflex is the name of Rolex’s own shock-absorbing technology. According to Calibre Corner, a great website if you like getting geeky about movements, Paraflex is a spring-loaded mounting system for the jewel bearings that support the movement’s balance wheel. Anti-shock devices help protect the balance wheel from damage in the event of dropping the watch or hitting it against something hard (e.g a door handle). This shock absorber was developed and patented in 2005, but it wasn’t rolled out until 2008 when it was first used in the calibre 3132 inside the Oyster Perpetual line. The technology has been slowly rolled-out through the years into new models ever since. 

What else is new?

There’s a little 5-pointed Coronet (crown) between ‘Swiss’ and ‘Made’ down at 6 o’clock - you’ll be able to distinguish a new Sub from the old ceramic Sub at a glance. 

The Ref: 126619LB - Nickname pending..

What’s the same as the older models?

The handset, the white gold Maxi indices, the gloss dial, 904L steel construction (or yellow gold), the Oyster bracelet, the brilliant Glidelock clasp, the ceramic bezel, the cyclops on the date models, Chromalight blue lume and the dial text.

How much do they cost?

Steel No-date: £6,450

Steel Date: £7,300

Steel Date Green Bezel: £7,650

Blue Bi-metal: £11,450

Black Bi-metal: £11,450

Black Yellow Gold: £29,650

Blue Yellow Gold: £29,650

Blue Bezel White Gold: £31,850

It’s been a brilliant release from Rolex - well worth waiting-up for. It seems that the brand may have done the least Rolex-y thing possible: disregarding forward-moving, trend-setting design and really listening to the enthusiast community and their preferences. I’m so pleased to see slimmer lugs, an overall sleeker case and a great range of colour and metal combinations, as well as my personal highlight of the release: the new Kermit!

The most un-Rolexy Tudor so far.

Just a few months on from the unveiling of five edgy new releases at Watches and Wonders 2021, Tudor has launched the Black Bay Ceramic - a bold move highlighting not only the brand's technical expertise, but it’s ability to step out from it’s parent company’s conventional shadow. With a reasonable price tag, a 41mm matte black ceramic case and an in-house movement with Master Chronometer certification from METAS, there’s a lot to love with this latest addition to the extensive Black Bay family.

Movement

While this isn’t Tudor’s first attempt at a ceramic case, it will be the first widely available one in that it’s a general, non-limited release. The Black Bay Ceramic is, however, Tudor’s first step into the world of high-end independent test certification, becoming the second brand to be involved with METAS since it was set up in collaboration with Omega in 2015. For those not familiar with METAS testing, it’s pretty serious stuff. To become certified, watches must retain a minimum accuracy of -0/+5 seconds per day over 9 days of gruelling testing. The tests include a check of the movement’s naked and cased accuracy in a number of different positions and temperatures, as well as with low and high power reserves. The watch will also have to run within the aforementioned parameters while being blasted with 15,000 gauss of magnetism - that’s roughly the same amount that’s produced by an MRI machine. Additionally, the power reserve itself is tested against its quoted figure (70 hours in the case of this Black Bay) along with the water resistance (20 ATM here). 

Just like with METAS certified Omega watches, Tudor are offering an online service where owners can see the performance data from their watch’s tests. Happily, and unlike with Omega, you don’t have to input your buyer details to find out your watches test results - you just scan the card that comes in the box. 

The sable, monochromatic case design extends onto the movement finishing on the MT5602-1U calibre. Its rotor is made from black tungsten which is satin-brushed with sand-blasted details. Interestingly, Tudor told us that the rotor has been designed with aerodynamics in mind in order to prolong the life of the bearing components due to tungsten’s increased density over steel. The bridges and mainplate continue in the Death Star theme with alternate PVD coated sand-blasted surfaces, polished surfaces and laser decorations.

Case

As mentioned, seasoned Tudor fans will recognise that this new release shares some design elements with the Black Bay Dark from 2019 (the PVD coated steel) and even more with the ‘One For Only Watch’ Ceramic 41mm Black Bay that raised £300,000 for charity, also from 2019. However, in the metal (or mineral?) it’s clear the case has been elevated from the aforementioned designs with the inclusion of polished bevelled edges on the sides of the case. Not only do the shiny edges look fantastic next to the cloudy, unpolished ceramic but they also seem to make the watch wear smaller on wrist. 

