Heritage Black Bay comparison

[spoilsofwar01]

The other day whilst in town I happened upon a Rolex retailer
(Goldsmiths, The Oracle Centre.)

In the window they had 3 Heritage Black Bay watches (catalogue no 79230B.)

So I though as I had my 5513 Submariner on (dated 1968) Id do a comparison.

so here are my observations :

Dislikes,
its substantially heavier and has an industrial feel to it. I don't really like the hands or the 4 lines.

Likes,
the suggested retail price was £2,510 although it was showing as £3,000 in the window display, the combination of the black dial and blue bezel looked just right and the SS bracelet was well constructed.

To close, I'm not a fan of Tudors, and the comparison made me realise that I would be pursuing another Rolex Submariner in the near future.

The shop assistant did ask to take a look at my Rolex and remarked how nice it was.

has anyone else arrived at a similar conclusion?

Rgds "H"

[Kippers]

Great watches, have had a few Tudors but all are gone now. Never had the BB, too tall for me and the dial and lug to lug size just over my wrist limits. The two tone looks cool on leather it's the same as the standard black except crown and bezel

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

[Old Expat Beast]

I have a Rolex 5513 that seldom gets worn because I prefer wearing my Black Bay.

[Stevec14]

I had a black bay black and a pelagos (blue). Both gone. Not because they are bad watches but they didn't suit me really. The blue pelagos I loved at first and grew tired of as couldn't wear to work etc. The black bay I didn't like because of the faux vintage stuff. In that respect I prefer the white of the black bay blue.

I think they are great watches and more accurate that my rolexes. At the price they are great, but they are built to that and are not rolexes. I would buy again though, and am actually considering the blue black bay as I don't have a diver and am wobbling over spending 7k on a hulk.

Btw - I bought my pelagos from there as am not far away (Newbury), and for a chain they were very good.

[spoilsofwar01]

Originally Posted by Stevec14

I had a black bay black and a pelagos (blue). Both gone. Not because they are bad watches but they didn't suit me really. The blue pelagos I loved at first and grew tired of as couldn't wear to work etc. The black bay I didn't like because of the faux vintage stuff. In that respect I prefer the white of the black bay blue.

I think they are great watches and more accurate that my rolexes. At the price they are great, but they are built to that and are not rolexes. I would buy again though, and am actually considering the blue black bay as I don't have a diver and am wobbling over spending 7k on a hulk.

Btw - I bought my pelagos from there as am not far away (Newbury), and for a chain they were very good.

Proper nice to meet you fella, not sure if your aware of the Brunel watch fair, there's also Jason who runs the Guilford watch auctions, so pleased I joined this forum as everyone else in my world just don't seem to get it, All the very best "H"

[drm20]

I have a couple sub c's and a bb. I do like the Tudor and feel it's top notch quality, however, I find I wear my subs more as they are more comfortable (the bb is just a tad too tall in my opinion).

[watchwatcher]

The Tudor is a great bang for the buck.

Check out the Pelagos sometime...it's so lightweight and comfortable, I'll think you'll really like it.

[Mr. Vegas]

I own two BB's along with a pelagos and for me, I'm glad for tudor. They are true tool watches, as I am way more cautious when I wear my rolexes vs. my tudors. Get best of both worlds IMO.

[slide13]

Tudor makes a nice watch, really good value for the money, but they just don't do it quite as well as Rolex for my taste.

Had to Black Bays and tried to use them to cure my of the desire for a Sub. It didn't work and both were sold in fairly quick order. I didn't like the wide bracelet, thick mid case, and thin bezel. Now I have my 114060 and couldn't be happier.


To me there is nothing more "tool watch" about a Black Bay compared to a Sub...its just cheaper so people aren't quite as worried about it. I just decided to not worry about my Sub either and I'm happier for it.

I can see where some people actually prefer the Black Bay though, it's a great watch in its own right and a great value. For me the Sub was the better buy even though it was 2x as expensive. But for others the BB or Pelagos may be perfect.

[Bluside]

My BBN is very happy in my rotations with my Rolex and Omega watches. They all bring something to the table for me.

[Maxy]

Originally Posted by Old Expat Beast

I have a Rolex 5513 that seldom gets worn because I prefer wearing my Black Bay.

+ 1.

I don't have 5513 but got many Rolex watches but Black Bay is one of the most comfortable watches for me!!

[HogwldFLTR]

No way I'd be using a 5513 as a tool watch as damage would be intolerable. For me if I wanted a watch that I can really use it would be the BB. That is one of my most used play watches. For a less active life I guess the 5513 is fine.

[stevedssd]

Originally Posted by Mr. Vegas

I own two BB's along with a pelagos and for me, I'm glad for tudor. They are true tool watches, as I am way more cautious when I wear my rolexes vs. my tudors. Get best of both worlds IMO.

This sums it up for me, incredible value tools watches, I have 5 and wear them more often than any of my Rolex's.............it's fine if they don't do it for you though