Tudor has been steadily expanding its Pelagos lineup recently. A new Tudor Pelagos FXD has been unveiled with a black dial and bezel insert. Like most Pelagos models, the new Tudor sports a 42mm titanium case and its unidirectional rotating 60-minute bezel is filled with X1 Super-Luminova. But this is the first Pelagos FXD with a standard elapsed-time bezel, rather than a countdown bezel. Aside from the bezel and the color, it’s just like the blue Pelagos FXD released in 2021. We’ll show you all about this new Tudor release and take you through the history of the Pelagos lineup.
The Specs of the New Tudor Pelagos Ref. 25717N
Case Diameter | 42mm |
Case Thickness | 12.75mm |
Case Metal | Brushed titanium |
Strap Material | Dark green fabric with red center, and black rubber with “fabric motif” |
Dial | Black with red “Pelagos” text |
The Movement | In-house movement caliber MT5602 |
Power Reserve | 70 hours |
Complications | Hours, minutes, seconds |
Price | $4,150 |
Military Tie-ins: Tudor’s History with the US Navy and French Navy
Tudor isn’t shy about leaning into their military history. They clearly know watch collectors love military watches, and Tudor has even started casually using the nickname “MilSub” in official press releases. They’re calling this Pelagos FXD “the ultimate modern ‘MilSub.'” Fair enough–the fixed bars, fully hashed bezel, and Snowflake hour hand all have military roots. It remains to be seen if customers will have “military tie-in fatigue” or if they’ll eat this up.
More on these nicknames: Your Go-To Guide to Rolex Nicknames
The original blue Pelagos FXD was designed in cooperation with Marine Nationale (the French Navy), with whom Tudor has a storied history dating back to 1956. “MN” Milsubs are some of the most desirable vintage Tudors out there. In fact, the creation of Tudor’s famous Snowflake hand ties back to the French Navy’s request for better legibility.
Tudor’s history with the US Navy also goes back to the 1950’s–and that’s what they’d like to remind everyone about now. Tudor Submariners became standard-issue equipment for some US Navy divers in 1958, and many Navy SEALs wore them over the years. In fact, according to Watches of Espionage, this black Pelagos FXD was originally designed for and issued to SEAL Team Six members in 2022.
Dive watches with legitimate military provenance always pique collectors’ interest and sell for a premium. This new Tudor Pelagos FXD can give you much of that functionality-first charm without spending vintage Tudor MilSub money. In addition to MilSubs, Tudor has made other watches with military tie-ins over the years. Let’s not forget that the awkward P01 was based on a prototype developed in collaboration with the US Navy as well.
Dive Deep into Military Tudors: Collector’s Guide to Military Tudors
To show you where this new black Pelagos FXD sits in the lineup, we’ve created a chart of every Pelagos reference.
Tudor Pelagos Timeline
Tudor Pelagos Reference | Case Material | Case Diameter (mm) | Bezel | MSRP | Year Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
25500TN (Black) | Titanium | 42 | Unidirectional dive bezel | Discontinued | 2012 |
25600TN (Black) | Titanium | 42 | Unidirectional dive bezel | $5,025 | 2015 |
25600TB (Blue) | Titanium | 42 | Unidirectional dive bezel | $5,025 | 2015 |
25610TN (LHD) | Titanium | 42 | Unidirectional dive bezel | $5,025 | 2016 |
25707B (FXD) | Titanium | 42 | Bidirectional | $4,150 | 2021 |
25407N (Pelagos 39) | Titanium | 39 | Unidirectional dive bezel | $4,700 | 2022 |
25707KN (FXD Red Bull Edition) | Carbon Composite | 42 | Bidirectional | $3,850 | 2023 |
25807KN (FXD Chrono Red Bull Edition) | Carbon Composite | 42 | Bidirectional | $5,275 | 2023 |
25717N (FXD) | Titanium | 42 | Unidirectional dive bezel (hashes every minute) | $4,150 | 2023 |
Will there be a waitlist for the new Pelagos FXD?
Probably, for a little while. While hot Tudor models often have long waitlists when they’re first released, the hype almost always dies down within 1-2 years. Time and time again, once-scorching-hot Tudors like the Panda Black Bay become easier to purchase when they’re no longer new. That isn’t a knock on Tudor; in fact they clearly take pride in the (relative) attainability of their watches. So if you want to take home a black Tudor Pelagos FXD, don’t be discouraged if you don’t see one in your local Tudor showroom just yet!
More on waitlists: Is the Rolex Waiting List Real?
Made in Le Locle: The Kenissi Era Has Truly Begun
This new Tudor Pelagos, like every Tudor from now on, will be assembled in Le Locle rather than Rolex Geneva. To explain this transition we have to tell you about Kenissi, which Tudor’s website refers to as “Tudor’s movement manufacturing arm.” Kenissi was founded in 2016 in Geneva with the goal of providing quality automatic movements to Tudor as well as other brands. That was a result of years of planning, likely accelerated by Swatch’s decision to decrease ETA ébauche output at the time.
Interestingly, Chanel has owned 20% of Kenissi since 2019. Breitling has been a Kenissi partner from the beginning (former Breitling executive Jean-Paul Girardin was part of the founding Kenissi team) but it’s unclear if Breitling owns any equity–they are ambiguously described as an “industrial partner.” This partnership has resulted in Tudor and Breitling trading movements (Tudor’s time-only MT movements in exchange for Breitling’s B01 chronograph movements) for years.
More on Breitling: The History of Breitling
When Tudor/Kenissi first started making in-house movements in Geneva, all final watch assembly was still done at Rolex HQ–for a while. Tudor’s impressive new manufacture in Le Locle was built in 2021 and is fully operational as of 2023. Tudor has since casually revealed that all Tudors are put together there:
“Every TUDOR watch is assembled and fully tested to TUDOR’s superior standards at the new TUDOR Manufacture located in Le Locle, Switzerland.”
Tudor
Is Tudor trying to distance themselves from Rolex with these new developments? Well, yes, it would seem so. But not completely: let’s not forget that this new Tudor factory is located on Rolex land. Plus, Tudor and Rolex seemingly coordinated the releases of their “Pepsi” and “root beer” GMT models in recent years. The brands will never be totally separate. And as this new Pelagos FXD shows, Tudor is fully capable of methodical, slow evolution–just like its big brother.
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