This is a vintage Tudor Submariner, Reference 94010 (alternatively written as “9401/0”). A later example of the long-running Tudor Submariner, a more affordable version of the Rolex Submariner. Tudor’s version was introduced in 1954 and was released in two colors: black and blue. The Tudor Sub was discontinued in 1999.
 
If you split up the Tudor Submariner’s 45-year history into generations, this particular 94010 would be on the tail end of the 2nd generation. The 2nd generation of the Submariner marked the introduction of the crown guards, ETA movements, and most importantly, the introduction of the “Snowflake” hands, which were designed to improve legibility underwater during tests with Marine Nationale.
 
The 94010 reference was first introduced in 1975 (the same year Bruce Springsteen released Born To Run) and ran until 1983. It was toward the end of the production run that Tudor introduced a limited number of watches with the “Triangle” dial, which included luminous isosceles triangles painted onto the 12, 3, 6, and 9 indices, and circular dots for the others. Sweeping the dial was a set of the Mercedes-style hands made popular by Tudor’s big brother Rolex many years earlier. Though this particular dial was sometimes referred to the “Lollipop”, it is actually the predecessor to the real “Lollipop”, which required the presence of non-Mercedes-style hour hand (which looked like a lollipop, hence its name).
 
Collectibility
 
Any Tudor Submariner is incredibly collectible, as the line has since been discontinued for over 20 years. Through Rolex’s work popularizing (and selling millions upon millions of) the Submariner watch, Tudor made far fewer Subs than Rolex, which contributes to the collectibility of these watches.
 
The triangle dial has now become incredibly sought after due to its rarity; most 94010s were outfitted with the Snowflake dials, but in the final couple years of the production of this reference, the Triangle dial was offered as an alternative in both blue and black. The Snowflake dials, while desirable and historically significant, are also more plentiful — as collectors have begun to chase the rarer models, the 94010 reference with the Triangle dial has proven to be much more exclusive. At the time of this writing, there are virtually no other examples of this dial on the market.
 
This example also comes outfitted on the 9315 bracelet with 380 end links and a Tudor clasp, instead of the Rolex clasp found on some other models. The bracelet appears to be period-correct and is original to the watch.
 
Features of the Watch:
 
40mm case size
Black glossy dial with luminous “Triangle” motif, indices
Luminous Mercedes hands
Bi-directional rotating dive bezel
 
Movement:
 
ETA 2776
Sweeping seconds, 21,600 bph
Hacking seconds
Automatic winding
47 hour reserve
25.6mm casing diameter
 
Scope of delivery:
Rolex 116500LN-0001 watch
Outer cream box
Inner green presentation box
Booklets
Card holder
Warranty Card
888 Timepieces card
Pillow
Green hangtag
Original purchase receipt from Mayor’s Jewelers
 
Condition:
 
The watch is outfitted with a domed acrylic crystal which has some deeper scratches, but no gouges or areas where material has been removed. The case does have some scratches, nicks, and a few dings (notably one under the lugs, and one of the folded links on the bracelet received a pretty damaging bump). The bezel’s lume pip appears to be missing on this particular watch, and there are some bites and scratches in the bezel. For its age, the watch is in fairly nice condition, and very suitable for a collector. The bracelet and case both appear to retain original finish with no polishing. We’ve opted to not fix the dent in the bracelet to preserve the watch and not alter any of it.