Introducing The New Tudor Black Bay Chronograph ‘Tudor Blue’

Tudor launched the Black Bay Chronograph at Baselworld in 2017, and since then, the model has been released in a number of different configurations, with a total of 13 models now in the catalog, including the recently released, and much discussed, Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pink, which came out in March of this year. The new Black Bay Chronograph “Blue” is going to be a little bit less divisive – Tudor itself said straight out when the Pink was released that it was “not for everybody” but the Black Bay Chrono Blue looks to be a real crowd pleaser, albeit it’s a boutique-only watch.

The blue in the Black Bay Blue Chrono is, according to Tudor, an homage to what it’s calling “Tudor Blue,” a color which Tudor used in the 1970s for such watches as the blue Snowflake Tudor Sub, and the blue Montecarlo Oysterdate Chronograph. Up to now, the Black Bay Chronograph bezels have been either black, or black with gilt accents, but for the Black Bay Blue Chronograph Tudor’s producing a blue anodized aluminum bezel.

Technically, the new Black Bay Blue Chronograph is identical to preceding models, with a two register, 45 minute chronograph, and screw-down pushers. The movement is Tudor’s column wheel, vertical clutch automatic caliber MD5813, which Breitling also uses in the B01 chronographs. Tudor’s COSC-certified version features a silicon balance spring, freesprung balance with adjustable timing weights, and a 70 hour power reserve. The bracelet features Tudor’s T-fit, five position adjustable clasp.

As with the preceding models, this is classic modern Tudor watchmaking; I’ve had a chance to handle several of these since the first launch and they all give the impression of extremely exact, precise, high-quality manufacturing, which is reflected in the precision of the movement, which Tudor adjusts to a better-than-COSC +2/-4 spec. The chrono pusher threads and clasp are both extremely well machined; there is no play anywhere and the overall feeling is one of a no-nonsense tool designed for the long haul, and for daily wear in the sometimes rough and tumble real world.

The one caveat, or potential caveat, that’s sometimes expressed is the size of the snowflake hour hand, and the degree to which it obstructs the 45 minute register. This of course is a potential issue with any chronograph that has larger hands, and for the Black Bay Chronograph in general, this is, for most of the time you have the watch on your wrist, a non-issue anyway. The hand only partially obstructs the chrono register and even then, only twice a day between 2PM and 4PM, so it’s unlikely to be an actual practical issue, and I think it’s worth the (very) slight tradeoff for the bright, high visibility design of the hands and of course, the connection to Tudor’s larger design history.

The Black Bay Chronograph Blue is a boutique-only edition; US price at launch is $5675. For more info, visit TudorWatch.com.