Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight Gold, Silver W&W 2021

amanico · 2021-04-07T05:31:38Z

Explore the Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight Yellow Gold and Silver from Watches and Wonders 2021. Amanico's review and collector debate on precious metals, design, and price point.

amanico

WPS member · Rolex forum

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Amanico's initial impressions of the Tudor Black Bay Fifty-Eight in yellow gold and silver from Watches and Wonders 2021 sparked a lively debate among collectors. His post highlights Tudor's bold move into precious metals for the popular Black Bay line, questioning whether these new references align with the brand's established identity. This article synthesizes the community's diverse reactions, exploring the implications of these releases for Tudor's market positioning and collector appeal.

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An interesting offer, here: The daring Black Bay Fifty Eight in yellow gold:

And in silver!

Both have the good taste to be in 39 mm, as silver and gold weight quite a bit. So, for me, it is a good idea.

While the yellow gold is cool, here we have another green dial.

The silver is colder but more my taste, with its taupe dial.

Both come with a see through case back. Both are water resistant to 200 meters, and bot house the in house automatic movement.

I find both of them much more interesting than the Rolex novelties.

I just regret that absence of a BB GMT with a 39 mm case...

Best,

Nicolas

Key Points from the Discussion

While appreciating both new models, one collector expressed a preference for a closed case back, especially on the gold version, to maximize the precious metal presence. They also suggested that watches on straps, rather than bracelets, might benefit from a slightly larger case size, referencing the 43mm Black Bay Bronze.
The yellow gold Black Bay Fifty-Eight with its green dial was noted as a potentially fun piece, particularly with alternative strap choices. However, the 'snowflake' hour hand was a point of contention, with a preference expressed for a 'lollipop' or 'Mercedes' style hand, and a solid case back was also suggested due to the movement's aesthetic.
A key concern for some collectors is Tudor's price point. They argued that once Tudor crosses the £5,000 threshold with precious metal offerings, it pushes them to consider other brands, as precious metals are not what they typically expect from Tudor.
The introduction of gold and silver was seen by some as a 'wrong move,' diluting the Black Bay Fifty-Eight's identity as a 'gorgeous vintage look diver' and a 'pure well sized utilitarian diver.' The exposed movement was also criticized for having 'nothing special to show.'
One contributor suggested that Tudor's strategy with precious metals might mirror Rolex's approach, where offering a model initially in gold (like the Pepsi GMT in white gold) can lead to selling more gold pieces before a potential steel version is released, effectively selling 'more gold and less watches.'
Despite some reservations, other collectors found Tudor's novelties, particularly the silver Black Bay Fifty-Eight, to be compelling. One collector was enthusiastic enough to immediately attempt to order the silver version, hoping for a quick delivery.
The color combination of the new models was highlighted as especially attractive, with suggestions for pairing them with sporty rubber straps in light brown or military green to further accentuate the dials.

The Discussion

pfang56

Apr 7, 2021

Nice green dial!

😂 You are probably right - adding this and the chronograph models Tudor has done a good job this year! Cheers, Peter

amanico

Apr 7, 2021

Much better for me than Rolex, this year.

myles721

Apr 7, 2021

Not a big fan of green and gold...

It always seems that the Bay gets more attention than pelagos...but it’s not as good a watch IMO...