Tudor Black Bay Chronograph

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono at Grand Caliber

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono is the watch that brought Tudor into the integrated chronograph era. When Tudor launched the original Tudor Black Bay Chrono at Baselworld 2017 as reference 79350, the brand had spent forty-seven years building chronographs on outsourced movements. The 1970 Oysterdate Homeplate ran a Valjoux 7734. The 1971 Monte Carlo ran the Valjoux 234. The 1976 Big Block introduced automatic winding on a base movement Tudor sourced rather than built. The Heritage Chrono, Black Shield, Fast Rider, and Grantour chronographs that filled the modern catalogue through 2016 all ran ETA-2892 with modules or Valjoux 7753 architectures. The Tudor Black Bay Chrono changed the equation by carrying the calibre MT5813, an integrated column-wheel automatic chronograph with vertical clutch, COSC certification, and a 70-hour power reserve, at a retail price under half of what comparable specifications cost from competing Swiss manufactures. That movement is the story of this watch.

Grand Caliber sees the Tudor Black Bay Chrono cross the desk regularly across the catalogue. Original 2017 launch reference 79350. The 2019 Steel and Gold reference 79363 in champagne and black dial variants. The 2019 Black Bay Chrono Dark reference 79360DK, the All Blacks rugby limited edition capped at approximately 1,181 pieces. The 2021 generation-two reference 79360N in panda and reverse panda configurations. The 2024 Pink (nicknamed Miami Pink or Flamingo Pink in collector circles) and Blue Boutique Edition references that brought colour to a line that had spent its first six years in monochrome. The 2025 carbon fibre Carbon 25 reference 79377KN, a limited 2,025-piece Formula 1 collaboration. Current production turquoise and Flamingo Blue M79360N-0024 alongside the established panda configurations. What follows is the case for the Tudor Black Bay Chrono as the most consequential mid-market Swiss chronograph in modern production, told the way a dealer who has handled the line tells it.

The Breitling MT5813 and the Industrial Alliance That Built This Watch

The single most consequential fact about the Tudor Black Bay Chrono is the movement inside it. The Tudor calibre MT5813 is derived directly from the Breitling B01, the in-house chronograph movement Breitling introduced in 2009 as its flagship calibre. Production of the MT5813 happens at Breitling for Tudor, in exchange for Tudor producing its three-hand manufacture calibre MT5612 for Breitling, which appears in the Breitling Superocean line. The exchange is unprecedented in modern Swiss watchmaking. Two manufactures that historically operated in different price tiers and aesthetic registers chose to pool production capacity for the components each was strongest at building, producing chronograph and three-hand movements respectively at a scale neither would have justified developing alone.

The strategic context is the Swatch Group consolidation that closed off third-party movement supply across the broader industry in the early 2010s. ETA, Lemania, and Valjoux movements that had previously been available to any Swiss manufacture became increasingly restricted to Swatch Group brands and a small number of contracted partners. The Tudor and Breitling alliance was a direct response to that pressure. Both manufactures gained an integrated movement portfolio without the capital cost of developing chronograph or three-hand architectures independently.

The Tudor calibre MT5813 retains the architectural core of the Breitling B01. It uses a column wheel as the start-stop switch for the chronograph and a vertical clutch to transmit power from the base movement to the chronograph mechanism, the same architecture used in the Rolex calibre 4130 inside the Daytona. The calibre runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour with a 70-hour power reserve. It carries 41 jewels rather than the 47 of the B01, reflecting the simpler bi-compax sub-dial layout rather than the tri-compax of the Breitling parent. Tudor adds its own contributions to the base architecture, including a variable inertia balance with regulating screws, a non-magnetic silicon balance spring, and Tudor-specific finishing on the rotor and bridges. The completed movement is COSC-certified to chronometer standard with accuracy of negative four to positive six seconds per day, the same standard the rest of the modern Tudor catalogue meets.

Pricing context makes the alliance impact concrete. At Baselworld 2017 the Tudor Black Bay Chrono launched at a retail under half of what the cheapest Breitling watch carrying the parent B01 movement was charging at the time. The Tudor calibre MT5813 inside a Tudor case at Tudor pricing was, and remains, the most accessible integrated column-wheel automatic chronograph in modern Swiss production.

The 1970 Oysterdate Homeplate and the Tudor Chronograph Lineage

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono is not the brand first chronograph by any measure. Tudor launched its first chronograph series in 1970, six years after the Rolex Daytona reached production, with the Oysterdate Chronograph references 7031 and 7032.

