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3 years of experience with the modern Fifty Fathoms

The first time I saw the modern Fifty Fathoms  was at a Blancpain reception alongside Baselworld 2007. The models shown still had the date window placed at 3, for regular production they changed it to the 4.30 position - which had a positive impact on the 3,6,9,12 design of the dial.

My first impression was that the watch is really big, maybe too large - totally unusual for Blancpain at the time, but definately following the unbroken trend to large diameters. I immediately fell for the quality of the case, the spectacular sapphire bezel, the unusual sailcloth strap and the fine detail of mirroring the dial index in the tang buckle. All in all a truly impressive watch, I thought - but the size....


I followed all reports on the Fifty Fathoms  in magazines and internet forums, saw Oliver's presentation of his No.2, and finally in summer 2008 I received a call from my AD to check out the FF  he just received. It took me exactly one second to decide that this one would be mine ;-)

In 2009 I had the opportunity to catch the Dark Knight, , followed in 2010 by the Tribute to Fifty Fathoms  (which I sold this year).

And now in summer 2011 I have completed my collection of the modern Fifty Fathoms  with the red gold and the limited white gold versions.

I'd like to share my experience with my Fifty Fathoms so far:


A. The heart of the Fifty Fathoms  - calibre 1315   

The calibre 1315 was derived from the 13RO handwound movement, which was introduced in the Le Brassus 8 Jours in 2006. The 1315 is an automatic movement with 5 days of power reserve and free sprung balance, designed to be robust enough for all day use and decorated in a rather 'technical' way.

First, I can say this calibre has shown absolutely no problems in any of the 5 watches! If there is one thing to criticize, it is the difference in accuracy between the watches, means that Blancpain could spend some more effort to regulation of the movements. My steel Fifty Fathoms,which is now years old, has still the best performance: between -1 and +1 sec/day, depending on position (what a remarkable result). The Dark Knight is very close: between -1 and + 3 secs/day. The red gold version is running a little fast (between +4 and +7 secs/day), the Tribute was on the same level, the WG version is brand new, so it still has to find it's rhythm, right now it is a little slow (between -2 and -5 secs/day).

All watches have the full 5 day power reserve, most of them even a little longer. When setting the watch to exact time, the hacking works perfectly fine.

The date swich occurs over a quite short time, usually app 15 minutes. Depending on the watch, the new date is shown between 6 and 12 minutes after midnight.

To me, the 1315 is a great movement - compared to other watches I owned over many years, it clealy is abolute top league when it comes to accuracy and reliability.


B. Case, crown and bezel

The steel and the red gold Fifty Fathoms  offer a solid case back,  both watches contain an additonal inside antimagnetic shielding. The Dark Knight and the white gold version are not antimagnetic since they are equipped with a sapphire case back.

The watch features a screw in crown of remarkable size, the crown is easy to handle and it works exact in the 3 positions (winding, date setting and time setting).

The sapphire bezel is unidirectional and working smoothly and exact in 120 positions. This bezel is one of the most prominent design features of the watch, and one of it's strongest aspects.

The best way to assess the quality of case and bezel is to let it slide through your hand - the 'feel' of the watch, it's perfect, smooth shape with the total absence of any sharp edges is a real pleasure.


C. Dial, hands and readability

The Fifty Fathoms  dial has gone through a soft evolution over years, it still maintains the reference to the original 1953 model. Executed in deep black with 2 'layers', color matching date indication and perfectly printed inscriptions, it  is a truly beautiful and timeless face of the watch.

With the current model, Blancpain has changed the shape of indices and hands - and both changes suit the watch very well. The hands have the perfect length to exactly meet the minute indications. What I found with 2 watches: the hands had not been aligned correctly in the first place - something the Boutique could fix easily - but this should definately not slip through quality control at Blancpain....

The luminova makes the watch easily readable at night - even the black luminova of the Dark Knight appears to be sufficient.

D. Straps and buckles

The Fifty Fathoms comes on a sailcloth strap with tang or deployant buckle. The strap is available in 3 lenghts (short, regular and long), you can have it in 3 colors (black, blue and white), the inside is made of rubber to avoid quick ageing because of sweat. The qualities of this strap are obvious: it is durable, comfortable to wear and it actually looks good.

The alternatives Blancpain is offering are very limited. This watch could look great on so many straps, and Blancpain misses a chance here. With support of the Blancpain Boutique in Munich I was able to order different custom made leather straps - 3 years ago those were not perfectly suited for the watch, but not limited in color - 1 year ago the were made perfectly in the same style as the sailcloth strap and a little more limited in color - now they are again not perfectly suited for the watch and limited to 3 or 4 colors. Somebody explain me the logic behind that evolution.... :-(

Also, there is the rubber strap that comes exclusively with the strap changing kit. This one is made for wear over a diver's suit, a very long strap - personalized with Blancpain and Fifty Fathoms. Personally I like this strap very much, it works perfectly on the Dark Knight and the red gold Fifty Fathoms - if you get it shortend in an acceptable way. It took me quite some effort to come up with a reasonable solution, but it was worth the effort. It is a pity you cannot order it separately.

I personally have not tried non OEM straps - this obviously can be a solution, but it may very well be quite an odyssee...

The tang buckle with it's nice shape and the reference to the dial indeces appears to be the perfect solution in terms of aesthetics - the deployant buckle on the other hand offers more security, it is personalized with Fifty Fathoms engraved on it. By the way: it is exactly the same deployant Vacheron Constantin use for their watches.

E. The steel bracelet

It took Blancpain almost 2 years to introduce the X-71 steel bracelet - and it comes with an extraordinary high price tag. The X-71 is seen as one of the best bracelets in the market, and actually it compares favourably against many others - but it also lacks  one significant feature others offer:

There is no fine adjustment, something that you would expect for a sports watch, especially for a diver! Within Swatch Group, Glashuette has shown how to create a top notch fine tuning - in this case Blancpain should have taken a closer look and used the 2 years to build something similar.

Other than that, the bracelet works fine with the Fifty Fathoms - although I personally do not see it as my favourite option. To me, it takes something away from the perfect look.


F. The strap changing system

Let me raise some questions:

Why does Blancpain create special screws for the Fifty Fathoms that require special tools?
Why does Blancpain ask 700 Euro for a changing kit that should come automatically with every watch?
Why is the watch holder executed in such a way that it puts ugly scratches on the watch?

But there are positve things to say: the kit offers the only way to get the rubber strap, and it also provides high quality tools and a lot of spare pins and screws. If you use them: do not use the holder, please!!!!


G. Value for money and recognition factor

Given the quality of the watch I would say the price of the steel version is absolutely fair - compared to some of it's competitors it appears even attractive. The surplus for the two gold versions does not surprise, although the white gold Fifty Fathoms has a massive upload, it's limitation to 50 pieces does not suffice as a solid explanation - but it is what it is...

Re-sale values are around 60% of list price - and that is still a downside for some who are used to more stable or even increasing re-sale values. The Fifty Fathoms  is clearly not one of those hyped watches some are willing to pay a premium for - and I quite like that fact. Don't get me wrong: I think if one watch deserves to be valued higher than it currently is, the Fifty Fathoms clearly qualifies for that. But isn't it nice to wear a watch that catches so much attention once people see it, but nearly nobody knows it? The chance of being on a plane and seeing another person with a Fifty Fathoms  is trending towards zero -  and on your wrist sits this beautiful and special watch, how much more can you ask for?



Henrik

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