As for the bits on this ceramic watch that aren’t ceramic: the bezel, case back, crown and crown tube are all PVD coated steel. As a result, you won’t feel much of a weight difference between the Ceramic Black Bay and the standard steel one. As you’d expect, the PVD coating is done very nicely and integrates with the ceramic aspects without any drama. Sitting inside the coin-edge PVD coated steel bezel is a deep-etched ceramic bezel insert that features a pronounced sunburst effect which is super eye-catching.  

Dial 

The dial is dark grey in colour and features a subtle sunburst effect - this far less obvious than what’s shown in Tudor’s press shots. In reality, the dial looks matte in most lighting environments. The trademark mix of circular, rectangular and triangular indices are nicely applied and, like the ‘Snowflake’ handset, they’re filled with beige Super-LumiNova that glows green when the lights are out. As seems to be the theme with the Black Bay Ceramic, Tudor have changed things up when it comes to the dial text. The new model ditches the traditional 3 lines of numerical depth rating, ‘Chronometer’ and ‘Officially Certified’ and opts simply for ‘Black Bay’ and ‘Master Chronometer’ - two phrases that have never appeared on a Tudor dial before.

Strap Options

Like with the silver and gold Black Bays launched a short while ago, there’s no bracelet option for the Ceramic Black Bay. Instead, it’s supplied on what Tudor are calling a ‘Hybrid Leather’ strap, which is a rubber-backed black leather strap with some sort of water-repellant coating on the outside. To its credit, the strap features a solid-feeling PVD coated steel deployant clasp that has a nice snappy action to it. If you’re not a fan of leather on dive watches, a handsome fabric strap is also supplied in the box.  

Closing Thoughts

There’s no question that from a technical/horological point of view, the Black Bay Ceramic is one of the best value props out there. The only other watch with a monobloc ceramic case and a METAS certified movement that’s also an ISO certified dive watch is the 43.5mm Omega Seamaster Ceramic. While the Omega is a great watch, it’s by no means twice as good as this Black Bay. This begs the question: why does it cost twice as much at £6,950?

While I am sold on the idea of a stealthy ceramic sports watch, I can’t help but notice the juxtaposition of this latest Tudor release. The Black Bay range has always been focused towards vintage-inspired watches and, for me, this modern and exotic material would’ve been more suited to Tudor’s most capable and most modern-looking watch - the Pelagos. However, as a Marketing student, and a realist, I accept that the main driver behind Tudor’s choice of case material here will have been style - the Black Bay is Tudor’s most ‘stylish’ range of sports watches. 

What do you think of Tudor’s latest release? Let us know in the comments below. 

Specs:

Diameter - 41mm

Movement - MT5602-1U

Power Reserve - 70 hours

WR - 200m

Price - £3,550

Yesterday, Christopher Ward announced a new ‘go anywhere, do everything’ range of watches with a key focus on the idea of versatility in both style and functionality. The Sealander series is made up of three watches, all sharing impressive capabilities as well as surprisingly low price points. I sat down (virtually) with Christopher Ward CEO Mike France and Senior Designer Adrian Buchmann to talk through the new hyper-techy Elite, the familiar-looking GMT as well as the brand’s first attempt at an everyday watch. Along with a fun discussion on the launch with two of the brand’s most distinguished characters, I was able to get hands-on with two of the three new releases: the Sealander GMT and the Sealander Automatic.

The C63 Sealander GMT

The vast majority of modern watch launches often provoke some form of an accusation from the community that’s usually along the lines of: ‘that watch looks like a X’. While I’m not going to argue that the Sealander GMT doesn't look a bit like an Explorer II, a Grand Seiko GMT or even a Glycine Airman, I can say that after more than a first glance, a number of details reveal plenty of originality.

