Slimmed-Down And Sunny: Hands On With The Tudor Black Bay Chrono 39 Bumblebee

Yellow is considered one of the more challenging colors to use for a watch dial – it’s used much less often than black, white, blue, or green, but when it does show up on a watch dial, it’s all the more memorable for that reason. Tudor launched the Black Bay Chrono 39 Bumblebee last week, and it’s already one of the most talked-about watches of the year. Spend any time with one in the metal, and you’ll understand why.

This is not a watch which, as the saying goes, hides its light under a bushel. Yellow by itself is, of all the visible colors, the one which appears brightest to the human eye – that’s because when you look at something yellow, both the red and green color sensing cells in your retina light up at the same time. For that reason, it’s often used when the highest possible visibility’s desired – emergency vehicles, safety clothing, traffic signs, and even New York City’s iconic yellow cabs all take advantage of the fact that yellow is a color you can’t miss.

Put yellow and black together, and you have the highest possible contrast, as well; black absorbs light, while yellow reflects it, and the combination gives you instant legibility.

The dial of the Black Bay Chrono 39 could have been too much of a good thing if Tudor had decided to use sunray brushing, but for all that the dial is something you can’t look away from, even across a room, it’s saved from being too flashy by its matte finishing and the yellow notwithstanding, this still feels like a highly practical instrument watch. The matte finish of the tachymeter scale helps as well; the sans-serif typeface used feels as pragmatic as the rest of the watch – again, something that gives the Chrono 39 a practical air which balances the exuberance of the dial color. (There is a Black Bay Chronograph S&G with a sunray brushed yellow dial; but there the yellow is a bit more subdued – more of an autumn leaf than lemon-yellow effect).

Of course, one big reason that the Chrono 39 is getting so much attention, is the case; this is the smallest Black Bay chronograph so far, with the case coming in at 39mm x 13.1mm, versus the 41mm x 14.4mm dimensions of earlier models. The size difference is something you’ll notice immediately and while the earlier models have a slab-sided confidence to them, the proportions of the new case work extremely well with the contours of the case overall, and especially with the graceful gradual widening of the polished bevel between the side of the case, and the brushed upper surface of the lugs. I’d even go so far as to call it elegant – this feels a lot like a classic, late 20th century steel sports chronograph, and the beveling and finishing on the lugs makes them feel like the fenders of a classic sports car. Don’t get me wrong, the Chrono 39 still has the squared-off sense of sturdiness you get from its predecessors, but the reduction in size, while it doesn’t seem like much by the numbers, almost makes the Chrono 39 feel like the first piece of a new chronograph collection.

There’s nothing but good things to say about the bracelet as well. It’s substantial, and exactly in proportion with the watch head, with a slight taper towards the clasp. The bracelet’s got Tudor’s T-fit clasp, which, once the bracelet is sized, makes it easy to adjust if necessary, and requires no tools. The bracelet itself feels strong but supple, and the fliplock clasp is and feels as precisely machined as every other part of the watch. I’m always impressed when handling a Tudor – any Tudor – at how much it feels like handling a well machined tool with very close tolerances; you get the feeling that the watch was made by someone who knew what they were doing and cared about what they were doing as well.

It doesn’t take much exposure to sunlight to charge the lume plots and hands; going into the elevator into my apartment building after a short walk with the Bumblebee is a little startling because the glow is obvious even in indoor lighting. Speaking of legibility, there were when the first Black Bay chronographs were launched, some concerns about the snowflake hour hand making the elapsed minutes hard to read. Having worn several Black Bay chronographs over the years, I have never found it to be a problem in practice. The hour hand snowflake doesn’t really block enough of the dial to make a difference, even between 2:30 and 3:30 when it’s directly over the dial, and even then, only about a five minute segment of the elapsed minutes dial is blocked anyway.

Unless you have a real aversion to yellow, there’s no downside to the watch that I can think of at all; it’s incredibly convincing in the metal. You feel a real sense of excitement when you see it and put it on –which might have to do with the black and yellow color scheme. In nature, the color combination is a warning signal – hornets and yellowjackets, as well as some species of poison dart frogs, use the color combination as a way of saying, loud and clear, “Don’t touch.” This particular bumblebee doesn’t sting, but the combination of black and yellow immediately increases alertness, focuses attention, and sharpens awareness – an apt characteristic for the latest watch in Tudor’s Daring Collection.

The 1916 Company is proud to be an authorized retailer for Tudor watches. See the Black Bay Chronograph 39 Bumblebee right here, and contact us for pricing and availability.