Overview
The "Big Block" was produced in many different variations throughout the 70s, 80s, and 90s and marked the Rolex family's first automatic chronograph and Tudor's first three-register chronograph. The design shared a striking resemblance to the Rolex Daytona, and standard models sported either a silver panda or black reverse-panda dial. However, Tudor also produced unique iterations of the “Big Block” with grey Monte Carlo dials and “albino” variants that sported either a silver sunray dial with white registers or a white enamel dial with silver registers. Such examples are less common and offer a wonderful opportunity to own a vintage Tudor that stands out from the crowd.
Specifications
Brand:
Tudor
Model:
'Big Block'
Reference:
79160
Year:
1994
Case Number:
B580446
Case Material:
Stainless steel
Diameter:
40 mm
Lug Width:
20 mm
Thickness:
14.5 mm
Lug-to-Lug:
47.8 mm
Dial:
Silver
Lume:
Tritium
Crystal:
Acrylic
Movement:
Automatic
Caliber:
Valjoux 7750
Bracelet/Strap:
Tudor 78360 stainless steel bracelet with 589 end links and S8 clasp code
Max Wrist Size:
7.25in (12 links)
Hand model has a wrist size of 6.2 in
Condition
Case: The case is about as clean as you’ll see for this reference with no major scratches and only a few very small hairlines present throughout. The lugs are thick and sharp with the original brushed finish and nice crispy chamfers. The case back is nearly spotless with clear engravings and wonderful contrast between brushed and polished surfaces. The black tachymeter bezel shows practically no signs of wear outside of a few very tiny nicks to the surrounding ring.
Dial, Hands, & Crystal: The dial is in mint condition and the hands are near mint with very light signs of patina and discoloration visible only upon close inspection. The tritium lume plots across both are matching with a light eggshell color. When exposed to UV light, neither the dial or hands exhibit any glow. The acrylic crystal is strong with no major scratches and plenty of life left to give.
Bracelet/Strap: The Tudor 78360 stainless steel bracelet shows absolutely no stretch and practically no imperfections outside of a very subtle dent on the second link from the clasp. The clasp code of S8 matches the year of the case number, the end links are correctly stamped 589, and the 78360 reference marking is present underneath the links closest to the lugs.
Performance
Functions: All functions including the crown-winding, time-setting, date-changing, and chronograph start/stop/reset are working as expected.
Service History: Unknown.
