Words: Jonathan Wells
Not all that glitters is gold, or so goes the saying. And, thankfully, it’s an adage Tudor seems to have taken on board — because the new addition to the Swiss watchmaker’s family is a multi-metal masterpiece.
The Black Bay S&G brings together over 60 years of Tudor dive watch history. And, through this subtle blend of traditional aesthetics and contemporary watchmaking, the Maison has created something neo-vintage — a watch in reverence to the past but anchored in the present.
The dial is inspired by Tudor’s dive watches of the 1950s, but also adopts the characteristically angular ‘snowflake’ hands that the brand introduced in 1969. The faded bezel in yellow gold with a black anodised aluminium insert adds another retro touch to the watch, and the hollowed champagne-coloured counters offer optimum contrast.
It really is a timeless blend of style and substance — and impressively still retains all those key characteristics that make a Black Bay a Black Bay. And all this contained in a slim 41-millimetre steel case, equipped with handsome yellow-gold pushers.
Inside the case, you’ll find the chronograph calibre MT5813 — complete with 70-hour power reserve, a silicon balance spring and Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute certification. It’s a seriously high-performance movement, and pleasing to see that Tudor haven’t just splashed this striking colour scheme across so-so mechanics.
But, like each of Tudor’s timepieces, nothing is left to chance. And it is the calibre that gives the S&G its extraordinary robustness and reliability, guaranteed by an array of extreme tests.
And so we come to the strap. This is where that gold really grabs you, encircling the wrist with its multi-coloured design. And it’s a colour scheme inspired by the folding riveted bracelets of Tudor watches produced in the 1950s and 1960s.
But, if fabric is more your thing, Tudor also have you covered. The brand were one of the first to offer fabric straps, contracting a 150-year-old family firm from St-Etienne to weave them on 19th-century jacquard looms. The new S&G offers a similar strap in black — as well as a bund type option in brown aged leather to eschew the spirit of 1970s racing.
Want more watches? Take the plunge and discover our favourite diving timepieces…
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