Posts Tagged ‘Explorer’
Honeycomb Dial 6350 Rolex Explorer
Many will argue this is the first-ever Explorer, ref. 6350, and it’s honeycomb. But others will state it’s the ref. 6150. In the 6150, only some examples actually said Explorer on the dial and it wasn’t yet an officially certified chronometer. By this 6350, both traditions were firmly in place. It’s kind of like arguing…
Read More‘Frog Foot’ Dial 1016 Rolex Explorer
This is a 1016, which as we all know is the answer to every possible watch question. However, it’s a very peculiar sort. It’s the sort of 1016 for a collector who has already owned a 1016, who then looks down one day and thinks, ‘Yes, this is lovely, but I wish the Rolex coronet…
Read More6150 Rolex Precision Pre-Explorer
What is a Rolex Explorer? A 3-6-9 dial and sterile, steel bezel? Wearing a cardigan and doing no Exploring? Or does it have to say Explorer on it? This is the central question fueling a debate that’s been raging between the farthest gone of us for some time. This 6150 defined the case shape and…
Read MoreHoneycomb Dial 6350 Rolex Explorer
Many will argue this is the first-ever Explorer, ref. 6350. But others will state it’s the ref. 6150. In the 6150, only some examples actually said Explorer on the dial and it wasn’t yet an officially certified chronometer. By this 6350, both traditions were firmly in place. It’s kind of like arguing when the Beatles…
Read More‘Space-Dweller’ 1016 Rolex Explorer
The Space-Dweller universally elicits one reaction in person, ‘Hey, lovely 1016 Expl . . .WTAF?!’ It is equal parts mythical creature and fuel for debate at the nerdiest, arguably highest levels of vintage Rolex collecting. A larger handful of examples are known, probably fewer than 25, but that’s not definite. There is a known history…
Read MoreTropical 1016 Rolex Explorer
There are a handful of watches so desperately attractive and simultaneously difficult to attain that any number of players have been known to attempt to reproduce them with generic components and a liberal interpretation of intellectual property. These players will go unnamed save to say that one starts with M and ends in assena Lab.…
Read MoreNAAFI 1016 Rolex Explorer
Some watches are special not for complication, rarity, or brand, but rather the life they have lived. More often than not, watches that fall into that latter category are steel Rolex tool watches. For a multitude of reasons that encompasses advertising, reputation, and design, people who really do things seem to often align with Wilsdorf.…
Read MoreTiffany Dial 1016 Rolex Explorer
It is sometimes said that contrast is nature’s way of drawing attention. I was reminded of this recently by a friend, who often enjoys pairing a Royal Oak with Crocs. So is this Tiffany 1016 more attention-grabbing? Not really. At a glance, not at all. That’s its charm. We’re all used to Tiffany as a…
Read MoreTropical 1016 Rolex Explorer
No watch is more fit for purpose than a 1016. That purpose is adventure, it has been from the very start. So when you come across an example whose dial has clearly been used well and hard, well, this may be the reference’s ultimate expression. It’s kind of like seeing a Le Mans winning Porsche…
Read MoreMk1, ‘Frog Foot’ 1016 Rolex Explorer
Have you ever looked down at your vintage Explorer and thought, ‘Yeah this lovely, but I wish the Rolex coronet looked a little more like a frog’s foot’? Me neither. And yet, there are those among us who do. Or at least the market would seem to indicate such, as Mk1 or ‘Frog Foot’ 1016s…
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