Tudor, a company that specializes in replica watches, released the Black Bay P01 in 2019, based on a prototype from the late 1960s, revealing a previously unknown aspect of Tudor's history. Martina Richter of Kronos Germany's editorial team will be reviewing the watch and conducting an accuracy test.
Text by Martina Richter
(Article published on October 9, 2020)
The History of the Tudor Black Bay P01
Tudor has been supplying diver's watches to the US Navy since the late 1950s. Tracing its history back to the 1954 Oyster Prince Submariner, Reference 7922, which was water resistant to 100m. Through continued refinements, the silhouette and technical features were solidified in 64 when it evolved into the Reference 7928.
"Commando" was the code name for a special bezel system
Once the Oyster Prince Submariner Ref. 7928 was firmly established in the service of the US Navy, Tudor began developing a more sophisticated next-generation model. During this development phase, a prototype with a novel function was created, for which a patent was filed in 1968. While this ambitious project, codenamed "Commando," never came to fruition, the blueprints remained carefully preserved in the company's archives. This design featured a hinged mechanism in the case that reset the bezel when unlocked and fixed it when locked, simplifying maintenance.
The Black Bay P01 (P01 stands for Prototype No. 1), released in 2019, incorporated this hinge, dubbed "end links," but without its full functionality, primarily serving only as a locking mechanism. Located between the lugs at 12 o'clock, these hinges can be used to secure the bidirectional rotating bezel. While the rotating bezel was not designed for this purpose, it could theoretically be used as a diver's bezel. The 12-hour scale, with 30-minute increments, has 60 divisions. Each click marks a minute. If you want to check the elapsed time, you must consider the five-minute intervals.
Here's an example of how the Black Bay P01 bezel can be used for purposes other than diving. If you want to measure a short period of time, such as jogging in the park, rotate the bezel and align the triangular marker with the tip of the minute hand. This allows you to read the elapsed time in 5-minute increments. For longer periods of time, such as cycling or hiking in the mountains, align the triangular marker so that it faces the tip of the hour hand. Similarly, you can align the triangular marker with the hour hand to display a second time zone.
To perform these operations, press down between the lugs at 12 o'clock to lift the hinge mechanism, which releases the bezel and allows it to rotate in both directions. The pressing point is indicated by a small groove on the hinge. When closed, it engages with the bezel, acting as a stop to prevent accidental rotation of the bezel.
A modern movement hidden within a retro look
The stainless steel case is fully satin-brushed to prevent reflections. Its sporty, angular design features sharp edges near the crown protector, which are noticeable when manually winding the watch. To wind the watch, first unscrew the knurled crown from its pressed-in position. To adjust the date, pull the crown out to the middle position and turn it. The in-house caliber MT5612 inside the watch allows the date to be adjusted at midnight, a time that is prohibited for most wristwatches.
The caliber MT5612 was Tudor's first in-house movement, introduced in 2015. It features a large balance wheel designed for robustness, durability, and reliability.
The balance is fitted with a silicon hairspring, which is less susceptible to changes in temperature and air pressure, gravity, and magnetic fields than a metal hairspring. Rate adjustment is performed using four inertia adjustment screws, resulting in a precision worthy of a chronometer. This precision was confirmed after several weeks of wear testing. As the mainspring unwound, the timekeeping showed a slight "negative" tendency, but when fully wound, it kept time with almost no deviation.
The caliber MT5612 is decorated in typical Tudor style: the openworked rotor and its inner bridges are satin-brushed, while the baseplate and other bridges are polished, sandblasted, and laser-etched.
A combination of historical aesthetics and modern watchmaking
The caliber MT5612 displays the hours, minutes, and seconds in the center and features a domed dial. Like other Black Bay models, the P01 features the distinctive "snowflake" hands with their distinctive angles, which were first introduced in the catalog in 1969. The indices and hands are coated with luminous material, making them highly legible.
The strap is a hybrid of rubber and leather, with white stitching adding a vintage feel.
A collector's item perfect for everyday use
To make a final judgment on the Black Bay P01, which was created with a deep historical context, I would say that it would not be considered a diver's watch today, even though the original prototype was designed for divers. The bezel and modern movement suggest that it is a watch suited to sports and outdoor activities. It would also be an attractive daily watch for vintage watch enthusiasts.
