Tudor Back in the USA!!!

Seems Tudor will be back in the USA in 2013. Great news for US based Tudor lovers.

I was talking to a manager of a large UK Rolex AD and they too are in discussion to bring Tudor back here to the UK too soon!

Hodinkee broke the news last night. Check their cool video out here (MN content!!):

Hodinkee Video 'Welcome Back Tudor'

With the FIA deal and now this, 2013 will be geat year for Tudorcollectors ;-) Now what about Basel....... :-)

Ross

Tudor Signs FIA WEC Deal......

Pierre Fillon, President of Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO), left, and Philippe Peverelli, Managing Director of Montres Tudor SA.

Tudor, the prestigious Swiss sporting watch brand, has become the Timing Partner of the Fédération International Automobile’s (FIA) World Endurance Championship (WEC). The recently signed agreement is a natural extension of the fabulous history that has linked TUDOR to motor sports for almost half a century. Perfectly coherent with the Tudor universe, especially with its Grantour collection, this partnership offers the Swiss watch brand a high-profile role in the WEC, one of the FIA’s most demanding championships that has greatly contributed to motor sport legend.

The FIA’s World Endurance Championship (WEC) chose TUDOR as its trusted Timing Partner for the seasons to come. For TUDOR, this agreement is not only a natural extension of the fabulous history that has linked the brand to motor sports for over half a century. It also seals the association between two partners that have made passion and performance the keys to their success.

More information on the WEC can be read HERE

It is with this same spirit of performance that, for decades, Tudor has been creating chronographs known for their remarkable technical superiority and extreme reliability, in a masculine, retro chic style that exudes seduction – watches such as the legendary TUDOR chronographs of the 1970s, much sought-after by collectors, of which the TUDOR Heritage Chrono is the legitimate heir.

Considering TUDOR’s long-standing role as a major player in the prestigious, sport-chic watchmaking domain, the brand’s commitment as Timing Partner of the WEC is perfectly coherent with the company strategy set forth in previous years. Furthermore, the passion for performance that unites the WEC and TUDOR is the same as the driving force that until recently connected the brand to Porsche Motorsport, and the same that has made it Timing Partner of legendary Italian motorcycle brand Ducati today.

GRANTOUR FLYBACK by Tudor

Inspired by the world of Gran Tourismo – a perfect balance between performance and style – and with its passion for the world of car racing, TUDOR launched the Grantour collection in 2009. The star of the collection, the Grantour Chrono Fly-Back, in steel or in steel and pink gold, allows two time intervals to be measured simultaneously – the perfect instrument for those with a passion for the World Endurance Championship who know that this competition is often the scene of races as tense as they are captivating. This is an exciting moment for the new Timing Partner.

Tudor Prototype Dials........

Over the past few years we have seen more and more interesting Tudors surfacing in private collections and on the market. Tudor are known for being the more experimental wing of Rolex, as witnessed particularly in the chronograph watches over the years. From the early Monte Carlos through to the last series of 792X0 watches, there are some very colourful and striking dial designs. Recently, some dials that never made it to production have surfaced in collections in Italy. These 'prototype' dials showcase some of Rolex's more daring chrono dial designs.

Rolex blogger Alan Koh (from vintagehour.com) recently interviewed Stefano Mazzariol as part of his 'On Air' series. Stefano is one of the world's leading authority on Rolex watches and has amassed a huge amount of research on his blog (Stefano's Blog).

Pictured here are some of Stefano's prototype dials from the 791X0 Big Block and 792X0 watches. I love some of the colours on these dials and the way the light catches some of them! Of note, is the fact that they don't have the applied hour markers installed.

Photos credit vintagehour.com & Stefano Mazzariol

I will be sharing more rare prototype dials over the coming months, so stay tuned!!

Amazing Black Bay Photos

Happy 2013 everybody! Tudorcollector has been quiet lately, but we have some exciting new articles and content coming in the following weeks. I just had to share these incredible photos with you; taken by Jocke as his review of the Tudor Heritage Black Bay! Tudor have really delved back into their archives for the past three years to produce exciting new watches under their Heritage department. Their latest offering is fantastic and is captured like never before in these photos by Jocke.

Click here for the article

The big question on my mind is....What will Tudor unveil at Basel 2013!!

Yellow Tudor, Yellow Porsche......

I am working on a piece for the website on the multitude of dial colours that Tudor 792X0 Chronos  were available in. One of my favourites is the bright yellow.

Tudor 79280P - T.O.W.S.

If you owned one of these, there is only one choice of car colour....

Parma Watch Fair.......

Tropical 7928 - PS

Tropical 7928 - PS

My friend Philipp Stahl was at the Fiera di Parma this weekend and has written a great report over at his blog, Rolex Passion Report. Read it here.

We are now on Twitter........

Please follow us!! 'Tudorcollector'

1950's Watches of Switzerland Catalogue.....

