TUDOR PELAGOS REF:25500TN

Some of you might have noticed that this is my 2nd post on the Pelagos.
The 1st is way back in November 2012.
That was when I am still considered a noob in the blogosphere and what was written are just initial impressions.
After helping a friend refinish his Pelagos, it is only right that he allowed me to test it for a week.
Gave me a better perspective of overall experience regarding the watch.

The Pelagos the 1st watch from the House of Rolex/Tudor that is made entirely in Titanium sans the clasp.
Good choice in my opinion.
Watch is light, easy to wear.
42mm size is almost the standard nowadays.
Powered by a tried and tested 2824 modified by Tudor, timekeeping is accurate and service and parts are not an issue.

As a dive watch, legibility is awesome.
There is even lume inside the matte ceramic bezel, something even big brother Rolex have not done yet.
Bezel clicks reassuringly and confidently.
Almost no play.

The clasp is where I truly believe Tudor knocks it out of the park.
It features a clever spring loaded clasp that will allow the clasp to fit well when the wrist expands in girth during hot days and contract during cold days. Absolutely fabulous and really practical piece of engineering.

The bracelet is reminiscent of the Rolex Oyster bracelet.
But with the bracelet being made from titanium, it's lightweight, comfortable and precise.

Being a dive watch rated to 500m, I guess a Helium Escape Valve is inevitable.
Placed on the case side at 9 o'clock.

Titanium is known as a pretty tough material to work with.
That is why I admire every curve, every bevel.
Done with precision.
I would not expect less.

The crown is big enough for a firm grip.
The crownguards are also nicely done.

After wearing it for a week, I feel that Tudor really created a value for money proper dive watch.
I cannot find fault with it even if I wanted to.
Many WIS friends consider this the Rolex SeaDweller that never was.
Good news if you ask me.
If this watch is slapped with a Rolex Logo, it would be priced at a higher level.
Today, when friends ask me what watch should they buy with a mid range budget, my answer is look at the Tudor Pelagos.
I can only wish I started with one...

Now the Pelagos have been updated with Tudor's own Manafacture movement.
So those people that used to complain about Tudor using generic off the shelf movements?
Time to put the money where your mouth is?

Either way, in house movement or not, the Tudor Pelagos is a watch I would recommend for 1st time watch buyers looking for a practical, robust and reliable watch for everyday use.

With the rate Tudor is going, I won't be known as Rolex's little brother for long.

TUDOR PELAGOS REFINISHING

Again, apologies for not updating as much as I'd like to.

Life just catches up.

Less time and resources... cough cough *money* cough cough for watches...

But, a friend did purchase a pre-owned Tudor Pelagos but it was well worn...

I offered to refinish it for him and he gladly trusted me to it.

Nice of him to let me "test" my skills.

1st of all, these are all that's needed for a refinishing job.
Bracelet removal tool, a screw driver and a scouring pad.
I choose 3M branded ones.
You also need some masking tape to cover up places that you don't want to scour...

I started off with the caseback...
So I removed the bracelet to make the job easier.
Since the caseback has it's own grooves, you have to scour it according to the grooves...
Some scratches are kinda deep.
I could get them off by scouring more but i guess it's good enough.

After that, I moved on to the bracelets.
Again, just use the scour pad and using slight pressure, move it from one end to the other.
Rinse and repeat.
Do not scour it using back and forth motion.
It won't look good.

Before and after pictures.

How do you think I did?
My friend was pretty happy.
Not bad I reckon...

I will proceed with the review of this watch soon.

TUDOR BLACK BAY ON ENDLINKS AND NATO

As per reader Jon's request, here is a closer look of the Tudor Heritage Black Bay and the custom endlinks.

Ok, this is all that is needed.
The Tudor Black Bay watch head.
Custom endlinks.
A nice leather nato from Wotancraft.
A spring bar tool.

Spring bars still attached.

1st thing to do is to remove the spring bar using the spring bar tool.

Just slide in the custom endlinks.
The "wings" at the bottom side of the endlinks is to make sure they fit snugly.

The "wings" that I mentioned earlier.

Since I will be mounting a leather nato, the spring bars can be attached back.

Do it for both sides and it should look like so.

Slowly slide in the nato.

Voila! Easy peasy.

Obligatory wrist shots.
Looks good.

TUDOR HERITAGE BLACK BAY REF:79220R

Am I too late for the party?

A watch announced and launched back in Baselworld 2012?

Better late than never I say...

The Tudor Heritage Black Bay Ref:79220R
This year, Tudor did a cosmetic update to the watch in a "Midnight Blue" colourway...
The watch came originally on bracelet but I think this watch looks better on strap, so on goes the OEM distressed leather strap and also 3rd party endlinks just to cover up the gaps left by the somewhat thin strap.

