Sunday Morning Showdown: Tudor Black Bay 54 “Lagoon Blue” Vs. Breitling SuperOcean Heritage B31 Automatic 40 Kelly Slater Edition
It’s Sunday morning, so it’s time for another heated Sunday Morning Showdown. Two recently released summer divers take center stage in this week’s battle. The first is the colorful Tudor Black Bay 54 “Lagoon Blue.” The watch reintroduces the aesthetic of the 1990s Tudor Submariner ref. 79190 with its mirror-polished bezel. It is combined with a light blue sand-textured dial for a colorful and summery vibe. Taking on this Tudor is the new Breitling SuperOcean Heritage B31 Automatic 40 Kelly Slater Edition. With this watch, Breitling celebrates its ongoing partnership with the world’s most famous surfer in style. While less summery in its colors, the dial features a special leafy motif celebrating the beaches of Hawaii. All in all, there’s plenty to discuss, so let’s get started.
This week’s battle is also a match-up of a special edition and a limited edition. The Tudor Black Bay 54 “Lagoon Blue” is part of the brand’s Daring Watches series. It consists of some limited editions, like the Black Bay Chrono “Carbon 25,” and the harder-to-get unlimited editions, like the Black Bay Chrono “Flamingo Blue” and this new Black Bay 54 “Lagoon Blue.” The Breitling SuperOcean Heritage B31 Automatic 40 Kelly Slater Edition, on the other hand, is a limited edition of 500 pieces. Both watches were released just in time for you to get your hands on one before you go on your summer holiday. To get the Breitling, you’ll have to put down more money than for the Tudor. This particular SuperOcean Heritage can be yours for €6,750 on a bracelet or €6,450 on a rubber strap, while the latest Black Bay 54 costs €4,420. Which would you spend your hard-earned money on?
Last week, on Sunday Morning Showdown…
Before we find out, let’s take a quick look at the most recent Sunday Morning Showdown. In last week’s battle, the Citizen Zenshin 60 took 65% of the votes, comfortably beating the BA111OD Chapter 7, which only managed 35%. It’s not a very surprising outcome because it confirms the popularity of Citizen’s Super Titanium series that came out last year. With the new Zenshin 60 models, the Japanese brand has hit it out of the park. We enjoyed spending time with the four new watches, and you also favored them in last week’s battle despite the BA111OD Chapter 7 having objectively better specs. Let’s find out if this week’s battle will bring another clear victory.
Jorg: Tudor Black Bay 54 “Lagoon Blue”
Today’s match-up could be as simple as spending your money wisely. With more than €2,000 between these two watches, you could make the sensible choice. But that would be too easy. On top of that, I would not just pick the Tudor for its cheaper price. I think it’s genuinely a better watch for me. Now, if today’s battle were against the 2020 Superocean Heritage ’57 Outerknown, it would have been tougher to choose. I love the limited edition Breitling did for Slater’s clothing brand five years ago. But the new LE is just not for me. I am not the biggest fan of the leafy pattern on the dial. Sure, it creates the right Hawaiian context and adds some depth, but I’d much rather have the Tudor’s brighter dial than a decorated one to accompany me during the summer days.
You may know the details of the Black Bay 54 “Lagoon Blue” already, but since the specs are so good, I’ll happily recite them. The watch has a 37mm stainless steel case with an 11.2mm thickness and a 46mm lug-to-lug. Because of these modest proportions, Tudor also markets the watch to women. It’s cool to see that this Black Bay 54 looks good on both ladies’ and men’s wrists. Even as a big guy, I know I can pull this 37mm watch off perfectly. We had the regular Black Bay 54 in for review when it came out two years ago. I was happy that the watch fit my wrist nicely, even if only on the bracelet. It adds the visual volume that the Black Bay 54 and 58 need on my wrist.
Taking inspiration from the classic Tudor Submariner ref. 79190
The case is combined with a stainless steel bezel with a mirror-polished insert. It takes after the Tudor Prince Date Submariner ref. 79190 that came out in 1995. It was part of the last generation of Tudor Subs and goes for a pretty penny pre-owned.
Image: Bulang & Sons
I love that original version, so it is no surprise that I also like the little nod to it with this new Black Bay 54. On top of that, the mirror-polished bezel insert is perfectly suited for summer thanks to its shiny presence. Kudos to Tudor for using that style of bezel insert to make this watch work so well.
