We take a closer look at what makes Tudor watches so good, not just from the perspective of value but history as well
For those just beginning their watch-collecting journey, the name Tudor can present as a double-edged sword.
On one hand, for many fresh-faced and bushy-tailed enthusiasts, the name Rolex might loom larger than all others, while Tudor can appear like the less-cool younger sibling who always asks to be invited to parties. On the other hand, the barrier to entry with Tudor is significantly better and the more one learns about the brand, the more one is likely to realize the little sibling brings a whole lot more fun to the party and deserves an invite any time they like.
While the Tudor trademark was first registered in 1926, it wasn’t till two decades later that the Montres Tudor SA company was founded by Rolex-founder Hans Wilsdorf. The spirit that Tudor was founded with was to offer Rolex-like quality at a more affordable price, which remains a pillar of the brand today and saw Tudor watches using many Rolex-stamped components for the better part of half a century.
Today, Tudor remains under the control of Rolex SA (in turn owned by Hans Wilsdorf Foundation) but makes its watches in its own factories and is operated as an entirely separate brand. Among Tudor’s most popular watches in 2023 is its collection of high-spec dive watches, which can be traced directly back to the 1954 Tudor Oyster Prince Submariner 7922 which was launched just a year after Rolex’s own Submariner made its debut.
With a legitimate dive watch pedigree and famously used in the past by the French Navy’s Marine Nationale division, the range of dive watches offered by Tudor has never been better and spans a number of different sub-collections that each offer something different to watch enthusiasts around the world. Let’s take a closer look at exactly why Tudor watches are so good, not simply from the perspective of value (though you’d be hard-pressed to find a handful of better brands), but the history Tudor tells and the watches they offer today.
The Original Tudor Black Bay Line-Up
If we cast our memory back a little more than a decade, the modern Tudor dive watch was born with the debut of the first 41mm Black Bay in 2012. Arriving complete with its distinctive and heritage-inspired Snowflake hands, gilt dial and burgundy diving bezel, it immediately won critical acclaim and saw commercial success as enthusiasts flocked to get an example on their wrists.
The then-Creative Director of Tudor Davide Cerrato knew he had a winner on his hands, fusing past and present into a design that was immediately recognizable and easy to wear as an everyday watch. The collection quickly grew to include a number of different references offering something for everyone, such as this attractive two-tone reference known as the S&G (for steel and gold) and another particularly compelling Harrods Edition with an instantly recognizable green bezel.
Cerrato wasn’t done there, however, and began offering different materials within the Black Bay collection, such as this patina-rich 43mm Black Bay Bronze distinguished from the 41mm references with its 3, 6, 9 dial and military-inspired NATO-style strap (winning a GPHG prize in 2016). Another material used in the collection was ceramic, selected for its lightweight but robust properties and stealthy, blacked-out appearance. Interestingly, the ceramic Black Bay is one of the few references within the collection to feature an exhibition caseback, offering an uninterrupted view of the PVD-treated black movement.
Tudor Black Bay 58 Collection
The Black Bay was already a hit within the watch-collecting community, but with the heritage-inspired revival of watchmaking in full-swing Tudor knew enthusiasts wanted more. Enter the 2018 Black Bay 58 as a study in understated elegance and exuding all of the vintage touches collectors loved in the original collection but in a more historically faithful 39mm size.
Inspired by the revered Tudor “Big Crown '' Ref. 7924 from 1958 (hence the name 58), it also arrived without crown guards, a red triangle marking 60 minutes on the bezel and a warm gilt dial that was cleanly balanced without a date window. Just as the case diameter had been shrunk, so too had its thickness shaving off nearly 3mm compared to the first Black Bay models and making it even more wearable as a daily companion.
In the same way, the debut Black Bay collection slowly spread its wings to include different references executed in a range of materials, so too did the 58 range, expanding to include a charming blue dial and bezel reference that won the 2020 GPHG “Challenge” prize. The next year, Tudor continued the expansion of the 58 collection into the realm of (semi)precious metals, offering a reference in 925 silver that’s a somewhat uncommon watchmaking material, as well as a radiant solid yellow gold reference with a green dial and bezel that almost feels a little patriotic as an Australian. As it turns out, they also both offered rarely-seen exhibition casebacks.
Just a couple of months later, Tudor completed the trinity of podium-linked case metal offerings with the debut of the Tudor Black Bay 58 Bronze, which unlike its silver and gold siblings arrived on a fantastic matching bronze bracelet. It maintained the same case size as the rest of its family members but offered a subtle nod to its 2016 predecessor with a matching 3, 6, 9 dial.
Tudor Black Bay Complications
The final branch of the Tudor Black Bay family tree is arguably the leafiest, as references that offer straightforward and practical complications - specifically the chronograph and GMT functions. The Tudor Black Bay Chronograph with either a black or white dial (panda and reverse panda) arrived in 2021 to more enthusiasm from the watch community as references that offered a taste of the Daytona but remained far from a homage thanks to its twin subdial format. Powered by the widely respected column wheel and vertical clutch-equipped Caliber MT5813 (with 70 hours of power reserve), it’s another example of Tudor having its finger firmly on the pulse of what watch collectors want and giving it to them.
The GMT function might be less complex in its mechanism than a chronograph, but it’s arguably the most practical complication you can find on a watch today and the 41mm Tudor Black Bay GMT of 2018 is nothing if not rigorously pragmatic. Arriving with a black dial and the iconic blue and red “Pepsi” bezel of the Rolex GMT Master watches from the 1950s, it was an instant classic among enthusiasts. After a few years of percolation in the market, the Tudor Black Bay GMT returned in 2022 with the two-tone “Rootbeer” that brought a quiet pop of precious metal to the brand’s travel watch line-up, with the warmth of the gold elevated by the black and brown 24-hour GMT bezel.
So if you had any hesitations whatsoever about the logic of Tudor’s place among the pantheon of the world’s best watchmakers, I hope they’ve been dispelled as while Rolex and Tudor certainly share the same bloodline, they very much have their own character. Historically significant, articulately designed and brimming with value for money, Tudor is a brand every watch enthusiast should have in their collection.