The aspect of the C63 GMT that’s most in keeping with the aforementioned watches is the fixed steel bezel that features familiar black etched 24-hour markers around it. As mentioned, the more time spent dissecting this new watch, the easier it is to see it as its own thing. At a second glance, the bezel is noticeably thinner than that of the Explorer II with far more of the watch head being taken up by the dial. Like the C63 Auto, the GMT model features an attractive polished lacquer dial with stick indices starring diamond polished facets. This finishing results in both a dressy, formal appearance and increased legibility, especially on the white dial variant. The dial text is kept simple with ‘Automatic GMT’ and ‘150m/500ft’ at the 6 o’clock, just above the colour-matched date wheel. On the topic of dial printing, many CW fans will be pleased to see a return to a traditional 12’o clock logo placement on all three of the Sealander watches. The handset is also consistent across all of the Sealander models featuring a large arrow hour hand, a truncated pencil minute hand and a colour-tipped needle second hand featuring the trademark 3-pronged fork on the counterbalance. The GMT model features the additional 24-hour hand which is highly reminiscent of the large orange arrow from the Steve McQueen Explorer II 1655. The dial and handset are covered by a sapphire crystal with a pronounced bevelled edge and AR undercoating.

Flipping the watch over, we find a screw-down case back with a circular sapphire window exhibiting the Sellita SW330-2 that powers the Sealander GMT. This second-generation version of Sellita’s workhorse Swiss-made GMT calibre features a healthy 56-hour power reserve and standard accuracy of +/-20 seconds per day. The movement is finished well for the price point and features a custom ‘Twin-Flag’ engraving on the rotor. The watch is available on a plethora of fun and colourful rubber and leather straps, however, I’d highly recommend optioning these on as extras and going for the excellent steel bracelet which we’ll cover shortly.

Specs:

Dimensions - 39mm diameter, 11.85mm thickness, 20mm lugs

Dial Options - Black or White

WR - 150m

Movement - Sellita SW330-2 (+/-20 seconds per day)

Price - £795 on a strap, £900 on the bracelet

The C63 Sealander Automatic

The Sealander press release was notably honest regarding CW’s consciousness of the popularity of the Datejust, Oyster Perpetual and Aqua Terra lines. It stated how the brand wanted to offer something as comfortable, capable and as versatile but at the entry-level side of the market. These were the targets set for the least expensive offering in the new range - the C63 Sealander Automatic.

As mentioned, the C63 Auto features the same lacquer dial and handset as the GMT, except this time with red accents on the second hand, dial text and hour markers. Again, like the GMT, the C63 Auto features CW’s signature ‘Lightcatcher’ case with a balance of brushed and polished surfaces that really match up to the do-anything, everyday dress watch brief.  

The steel bracelet that comes on both watches is a real feat of engineering. The links are extremely well put together and the quick-release end links are solid and integrate really nicely with the case finishing. The clasp is free from any sharp edges, very well finished and feels as though it could be fitted to a watch 5 or 6 times the price of these CW watches. The clasp also makes use of a handy on the fly adjustment system that offers 10mm of extension for those warmer days where wrists can expand. 

The movement powering the C63 Auto is the venerable Sellita SW200-1. Based on the ETA 2824, the Sellita movement has powered hundreds of entry-level luxury watches for over a decade. Inexpensive to service, fair accuracy, good reliability, nice finishing (with that same custom rotor) and an adequate 38 hours of power reserve, the Sellita is a great movement to have in a £595 watch. 

Specs:

Dimensions - 39mm diameter, 11.25mm thickness, 20mm lugs

Dial Options - Black or White

WR - 150m

Movement - Sellita SW200-1 (+/- 20 seconds per day)

Price - £595 on a strap, £700 on the bracelet

Observations 

After a good few days with both watches on the wrist, these are my thoughts.

Firstly, the 39mm case diameters of both watches is a great fit with the go anywhere, do anything vibe and wears particularly well on my 7.5-inch wrist with both casual wear and semi-formal outfits. It’s also genuinely refreshing to see two modern sports watches without slab-sided cases. The mixture of finishes and the different sections help both watches blend into your wrist, resulting in a cohesive feel where the watch looks as good on the wrist as it does sitting on a wet rock in a *Tudor* press release. 