The Homeplate References 7031 and 7032

The 1970 Tudor Oysterdate Chronograph was a 39mm hand-wound chronograph running the Valjoux 7734, housed in an Oyster waterproof case with a screw-down crown and screw-down chronograph pushers. The 7031 carried a Bakelite tachymeter bezel with a 500-unit scale; the 7032 carried a satin-finished steel tachymeter bezel with an engraved scale. A third reference, the 7033, with a bidirectional rotating 12-hour bezel, reached prototype stage but never entered commercial production. The dials carried pentagonal hour markers shaped like the home plate on a baseball field, which earned the watches the collector nickname Homeplate. The dial also carried two sub-dials with a 45-minute counter at three and a small running seconds at nine, plus a date aperture at six. The Tudor Black Bay Chrono dial layout sitting on shelves today is the direct architectural descendant of the 1970 Homeplate dial.

The Monte Carlo References 7149, 7159, and 7169

In 1971 Tudor replaced the Homeplate with the second-series Monte Carlo chronographs. The case carried over from the Homeplate. The movement was upgraded to the Valjoux 234. The dial layout retained the 45-minute counter at three and running seconds at nine, with the elongated orange triangular stopwatch seconds hand that has been associated with Tudor chronographs ever since. Reference 7149 carried a Bakelite tachymeter bezel, 7159 a satin-brushed steel tachymeter bezel, and 7169 a rotating 12-hour bezel that finally brought the prototyped 7033 architecture into production. A new grey-and-blue dial joined the original grey-and-orange-and-black colourway, and the dials gained the colour-block aesthetic resembling the roulette tables of the Monte Carlo casinos that gave the series its nickname.

The Big Block References

In 1976 Tudor introduced the Prince Oysterdate chronographs, the brand first automatic chronographs. The case was thickened to accommodate the rotor and self-winding mechanism, which earned the family the Big Block nickname. The Big Block introduced a third chronograph sub-register, an hour counter, expanding the chronograph measurement range beyond the 45-minute limit of the Homeplate and Monte Carlo. The Big Block series stayed in production for close to twenty years and included both colour-block exotic dials inherited from the Monte Carlo era and more reserved Daytona-style baton-marker dials.

These three vintage families are the chronograph lineage the modern Tudor Black Bay Chrono draws from. The 45-minute counter at three, the screw-down pushers, the tachymeter bezel architecture, and the Snowflake handset that originated on the 1969 Tudor Submariner reference 7016 are all inheritances visible in the modern Tudor Black Bay Chrono dial.

The Generation One Tudor Black Bay Chrono Reference 79350

The 2017 launch Tudor Black Bay Chrono carried the reference 79350. A 41mm stainless steel case, approximately 14.5mm thick, 50mm lug-to-lug, with a 22mm lug width and 200 metres of water resistance. The case combined satin-brushed surfaces on the lugs and top with polished chamfers along the lug sides and polished casebands, the visual language Tudor had established across the broader Black Bay collection. The crown was screw-down with the Tudor rose in relief, and the chronograph pushers were both screw-down to maintain water resistance when the chronograph was not in use. The fluted pusher design referenced the vintage Tudor Mk 0 chronograph pushers.

The bezel on the original 79350 was an all-steel fixed bezel with an engraved tachymeter scale, the same monobloc steel bezel that the Heritage Chrono Monte Carlo re-edition had introduced. The dial was matte black with applied round and rectangular hour markers, the Snowflake hour hand, a small seconds sub-dial at nine, a 45-minute counter at three, and a date window at six. The watch shipped on three options: a riveted-style steel bracelet, a brown leather strap, or a denim fabric strap with the option of swapping between them.

The 2017 launch references were the M79350-0001 on steel bracelet and M79350-0002 on leather strap. Pre-owned 79350 examples remain available across the secondary market and represent the most affordable entry point into the Tudor Black Bay Chrono catalogue.

The Generation Two Reference 79360N and the Panda Dial Revival

In 2021 Tudor refreshed the Tudor Black Bay Chrono as reference 79360N, releasing the update for the 50th anniversary of the original 1970 Tudor Oysterdate chronograph. The case dimensions carried over almost identically, with the thickness shaved fractionally to approximately 14.4mm and the lug-to-lug measurement at 49.9mm. The fixed bezel changed materially. The original 79350 all-steel monobloc bezel was replaced with a steel bezel carrying a black anodised aluminium insert with a tachymeter scale, the same two-piece bezel construction the 2019 Steel and Gold and 2019 Black Bay Chrono Dark had introduced. The rehaut was shallowed, bringing the dial closer to the crystal and tightening the overall visual depth of the watch.

