News: Tudor Revives The Ranger
Tudor fans probably weren’t expecting to see the Ranger pop up again for a while. After all, it’s only been a couple of years since they pulled the plug on the last version, the reference 79910.
The latest incarnation of the model, the name of which was first registered by Hans Wilsdorf back in 1929, celebrates the 70th anniversary of the British North Greenland Expedition.
Now, admittedly this isn’t exactly an expedition that everyone is familiar with, but British scientists did get to carry out a number of important tests that would benefit the Armed Forces when operating in Arctic environments. And they did it wearing Tudor watches, which performed impeccably in those freezing conditions.
Like the previous version (which didn’t feature the word ‘Ranger’ on the dial at all) the new Ranger—reference M79950-0001—features a black dial that alternates lumed baton markers with Arabic numerals and features the distinctive ‘shovel’ hour hand seen on previous models.
Actually it looks more like a garden trowel than a shovel to us, but ‘garden trowel hand’ sounds a bit naff, no?
Clearly this is Tudor’s answer to the Rolex Explorer, which shares the pared-down, field-watch aesthetic and looks robust enough to withstand everything from bullets to bare-knuckle boxing bouts.
Unlike the discontinued 79910, this is 2mm smaller at 39mm and features a useful rapid adjustment system on the steel bracelet, introduced in the recent Black Bay Pro. It also dispenses with the self-winding ETA 2824, replacing it with the in-house COSC-certified MT5402 used in the Black Bay 58 models.
This takes the power reserve from a fairly mediocre 38 hours to a weekend-covering 70 hours.
It comes on a steel bracelet, a black leather-and-rubber combination strap (pictured above), or a NATO-style option traditionally woven on the old Jacquard looms of the Julien Faure company, which Tudor has used previously on various other models.
The latter comes in a fetching olive green with beige and thin red stripes, echoing the hint of red on the tip of the seconds hand— a nice attention to detail.
Case | Stainless Steel
Dimensions | 39mm
Dial | Black
Crystal | Sapphire Crystal
Water Resistance | 100M
Movement | Tudor calibre MT5402
Power Reserve | 70 Hours
Frequency | 28,800 vph
Strap | Steel bracelet, rubber and leather strap, or woven NATO
Functions | Seconds, Minutes, Hours
RRP | £2,420 (or £2,170 on a strap)
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