The next aspect that’s hard to miss when evaluating these watches is the ultra-competitive price points. My daily wear watch is a 2015 TAG Heuer Aquaracer 41mm and as it’s similarly specced to these two Christopher Ward watches, I found myself comparing them - often with the Sealander’s coming out favourably (legibility, clasp, case finishing). It then struck me that the Aquaracer retailed for twice the price of these new watches showing the impeccable value for money offered by them. While the brand equity may not yet match up to some of the larger players in the market, the enthusiast fanbase and the prevalence of brand-customer communication from CW far surpasses that of many of the well-established ‘entry-level’ brands like Hamilton, Seiko or Tissot. You only have to join the independently-run CW Facebook group to see how many passionate fans there are out there on the web. 

As far as criticisms go, the list isn’t long - these are both highly impressive watches that I’d happily recommend to someone looking for a value one watch collection. With that said, the C63 Auto seems to lack a pleasing pop when unscrewing the crown. This can make it difficult to know whether you’re in the winding position, the date adjustment position or if you’re still attached to the thread. There were one or two occasions where I unscrewed the crown on the C63 Auto to wind the watch where I accidentally flipped the date change over or began screwing the crown down again. This could just be an issue with the crown stem on my press piece as I’ve never experienced it before with the Sellita SW line.

Finally, I do not enjoy sizing pin and collar bracelets and while I accept this is a process you’ll only have to do once (unless you pay the £10 for CW to do it for you), I’d much rather have screw links. I should follow that with an apology to CW: yes, I have lost one of the pin collars from the C63 Auto press piece. I’m sorry, it’s somewhere in my office carpet - if I find it, it’ll be in the post. 

A word on the C63 Sealander Elite

Retrospectively, I wish I’d been able to get hands-on with the C63 Elite as it looks to be one of the most interesting entry-level releases of the year so far (sorry NOMOS). It’s a handsome, automatic Chronometer with 150m of water resistance, pioneering crown-locking technology, full titanium construction resulting in a weight of just 45 grams and a price of £1,150. These specs speak volumes both for the extent of Christopher Ward’s technological innovation and the success of the direct-to-consumer sales model that allows the brand to charge incredibly decent prices. Later next week, we’ll release an article surrounding Mike and Adrian’s answers to the questions you asked on Instagram - stay tuned for that as we’ll go over some of the ways CW managed to get the weight so low on the C63 Elite. 

Specs:

Dimensions - 40mm diameter, 10.7mm thickness, 20mm lugs

WR - 150m

Movement - Sellita SW200 COSC (+6/-4 seconds per day)

Price - £1,150 on a strap, £1,380 on the titanium bracelet

To Close

So, the CW Sealander collection: incredible value, decent movements, well-finished and unique cases and disproportionately high attention to dial detail for the price. If you’re looking to add a capable sports watch that can handle the occasional Ivy visit, I think you’re safe in buying either of these watches. If you’re looking to silence your buddies when it comes to technical innovation in a sub £5,000 watch, go for the C63 Elite. 

What really sold me on these new pieces was something Adrian Buchmann said over the interview; he’s the first senior designer that I’ve ever heard actively encourage owners to look at their watch dial through a loupe - if that doesn’t scream confidence in the quality of finish on an entry-level luxury watch, I don’t know what does.

It's been two whole weeks since the rapid-fire of releases from Watches & Wonders 2021 hit our feeds. It's safe to say that while 38 brands (plus sneaky Breitling) launched watches the week before last, the vast majority of media and enthusiast attention has been set on 6 brands: Rolex, Patek, Tudor, Cartier, Bulgari and IWC.

Today, we're taking a step away from the hype to look into three new releases that deserve a closer look.

1. The NOMOS Club Campus 729

NOMOS is commonly misunderstood as a bit of a one-trick pony. 'They make simple, heavily Bauhaus-inspired watches that all look good, but are all basically the same, right?'. Not so with this latest Club Campus refresh. 