The dial received the most consequential changes. Two new colourways replaced the original matte black single configuration.

Reference 79360N-0001 Reverse Panda

The reverse panda Tudor Black Bay Chrono carries a matte black dial with white opaline sub-dials at three and nine, the Snowflake handset in polished metal with luminescent fill, applied round hour markers, and a date window at six with a white disc and black numerals. The reverse panda configuration is the more understated of the two 2021 launch dials and reads as the more direct visual successor to the original 79350.

Reference 79360N-0002 Panda

The panda Tudor Black Bay Chrono carries an opaline white dial with black sub-dials at three and nine, with the same Snowflake handset, hour markers, and date window architecture inverted in colour. The panda configuration reads more directly as a Daytona-adjacent reference, and the comparison to the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona panda dial has been universal across editorial coverage of the 2021 generation.

The generation-two refresh kept the calibre MT5813 unchanged, kept the 70-hour power reserve unchanged, and kept the 200-metre water resistance unchanged. What changed was the visual character of the watch, from a single understated tool chronograph into a two-variant collection deliberately positioned against the Daytona at less than half the Rolex retail.

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono Steel and Gold Reference 79363

In 2019 Tudor introduced the Steel and Gold variant of the Tudor Black Bay Chrono as reference 79363. The case retained the 41mm steel architecture of the standard model with 18-karat yellow gold applied to the bezel, the screw-down crown, and the screw-down chronograph pushers. The bracelet was offered in two-tone steel and yellow gold, leather, and the denim fabric strap option that the Tudor Black Bay Chrono catalogue carried across its broader configurations.

The 2019 Steel and Gold release also brought the two-piece bezel construction that would later migrate to the Black Bay Chrono Dark and the 2021 generation-two refresh, replacing the original 79350 all-steel monobloc bezel with a steel bezel carrying an anodised aluminium tachymeter insert. The 79363 launched with a champagne sun-dial configuration and a black sun-dial configuration, both with contrasting sub-dial counters that anticipated the panda aesthetic the standard steel reference would adopt two years later. The 79363 remains in current Tudor production with multiple bracelet and strap configurations available across the catalogue.

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono Dark Reference 79360DK

In 2019 Tudor introduced a limited edition Tudor Black Bay Chrono Dark as reference 79360DK, released to mark the Rugby World Cup and the brand 2017 sponsorship agreement with the New Zealand All Blacks. The case, bracelet, crown, pushers, and case back were all rendered in black PVD coating using physical vapour deposition, a thin-film bonding technology originally developed by NASA for space applications. The dial retained the matte black background of the standard 79350 with applied luminescent hour markers and Snowflake hands.

The Black Bay Chrono Dark was the first black PVD watch officially released from the Geneva Tudor manufacture, and it was the first numbered limited edition Tudor had produced in the modern era. Production was capped at approximately 1,181 examples at launch, matching the total number of players who had been selected for the New Zealand All Blacks from the team founding in 1884 through the 2019 Rugby World Cup. Each case back was engraved with the individual production number. Tudor initially indicated the series would grow incrementally as new players joined the All Blacks roster. In practice the production run closed at the original launch figure and the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Dark is now a discontinued model with no current production. The Black Bay Chrono Dark also brought the two-piece bezel, shallowed rehaut, and slimmed case profile that the 2021 generation-two refresh would adopt across the broader Tudor Black Bay Chrono catalogue.

Secondary market pricing for the Tudor Black Bay Chrono Dark reflects the closed limited edition status. Examples regularly trade above original retail, with full box and papers examples commanding meaningful premiums depending on condition and serial number. Lower production numbers and pristine condition examples have crossed deeper into limited-edition pricing territory in recent transactions.

In subsequent years a separate Black Bay Chrono Dark configuration with red sub-dial accents and a red Tudor shield logo was issued to riders of the Tudor Pro Cycling Team, the team founded by retired Swiss cyclist Fabian Cancellara. The Pro Cycling Team Black Bay Chrono Dark is a team-only watch and does not appear in standard Tudor catalogue distribution.

The Watches and Wonders 2024 Expansion and the Boutique Editions

In 2024 Tudor expanded the Tudor Black Bay Chrono catalogue with two colour-led releases that broke from the monochrome aesthetic the line had held for its first six years.

