Launched in 1953, Blancpain’s Fifty Fathoms was one of the world's first modern dive watches. With its rich history, interesting variants, attractive designs and accessible price points, the Fifty Fathoms is truly a diver’s delight
One of the most popular genres in watches, the humble dive watch offers robust constructions and versatile designs that can be worn by both watch enthusiasts as well casual wearers. Moreover, with their rich history within the industry, there just isn't anything not to like about them.
The segment is rather hotly contested with several legendary models vying for the top spot for the historically most significant dive watch. Right from the Rolex Submariner to the Omega Seamaster, there are several legendary models that come to mind when one thinks of an ideal dive watch. However, had it not been for Blancpain’s Fifty Fathoms, this category as we know today, might not even exist. Often overlooked, but still contained within the spirit of the majority of dive watches today, the Fifty Fathoms is the unsung hero of the dive world.
A New Genre
Launched in 1953, the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms was one of the world's first modern dive watches. The brainchild of avid diver and former Blancpain CEO Jean-Jacques Fiechter, the Fifty Fathoms was designed as a companion for his diving expeditions. Named after the old British measurement, a Fathom, the Fifty Fathoms was rather unsurprisingly water-resistant up to 50 fathoms – around 300 feet. While this number might not seem like a whole lot by today's standards, it was once the forefront of diving technology and more than enough for divers at the time, considering the majority of them wouldn't ever exceed 66 meters in depth, at which point the oxygen toxicity becomes a genuine concern.
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Of course, Blancpain didn't manage to create a watch with 91 meters of water resistance without having to innovate. So they created the Fifty Fathoms, which was the first watch to include a secured unidirectional rotating bezel, an O-ring seal, which they patented, and a double-sealed crown system. Created to offer divers an important tool, Blancpain inadvertently created horology's most popular genre of timepiece and the template for every dive watch that would follow.
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The Fifty Fathoms As We Know It
It’s no surprise that the Fifty Fathoms is one of the most luxurious dive watches on the market today. While keeping its functionality intact, the Fifty Fathoms has followed in Blancpain's footsteps in its ascent towards luxurious high-end haute horology. Thanks to Blancpain's desire to showcase its watchmaking credentials, the Fifty Fathoms' family has grown almost exponentially over the last several decades – adding newer variants with different complications, materials, colorways and dial designs to their catalogue.
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Of course, with a history as rich as that of the Fifty Fathoms, it would be a shame if Blancpain didn't release historically significant variants offering collectors an accurate reinterpretation of the world's first dive watch. There have been several historically-inspired models of the Fifty Fathoms in the past but one that’s always been a crowd-puller is the "No Radiations" edition. Re-released twice since its introduction in the 1960s, it’s now a cult classic indeed.
The No Radiations Story
Originally when the Fifty Fathoms was launched, its dial would have included radium paint as its luminescent material. However, by the turn of the 1960s, research into radioactive elements and their effect on the human body had indicated just how dangerous radium was. So it was no longer an acceptable material for watchmakers or any other company to use. As such, when Blancpain released the Fifty Fathoms as a commercially available timepiece, they wanted to showcase that their timepieces were not going to cause radium-induced sickness, so they marked their dials with the now-iconic "No Radiations" symbol at 6 o'clock. Eye-catching with its bright orange and yellow colors and distinctive radiation symbol, Blancpain had inadvertently created what has grown into one of their most iconic variants — one that was so much in demand that they launched a limited edition re-release in 2010, and another in 2021.
The Blancpain Fifty-Fathoms No Radiations Ref. 5008D 1130 B64A
Launched as a modern 500-piece limited edition variant of the iconic "No Radiations," the ref. 5008D 1130 B64A is a faithful re-issue indeed. Constructed of stainless steel and featuring a 40.3mm case, just 0.7mm smaller than the original – much closer than the 45mm case of the 2010 model, the latest "No Radiations" Fifty Fathoms looks and wears somewhat similarly to its vintage predecessor. With a thinner profile, bulkier lugs and small crown guards, the new model is slightly more rugged though – a telling detail of Blancpain's modern watchmaking style whereby utility meets vintage inspiration.
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Featuring the bright yellow and orange radiation symbol on its matte black dial with the inclusion of a soft orange faux patina atop its indices and in its bezel markings, the new "No Radiations" display looks rather similar to the original. Of course, there are some subtle differences, such as pencil-shaped hands instead of sword-shaped and a sapphire crystal bezel, which replaces the bakelite bezels that Blancpain had used in the original Fifty Fathoms. However, just like with its construction, these changes are relatively unnoticed at a glance and add a gentle tone of modern functionality to this icon.
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Featuring a white-rimed date function at 3 o'clock, a nod to the vintage references, the latest variant also has a tropical weave in its black rubber strap, another detail that was omitted from the 2010 model.
Powered by the ultra-slim automatic Cal. 1151, the Ref. 5008D features an impressively long 100 hours of power reserve. Another detail of its modern construction is evident in the sapphire crystal caseback – something which watchmakers never used on a dive watch in the 1960s.
Unsung Hero of the Dive World
Fueled by nostalgia, "icon" is a term we often bandy around in horological circles to elevate a watch’s status. I genuinely think the Fifty Fathoms is an icon that’s rather underrated by the watch community as a whole. While there are some vintage variants, and even modern ones, that do receive their fair share of plaudits, the hype around other dive watches is totally unjustifiable as compared to the Fifty Fathoms.
With its rich history, plethora of interesting variants and notable designs, the Fifty Fathoms is an icon by just about every metric, as far as I am concerned. The latest 'No Radiations' variant pays the perfect homage to this collection's incredible history while also allowing Blancpain to showcase some of its modern watchmaking craftsmanship in a heritage-inspired design. In all honesty, the Ref. 5008D is a perfect homage to Blancpain's most iconic watch, with its unmistakable dial doing everything it can to help bring attention to watchmaking's best-kept not-so-secret secret.
