Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Tudor · Pelagos
Tudor Pelagos 38 mm Slate Sapphire
Reference 86631OR.29
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Tudor
- Collection
- Pelagos
- Model
- Tudor Pelagos 38 mm Slate Sapphire
- Reference number
- 86631OR.29
- Year / era
- 1990 · 1990s — mechanical revival
- Complication
- Moon phase
- Movement
- Spring Drive
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Dial type
- Slate grey
- Strap / bracelet
- Alligator leather with folding clasp
- Water resistance
- 100 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 38 mm
- Case thickness
- 8.8 mm
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Bezel
- Baguette diamond rainbow
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Slate grey
- Hands
- Skeletonised sword hands, white luminescent
- Indexes
- Applied Roman numerals
- Bracelet / strap
- Alligator leather with folding clasp
- Clasp / buckle
- Pin buckle in matching case metal
- Water resistance
- 100 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 79F — Spring Drive
- Movement type
- Automatic with micro-rotor
- Frequency
- 25,200 vph (3.5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 72 hours
- Number of jewels
- 31 jewels
- Complications
- Moon phase
- Functions
- Annual calendar, moon phase
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1990 – 2006
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Consistently trades above retail; waiting lists at authorised dealers remain long.
Designer
Marc Newson
Marc Newson is an Australian industrial designer whose work spans Qantas cabins, Apple hardware and Jaeger-LeCoultre's Atmos clocks; his watch design reduces the object to pure geometry and legibility.
Historical significance
Tudor Pelagos 38 mm Slate Sapphire sits within Tudor's Pelagos line, introduced in 1990. It carries the house codes established since 1926 — sapphire crystal case case, slate grey dial and spring drive — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The case is finished by hand, alternating polished and satin-brushed surfaces in a single pass so the edges stay razor sharp.
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
The House
Tudor
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1926
- Founder
- Hans Wilsdorf
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Premium
- Major collections
- Black Bay, Pelagos, Ranger, Royal, Glamour, 1926
- Signature technologies
- In-house hairspring production · Anti-magnetic silicon escapement
- Famous movements
- Spring Drive · High-beat automatic · Automatic, Swiss lever escapement · Automatic chronograph
- Notable watches
- Tudor Black Bay 41 mm Ice Grade (1984) · Tudor Black Bay 39 mm Meteorite 18k (1951) · Tudor Black Bay 43 mm Meteorite 18k (1954) · Tudor Pelagos 39 mm Blue 18k (1997)
Brand history
Tudor has spent more than 100 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Black Bay, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Hans Wilsdorf established Tudor in 1926, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Tudor calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1926
Hans Wilsdorf founds Tudor in Switzerland.
1969
The quartz era forces Tudor to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Tudor enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Tudor continues to produce Black Bay, Pelagos, Ranger and other icons in limited numbers.