I’m not sure if I am alone to believe in the concept of a “spoiler watch”. Heck, I might even be coining this term since I cannot find any mention of it on the internet pertaining to watch collecting. Spoiler watches are models that are so good that they subdue the urge of the watch collector to buy similar “lesser” watches. Having a spoiler watch in the collection may even persuade him to sell off similar watches that just don’t cut it any more.
Tudor Pelagos 25600TB
The main thought behind a spoiler watch is “why would I buy a lesser watch when I have the best one that I can get already?” This kind of thinking can keep a collector away from the financial temptation of buying just one more watch, which is the perfect number of watches. At least, that is what I thought when I bought my blue Tudor Pelagos for my 50th birthday.
Happy birthday to me!
Brilliant. Blue. Like the sea itself.
I desired a milestone watch to mark half a century on the planet. I was obsessed with the blue Tudor Pelagos and it seemed like a keeper. I had to have one. Nothing else looks exactly like it, though many try to recreate the formula. The model 25600TB is a modern, 42 mm titanium dive watch with a matte blue dial and ceramic bezel. The bezel action feels like it has anti-gravity bearings because it is the perfect blend of “clickiness” and smoothness.
My pile of blue watches
The Pelagos design is decidedly modern. Sure, the Pelagos riffs on the famous Tudor Snowflake, but updates it in a deceptively simple way. The markings are neither too bold nor too light. The lume is bright white (not aged cream fauxtina) and glows better than most dive watches this side of Seiko. Besides the controversial 5 lines of text on the front, the Pelagos is a design masterpiece in my opinion.
The blue Pelagos stands out from the crowd
A spoiler watch can be different things to different collectors. It depends on how and what they collect. For example, one person may collect a specific style of timepieces like dive watches or pilot chronographs. Others may have a fascination with a color. For me, the blue Tudor Pelagos was the perfect blue watch and diver combo.
This one watch could replace so many other blue watches that I had collected over the years… or at least that’s what I told myself. Below are the watches compared to the blue Pelagos. Some are not even in the same category of watch and most are not in the same price range, but the color ties them all together. I will literally put two watches side-by-side to see which one stays and which one goes. (Spoiler alert… sometimes they both stay!)
Victorinox Swiss Army Summit “Smurf” XLT vs. Tudor Pelagos. I could not sell the Smurf.
Blue watches have kind of hit a high peak these past few years, and there may not be an end to that trend. This makes sense as many people claim that blue is their favorite color. Black watches are great because they are so versatile, but they can feel too stark. One watch collecting buddy told me that he could not look at another BDW (black dive watch) because they were all starting to look the same. This cannot be said about the 25600TB.
The “sold” Squale 1521 vs. Tudor Pelagos. Too much color similarity to keep.
The blue Pelagos is distinctive in a sea of blue watches, which is the reason I wanted it. My plan was to buy the blue Pelagos and sell my other blue watches to pay for a large portion of it. I had accumulated quite a few of them after all so there was some banked value there. My wife made a very generous birthday present to make up the difference. She’s a keeper!
Dark blue Helson Sharkmaster 300 vs. bright blue Tudor Pelagos
In my mind, this blue Pelagos will stand the test of time for the next 30 years or so until I have to pass it on to someone else. They will have to pry it out of my cold dead hands though. haha
Sinn T2B vs. Tudor Pelagos. The fantastic Sinn will stay in the collection.
The only thing that might supersede the current Pelagos would be a reduced-size Pelagos that has been speculated about for years. Given the success of the smaller Tudor Black Bay 58, a 38-40 mm sized Pelagos (instead of a chunky 42 mm) would be like Tudor printing its own money. Let us pray to the Watch Gods that it will happen.
The “sold” Victorinox Swiss Army DiveMaster 500 Mechanical vs. Tudor Pelagos
For the most part, my “one watch to rule them all” plan with the blue Pelagos worked. I was able to sell many of my blue watches to make up the cost difference. There is now less overlap in my collection too. Why have ten stylistically similar watches, when one great watch will suffice? This is not to say that it was not difficult to say goodbye to many of them. I bought them for a reason, so I still liked them.
The “keeper” Raven Defender vs. Tudor Pelagos
I have shifted my thinking these days to buying quality watches over quantity. I did not particularly want to have a big pile ‘o watches when I started collecting. It just happened as I kept chasing the endorphin rush of buying the next “gotta have it” watch. Seriously, I cannot wear them all at one time and watches sitting in a box are not as interesting as a watch on the wrist.
Seiko PADI Turtle vs. Tudor Pelagos. The Seiko status is undecided.
As a way of coping, I generally write about a watch that is on the selling block. This lets me say goodbye one last time and re-appreciate the watch before the new owner gets it. To be honest, I have sold fewer of these blue watches than I thought I would. Only two so far, so maybe my original plan was not foolproof. Maybe I just love variety too much?
Victorinox Swiss Army Lancer 100 vs. Tudor Pelagos. The Lancer will likely go.
The watches shown here might eventually be replaced by my 50th birthday Blue Pelagos… maybe. For the ones who have left already, I have a private message for you. “Godspeed little buddies. May you keep ticking on time in your new homes, but you are always welcome back if you get homesick.”
