Comex 5513 Rolex Submariner

The phrase 'a workhorse', is a bit of a cliché these days. Well, this actually is one. Not because of how it was made, but because it truly worked for a living. It's a professional Submariner, not a 5513 sold in Miami to your local banker. It's a 5513 that says Comex on the dial. It has an HeV in the case side. And that makes it the godfather of most serious dive watches today. Comex worked together with Rolex to stress test new dive watch prototypes, as we all know. Their earliest experiments were split between the 1665 Sea-Dweller and Submariners of the time. The Sub development started in the 5513, but split into its own reference in the year following in the ref. 5514 which was a dedicated Comex reference. These 5513s with helium escape valves were joint-modified together. Think of it like the early Mercedes-AMG relationship.

Comex was a separate company that pushed Rolex deeper via some ambitious modifications that were overseen together. Both these 5513s and 5514s were produced concurrently with small distinctions between them in case construction, both made to be abused below the sea. This one of André Heiniger's most prescient moves, pushed by Henri Germain Delauze. Only after the patent was secured of course. After all, this is Rolex. 

About 250 four-digit Submariners are thought to have been produced for Comex in the early 70s, although many speculate on just what that number is. It's not known. The retailer here believes there are fewer than 50 Comex dial 5513s. They didn't all say Comex on the dial. They didn't all have the same style of engraving, it varied over the years. And they didn't all make it. Meaning collecting today is seriously involved business. Short of shaking hands with the diver that owned it, the gold standard is a 'Henrey Hudson' letter (just like Milsubs). And just like Milsubs or special order FAP Daytonas, the full serial is also unusually inside the caseback (or at least 3 digits of it). Diligence is everything here. And just like 6263 and 6265, casebacks often read 5513 on 5514s from factory, although I haven't heard of vice versa. 

This whole world of the historically significant divers like single red 1665s, 5517s, 5514s, or indeed Comex 5513s are the professional league in Rolex collecting. No one winds up here by accident, although many perish via mistakes along the way. While not an easy task to seek out, they are some of the most rewarding, simple-yet-astonishing examples of true pedigree from Rolex history. So, if I can actually call it a racehorse, at least we know it's a thoroughbred Arabian. 

This example looks like you want it to. The case is obviously used hard, not recut, not polished hard either. These should not look new. The dial here is an obvious standout, with more attractive tritium than we're used to seeing: golden tan. The exact paperwork that's included I can't quite tell, so ask. It comes from a well-regarded Parisian retailer.