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pink

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pink, reference M79360N-0019, launched at Watches and Wonders 2024 with a pink dial across the face and black sub-dials at three and nine in a pink panda configuration. Tudor framed the release as a departure for the Born to Dare campaign and tied the announcement to its expanding partnership portfolio, including the brand role as Official Timekeeper of Inter Miami FC. The Pink has become known in collector circles as the Miami Pink or Flamingo Pink for that Inter Miami connection. The Pink launched at standard Tudor Black Bay Chrono colour-variant retail in the United States in 2024 and has since moved upward in current Tudor pricing alongside other T-fit-clasped colour variants. Secondary market premiums have been substantial, with full box and papers examples regularly trading well above retail reflecting strong demand and supply restraint at the authorised dealer level.

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono Blue Boutique Edition

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono Blue Boutique Edition, reference M79360B-0002, launched in August 2024 as a boutique-exclusive release available only through Tudor brand boutiques rather than the authorised dealer network. The dial carried the signature Tudor Blue with silver sub-dials in a reverse panda configuration, paired with a blue anodised aluminium bezel insert and red 200m depth-rating text on the dial. The Blue Boutique Edition is the first Tudor Black Bay Chrono with a five-link steel bracelet rather than the standard three-link riveted bracelet, paired with a T-fit clasp for tool-free micro-adjustment. The Blue draws on the broader Tudor blue dial heritage spanning the Mini-Sub, the Ranger, and the Snowflake and Lollipop Submariners of the 1970s.

A turquoise dial reference, M79360N-0024, has also entered current Tudor production alongside the Pink and Blue. Tudor markets this dial colour as Flamingo Blue, and the watch ships on a five-link bracelet with the T-fit clasp matching the other colour-led variants. The three-colour Pink, Blue, and Flamingo Blue expansion completed a modern transformation of a watch family that ran in pure monochrome from 2017 through 2023, and secondary market pricing across the three variants has consistently traded well above their launch retail.

The Black Bay Chrono Carbon 25 Reference 79377KN

In May 2025 Tudor introduced the Black Bay Chrono Carbon 25 as reference 79377KN, a limited edition tied to the brand partnership with the Visa Cash App Racing Bulls Formula One team. The Carbon 25 represents the most significant departure from the Tudor Black Bay Chrono platform since the original 2017 launch. The case was completely redesigned in carbon fibre, including the end-links integrated directly into the bracelet attachment, with a 42mm diameter that runs one millimetre wider than the standard 41mm Tudor Black Bay Chrono case. The thickness sits at 14.3mm with the fixed bezel rendered in one-piece carbon fibre with an engraved tachymetric scale. The screw-down crown and screw-down pushers are PVD-finished titanium rather than steel, contributing further weight reduction across the watch.

The Carbon 25 dial is rendered in racing white with carbon fibre circular sub-counters, a blue seconds track inspired by the 2025 Visa Cash App Racing Bulls livery, and black-outlined Snowflake hands with white Super-LumiNova fill. A depth rating in red at six o clock and the broader colour palette reference the F1 team racing colours directly. The case back is PVD-finished titanium engraved with both the individual production number and a motif of the 2025 Racing Bulls livery. The hybrid leather-rubber strap carries a tyre tread pattern with blue contrast stitching, completing the racing-themed execution.

Inside the Carbon 25 runs the same calibre MT5813 that powers every other Tudor Black Bay Chrono in current production, with the COSC certification, 70-hour power reserve, column-wheel and vertical-clutch architecture, and 41-jewel construction unchanged. The Carbon 25 launched as the most expensive non-gold Tudor watch in current production at launch. Production was capped at 2,025 individually numbered pieces matching the 2025 Formula 1 season designation. The Carbon 25 is the first Tudor watch with a redesigned Black Bay Chrono case architecture and the first to integrate carbon fibre across both case and end-links as a single material system. Secondary market demand has been substantial, with pre-owned examples typically trading at notable premiums to retail since the watch sold through its allocation at authorised dealer level.

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono Versus the Rolex Daytona

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono in panda or reverse panda configuration is the watch most-cross-shopped against the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona in the modern chronograph market, and the comparison rewards a clear-eyed reading.

The Rolex Daytona reference 126500LN in steel with the ceramic Cerachrom bezel runs the in-house calibre 4130, holds 72 hours of power reserve, carries a tri-compax dial with thirty-minute and twelve-hour sub-counters, and retails in luxury sport chronograph territory at Rolex authorised dealers with secondary-market pricing frequently at multiples of retail for current production examples. The Tudor Black Bay Chrono in panda configuration runs the MT5813 derived from the Breitling B01, holds 70 hours of power reserve, carries a bi-compax dial with the 45-minute counter at three and small seconds at nine, and retails at roughly one-third of the Daytona authorised dealer price with secondary-market pricing typically near retail rather than substantially above it.

