Blancpain · Fifty Fathoms · Ref 5015-12B40-98 · new on Amazon
The first modern dive watch, on a five-day movement.
Blancpain built the Fifty Fathoms for French combat swimmers in 1953, a year before the Submariner. This is the current 45mm version in titanium, with a blue sunburst dial, a scratch-proof sapphire bezel insert, a titanium bracelet and calibre 1315 inside, which runs five days on a full wind. New from an independent dealer through Amazon.
Case
45mm titanium, 15.4mm thick
Amazon spec table for 5015-12B40-98
Movement
Calibre 1315, automatic
Blancpain; Amazon table: automatic
Power reserve
About 120 hours (five days)
Blancpain calibre 1315, three barrels
Water resistance
300m (30 ATM)
Blancpain Fifty Fathoms; dial reads 300m/1000ft
Bezel
Unidirectional, sapphire insert
Blancpain
Bracelet
Titanium, 23mm
Amazon spec table: bracelet, 23mm band
Before the Submariner
Jean-Jacques Fiechter, Blancpain’s chief executive and a diver, drew up the Fifty Fathoms in 1953 for the French navy’s combat swimmers: a rotating bezel that only turns one way, luminous markers on a black dial, a screw-down crown and water resistance to fifty fathoms, about 91 metres. Every dive watch since has followed the recipe.
The modern 5015 keeps the look and changes the materials: the bezel insert is a domed piece of sapphire that will not scratch, the case is 45mm, and inside is calibre 1315 with three mainspring barrels and a five-day reserve, so it keeps running over a long weekend off the wrist.
Titanium and blue
The titanium version cuts the weight of a 45mm case by nearly half against steel, which is why a watch this size wears the way it does. This reference pairs the blue sunburst dial with the titanium bracelet; the same watch comes on sail-canvas and rubber under different suffixes, so match the full reference in the title.
Every figure here comes from the Amazon spec table and Blancpain’s published specification for the 5015, not from handling the watch.
Buying it new on Amazon
This unit is listed new by an independent dealer through Amazon, with Amazon’s 30-day return window on top of the dealer’s warranty; read the warranty line on the listing, because Blancpain’s own warranty runs from an authorised sale.
Steel and titanium Fifty Fathoms have historically resold below retail but held better than Blancpain’s gold dress watches, because the dive watch has the wider audience. That is a pattern, not a promise, and nothing here is investment advice.
Specs
- Reference
- 5015-12B40-98
- Case size
- 45mm
- Case material
- Titanium
- Movement
- Automatic, Blancpain Calibre 1315
- Caliber type
- Blancpain 1315, three barrels, silicon balance spring
- Crystal
- Sapphire Crystal, sapphire bezel insert
- Water resistance
- 300m (30 ATM)
- Power reserve
- About 120 hours (five days)
- Complications
- Date
- Origin
- Swiss Made
Specifications as published by Blancpain. We research from manufacturer documentation and published sources rather than hands-on testing. Researched 2026-09-12.
Verdict
The original dive watch in its modern titanium form, five-day reserve, sapphire bezel, new from a dealer.
Strengths
- The 1953 dive-watch recipe from the house that wrote it
- Calibre 1315: five days of reserve on three barrels
- Sapphire bezel insert; 300m; titanium bracelet
- New, with Amazon’s return window
Trade-offs
- 45mm and 15.4mm thick; big even in titanium
- Resells below retail
- Dealer warranty, not Blancpain’s from purchase
- Several strap variants share the base reference; match the suffix
Buy it if
Someone who wants the dive watch that predates the Submariner, on a movement that outlasts the weekend.
Skip it if
You want a watch under 42mm, or the resale pattern of a steel Rolex.
FAQ
Yes. Blancpain delivered the Fifty Fathoms to French combat swimmers in 1953; Rolex showed the Submariner in 1954.
Sources
- Blancpain Fifty Fathoms, official collection page
- Amazon marketplace listing (new, independent dealer), read 2026-09-12
Researched and last updated 2026-09-12. We do not test watches in hand; every figure above is traceable to the manufacturer or the sources listed here.
Blancpain Fifty Fathoms 45mm (titanium, blue dial)
Reference 5015-12B40-98 · $10,000–$25,000
Prices and availability change; the band above is a research figure, so check the current listing.
Affiliate Disclosure
The Horologist is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. This never influences our editorial recommendations — every timepiece is selected on merit alone.
Complete the look
A fresh strap changes the whole watch.
Not ready today? Adding it to your cart keeps your pick saved.
Compared Against