Let me begin by saying, Tudor is no longer seen a the poor man’s Rolex. Vintage Tudor, in particular, has been rising in prices over the years and today can surely be regarded as one of the most collectable vintage brands out there.
This Tudor 7924 Submariner is a testament to that. Nicknamed the ‘Big Crown’ due to its unusually large 8mm ‘Brevet’ crown, this is perhaps one of the holy grails of vintage Tudor. The Tudor 7924 was released in 1958 and was one of the earliest dive watches made by Tudor, with only the Ref. 7922 and 7923 coming before it. All of these references were seen as experimental by Tudor as they were not featured in sales catalogues at the time. This makes the Tudor 7924 an extremely rare watch with very low production numbers.
Aesthetically, you will be able to see the correlation between this Submariner and the one produced by Rolex, particularly the latter’s own version of the ‘Big Crown’, the James Bond Ref. 6538. With a glossy gilt dial and the classic black Submariner bezel, this Tudor is housed in a 37mm stainless steel case. I must say, the 8mm big crown really makes a difference to the overall look of the watch, giving it a muscular appeal. Early Submariners, both from Rolex and Tudor are defined by their lack of crown guards and this 7924 is a perfect example of this.
While the Tudor looks exactly like the Rolex, the only difference lies in the movement, with the 7924 powered by a self-winding Cal. 390. Everything else uses Rolex parts, so you know that this watch is pure quality. This particular example has developed a beautiful tropical dial, making it even rarer than it already is and while it has been worn well over the course of its lifetime, this is a grail piece nevertheless and something you will not see very often.
