Blancpain

We had to wait a little longer this year to find out what Blancpain has in the bag for us... and I have to say it was so worth the wait!

Regarding the photos: the shooting took place in a conference room on a rainy day, so I had to rely on artificial light. I think the character of the timepieces was captured fairly well nonetheless, and I hope you enjoy the results shown in the two reports here on puristspro.

The first report will concentrate on three very special limited editions, and I named it „the heritage pieces“ for a good reason, but see for yourselves:

A legend is reborn... the new Blancpain Air Command

Let’s get closer to what may very well be the superstar among the new Blancpain timepieces, the new Air Command ref AC01-1130-63A, a 42,5mm stainless steel no date aviation chronograph based on the iconic original from 1957.

Amongst collectors of vintage timepieces the Blancpain Air Command is a legend and also a myth. No one can tell for sure how many original Air Command timepieces were produced in the late 1950s. 

Let‘s listen to our friend and puristspro moderator Nicolas Fondaneche, who kindly supported this report with his passion and knowledge:

„The Air Command is a mysterious piece. A 42 mm chronograph with a Valjoux 222 which is a flyback chronograph and hacking seconds.

The case seems to be borrowed from the Fifty Fathoms, with drilled lugs. The insert is very specific, and the hands are, too, at the exception of the chronograph seconds hand which is also borrowed to the Fifty Fathoms. Most probably produced in the late 50's , early 60's.

Now, the big question is to know how many were made. I only saw three in the reality, and the same number in pictures. And all of them have  case numbers which are very close to each other. An argument in favor of an extreme rarity. Most probably much less than 100 were made.

And the other big mystery is to know for which market it has been done. It has been said that it was sold through some PX, but nothing is sure.“

I applaud Blancpain for not having taken the easy route by using the slightly larger Bathyscaphe case for this watch. A lot of attention has been paid to be faithful to one of the most iconic heritage timepieces of the Manufacture, and that is immediately recognizable in this watch.

If you are as excited about the new old Air Command as I am, don‘t wait too long: it is limited to 500 pieces worldwide and probably the closest you will ever get to the vintage icon.

The return of a famous dial (and watch): the FF Barakuda

This is the second new Blancpain timepiece with historic roots, the colorful and extrovert Fifty Fathoms Barakuda ref 5008B-1130-B52A. 

Let's take a closer look at this beauty, which continues the theme of limited editions in the 40,3mm Fifty Fathoms case.

As previously with the Air Command, I want to start the introduction with a view on the vintage Barakuda by Nicolas:

„The Fifty Fathoms Barakuda was made in the late 60's. Barakuda was the name of a distributor of diving watches and tools in Germany.

The movement is the AS 1902, with automatic winding, of course, and with a date indication.

Some were used by the members of the Polish Navy, but it was not officially issued to them. The serial numbers observed are from 207 5xx to 208 1xx. The production is much less rare than the Air Command, with several hundreds made.

The hands and insert are common to some previous Fifty Fathoms. The dial stands out and has its own character and personality.

While the Air Command is a true myth and an icon, I would say that the Barakuda is a model of coolness.“

As Nicolas put it, the dial is indeed special and cool. I read one collector naming it a ketchup/mayo dial, a very spicy one... the bold red and creamy white accents definitely stood out at the time when the watch was introduced in 1968. And they still do today.

Since the prototype watch did not yet have its final Tropic strap, I had to take photos of the naked timepiece. I‘m sorry for that, but there will be many photos of this watch with the correct strap in various media.

The new Fifty Fathoms Barakuda stands true to the original dial hands, the bezel shape is a translation of the vintage watch as well. The bezel insert however is changed to the sapphire version we know from the Tribute to MilSpec.

The watch has the well known 40,3mm case with a sapphire case back revealing calibre 1151 with a new rotor design.

66 years after the Fifty Fathoms was introduced as the first professional dive watch, developed under Jean-Jacques Fiechter at the helm at Blancpain in close cooperation with the French combat swimmers unit formed by Captain Robert "Bob" Maloubier and Lieutenant Claude Riffaud,  Blancpain wanted to celebrate this heritage with a tribute version of reference 5015.

The watch should follow the criteria that made the Fifty Fathoms the choice of various naval divers forces around the globe from 1953 over more than 2 decades. The French Army supported this wish and therefore Blancpain can proudly present the Combat Diver Qualification Badge on the case back of this spectacular watch.

The face of this Fifty Fathoms is a masterpiece of clear contrast with large off-white indices and white lacquered hands over a matte black dial. The  hands remind us of historic military watches with the minute hand having two sectors. The one element that does not have roots in historic military watches is the date indication, but since this is a modern interpretation of a combat swimmers watch there sure is no harm in adding it.

You have noticed the number 7 on the dial, very subtly executed in black on black. The explanation is as follows: as oxygen becomes toxic when its partial pressure reaches 1.7 bar, the maximum depth that commando frogmen can reach when using pure oxygen is 7 metres, therefore this number has become a symbolic figure amongst combat swimmers.

The brushed stainless steel case supports the professional appeal of this reference... and it leaves the one shiny element of the watch to the solid caseback, which is shielding the well known calibre 1315.

The engraved Combat Diver Qualification Badge, showing a central anchor dedicated to sailors and flanked by two winged seahorses representing the underwater world as well as parachutists, is a true eye catcher. For any proud future owner the Fifty Fathoms „Nageurs de combat“ will reveal this impressive element only when the watch is off the wrist, but the knowledge about it will enhance the joy of wearing it every single moment.

The Fifty Fathoms „Nageurs de combat“ left me with a strong wish to one day add this one to my modest collection. It is the quintessential blend of Haute Horlogerie quality and finishing with the strong tradition of military use "no nonsense" design features. What a piece to celebrate the joint heritage of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms and the French Combat Swimmers!

I hope you enjoyed the introduction and the photos. A heartfelt Merci Beaucoup goes to Nicolas Fondaneche for his insights and contribution to this report, and of course to Blancpain for giving me the opportunity to see the watch and take photos!

Cheers 

Henrik