Tudor Black bay bronze GEN vs ZF

[Copterguy]

Ok, I finally received my TD order for the ZF BBB. I ordered it to get a good comparison with a gen I ordered on Jomashop. The gen came in with a small scratch, but that's another story......
Anyway, first look side by side. Identical. The rep strap is thicker, obviously harder and not as supple as the gen, but looks good. I'll just post my pathetic attempt at pictures and let you see with better eyes.

Things I noticed slightly different, bezel teeth on rep deeper and a wee bit sharper. Super slight difference in dial face with gen having a darker transition towards the edges, (I read the XF does better on that) .... Brushing is different, more noticeable in pictures than in person. Dial back slightly different color, lume looks to me exactly the same, very good. Finishing, yeah the hands with a loop shows the difference of course. I don't want to attempt removing the case back to see the movement, I'd break it... But I do want to see the movement on both.... Just to be sure jomashop didn't send me a FAKE.
I did this quickly, so maybe I can take better pictures later......

Personally, I think this watch is NWBIG. What say you?

 

[kidcreole]

Great comparison. I assume gen on left? If so I prefer the case finish of the rep. Dial on the left pops more. Font looks raised although could be angle.

What are your thoughts now you have both? Are you thinking of flipping the gen or is it a special one for you?

 

[Copterguy]

Great comparison. I assume gen on left? If so I prefer the case finish of the rep. Dial on the left pops more. Font looks raised although could be angle.

What are your thoughts now you have both? Are you thinking of flipping the gen or is it a special one for you?

Yes, gen on the right. It may be my substandard picture taking skills ​​​​​​... It's all cell phone camera pictures. I should have my shutterbug wife use her real dslr camera... I just wanted to put something basic out there.
Nothing special on the gen. I went into an AD and tried one on, since it's 43mm, I liked the fit, found a good deal online and got it. Not sure yet what the future holds. The rep is pretty damn good though.

 

[P..DR..D]

Looks class & thank you for sharing Sir, love these kinda comparisons!

While macro shots are great, imo, these kinda comparisons are more true to real life, where we're not walking around with a 20x loupe

To my eye I cant see any differences bar a negligible, and I mean minuscule ,thickness difference in pictures 6 & 7.

But again only because they are literally on top of each other, with the gen marginally thinner?

Could also be my eyes, and the angle of photo etc, but outta pure curiosity, do you have a calipers to measure precisely?

I'd say no more than a mm & not that it matters in the slightest tbh but just curious, they say size doesn't matter

Are you going to send the joma back or keep both and wear rep as the day to day?

Well wear Sir, congrats on both & enjoy - cracking watches:thumbsup:

 

[Copterguy]

Looks class & thank you for sharing Sir, love these kinda comparisons!

While macro shots are great, imo, these kinda comparisons are more true to real life, where we're not walking around with a 20x loupe

To my eye I cant see any differences bar a negligible, and I mean minuscule ,thickness difference in pictures 6 & 7.

But again only because they are literally on top of each other, with the gen marginally thinner?

Could also be my eyes, and the angle of photo etc, but outta pure curiosity, do you have a calipers to measure precisely?

I'd say no more than a mm & not that it matters in the slightest tbh but just curious, they say size doesn't matter

Are you going to send the joma back or keep both and wear rep as the day to day?

Well wear Sir, congrats on both & enjoy - cracking watches:thumbsup:

OMG, I even baught some calipers to measure this and forgot!! ha ha... 14.8mm both exactly the same.
I haven't decided what to do with either one. I'll probably keep the gen for a while as I like its look with some of what I'm wearing. I'll probably sell the rep soon, as a catch and release. I may need to do another photo shoot though... Need my wife to take the pictures.

 

[P..DR..D]

OMG, I even baught some calipers to measure this and forgot!! ha ha... 14.8mm both exactly the same.
I haven't decided what to do with either one. I'll probably keep the gen for a while as I like its look with some of what I'm wearing. I'll probably sell the rep soon, as a catch and release. I may need to do another photo shoot though... Need my wife to take the pictures.

Awesome & just goes to show how pictures can be misconstrued and over analysed. And that's with a GEN beside it.

They both look class Sir, so if you can afford to enjoy the gen happy days & congratulations on your purchase.

Well wear:thumbsup:
I also need a trip to specsavers :wowa:

 

[Copterguy]

Weight.....
Gen slightly heavier...

 

[P..DR..D]

Off by 0.87g, shocking.

I'd definitely RL that

 

[Copterguy]

... The bezel thickness is definitely thicker on the rep. That's no optical illusion.

 

[p0pperini]

Thanks for the post Copterguy - this is such useful info for the community. Super-macro in-depth analysis is all well and good, but these straightforward phone pic reviews are perfectly valid for making a solid comparison.

I've got the XF Black Bay Bronze Bucherer Blue (or BBBBB as I discovered it's known). I've no idea how good XF is compared to ZF, but it's also a very smart piece. The rotor is a bit audibly whizzy. And of course I felt compelled to reach for the calipers as soon as I read your BB's vital statistics, and can confirm that the XF is... 14.9mm. So it's off on thickness. Not that this bothers me - I hadn't even bothered to find out why it had the name "Bucherer" until about 10 minutes ago...