A number of small deviations from the traditional NOMOS formula and an attractive price tag of £1,100 really steps this Club Campus up into a watch that's sure to help expand NOMOS's presence at this entry-level side of the luxury watch market. 

For starters, the polished bezel is slightly thicker than those on the Orion or the Ahoi resulting in a beefier look that places the Club Campus more into the daily-wear category of watches - this classification is further backed up by a handy 100m of water resistance.

Initially launched at Basel World in 2017, the Club Campus is powered by the in-house NOMOS Calibre Alpha, a German-made, manually-wound 17 jewel movement with a 43-hour power reserve. While those specs are nothing to get too excited about, it's the superb quality of finishing that sets the Alpha above comparable ETA movements. Having handled a Club Campus with an exhibition case back, it's easy to say that the Alpha Calibre has the highest quality of finishing that I've seen on a watch for less than £2,500 - its truly marvellous and the press pictures don’t do it justice. If you're going to get yourself a Club Campus, be sure sure to option-on the sapphire case back over the steel one.

While the case, movement and pricepoint are all impressive factors for the Club Campus, none of them are what initially drew us towards the piece, it was that dial! A reverse California numeral layout would ordinarily be the main talking point on a 36mm sports watch, however, what really demands attention is the exotic hue of orange that NOMOS has opted for on this graduate-oriented 710 model. The precision of the crisp, white numerals, minute track and pencil handset is nicely juxtaposed by the wild papaya dial, the fiery small-seconds hand and the icy blue minute markers - it doesn’t sound like it should work, but it really does.

For many, the marketing bumf, aimed mainly at parents looking for a graduation gift for their offspring, feels overly specific. This is just a great watch at a broadly accessible price point. Despite its name and the marketing connotations that NOMOS have presented, the Club Campus will be enjoyed and appreciated by college/uni students, middle-aged professionals and OAPs alike - I can’t wait to get it on-wrist. If you’re interested in either this 36mm, or the 38mm model, hop over to NOMOS’s website to find your nearest dealer. 

Specs:

Dimensions - 36mm/38mm Diameter, 8.5mm Thickness

WR - 100m

Movement - In-house α (Alpha) Calibre

Price - £1,100

2. The Hermès H08

Luxury retailer and double stamper-turned manufacturer, Hermès, have been producing luxury watches since 2016. Unlike what we see from many other fashion brands attempting to make a fine watch (gaudy, 45mm, Sellita-powered submariner-esque posing pieces), the brand new line up of H08 watches offer a truly unique aesthetic and exciting use of exotic materials. What we have with this H08 line-up is three 39mm sports watches with a cushion case, 100m of water resistance, completely original designs and some funky quirks that cut them far above the likes of the aforementioned lazily-designed ‘luxury’ fashion watch.  

The line-up features a graphene-filled composite case on a black rubber strap, a two-tone DLC-coated titanium option with either a blue or trademark Hermes orange rubber strap, and lastly, a satin-brushed titanium option with either a black rubber strap or an impressive full titanium bracelet with H-style links.

Our pick of the bunch is this two-tone DLC titanium. The futuristic octagonal case is perfectly matched with a sci-fi-inspired set of black nickel-coated Arabic numerals which surround an untextured, deep black sector ring. The arrow-tipped second hand offers a pop of colour to an otherwise monochromatic dial - a very clean and sporty look. 

 (Credit - Hodinkee)

The Calibre H1837 inside the H08 is manufactured by Vaucher - a company in which Hermès own a 25% stake. Fun additional fact - Vaucher also make movements for Richard Mille. The H1837 features a 50-hour power reserve, a 4hz sweep and slightly more slender dimensions in comparison to similarly-specced ETA Calibres. The movement is nicely finished for the price and is visible through a screw-down exhibition case back. 

 (Credit - Hodinkee)

The transition from luxury retailer to respected manufacturer is not a fast one, but Hermes looks to be throwing some pretty sizeable punches to get to that status and the H08 is evidence of this. Check out the Hermès website for a full price list on all the variations of the H08.

