Hi

I'm after a Waltham Blancpain Bathyscaphe, a watch made for Waltham by Blancpain in the Fifty Fathoms style.... I'm looking for one with original dial, hands and bakelite bezel, strap doesn't matter...one of these has been on my buy list for a while and I just recently narrowly missed one on eBay. There is one on chrono 24 but IMO it's overpriced. Article with photo here, I'm in London UK but do travel to New York regularly. Thanks in advance!

https://shop.1025vintage.com/products/waltham-bathyscaphe

 

Have you held one in person? Smaller than expected.
I'm still skeptical at the stories that this was actually built by Blancpain (yes, I have read the articles).
I have owned several over the years. Nothing on the inside that even hints of Blancpain. They have always screamed Waltham. The bezel and dial look more like homage to the Fifty Fathoms.

 

I've never seen anything to contradict the Blancpain manufacturing relationship. Waltham was a very strong brand back in the day, so not having Blancpain markings on an OEM piece would be pretty consistent with their branding philosophy.

For me the size wears more like a 35/36mm watch, even though it's 34mm. I like these a lot, and at the same size as an AirKing (for example), it has a nice presence on the wrist. I'd say keep an eye on EBay as they turn-up there and usually sell between $1300 - $1700 depending on condition.