In addition to a 925 sterling silver Black Bay Fifty-Eight for 2021, Tudor also debuted an 18K yellow gold version.
The Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18K comes in the familiar case size of 39 mm — the same diameter as the original Fifty-Eight, the Navy Blue, and the 925. Although, the case has gotten slightly thicker at 12.7 mm (up from 12 mm) to accommodate the sapphire caseback.
This is the first Tudor Diver watch made in 18K yellow gold. And the first to be offered with an open caseback. It’s also one of the most expensive watches we’ve seen Tudor market to date (perhaps the most expensive ever from Tudor).
Being that Tudor is all about professional tool watches, it’s not surprising that the designers chose to give the entire case a matte satin finish. The case edges still have bevels, they’ve just not been polished. Fittingly, the dial is also matte, with a rich green hue, punctuated by 18K yellow gold applied hour markers. Tudor’s signature Snowflake handset is also in yellow gold. An 18K yellow gold unidirectional rotating bezel matches the case, and the 60-minute graduated matte green anodized aluminum insert with gilt markings, is color-matched to the dial. The bezel dot, hour markers, and hands, are all luminous.
The caliber MT5400 is basically the same as the MT5402 movement which powers the Black Bay Fifty-Eight and Black Bay Fifty Eight Navy Blue, but Tudor enlarged it to better fill case which has a different dynamic due to the screw-down open caseback on both the 18K and 925 Fifty-Eights. The MT5400 movement measures 30.3 mm x 5 mm (up from the caliber MT5402 that measures 25.6 mm x 4.6 mm).
While some of the dimensions have changed, everything else remains the same, including the 4Hz rate, 27 jewels, free-sprung balance, silicon balance spring, stop seconds, and COSC certification. The rotor is tungsten and has been skeletonized. The finishes consist of satin-brushed, sand-blasted, and polished surfaces. The sturdy traversing bridge provides robust support for the balance system. Interestingly, while this is a COSC-certified chronometer movement, which means the watch is adjusted to -4/+6 prior to being cased up, Tudor goes the extra step and delivers an adjusted rate of -2/+4, fully cased up. This is as not as good as Rolex’s so-called “Superlative” chronometer rating of -2/+2 cased up, but it’s pretty close, and quite impressive relative to the rest of the market.
Tudor’s Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18K is delivered with two straps. One is a green Jacquard fabric with a gold stripe running down the middle and the other is a and dark brown alligator strap with contrast stitching. Both are fitted with solid 18K yellow gold buckles.
A domed sapphire protects the dial side. An 18K yellow gold screw-down crown, with the Tudor Rose emblem in relief, and with a circular satin-brushed 18K yellow gold crown tube, controls all functions. As with all of the Black Bay Fifty-Eights, the water resistance is rated to 200 meters. (Ref. 79018V)
The retail price is $16,800.
