Among the models launched at this year’s Watch and Wonder Show, Tudor has expanded the Black Bay GMT with a new model featuring an ultra-bright dial. While the brand ensures that the dial is not completely white as it has a silvery “opaline” sheen, it is a new approach to the Tudor line of sports watches that often favor black or dark dials. Maintaining many of the design features that have become standard for the Black Bay GMT, the new model also features the coveted “Pepsi” style bezel.
The exterior is fairly standard for a Black Bay, GMT or not, with a 41mm steel case and a boxy oyster-like case. Its steel bezel is bidirectional with 48 grooves, complete with 24-hour markers for the GMT function. The bezel has a matte finish and borrows Pepsi blue and burgundy tones from other models in the Black Bay and larger Rolex lines. An oversized, partially detached crown adds aesthetic novelty to the look. To protect the watch, Tudor offers a polished and satin-finished three-link steel strap or a black fabric strap decorated with burgundy accents.
For the dial, Tudor experimented with a brilliant opaque color that combines light silver-gray shades on an almost white background. The geometric hour markers are enhanced with a dark outline to ensure legibility, as are Tudor’s signature Snowflake hands. For the GMT function, the hands are outlined in bright red, while the second hand, minute hand, and hour hand are all outlined in black. At 3 o’clock is a moderately sized date window with black numerals matching the minute track on the periphery of the dial.
Like the entire Black Bay GMT collection, the new model is equipped with the in-house MT5652 movement. In addition to the built-in GMT function, it also has a jumping hour hand and a retrograde date setting developed specifically for this collection. Aesthetically, its bridges and main plates feature polished, sandblasted and laser-decorated surfaces. The self-winding mechanical movement also offers a “weekend-ready” power reserve of 70 hours.