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono delivers roughly 75 percent of the Daytona practical functionality at approximately 37 percent of the Rolex retail price. Both watches carry COSC-certified column-wheel vertical-clutch chronograph movements. Both are 41mm steel sport chronographs. The Daytona carries the Rolex name and the secondary-market premium that name commands. The Tudor Black Bay Chrono carries an unconventional 45-minute counter, the screw-down pushers the Daytona also uses, and a tachymeter bezel architecture inherited from the same 1960s and 1970s Swiss sport chronograph tradition the Daytona came out of.

For a buyer who specifically wants the Daytona name and the Rolex secondary-market position, the comparison ends with the Rolex. For a buyer who wants the most accessible serious integrated chronograph in modern Swiss production, the Tudor Black Bay Chrono is the more interesting watch.

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono Pricing and Secondary Market

Current production Tudor Black Bay Chrono pricing in the United States spans a meaningful range depending on configuration as of 2026. The standard 79360N panda and reverse panda on three-link steel bracelets sit at the lower end of the line at current authorised dealer retail. The colour-led references including the Pink M79360N-0019, the Blue Boutique Edition M79360B-0002, and the Flamingo Blue M79360N-0024 retail at meaningful premiums reflecting their T-fit clasps and five-link bracelet configurations. The Steel and Gold 79363 in two-tone configuration sits at the upper end of the standard line with multiple strap and bracelet variants available. The 2025 Carbon 25 limited edition is the most expensive non-gold Tudor in current production.

Secondary market pricing tells a more interesting story. The standard 79360N panda and reverse panda references trade below current authorised dealer retail depending on year, condition, and accessories, offering meaningful value for the buyer who can find a clean example. The original 79350 generation-one references trade modestly lower than the 79360N band, reflecting the older bezel architecture and shorter time on the wrist. The colour-led variants run dramatically higher. The Pink M79360N-0019, the Flamingo Blue M79360N-0024, and the Blue Boutique Edition 79360B all command well above their original retail at the time of writing. The 79363 Steel and Gold trades at variable premiums depending on dial and bracelet configuration. The discontinued Black Bay Chrono Dark 79360DK trades at limited-edition premiums to original retail with serial number documentation. The 2025 Carbon 25 has held a solid premium over launch retail since its initial allocation cycle.

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono 79360N specifically has appreciated approximately 39 percent in the secondary market over the twelve months ending May 2026, substantially outperforming the broader Tudor watch index and reflecting the strength of the Daytona-comparison framing combined with the genuinely limited supply Tudor has maintained on the colour-led variants. The watch is liquid enough to exit cleanly when circumstances change and well-made enough to wear hard without watching the resale curve closely.

The Tudor Black Bay Chrono at the Grand Caliber Dallas Showroom

The Grand Caliber Dallas showroom sits in the corridor that has become the address for serious watch buying outside the authorised dealer network. The Tudor Black Bay Chrono examples on our floor are authenticated in-house, the prices are posted openly on every product page, and inventory rotates across the catalogue. Current production 79360N references in panda and reverse panda configurations. The Pink (Miami Pink), Blue Boutique Edition, and Flamingo Blue dial variants when available. The Steel and Gold 79363 in current production configurations. Original 2017 launch 79350 examples for buyers who want the generation-one all-steel bezel. Black Bay Chrono Dark 79360DK examples with full box, papers, and numbered case back documentation when available. The 2025 Carbon 25 reference 79377KN for buyers seeking the limited Formula 1 collaboration in the carbon fibre case architecture.

There is no waitlist conversation at Grand Caliber. No purchase history requirement. No boutique-only restriction on the Blue Boutique Edition or the colour variants the Tudor brand network gates behind specific channels. If the Tudor Black Bay Chrono you are looking for is in our case, it is yours to buy today. If it is not, our sourcing network covers the major North American and European secondary markets and we can typically locate a verified example within days for buyers who know the reference, the year, and the dial configuration they want.

We also buy Tudor Black Bay Chrono examples outright and take consignments, with free shipping and full insurance on outbound and inbound transit and national coverage for clients buying remotely. The Tudor Black Bay Chrono is among the more liquid modern Tudor watches and the right dealer relationship makes selling, trading, or upgrading nearly frictionless when you decide to move a piece.

Visit the Dallas showroom Monday through Friday, 10am to 5pm Central, or by appointment on Saturday. Call (214) 225-7198, email info@grandcaliber.com, or browse current Tudor Black Bay Chrono inventory at grandcaliber.com.

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