5402BA Audemars Piguet Royal Oak

In the below image, I would happily wear the watch on the left every day for the rest of my life. The watch on the right, not so much. To the untrained eye, they are the same watch. To us, they are as different as Macallan is to Budweiser, despite both being brown drinks. The 5402 began in steel, defiantly. But it didn’t stay that way. There have been many contesting histories offered by experts on just how successful the Royal Oak was in its early years. This is a gold 5402, the first luxury steel sports watch, but in gold. That will make you scratch your head, but that’s kind of why this thing is so cool.

To the best that I can work out through all of AP’s marking subterfuge and broad strokes, the Royal Oak was initially a long, slow, but consistent burn in the market: not inspiring mass hysteria nor a total flop. A modestly strong first one or two years, followed by a long flat fall off for the better part of a decade before demand started burning hot again. In that in-between time of slow-adoption purgatory, AP decided to acquiesce to those who complained that the original 5402 retail price of 3750 CHF was insane for steel. After a ‘meh’ 5402ST reception in 1972, AP changed course. Five years later, they were ready with the 5402BA. By ’78, AP sold almost equal numbers of the BA and ST. The excess margin provided by the huge precious metal retail saw the Royal Oak through its awkward nascent years.

Moreover, it is true to Genta’s original pen, a monocoque case with a front-loading movement. This was ditched in the second half of 15202 production (right) to make it easier and quicker to manufacture, back to normal 3-body. That also added considerable thickness. And just about every part of the latter series of 15202 was made as easy to produce as possible without buyers noticing, from the dial to the rotor. I’ve ranted about this on our podcast, so I’ll save my full thesis. What I don’t think is well-understood, more broadly, is the critical role that precious metal still played in Royal Oak history, for being regarded as the steel legend. It was never intended to be gold or bimetal, but it needed to be to survive. And those life-support references are today regarded much like similar 18 year old sherry casks Macallan from the late 70s: possibly as good as it was ever made or will be made. Luxury as a product category breathes on the soul and romance of the item being sold. The 5402BA is overflowing with that trite word: soul.

This example is killer. The case is quite full, with strong bevels and sharp edged back engravings. Its bracelet appears pretty tight as well (these can get wildly loose, gold is soft). It comes with its original full set, which is quite uncommon, from a well-regarded Malaysian retailer.