Tudor Black Bay 58

A diver cut down to 1950s size

Tudor unveiled the Black Bay Fifty-Eight at Baselworld 2018. Its name refers to 1958, the year Tudor introduced reference 7924, its first diver's watch water-resistant to 200 meters, nicknamed the 'Big Crown' for its oversized 8 mm winding crown. The new watch was meant to bring back the proportions of those early divers.

The original original Black Bay of 2012 had been a hit, but at about 15 mm thick it was a substantial watch. The Fifty-Eight came in at 39 mm and 11.9 mm, about 25% thinner, with lugs narrowed from 22 mm to 20 mm. For buyers who had wanted a vintage-sized Tudor diver, it arrived as exactly that.

Launch prices were $3,250 on a leather or fabric strap and $3,575 on a riveted steel bracelet. A 2026 review called the black-gilt Fifty-Eight probably the most important model in its collection and potentially one of its best sellers.

Rolex's sister brand and its divers

Tudor was created by Hans Wilsdorf, the founder of Rolex. The Tudor trademark was registered in 1926 by Veuve de Philippe Hüther on his behalf; Wilsdorf took it over in 1936 and founded Montres Tudor SA in 1946. The idea was to offer a more affordable watch than a Rolex while keeping Rolex-like quality.

Tudor's first diving watch, the Oyster Prince Submariner reference 7922, appeared in 1954, a year after the Rolex Submariner, and was rated to 100 meters. The 7924 of 1958 doubled that to 200 meters. From the 1960s into the mid-1980s, Tudor Submariners were issued to military divers including the French Marine Nationale and U.S. Navy SEALs. In 1969 Tudor introduced the angular 'snowflake' hands that collectors still associate with the brand, and the Tudor Submariner line ended in 1999.

Tudor left the U.S. market in the early 2000s and returned in 2013. The original Black Bay of 2012 reinterpreted the old Submariners, and in 2015 Tudor introduced its first in-house movement. The Fifty-Eight brought both together in a smaller case.

What to look for

The 79030N has a domed matte black dial with rose gold-colored indexes and snowflake hands, a unidirectional bezel with an aluminum insert and gilt, pink gold-colored markings, and the red triangle at 12 o'clock carried over from vintage Tudor bezels. The oversized screw-down crown bears Tudor's rose emblem, and the tube beside it is left in bare steel.

Inside is caliber MT5402, introduced alongside the watch. It is a smaller, thinner Tudor movement without a date, 26 mm across and 4.99 mm thick, with 27 jewels, a silicon hairspring, a 4 Hz beat, a 70-hour power reserve and COSC chronometer certification.

It came on a satin-finished riveted three-link steel bracelet or on leather or fabric straps. Later Black Bay Fifty-Eights share the 39 mm case but are different watches: the navy blue 79030B of 2020, the sterling silver 79010SG, the bronze 79012M and the 18k yellow gold 79018V of 2021, and a GMT version in 2024.

Spin-offs, a prize and a successor

In November 2020 the navy blue version, reference 79030B, won the Challenge Prize at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève, Tudor's sixth award in eight years of entering the competition. The family kept growing, with precious-metal versions in silver and gold whose prices, $4,400 for silver and $16,825 for gold, put them in a different category from the steel original.

In May 2026 Tudor replaced the black-gilt 79030N with reference 7939A1A0NU. The new watch keeps the 39 mm diameter but is slimmer at 11.7 mm, uses the MT5400-U caliber made with Kenissi, carries Master Chronometer certification from METAS, and has a 65-hour power reserve. In Europe it was priced from EUR 4,540 on rubber to EUR 4,880 on a five-link bracelet.

That makes the 79030N a closed chapter: a reference built from 2018 to 2026, and the one that defined what the Black Bay Fifty-Eight looks like.

The numbers

Reference

79030N (M79030N-0001)

Caliber

MT5402, automatic, 27 jewels, silicon hairspring, COSC

Frequency

4 Hz

Power reserve

70 hours

Movement size

26 mm x 4.99 mm

Case

Stainless steel, 39 mm x 11.9 mm, 20 mm lugs

Water resistance

200 meters

Production

2018 to 2026; no production figures published

Timeline

1. 1926

   The Tudor trademark is registered on behalf of Hans Wilsdorf.

2. 1946

   Wilsdorf founds Montres Tudor SA.

3. 1954

   Tudor's first diver, the Oyster Prince Submariner 7922, is rated to 100 meters.

4. 1958

   Reference 7924 'Big Crown' raises water resistance to 200 meters.

5. 1969

   Tudor introduces its angular 'snowflake' hands.

6. 1999

   The Tudor Submariner line is discontinued.

7. 2012

   Tudor launches the original Black Bay.

8. 2013

   Tudor returns to the U.S. market.

9. 2015

   Tudor introduces its first in-house movement.

10. 2018

    The Black Bay Fifty-Eight 79030N debuts at Baselworld with caliber MT5402.

11. 2020

    A navy blue version, 79030B, is released.

12. Nov 2020

    The navy blue Fifty-Eight wins the GPHG Challenge Prize.

13. 2021

    Silver, bronze and 18k gold Fifty-Eights join the family.

14. 2024

    A Black Bay 58 GMT is introduced.

15. May 2026

    Reference 7939A1A0NU with a METAS-certified MT5400-U replaces the 79030N.

The world in 2018

• Feb 6, 2018

  SpaceX flies the Falcon Heavy for the first time.

• Feb 9, 2018

  The Winter Olympics open in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

• Mar 4, 2018

  Sergei Skripal and his daughter are poisoned with Novichok in Salisbury, England.

• Apr 27, 2018

  Kim Jong Un crosses into South Korea to meet President Moon Jae-in.

• Jun 12, 2018

  Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un meet in Singapore.

• Jul 15, 2018

  France wins the FIFA World Cup in Russia.

Price record

This is an asking price, not a sale. It is what a seller wanted on the date shown. Asking prices often sit above what buyers pay, but an ask is not a ceiling: a sale can land on either side of it. It is not a value.

By reference price, Tudor Black Bay 58 is number 98 of 100 in the watches entries of the FLOAT 100. 54 of those 100 rest on a realized sale; the rest carry an asking price or a guide value, and each page says which. Rank within the FLOAT 100 itself (81 here) is editorial: how much an object defines its field, not price alone.

Did you know

• The 'Fifty-Eight' is named for 1958, the year of Tudor's first 200-meter diver, not the year the watch was made.
• The original 'Big Crown' got its nickname from an 8 mm winding crown.
• The Fifty-Eight is about 25% thinner than the original Black Bay.
• The Tudor trademark was registered in 1926 under the name of a widow, Veuve de Philippe Hüther, on Hans Wilsdorf's behalf.
• Tudor Submariners were issued to French Navy and U.S. Navy SEAL divers from the 1960s into the 1980s.
• The 2026 successor is thinner than the 79030N even though it adds Master Chronometer certification.