Hot off the heels of the Fifty Fathoms’ 70th anniversary, Blancpain is introducing a new pair to the collection that bring rose gold and titanium options to the 42mm case that was introduced in “Act I” of the eventual trio of anniversary releases. This is a very good thing, as that initial release ended up being the most approachable of the bunch, with more manageable case proportions and a beautiful matte black dial with painted hour markers. It was decidedly old school, and exactly the kind of execution many of us were hoping for. Almost. This week, Blancpain drops another piece of that puzzle into place with the introduction of the same case rendered in titanium and rose gold.
The modern Fifty Fathoms collection is sprawling, hosting all manner of materials and complications, totalling 116 available options according to Blancpain. This has splintered the identity of the watch in some ways, especially when compared to something like the Submariner, which has a total of 7 configurations. At its core, however, there lives a very compelling design that played no small part in defining the modern dive watch genre as we know it today. Expressing it as such has been a less than straightforward proposition for Blancpain, however.
Blancpain has shown willingness to lean into the history of the Fifty Fathoms collection in modern renditions that embrace features found in its past, from the Act III, which recalled the original Mil-Spec, to the 38mm Bathyscaphe done in collaboration with Hodinkee. Indeed, many of the limited edition variations bring something of a perfect formula to the table, but we rarely see this reflected in the regular production collection. This 42mm Fifty Fathoms Automatique rendered in grade 23 titanium is about as close as they’ve come.
One quick note to give Blancpain credit where it’s due. They aren’t afraid to use the Fifty Fathoms platform to push the technical boundaries of their dive watch. Watches like the X Fathoms and Tech Gombessa released last year are wonderful examples of taking the concept to its extremes, keeping innovation alive and well even 70 years later.
The latest Fifty Fathoms watches will join the regular production collection, and bring a total of 14 new configurations when accounting for strap and bracelet options. Both the rose gold and titanium cases are being offered with either black or blue dial colors, alongside three strap options (sail-canvas, NATO, and Tropic textured rubber), and a bracelet option for the titanium case.
The smaller case size is certainly welcome, and something many have been asking for, however 42mm still isn’t exactly small, so the use of titanium is a wise decision. The case also measures north of 14mm in thickness for some reason, so the lightweight material will go a long way in mitigating the remaining heft. The lug has a sharply curved lug, and makes for relatively kind wearability, which is more important than a few worrying numbers, at the end of the day. Perhaps the oddest measurement here is the lug span, which is 21.5mm, which feels borderline anti-consumerist and will make finding other strap options quite difficult.
As the use of titanium becomes more democratized across a wide range of watch brands, and at all price points, some manufacturers on the higher end are going to greater lengths by creating their own alloys, or using more premium versions of existing alloys. Blancpain is using grade 23 titanium here, which contains aluminum and vanadium (roughly 6% aluminum and 4% vanadium), and is considered a pure titanium compared to grade 5 thanks to a lower volume of oxygen, nitrogen and iron. Grade 23 enjoys exceptional durability in saltwater environments, and compatibility with the human body (it is often used in medical implants), making it a sensible material for something like a dive watch.
More importantly, the case is brushed here in both the titanium and rose gold executions, which provides a tool-like vibe to the overall look and feel. Unfortunately, the Blancpain label remains in the case wall along the 9 o’clock side, and they are still using an exhibition caseback, which sullies a bit of that very vibe at the same time. Also contributing to that are the polished applied hour markers, and sunray finish on the dial. This is a watch that has one foot in the ‘diver ready to take a beating’ category, and the other in ‘this will look great at the supper club’ category. Given that they have plenty of examples of the Fifty Fathoms that already fall into that latter category, it would be wonderful to see them commit to the former in a regular production reference.
Inside, Blancpain is using their manufacture caliber 1315, which is visible through an open caseback. This also provides a date complication which has been situated at 4:30 position, and it does utilize a disc that’s been color matched to the dial. Pricing starts at $16,600 for the titanium case on a black fabric strap, and rises to $19,300 on the full titanium bracelet. The rose gold case is priced from $30,900 on a fabric or sailcloth strap with pin and buckle, and rises to $34,300 with a rose gold deployant clasp. Blancpain.