Specs: 

Dimensions - 39mm Diameter, 10.6mm thickness

WR - 100m

Movement - H1837 (Made by Vaucher)

Price - £4,620

3. Chopard's L.U.C. QF Jubilee 

The final pick in this trilogy of new, underappreciated W&W 2021 releases is the Chopard L.U.C QF Jubilee. The watch has been created to celebrate 25 years of in-house movements from Chopard. While production is limited to just 25 pieces, Chopard will be hoping that the launch of the L.U.C. QF Jubilee will increase both awareness and appreciation of the brand’s vertically integrated movement design and manufacture, a fashionable quality in the modern watch industry.

The Jubilee features a handsome tuxedo dial that’s made up of a royal blue band with a sunburst silver inner section and outer minute track. The stainless steel case measures 39mm in width and features spider lugs that add to the art-deco, daily-dress look nicely. 

 (Credit - Monochrome)

Flipping the watch over, an exhibition case back reveals the finely-executed automatic calibre L.U.C 96.09-L. Featuring stunning perlage work, angled polishing and Geneva striping, this in-house movement is truly spectacular to look at. 

The beauty is more than skin deep, too. Featuring twin barrels, this COSC-certified chronometer features a noble power reserve of 65 hours. Furthermore, due to the inclusion of a 22ct white gold micro-rotor, the Jubilee sits on-wrist at just 8.9mm thick. For reference, that’s only a hair thicker than the teenie-tinnie Casio F91-W.

The final topic of note on this Chopard is its Fleurier Quality certification. Similar to the Geneve Seal, Fleurier Quality watches must pass a number of tests monitoring accuracy, durability and quality of finish. The foundation was established by Chopard, Bovet and Parmigiani in the early 2000s to localise the quality of their watches. The Foundation also ensures that all manufacturing takes place exclusively in Switzerland. You can check out what else classifies a watch as Fleurier Quality here.  

 (Credit - Monochrome)

With a versatile dial and case size, a superb movement and a rising reputation, there’s no reason why the Chopard L.U.C. QF Jubilee shouldn’t have the likes of JLC and Patek Phillipe worried for future competition in the high-end steel dress watch market.

Specs:

Dimensions - 39mm Diameter, 8.9mm Thickness

WR - 30m

Movement - L.U.C 96.09-L

Price - £12,600

These are just three of a few dozen watches launched at W&W 2021 that haven’t, in our opinion, had the media/enthusiast attention that they deserve. What was your favourite under-the-radar release of this year’s W&W? Let us know in the comments section below.

I hope you classy leprechauns are ready, we finally have the Gold Submariner colourway that we all wanted... but it’s from Tudor.  

It’s been an exciting day of releases across the brands at Watches and Wonders 2021, however, many will say that Tudor has stolen the show with the launch of a pair of handsome chronographs, a silver dial option for the BB36 and 2 fantastic new colourways of the BB58 - here’s the first one. 

The 2021 Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight ref:M79018V-0001

What’s new?

Case Material

When you first think of an 18ct gold dive watch, polished surfaces, chamfered edges and businessmen with questionable morals come to mind. Not so with this new Black Bay! The M79018V-0001 features a completely satin-finished case that conjures up more of a tooly, old gold feel. I really like it. The case is paired with a yellow gold snowflake handset, yellow gold dial markings and a rich, military green dial that could make the new BB58 a really nice, slightly left-field daily wearer. 

Case back

Both of the 2021 BB58’s feature a sapphire case back, proudly displaying the in-house MT5400 movement. While this is now something we’re used to seeing on modern sports watches, it’s still an impressive feat for a certified 200m dive watch. The most observant amongst you will notice that the MT5400 isn’t the same movement that we saw in the first 2 BB58s. The MT5400 is merely an MT5402 with a larger baseplate, filling out the case to offer the best visuals through that display case back - same COSC accuracy, same 70-hour power reserve, same middle-of-the-road finishing.  

The Calibre MT5400

Price

Unlike its steel counterpart, the 18ct BB58 isn’t what most people would call an affordable luxury watch. On the other hand, the £12,610 price tag is still a third of the price of a gold Submariner. Even without a bracelet, the 18ct BB58 offers real value in comparison to the 126618LN.