The case is matched with Tudor’s five-row “Jubilee-style” bracelet. Tudor is not too keen on referring to it that way, but it is easy to use for reference. This bracelet is my only “issue” with the watch. I think an Oyster-style bracelet would not only have increased the sportiness for this retro-styled summer diver but also suited the overall aesthetic much better. Still, I don’t think that will be a deciding factor today.
The Tudor MT5400 movement
For this watch, Tudor uses its Kenissi-manufactured caliber MT5400. This COSC-certified chronometer movement operates at 28,800vph and offers 70 hours of power reserve. It lies within the Black Bay 54’s case, which is water resistant to 200 meters, making this new “Lagoon Blue” perfectly suited for a serious dive session. Still, we all know that most of the watches will see a fun jump into the sea at best. On top of that, this is the perfect watch to wear while having dinner or partying during the warm summer evenings. It has the perfect vibrant summer presence with its turquoise sand-textured dial that contrasts perfectly with its stainless steel surroundings.
I prefer the summery style of the Black Bay 54 “Lagoon Blue” over the more subdued and decorative character of Breitling’s new SuperOcean Heritage. But let us know what you think, Mike. Why should people spend an additional €2k on the Breitling as their perfect summer watch?
Mike: Breitling SuperOcean Heritage B31 Automatic 40 Kelly Slater Edition
Well, here we are in an old-school title bout. Two historic brands, Tudor and Breitling, duking it out for dive-watch supremacy — sort of. Let’s be honest: both of these watches will happily go to serious depths, but both are designed to appeal to fashionable folks. That’s okay, though, because the Tudor Black Bay 54 “Lagoon Blue” and the Breitling SuperOcean Classic Heritage B31 Automatic 40 Kelly Slater Edition look great along the way.
A tough battle
I’ll spoil this and state from the get-go that neither choice in this week’s showdown is wrong. The latest Black Bay 54 is a lovely watch. However, the new SuperOcean Heritage is arguably a more significant release for Breitling. Historically, this line has been a huge seller for the brand, and thankfully, the latest generation is beautifully crafted. For today’s competition, we’ve chosen the Kelly Slater limited edition. The 40mm by 48.02mm steel watch is a cool ode to Hawaii and is fairly exclusive, with a 500-piece offering.
A new movement increases wearability
The SuperOcean Heritage uses the new B31 movement. Breitling worked with the upper-echelon AMT division of Sellita to create this automatic caliber with a free-sprung balance and 78-hour power reserve. Like the Black Bay 54’s MT5400, the B31 is a certified chronometer. Best of all, though, the movement allows the watch to drop down to a slinky 11.73mm thick. That’s lovely and the type of thickness that would even allow it to seemingly disappear on a surfer’s wrist. My experience is that this SuperOcean Heritage wears beautifully.
Addressing the dial and the cost
We chose the Kelly Slater edition because of its Hawaii-themed dial. Yes, it’s quite limited for a large brand, but we felt that this dial paired well with the light blue sandy-textured one in the Black Bay. Both are full of character and slightly different from the norm. Having seen the Breitling, I can confirm that the design “works” and is neither kitschy nor cheesy. Perhaps it’s the dark blue tone that makes it a fitting watch for more than a summer. Cost-wise, the Kelly Slater edition is available for €6,400 on a rubber strap or €6,750 on a mesh bracelet. That’s not inexpensive, but in this case, we have Breitling, which isn’t an understudy brand. Plus, it feels like a more lasting daily watch. For accompaniments, the strap or bracelet is lovely, and the mesh is thinner than the previous generation. Is it better than the Tudor’s five-row bracelet? Personal taste will weigh heavily, but I find the Breitling’s mesh slimmer with a nice, thin clasp.
Your time to vote
The Breitling SuperOcean Heritage 40 Kelly Slater Limited Edition is a funky, South Pacific-themed watch taking on a trendy light blue Tudor Black Bay 54. They’re both lovely watches, but there is a significant price gap. Of course, the Tudor feels more like a pure summer watch with its light and shiny color scheme. The Breitling heralds Hawaii, which isn’t the same as many markets during the depths of winter. Movement-wise, both are interesting and made with help from the outside. Therefore, it’s a tough battle. Which watch will you choose and why? After voting, please let us know the reasons for your choice in the comments section below.
