Tudor Predictions 2024: Black Bay Color Variations

Last year Tudor decided that the Black Bay, the watch that brought them back from the grave in 2012, should get a face lift. In classic Rolex-esque badassness, they only made edits to one color way: the burgundy bezel variation. This refresh left the remaining variations – all-black & blue-and-black – to sit out like forgotten kids on the curb waiting for their dad…we’re betting that’s about to change. Good news kids, I think papa’s headlights are coming down the street and he’s ready to change his ways for good!

Tudor's Saving Grace: The Black Bay

Tudor usually, like other watch brands, changes everything in a model lineup all at once. They don’t tend to edit just one reference in a collection. That said, the burgundy Black Bay is such a unique reference in such a unique collection. It was released in 2012 to literally Beatlemania-like desire from watch collectors. To add to the mega-hype of this watch, it was originally only offered in a limited number of stores in Switzerland and the EU. This drove everyone mad with want, bringing Tudor back to the main stage of the luxury watch world literally overnight. Tudor has now made a huge comeback, as you know, and is chomping at the bit to become the #2 watch brand in the world.

Prior Black Bay Updates

Image Source: The Rake

Before spring of 2023, the Tudor Black Bay had seen a few minor updates during its decade of life, but frankly had not seen much change in aesthetics. The watch was originally offered with an ETA movement, making it somewhat thin, which really added to its appeal. But four years later in 2016, Tudor began shipping the Black Bay with their in-house caliber MT5602. This made the watch somewhat hefty, and to many, unwearable. 

Image Source: Hodinkee

The great news is that Tudor got the memo last year, making all the right edits to the new M7941A1A0RU-001 and other variations. They took the design of the Black Bay Ceramic, with its thinner case and updated dimensions, and gave us Tudor guys a sleek new version in steel. Inside that slimmer case is the METAS-certified update of the outgoing model’s caliber: the MT5602-U. In a somewhat polarizing decision, they also opted for a five-link Jubilee-style bracelet. The one thing that left this writer a little shocked was that Tudor left two of the three color variations just sitting untouched! 

Tudor Black Bay 2024 Prediction