Can I have it on a bracelet?

No, not at the moment. Many will hope Tudor launch a gold bracelet to go with this new release, however, as bracelets and watch heads have never been released by Tudor separately before, it’s unlikely we’ll see this anytime soon. Not to worry though, this gold BB58 will look awesome on the range of straps we have here at barkandjack.com. Just change out our steel buckle for the gold one in the box.

Specs:

Dimensions -  39mm case diameter, 20mm lug width

Movement - Cal.MT5400 (COSC)

Power Reserve - 70 hours

Water Resistance - 200m, screw-down crown

Case Material - 18ct Yellow Gold

Straps - Comes with both a dark brown alligator strap + a B&J Broad Weave homage in green

Price - £12,610

With so much attention set on what Rolex will release to mark the 50th anniversary of the Explorer II, another 50th birthday within Rolex family has drawn far less intrigue.

50 years after the launch of the Tudor’s first chronograph, the Oysterdate, the company have announced 2 new reworkings of their Black Bay Chrono. The 2 new models, the M79360N-0002 and the M79360N-0001, feature a new bezel design and dials with panda-style contrasting registers.

Like the steel-bezel and S&G variants, the two new models of Black Bay Chrono take inspiration from a back catalogue of vintage Tudor dive watches and chronographs. The old-school riveted bracelet and ‘Snowflake’ handset are lifted from the early Tudor Submariners and the placement of the screw-down pushers, crown, and tachymeter bezel are very much like those on the original Tudor Oysterdate chronographs.

The 2021 Tudor Black Bay Chrono ref:M79360N-0002

What’s new?

The first of the two new models features an opaline (or milky, off-white) dial and black registers with the second new model featuring a black dial with silver registers. Both dials have a subtle grained finish that extends down into the sunken, bi-compax sub-dials. 

The new dials are certainly head-turners, however, once you’ve admired them, the next part that steals attention is the 70s-style black anodised aluminium bezel with its tachymetric scale and silver markings. This characterful insert sits in a fixed, steel bezel.

The final update on this rework of the first Black Bay Chrono is the replacing of that red anodised aluminium winding crown tube. Both 2021 models replace the slightly left-field part with a traditional, steel crown tube. 

The 2021 Tudor Black Bay Chrono ref:M79360N-0001

Unchanged from the 0004

The main criticism of the first Black Bay Chrono, the reference M79350-0004, that will remain consistent with the new variations is the way that the chunky ‘Snowflake’ hour hand obstructs the view of the chronograph register twice a day for a 2-hour period. While this won’t be a dealbreaker for many, it is a factor worth considering if you plan to use the chronograph function regularly. Other features that the new models share with the 2017 Baselword release are the lightly-domed sapphire crystal, the case dimensions, the chrono pushers, the riveted 3-link steel bracelet and finally, the Calibre MT5813. 

The MT5813 isn’t merely a re-badged Breitling B01 as many suspect, Tudor have added a non-magnetic silicon balance spring and escape wheel, a tungsten rotor and an upgrade in timing capacity from 30 minutes to 45 minutes. Tudor aren’t dubious about the origins of the MT5813 stating in the press release that the brands have ‘chosen to pool their expertise in the design and production of certain mechanical movements’. For more information on how Tudor are disrupting the movement market, check out this video. 

While the 45-minute timing capability of the MT5813 is far less than the 12-hours of the 4130 inside the modern Daytona, the Breitling-derived calibre does feature a hearty 70-hour power reserve, a 4 Hz beat-rate, instantaneous date change, the ability for rapid adjustment without a non-correction range, and most impressively, a 10-year recommended service interval.

The Tudor Calibre MT5813

Will these new watches cause the same viral hype as that of the BB58 Blue back in 2020? Who knows, but if the popularity of the 2016 116500LN panda-style Daytona is anything to go by, these Tudor chronographs will be hot property.

IWC has a solid history of creating watches for Pilots, the first being developed in 1936. This watch was the IW436, it had shatter proof glass, the case was anti-magnetic and the movement could operate from -40 +40 degrees C. This was needed as cockpits were unheated back then. 

