In November 2021 I drafted an article about a new regular collection 40mm Fifty Fathoms going by reference number 5009-1144L-NAOA. But prior to the official launch of the timepiece Blancpain decided to pull it from the catalogue, so it never got introduced and my article was never published. Now, with two Fifty Fathoms 5007 with beautiful mother-of-pearl dials (and with that carrying the idea behind the 5009 from 2021 in a slightly different expression forward) being introduced last year it seems appropriate to finally capture the extremely short lived rare timepiece in the blog.

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Discontinued prior to its launch

Reference 5009 was traveling the world prior to its anticipated release towards the end of the year. It was the watch the 2021 winner of the Female Fifty Fathoms Award for underwater photography, Renee Capozzola, received on September 16, 2021. After that event a few watches were shown to authorized dealers and clients in different parts of the world, and those watches were actually sold prior to the launch.

I had the opportunity to do a photo shooting with reference 5009 in early November 2021, just to learn a short while later that this reference will actually not be released. This timepiece would have been the first regular collection 40mm Fifty Fathoms since the discontinuation of the Trilogy series, but it never really materialized.

Reference 5009 was significantly different to the existing 40mm FF 5008 limited editions, so there  are a lot of details to explore.

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Case & lugs

Blancpain have not simply taken the case of the 40.3mm FF as we know it. They have kept the overall curved design of the case, but the middle case of the 40.4mm reference 5009 is different in shape and lugs, resulting in a 2mm longer lug to lug measurement compared to ref 5008 (47mm vs 45mm). The lugs are a little thinner than with the other 40mm FF watches, but that is hardly noticeable. The middle case and lugs shape of the FF 5009 has actually more resemblance with the 5015 than the 5008, so in hindsight it was probably the first transition of the larger FF shapes into a smaller diameter, preceding the 2023 FF 5010 and the 2025 FF 5007.

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Compared to the 40mm FF 5008 the case back has a larger aperture for the crystal and is shaped differently to match nicely with the case curving.

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Bezel & crystal 

The overall slimmer profile compared to reference 5008 is mainly driven by a thinner serrated bezel rim which has a subtle design, the crystal is not as domed as we know it from ref 5008 (again it resembles more the 5015 style) and a new case back.

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The sapphire bezel insert is wider than with ref 5008 and has a new blue color underneath, which is brighter than the blue we know from the OC III or the blue FF 5015 versions. The luminous numerals have a very different design that not only corresponds to the dial numerals but is also slimmer.  

The distance ring between bezel and crystal is also slimmer than we know it from the previous 40mm Fifty Fathoms, again a nod to the FF 5015 design details.

Overall the new FF 5009 looks a bit larger compared to the FF 5008 or 2200A despite being only 0.1mm larger in diameter.

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Dial & hands

The dial is clearly the most obvious difference to any previous Fifty Fathoms. Executed in Mother of Pearl with a beautiful texture (which is unique with every single specimen) and showing different shades of blue it provides a very distinct look and a depth you rarely find. 

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Just as unusual are the radial numerals, both in style and the fact that all 12 numerals are featured. These numerals give this Fifty Fathoms are more playful and less technical character. The hands pick up the style we know from the FF 5015, albeit in a slimmer format. The seconds hand is a unique design for this timepiece.

The date window is at its traditional position between 4 and 5. The date disc corresponds with the darker elements of the dial and the print is done in a similar font to the dial. I usually like the date window since (besides the usefulness) it provides a break in symmetry, so I do not belong to the quite vocal „no date“ group of collectors. In this case I am not at all in favor of the date. With the twelve rather large numerals on the dial it looks a bit squeezed, and the spectacular MOP dial would have done just fine without the date aperture.

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Movement 

The new Fifty Fathoms 5009 is powered by the well known caliber 1151, albeit in a different version with the decoration being now similar to caliber 1315 known from the larger Fifty Fathoms/Bathyscaphe. We find the same being true for the later references 5010 and 5007.

The 18ct gold rotor shows a unique and very beautiful design with two large apertures, allowing a better view on the movement.

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Nato strap & tang buckle

The Nato strap has not changed in style or texture, but it has a brighter blue color, matching nicely with the timepiece. It also shows a bold branding on the lower side, which was a first in 2021 and has subsequently become a standard for all later Blancpain Nato straps.

The tang buckle has also taken over the Fifty Fathoms engraving as we know it from the 45mm models. The FF 5008 editions in comparison came with an unsigned tang buckle.

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Overall impressions 

One thing became obvious to me once I took in all details of the new Fifty Fathoms 5009: it was not a new iteration of the previous 40mm Fifty Fathoms, it is all together a new watch. There’s not a single part of it that surfaced previously in another timepiece, and as mentioned before it was actually the first smaller version of the FF 5015 design.

Reference 5009 was a more playful interpretation of the iconic first professional dive watch and it doesn’t really fit into traditional criteria. It has elements that many might understand to be geared towards a female audience, but those are executed in a way that make the new Fifty Fathoms universally appealing.

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The style of numerals on the dial and the bezel is probably quite controversial, personally I would have preferred a less playful style. What’s rather obvious is that the date window is not a good idea for this spectacular dial. I can imagine that these two aspects may have played a role in reference 5009 being pulled so quickly.

However, with only very few specimen having found collector’s wrists it is now a real unicorn Fifty Fathoms. Those who own one should cherish it for its many unique details and especially since it is to this day the only 40mm Fifty Fathoms with the same case geometry as the 5015, 5010 and 5007.

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You find today’s Fifty Fathoms 5007 with mother-of-pearl dials here on the Blancpain website. An overview on all 40mm Fifty Fathoms limited editions can be found here in the blog.

I hope you enjoyed the read and the photos.

Cheers 

Henrik