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Vintage Blancpain Fifty Fathoms


ubiquitous

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I have been on an off and on hunt for a good vintage Fifty Fathoms rep for sometime now. I had one of DSN's FFs sometime back; a great watch, but somehow just not for me. My search had yielded very little result, and trying to find parts to build one has also been of very little success.

Then, a few days ago, it seemed as tough my answer found me. alt.watch.obsessive had listed this fantastic little gem here on RWG and I just had to have it. Quick PM to him and it was bought, paid and on it's way.

I received this watch yesterday, and upon opening the parcel, I soon discovered that my every expectation was not only met, but far exceeded. I really don't know much about this watch or it's origins aside from who the past two owners were. As I am a little more familiar with vintage Rolex than vintage Blancpain, I am not even certain how accurate this watch is to gen; seems there were any number of bezel, dial, hand, movement and case combinations with the Fifty Fathoms range, and so trying to determine what's what has been rather difficult at best. What I do know is that it's a beauty and wears nicely. This may possibly be one of those watches that I don't scrutinize; unlike the DSN FF, this watch just feels right. And for that reason, I don't feel the need to nitpick...

The case measures at 37mm; perhaps a bit small by today's standards, but feels nicely balanced on the wrist. The case is rather thin profile as well- A little under 11mm measured from the top of the crystal to the bottom of the caseback. A mesh bracelet fills in the 20mm lugs rather nicely, and the NO RADIATIONS dial is framed by a beautifully patina'd bakelite bezel, lending much to this watch's overall character and charm.

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Nice thin profile case...

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Thick lugs.

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Signed caseback...

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I've no clue as to what the movement is, however; any ideas?

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Definitely a difficult watch to capture in the lens, thanks mostly to that domed crystal. But quite a charming little watch that I am more than happy to add to my collection :)

Thanks for looking!

//ubi

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Thanks for the kind words, folks ^_^ I love this watch, and it appears Mrs. Ubi does too. In fact, I've got the mesh bracelet sized to her wrist now; she is going to give it a test drive for a few days. I have to say, the size of the case is a good match for her :wub:

At any rate, I thought I'd add a Ubi wrist shot to the thread as well as a size comparison. Maybe I'll get a Mrs. Ubi wristshot in tomorrow...

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Next to my 5514:

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It's been a long time since I've purchased an actual watch; my last few have been builds, so it's kind of nice to buy something that's ready to wear -_-

Cheers!

//ubi

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It look beautiful..so nobody know the origin of this watch ?

I thought only DSN last time have the FF

Still trying to figure it out. I thought for sure that I saw a similar one on J&W a year ago (same skinny bezel, same blocky numerals on it), but pictures show that Phong was selling something more similar to the 'Polish Navy' fakes.

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