Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Automatique 5015 45mm satin-brushed titanium case, black sailcloth strap

Blancpain’s Fifty Fathoms has a cult following among dive watch fans: despite being released in the same year as Rolex’s Submariner (1953, for the chronologists), it’s nowhere near as famous. Owners therefore get a historic watch that’s one of the ever-popular segment’s archetypes, and without the fanfare of, with all due respect to a superlative design, the more well-known Sub. Today’s versions are often produced in precious metals, or with voguish blue dials and bezels, but there’s a lot to be said for the old-school mono configuration. This new tool-watch version adopts that position, albeit with the contemporary use of featherweight titanium for the 45mm case. That’s good for 300m water resistance and shields an automatic movement with a meaty five-day power reserve. RS £POA; blancpain.com