The first Big Pilots watch was launched in 1940 with the idea of having a large high contrast dial that’s highly legible in all conditions and large crown so that pilots could operate the watch when wearing flying gloves.

The previous Big Pilots watch was a beast at 46mm wide, this new Big Pilot is smaller at 43mm and it also has a more simple dial. The 46mm although looks awesome, it’s completely unwearable for me on my 17.5cm wrists, the 46mm is just able do able. It is still big though. 

SPECS
IWC Big Pilot 43
IW329304 

Case

• Glass: Sapphire, convex, antireflective coating on both sides
• Water-resistant 10 bar 
• Screw Down crown
• Diameter 43 mm 
• Height 13.6 mm 
• Dial: Black and Blue

Movement

• IWC manufacture calibre  82100
• Frequency 28,800 vph/4 Hz 
• Jewels 22
• Power reserve 60 h
• Winding Automatic / bi directional

The first launch that we’re covering in what’s shaping up to be a very exciting week of new releases comes from Breitling in the form of the all-new Heritage collection coming under their ‘Premier’ line of watches. 

One month on from the launch of the polarising Chronomat South Sea (that modern, female-focused release with diamond bezels, lacquered dials and an aggressive marketing campaign) we have a pre-Watches & Wonders release that better reflects and sustains Breitling’s classic aesthetic and historical significance.

Inspired by the ‘Premier’ watches of the 1940s, Breiting has launched 3 new models with both steel and precious metal options for each - 6 new references in total. 

An original 1940s Breitling Premier Chronograph ref: 787 - (Credit - Hodinkee)

The Chronograph

The Premier Heritage Chronograph comes in with a case size of 40mm and is powered by the Calibre B09, a manually wound version of the Breitling B01. Like all of the movements featured in this collection, the B09 is COSC certified meaning the accuracy should be within the realms of -4/+6 seconds per day. Colour choices include a cheeky pistachio green dial in a steel case (my personal favourite of the whole launch) and a creamy, opaline dial in an 18k red gold case - they both work really nicely. 

Specs

The Premier Heritage B09 Chronograph 40mm, Steel/Pistachio - ref: AB0930D31L1P1

The Duograph

You’ll notice these releases get more complicated as we go through them, the new Duograph features Breitling’s Calibre B15 (the B03 minus a rotor) which integrates a split-seconds (or rattrapante) function that’s operated through the chrono pushers and 3 o’clock crown. Split-second chronographs measure two elapsed times at once (intermediate and split time), which is shown via two overlapping hands on the central chronograph. The Duograph is available in both steel, with a blue dial, or in 18k red gold with a black dial.

Specs

The Premier Heritage B15 Duograph 42mm, 18k Red Gold/Black - ref: RB1510251B1P1

The Datora

Finally, we have the Datora, an automatic chronograph that also displays the day, date, month and moon-phase. Again, the Datora is available in both steel and 18k red gold with the former featuring a pinky-copper dial and the latter a cream dial. As with all of the watches in the collection, the Datora’s dial features Arabic numerals and a lumed syringe-style handset. While some will call the steel Datora a homage of the Patek 5270P-001, at 1/15th of the price, many will welcome the availability of the elegant, yet complex 5270 salmon aesthetic, still from a heritage brand but at a far more accessible price point. 

Specs

Aside from these general-release chronographs, Breitling has also released a Boutique Special in collaboration with Bentley. Featuring the B21 movement, this special 1/25 Premier Chronograph features an open-worked tourbillon, a deep-green sunburst dial, and a price tag of £39,900. For more information on the Boutique special, click here. 

Premier B21 Chronograph Tourbillon 42mm Bentley Boutique Special, 18k Red Gold - ref: RB21201A1L1P1 

With Watches & Wonders beginning tomorrow (7/4), we’ll be bringing you the latest info on all the releases from our favourite brands - stay tuned for that. What’s your thought’s on this latest crop of Breitling Chronographs and which is your favourite variant from this line-up? Let us know in the comments below.