Mine comes with a warmer Burgundy bezel.
Burgundy, the colour of Tudor as much as green is the colour of Rolex.
Snowflake hands, matte black dial, rose gold surround markers and hands, gilt printing on dial.
Overall package? A very nostalgic and warm feel.

Nicely done crown with the flower logo.
Screwing and unscrewing felt precise... winding is smooth.
Movement is the tried and tested ETA 2824... gets the job done with minimal hassle and cost.
Tudor is one of those brands that did not rename ETA calibers to some fancy names to confuse non-wis customers.
I find this laudable.

I just love it when casebacks are done like this.
Flat and close to the middle case instead of bulging.
Wears more comfortably this way.

Bevelled lugs... this is like the norm now.
I don't think there's any reputable brand that's not doing bevelled lugs at the moment.
3rd party endlinks fits like a glove.

The watch feels excellent on the distressed leather strap.
Buckle is also well made.
Funny why they designed it in such a way the the "tail" end of the strap is facing down at the 6 o'clock side.
Not complaining... quite unique... does not hamper comfort.

After awhile, decided to take away the endlinks and wear it on just the strap.
The gap is hardly noticeable.
Makes the watch looks smaller as a whole.

I then tried it on a thicker strap.
Looks good as well.
Proves that this watch is really flexible.

Early ownership of this watch does not yield much satisfaction.
But after giving it some time, it has started to warm up.
Beautifully made case and comfortable to wear.
For those that are not looking at Tudor nowadays is missing something really good here.
This is a watch manufactured on the same standards as a Rolex (except using a different grade of steel) and housing an ETA movement.
The whole package comes at an accessible price point even... except the Rolex brand of prestige... or stigma... depending on your point of view.
What more can you ask for?

TUDOR HERITAGE CHRONO BLUE REF: 70330B

First of all, this watch is not mine.

It belongs to a good friend.

How did it end up with me?

It was available at my local AD and since my friend wanted it, I just facilitated the purchase while my friend is at a faraway land doing his marine research to end world hunger :-)

With his permission, I was allowed to change around the straps and take some pictures.

Original stickers are kept intact.

The strap changes were done meticulously (with sweat trickling down my face) to make sure no microscratches were left behind.

It's not mine after all...

The Tudor Heritage Chrono Blue ref: 70330B

Sharp eyes would immediately noticed something.

Yes... it's the custom endlinks.

I bought a pair of these endlinks for my impending purchase of the Tudor Heritage Black Bay.

I am annoyed by the gaps on the lugs when mounted on leather strap. (I will leave this for another day)

Surprise surprise, it fits like a glove on the Heritage Chrono as well.

The watch is really stunning in person.

The colours all work together with some style.

I like the date placement at 6 and the bi-subdial layout.

It makes the watch really symmetrical.

I would have loved the a bigger date window but no big deal actually.
Comparing this and the Heritage Chrono Black/Grey, I would have to say this one is nicer.
The applied hour indices is more refined.
The chunkier hands look better too. My humble opinion of course.

Powered by a Dubuis Depraz piggybacked ETA 2892, Tudor still kept the crown and pushers aligned.

The case is wonderfully made.

I know it's difficult to talk about Tudors without mentioning Rolex, but really, the case is made with the same standards as the more expensive bigger brother which makes for a really impressive fit and finish.

Crown is knurled for easy handling.

Winding is smooth.

The Bi-directional 12 hour indicator turning bezel is also knurled in similar fashion like the crown.

The bezel is useful for keeping track of a different timezone.

Case size is at 42mm with a 13mm thickness.

But it wears really well due to the flat caseback.

I like it when watches have flat casebacks.

It's more comfortable to wear and it hugs the wrist more.

Now on to the bracelet.
This is the locking side.

This is the buckle side.

Noticed the white ball bearings?
Apparently those are ceramic. Cool.
They are also spring loaded.

This is where the buckle side meets the locking side.
Fits perfectly with no gaps.
Impressive.

Once double locked, you can see a Tudor shield there.
Good design.

The bracelet is all solid, held together by screw pins.

All brushed.

Feels solid, sturdy and well made.

I can't praise these new Tudor bracelets enough.

They really are made with the same standards as.... yeah yeah yeah... I know... like Rolex... but really... This will be appreciated when it's used day in day out.

The fabric strap that came with the watch is also very well made and comfortable.

I especially liked the buckle and keepers.

A customary wristshot of the watch on the fabric strap and custom endlinks.

I would love to wear this on bracelet but it wouldn't be right to size the bracelet as the watch is not mine.

After taking some time to inspect and scrutinize the watch, I must say that I am thoroughly impressed by what Tudor is doing.

Their watches are exceptionally well made and at their current asking price, I would have to say that they really offer alot... and I do mean ALOT of watch for the money.

Love or hate the fact that Tudor is and always will be Rolex's little brother... There is no denying the quality that Tudor puts on the table.

A big thank you to my friend for allowing me to mess around with his new watch... :-)