Darren Ho 20 February 2023

The Patek Philippe Ref. 5711 is discontinued. Long live the Ref. 5811. 

Roughly one year ago, not long after Patek Philippe had created the limited-edition Tiffany Blue Ref. 5711/1A-018, the Ref. 5711 was discontinued and removed from the brand’s website. That led to a spike in demand for the watch, and prices again shot up on the pre-owned market.

Many collectors have been waiting for the successor to the Ref. 5711 and the Ref. 5811/1G-001 was dutifully unveiled by Patek Philippe in October 2022. There are similarities and differences between the two models, but one particular aspect has returned: the gradient blue sunburst dial, although in a slightly different hue compared with its predecessor.

The Nautilus Ref. 5811/1G-001

You’ll note that the new flagship Nautilus is now one millimetre bigger, going from 40mm to 41mm. It's also housed in white gold instead of stainless steel. This is a novel change, as past Ref. 5711G watches did not offer a bracelet. The last white gold Nautilus Jumbo with a bracelet was the short-lived Ref. 3711G, which preceded the Ref. 5711. 

This is not the only throwback to the Ref. 37xx Nautiluses. The Ref. 5811/1G-001 also features a two-part case construction, which differs from the Ref. 5711’s three-part case. A two-part case combines the case back with the middle. Without a caseback that can be opened, a movement can only be removed from the watch on the dial side.

Patek Philippe has managed this by designing a lever system to pull out the winding stem, so the movement can be taken out from the front of the watch. Further changes to the watch include the secure fold-over clasp and a new lockable adjustment system to extend or reduce the length of the bracelet by two or four millimetres.

The watch is driven by the Calibre 26-330 S C, which was also used in the final series of the Ref. 5711/1A-014. This automatic movement was first introduced in 2019 and based on the Calibre 324. They share a number of technical improvements, most notably a stop-seconds mechanism and a LIGA-etched nickel-phosphorous gear for the smooth running of the seconds hand.

It’s interesting to see some details of the new Ref. 5811/1G-001 originating from the Ref. 3700, which is the grail for many Patek Philippe collectors and Nautilus lovers. By recalling the past and updating it with technical innovation, it draws on the rich history of the OG Nautilus while highlighting the new reference.

The big question on everyone’s mind, naturally, is if we’ll see the steel model emerge at the upcoming Watches and Wonders Geneva fair. All eyes will be glued to Patek Philippe’s booth windows on March 27 to see if collectors’ dreams are collectively fulfilled by the brand.

The Ref. 5811/1G-001 is retailing at S$92,900 at all authorised retailers but, unsurprisingly, sold out everywhere. For those of you already on an interest list, good luck.   

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Darren Ho

Editor

Darren has been writing about, and admiring the craft of watchmaking for over a dozen years. He considers himself lucky to live in a golden age of horology, and firmly believes that the most difficult watches to design are the simplest and the most intriguing to discover.