Feature: Bye, Rolex! Tudor's Done It Again - 4 Alternatives To Rolex’s Explorer and Explorer II

In ‘The Farewell Symphony’ by the Austrian classical composer Haydn, the orchestra’s musicians stop playing their instruments one by one and exit the performance until just two violinists remain on the virtually empty stage.

Something similar has been playing out at Rolex authorised dealers in recent years, with each collection successively disappearing from their windows until all that’s left is an entry-level Oyster Perpetual, sitting there in solitary confinement, taking centre stage where once it would have been pushed to the margins by the more coveted Daytonas, Sky-Dwellers and Day-Dates.

Now, even the most basic brand-new Oyster Perpetual has all but vanished from the windows of Rolex boutiques. And when you do happen to catch sight of one, they’re usually accompanied by ‘Display Only’ signs.

Thankfully, Rolex’s sibling brand Tudor is far more attainable, both in terms of price and availability. And although it has been forging its own brand identity since its major reboot around a decade ago, it’s also clearly been given a licence to ‘borrow’ from Rolex’s extensive back catalogue.

This year, we’ve seen Tudor take more than a pinch of inspiration from Rolex’s Explorer models, not just the original Explorer but the Explorer II reference 1655—a poor seller when it was launched in 1971 but now a sought-after vintage cult classic.

So if it’s one of the Explorers that has always been your Rolex of choice and you can’t jump that long waiting list by gaining A-list status or hiring a hitman to bump off those in front of you (please don’t actually do this!), it’s time to turn to trusty Tudor.

We’ve got four great options for you…

Tudor Black Bay 36 M79500-0007

Tudor’s Black Bay 36 has the same 36mm case size as Rolex’s current Explorer, reference 124270. It’s a no-frills piece, with Tudor’s signature snowflake hour hand and dot markers giving the high legibility you’d expect for a robust field watch.

The Black Bay 36 offers the same size and no-frills looks as the current Rolex Explorer

Technically, it can’t quite compete with the new Explorer, running on an ETA 2824 self-winding movement and carrying a 38-hour power reserve compared to the Explorer’s 70. It’s also not COSC-certified.

Dial variations include blue and silver, thus offering more choice than Rolex, which has only ever made the Explorer with a black dial (unless you count a very early white-dial prototype). It also has the edge on Rolex when it comes to water resistance, offering 150 metres compared to the Explorer’s 100 metres. Those with chunkier wrists might be put off by the size. If that’s the case, rest assured there’s also a 41mm version. Like the Explorer, a yellow-gold two-tone model is also available.

Tudor Ranger M79950-0001

At 39mm, Tudor’s latest release is a great alternative to the now discontinued Explorer reference 214270 from a few years ago. Not only does it share the same case size and have a similar dial lay-out—alternating baton markers with Arabic numerals—it’s also a watch with a history that’ll appeal to the adventurous.

Tudor has rightly won plaudits for its latest version of the Ranger

Whereas the Explorer conquered Everest, the Ranger (or at least an unnamed early version of it) accompanied the British North Greenland Expedition of 1952-54, the goal of which was to carry out a number of scientific studies that would be useful to the Armed Forces in Arctic environments.

Alright, so that’s not quite as impressive as scaling the world’s tallest mountain, but it proved Tudor watches could also function perfectly well in freezing, inhospitable conditions.

The new Ranger, which Tudor has revived after discontinuing it a few years ago, features the classic ‘shovel’ hour hand seen on previous models, a new rapid adjustment system on the steel bracelet (handy for quick slight adjustments when your wrist swells) and is powered by the in-house COSC-certified MT5402 used in the Black Bay 58 models.

At £2,420 (or £2,170 on a strap), it’s a great entry-level luxury watch.

Tudor Black Bay Pro M79470-0001

For many, the Black Bay Pro was far and away the stand-out affordable watch at this year’s Watches and Wonders, a Tudor curveball that triggered jubilant scenes for those who have long dreamed of owning the fabled Rolex Explorer reference 1655.

Can't afford a vintage Rolex reference 1655? Get this instead!

A few small, affordable watch brands—including WMT and Steinhart—have released pretty decent homages to the 1655 but this was enticingly close to the real thing in spirit, what with Tudor being Rolex’s sibling.

With the orange GMT hand, fixed 24-hour bezel and 39mm case, it’s got almost all the things that make the 1655 so cool. The square indices would have been nice, but then maybe it would have strayed too far from the Tudor aesthetic.

Several months after the official launch of the Black Bay Pro, the watch is finally starting to appear in boutique windows, but it doesn’t tend to stick around for long. They’re also already selling for well over the RRP of £3,170 (on a bracelet) on the pre-owned market.

Sound familiar?

Tudor Heritage Black Bay M79730-0006

The Black Bays are best known for their bezels in burgundy, blue, black, and the less common Harrods Edition green version, but there’s also a version with a plain steel bezel, giving it that pared-down, no-BS 1655 vibe.

The no-BS plain-bezel Heritage Black Bay. Battle scars not included

Out of all the Black Bays, this is the one that looks like it can take a good beating and would probably look even cooler with a few battle scars. Add a khaki NATO strap in summer and you’ll look like you’re ready for a tour of duty.

Like the Explorer II, this also has a date window at 3 o’clock, albeit without the cyclops lens, but you’re not getting that second hour hand in orange that is such a distinguishing feature of the Rolex and the Black Bay Pro.

At 41mm it’s a millimetre smaller than the current Explorer II reference 226570 but bigger than the first-generation 39mm model—a nice compromise.

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