I recently acquired a small collection of unused Rolex books and catalogues from the 1960's-70's. One of the catalogues is a 1950's Watches of Switzerland booklet, showcasing the full range of watches on offer at their outlets; one of which was Tudor.

Great Black Bay Article by Eric Ku.......

Eric Ku, renowned vintage Rolex and Tudor expert, now writes for Longitude - the Christie's Watch Blog.

Read Eric's fantastic and informative review of the Tudor Heritage Black Bay here.

MN Spirotechnique..........

It is well known that the MN issued the Tudor Submariners as part of their kit. As a tool to work alongside the watches, the MN also issued Spirotechnique depth gauges. These gauges were worn on the wrist, often next to the watch to ensure you kept an eye on your remaining air and the depth at which you were working. Below are some pictures of one of the 'Spiros' that was issued to the Marine Nationale in the 1970s. They are a great accompaniment to a Tudorcollector's MN Sub!

Pelagos 25500TN Full Set Pics......

Last night I saw the first 'preowned' Pelagos for sale on a UK forum. The buyer has given me permission to post pics of the watch (these are not my scans and not my watch), as I was keen to show the 'full-set' pictures here on the blog.

The watch retails at approximately £2850, which is great value in my opinion!

The pics:

Outer Box

Inner Box

Booklets

Love the new clasp, unique divers' application!

Summer NATO Shot Pt 6........

Heritage Chrono on Tudor NATO. Perfect for summer fun without worrying about the Polywatch!!

The new site is live.........

TudorCollector on Tour……..

I recently met up with a fellow Rolex and Tudor enthusiast to have a coffee and compare some ‘new additions’ we both had.  There were some nice watches on the table and quite a few military issue watches, mainly Tudor Subs and fantastic 5517!!

There are still so many new things for us to learn about Tudor watches; details of dials, issue info etc etc. One of the biggest excitements was to get two South African Navy issued Tudor Subs together for the first time. I will be publishing my research on these when we launch Version2 of tudorcollector.com in the next couple of weeks, so be sure to check it out.

So, on to the pics…

French Navy MNs together – a MN77 and a MN81.

It was nice to have both snowflake and merc handed versions side by side. Also pictured with an MN issue Spirotechnique depth gauge.

Chono call! Very nice 7149 on a cool matching NATO.

Heritage happens. Both variants of dial.

A cousin makes an appearance – 5517

Another ‘issued’ cousin – Comex 1665

Together – dynamic duo!!

First time that I’ve ever seen this online – two South African Navy Tudor Subs together!! I’ve spent some considerable time researching these watches and it was fascinating to compare the small details that make these watches so special and rare!

Tudor MilSubs – SA, SA, MN77 & MN81

And finally the Tudor group shot – one big happy family!

Struck By Snowflakes.......

A regular feature of these blogs are the amazing Tudor watches from the collection of my good pal Ian B. Ian has some fantastic Tudors, including MN Subs, SA issue Sub and Monte Carlo chronos (not to mention a Comex, MilSub and DRSD in his Rolex line-up!). He sent me this picture of his current Snowflake collection and I just had to share it with you. He 'has it bad'.....and I know there are a couple of imminent new arrivals!!

Photo by Ian B

To Polish or Not to Polish Pt 2........

A while back I discussed the issue of polishing vintage Rolex and Tudor watches and some of the mixed opinions that exist (read it here)! We saw in the post the work of an amazing French case finisher who did outstanding work on Jeff Dr Strong's Tudor 7924 Big Crown Sub. I now have some amazing pictures of the other polisher mentioned in the previous post, a guy based in the UK.

Paul R, an avid Tudor fan, sent his Tudor 7016 for a case refinish. the results, as I'm sure you'll agree are stunning.

Before:

After:

Photos by Paul R

Ranger.......

I'm still working on an article on the elusive Ranger for tudorcollector.com.

Here's how a Ranger Date should look!!!

Photo by Ross P

Tudor Chrono Layout Guide........

I've always loved the Tudor chronograph watches, they're great looking watches and would justify a collection theme in themselves; the 792X0 series alone have got seemingly unlimited dial variations with and without the Tiger moniker.

I came across this scan and although I've seen so so many of these catalogues I still love reading these booklet overviews of the functions of such classic Rolex Tudor watches.

I'll be adding a lot more things like this to Tudorcollector.com over the weeks as I work on the new site. Stay tuned....

UDT Issue Tudor Snowflake.....

I was recently contacted by the owner of a very special Tudor Submariner that was issued to the United States Navy Underwater Demolition Team (UDT).  History of UDT

This watch was issued to a member of UDT-13 during the Vietnam War - Lieutenant Mike Slattery. I have seen a few Tudor Submariner Date watches that purport to be issued to US navy personnel, but this is by far the best in terms of provenance!

Click here for the full and very informative story of the watch, written by the current owner: