As my review of a minimalist Tudor Black Bay 41 indicates, I’m a fan of the brand. Now that Tudor has its own caliber — an awesome movement built with BFF Breitling — Rolex’s sub-brand is on a roll. The latest timepiece tempting horophiles: the limited edition Tudor Black Bay Chrono Dark, celebrating New Zealand’s All Blacks national rugby team. Geddit? Before you do here’s a few things to consider . . .
There are a lot of good reasons to buy the 41mm Todor Black Bay Chrono Dark. While it ain’t cheap ($5,925) there aren’t any direct competitors from top-notch makers (e.g. TAG Heuer, IWC). Especially if you want a wikkid pissa blacked-out bracelet.
Tudor’s lume is positively incandescent. The white-on-black date window is legible AF and perfectly placed not to get in the damn way. I’m so against tachymeters on watches, but you know, heritage. The two sub-dial approach balances the watch and makes it a LOT easier to read than any three sub-dial chrono solution.
OK, so the problem . . .
Check out those pushers. Notice that they’re grooved. That’s because they’re screw-down. Reading between the lines at Tudor’s website, we learn why.
The hybrid Black Bay Chrono Dark combines the brand’s aquatic heritage with the queen of the racetrack – the chronograph – resulting in a sporty-chic watch with a distinctive touch of nostalgia.
Translation: the Chrono Dark’s based on Tudor’s Black Bay dive watches. Screw-down pushers were the brand’s [cheapest?] solution for creating a limited edition Black Bay Chrono that won’t die underwater. With the pushers screwed-in, the CD’s good to 200m. Without them secured, not so much. At all?
The website doesn’t mention the fact that the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Dark has screw-down pushers. Hodinkee’s horological pimps don’t mention them either. I mention them because my God, what a PITA. Want to time something? Don’t do it underwater! Now, unscrew to tiny pushers. Time something. Than make sure you screw the pushers back in when you’re done.
Not me. I love me some Tudor, black watches are bad ass, and I enjoy rugger as much as the next guy — which is to say not a lot. Anyway, I’m out. You?
But wait! There IS an answer to your horological dark desires: the non-chrono Black Bay Dark (Ref.: 79230DK). No stopwatch, no date window, waterproof to 200m and $1400 cheaper, at $4,525. You’re welcome.
[…] The Chronograph 1 marks the beginning of F.A. Porsche’s “speedometer on the wrist” gestalt. It’s also the timepiece that kicked-off the black watch genre, an aesthetic that continues in modern PD products, seen recently in the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Dark). […]
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