Anyway, congrats on owning the gen. I have to say I'd be in a real quandry if I owned both those... on the one hand, a gen's a gen, but on the other hand that ZF is surely NWBIG, and we know what NWBIG means...

But still - a gen's a gen! Wear it in good health sir.

EDIT: Ooh! Meant to say, if you do keep both for a while, it'll be interesting to compare how the bronze patination comes out on each of them. I gave mine an overnight heated vinegar sauna a while back, which resulted in a lovely verdigris effect.

 

[Karl]

Thanks for the comparison

For the dial it would be the best to do some outside pictures, with different angles of light

 

[Copterguy]

Thanks for the comparison

For the dial it would be the best to do some outside pictures, with different angles of light

I'll do that.

 

[Karl]

... The bezel thickness is definitely thicker on the rep. That's no optical illusion.

I think it's the same, the rep isn't as much beveled on the edges both on the bezel and the crown, makes it appear thicker. XF is using the same supplier for the bezel. The crown is better on your ZF then my XF, the engravings are almost 1:1 on ZF, XF has a bigger dot in the middle of the tudor rose then gen or ZF for example.

The case beveling is nice on the other hand, much better then on my XF,q still not 1:1 like gen but way closer, shows how much more experience ZF has with tudor reps.

-Minute hand and second hand are stamped too thin compared to the gen and XF

-dial print looks even better and more 3d then the gen next to it must be the lightning (tudor shild logo on the other hand looks too thick)

-the bezel PIP is the same as XF both are incorrect but could pass as a gen that have been worn off with time honestly. (Pip placement is slightly off center on your model but I've seen ZF&XF with better placement)

-crown tube is also different on ZF and XF, ZF seems a little too long like on all ZF tudor reps as of late

-case finish is also wrong on both XF and ZF, gen is using satin finish on the sides where as XF&ZF are using brushed finish. On the top the ZF&XF have slightly to heavy brushing but with a little polishing past and a polishing cloth will look both way closer to gen and develope more gen like patina. Without polishing a little both reps will develope darker patina because of the more course finish.

Also let's not forget ZF is the best because it's actually available unlike XF which are closed for the time being.

Thanks for the thread OP again!

(Please include daylight pictures and also one picture where you place the crowns next to each other)

 

[Copterguy]

I think it's the same, the rep isn't as much beveled on the edges both on the bezel and the crown, makes it appear thicker. XF is using the same supplier for the bezel. The crown is better on your ZF then my XF, the engravings are almost 1:1 on ZF, XF has a bigger dot in the middle of the tudor rose then gen or ZF for example.

The case beveling is nice on the other hand, much better then on my XF,q still not 1:1 like gen but way closer, shows how much more experience ZF has with tudor reps.

-Minute hand and second hand are stamped too thin compared to the gen and XF

-dial print looks even better and more 3d then the gen next to it must be the lightning (tudor shild logo on the other hand looks too thick)

-the bezel PIP is the same as XF both are incorrect but could pass as a gen that have been worn off with time honestly. (Pip placement is slightly off center on your model but I've seen ZF&XF with better placement)

-crown tube is also different on ZF and XF, ZF seems a little too long like on all ZF tudor reps as of late

-case finish is also wrong on both XF and ZF, gen is using satin finish on the sides where as XF&ZF are using brushed finish. On the top the ZF&XF have slightly to heavy brushing but with a little polishing past and a polishing cloth will look both way closer to gen and develope more gen like patina. Without polishing a little both reps will develope darker patina because of the more course finish.

Also let's not forget ZF is the best because it's actually available unlike XF which are closed for the time being.

Thanks for the thread OP again!

(Please include daylight pictures and also one picture where you place the crowns next to each other)

Thanks for the input. I actually wanted to get a hold of the XF as well. Would have been great to see the 3 placed together for comparison.
Getting the ZF took nearly 2 months. :straightface:

 

[Karl]

Getting the ZF took nearly 2 months. :straightface:

Wow...
Thanks for your patience it's really great seeing these two together

The tudor bronze series is plagued with people that have no idea about the flaws and strengths of each maker this really helps. Reading the old release threads is so much cringe

 

[Copterguy]

Outside, side by side pics. Can see difference in script color tone and fade to black on dial. Still... Damn good rep.

 

[mech500]

Nice work and write up. Not had a bronze version yet but the only thing that bothered me on the SS versions was the mismatching white hands. That doesn’t look to be an issue on the bronze version, as the hands and hour marker like seem to match (in daylight). ZF have done a great job. Might have to give this one a try as well


Sent from my iPhone using RWI

 

[mech500]

If this wasn’t a rep forum, I’d just assume one is brand new gen and the other is a used gen that’s been in the sun for a few years (uv fading) and has been re-polished/brushed by a local jeweller.


Sent from my iPhone using RWI

 

[Karl]

Outside, side by side pics. Can see difference in script color tone and fade to black on dial. Still... Damn good rep.

Agree 100% also let's not forget I've seen some differences in gens as well, I've seen gens with similar bezels with less beveling also the case beveling is different a little sometimes as well

Also tudor official repolish literally looks like from XF or ZF like seen here

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watches/co...wear/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share

Thanks for the pictures OP I love you, thanks for taking the time

 

[RussianMgtow]

Thanks for the post op.
i thought for a second they reppe'd the boutique edition.
Im on a gen waiting list, it is so beautiful.