Tudor Black Bay & Pelagos

A short History of Tudor Divers

It was in 1954 that the world was introduced to the first TUDOR divers’ watch. That watch was the TUDOR Oyster Prince Submariner – reference 7922. It was an automatic (self-winding) watch and the first in their collection with guaranteed water resistancy. To achieve that it’s case featured a screw-down back and a crown whose water resistancy was guaranteed to a depth of 100 metres.

It featured oversized, luminous hour markers and hands for easy reading at depth underwater. It also included the essential dive time bezel graduated in 5-minute intervals. On the dial were printed the words “OYSTER PRINCE” under the Tudor logo and “100 m = 330 ft”, “SUBMARINER”, “ROTOR”, “SELF-WINDING” on the bottom four lines.

Rolex origins since 1926

The Tudor brand was established in 1926 when Hans Wilsdorf (Rolex founder) said

For some years now, I have been considering the idea of making a watch that our agents could sell at a more modest price than our Rolex watches, and yet one that would attain the standard of dependability for which Rolex is famous. I decided to form a separate company, with the object of making and marketing this new watch. It is called the TUDOR watch company.

TudorWatches.com

and that’s why many of the older Tudor watches bear the Rolex logo and brand name on their cases, casebacks and bracelet buckles. So now you know why every watch collector should own a TUDOR watch, let’s go shopping …

What to pay for a pre-owned Tudor PELAGOS

Very popular are the Tudor Pelagos 25610TNL (with it’s Left Hand crown) and the Pelagos 25600TN and 25500TN – right hand crown, titanium case and domed sapphire glass. A nice clean pre-owned example of the 25601TNL will sell for approximately £2,500 to £3,400. Pay more for a full set model with box, papers and original receipts. The regular right hand crown 25600 and 25500 models will fetch a similar price.

What to pay for a pre-owned Tudor BLACK BAY

Most popular in the Black Bay range is the reinterpretation of their classic dive watch from 1958 – the Tudor Black Bay 58. A good pre-owned example of the Black Bay 58 will attract anywhere between £2,500 to £3,400. Also in much demand is the Tudor Heritage (79230) available in several colour schemes including 79230B – Blue bezel, 79230R – Red bezel, 79230N – Black bezel and 79230G – Green bezel. All models have a BLACK dial and gold hands and detailing. A clean full set example of a Heritage 79230 is valued between £2,200 and £3,300 – specific price depends on the specific model.

Official Website (external link) – Tudor Watches