Tudor has released the new Pelagos timepiece which has an inverted set-up and a crown at the left side. The watch named Tudor Pelagos LHD is a diving timekeeper supplied with a helium escape valve system that allows it to be exceptionally water resistant, up to 500 meters. It features a smaller sized titanium and steel housing with a nice black ceramic bezel. The first lefty in the Pelagos series is also the initial piece in the brand’s entire collection where every single model is individually numbered. Tudor Pelagos LHD is available at the price tag of $4,400.
The new model by the Rolex’s “younger brother”, Tudor, is an exceptionally interesting piece since it includes a number of distinctive features. Naturally, the first one among these is also the one that is immediately recognizable. It is the uncommon structure of the piece which includes a winding crown that sits at the left side. This lefty lay-out means that the movement of the watch is completely inverted, kind of like a mirror image of itself.
This is not the first ever model of this kind to be created by Tudor. In fact, the brand has quite of history when it comes to these lefty watches and the diving timekeepers of this sort in particular. It extends all the way to the 1970s when the brand was commissioned by the French navy to create timepieces which would be suited for its left-handed divers. However, this is the first LHD (which stands for Left Hand Drive) watch from the Pelagos line which saw the light of day some four years ago. Initially, the series included watches with ETA movements. This was changed in 2015 when Tudor introduced a new iteration of the model which was powered with a new in-house self-winding movement MT5612. The same caliber that was used in the previously seen Pelagos models (with a blue and a black dial) is utilized once again, so we cannot say that the novelty introduces any dramatic changes in the technical sense. Its charm lays in its quirkiness. Apart from the inverted architecture, the watch can also pride itself with the fact that it includes individual numbering which makes each of its copies unique (although the watch in not made in a limited edition). Additionally, this makes the piece even more distinctive since this is done for the first time in the entire palette of products of the watchmaker.
Even though the caliber is not entirely new, it is still pretty respectable. Caliber MT5612 beats at the frequency of 4 Hz. Moreover, it features a variable inertia oscillator, as well as a silicon balance spring. Its precision is guaranteed with the COSC chronometric certification. The in-house caliber is wound with a bi-directional rotor system which charges its extended power reserve that lasts for 70 hours, more than an entire weekend.
The List of Diving Features
Since Tudor Pelagos LHD is meant to be a diving instrument. It includes all the necessary traits and design tweaks of the kind. Among them is certainly the presence of a helium escape valve that allows it to deal with extreme depths.
There is also a uni-directional rotating diving bezel which features a durable black ceramic insert. Both the bezel and the analog dial of the same color (which is guarded with a sapphire crystal) possess beige numerals and markers. All of these markers and numerals, along with three central hands, are treated with a luminescent material that glows in the dark.
The list of traits that are adapted to the watch’s purpose continues with a titanium bracelet that has a special extension system. It allows adjustment during the dive when pressures are changing dramatically. There is also another option for the attachment, since the lefty diver can be paired with a rubber strap.
The case of the watch is 42 mm wide and it is mostly made of titanium, with only its case-back in steel. Both materials are embellished with a satin finish. Tudor Pelagos LHD has the same price as its right-handed version and it can be bought for $4,400.