The new TUDOR Black Bay Fifty-Eight Bronze has a riveted bronze bracelet, a very welcome accessory. But it is actually the whole look, and a particular part of the bracelet, that is the big deal.
The new bronze bracelet has a new clasp they call the TUDOR T-fit rapid adjustment system. This allows length adjustment of five positions and up to 8mm, which has more precise adjustability compared to similar metal bracelets in the past from models such as the Pelagos. This looks to be a good change that we hope to see more of in the future.
In terms of the look, the new watch has a gradient brown dial that is lighter in the center and moves to darker out towards the edges. Which incidentally gives it the kind of “tropical dial” look so discussed among vintage collectors nowadays. There was a similar gradient in the previous Black Bay bronze but it was in slate grey. Additionally, the brown base color of the new watch is slightly darker than the previous browns used.
The bronze alloy used in the watch is everywhere except the caseback, which is 316L steel but PVD coated in, of course, bronze color. The alloy mixture is still a secret, and is meant to patina in a smooth and controllable way as opposed to the crazed greens of some watches. As such, TUDOR suggests that if you want to bring the watch back to original (for a bit, it will always patina again of course once it touches air and humidity) you bring it to their official service centers to be polished properly. We see the point, but we do know that many bronze watch enthusiasts like the interaction when they clean their own watch.
The new TUDOR Black Bay Fifty-Eight Bronze Boutique Edition is Reference number 79012M, and will be available in fifty boutiques around the world. It comes at the heels of other successful TUDOR bronze watches such as the original brown versions in 2016, the Bucherer Blue edition in 2017 available only in selected Bucherer boutiques and the Gradient Slate Grey version released in 2019. This most recent version arguably has the most spot-on vintage look (brown with the gradient) and the much-awaited bronze bracelet. The exclusivity of being the TUDOR boutique edition is of course a draw all its own, and makes it the bronze piece to be had if you can get it.
