Posts Tagged ‘GMT-Master’
Tropical Service Dial 6542 Rolex GMT-Master
I must admit to slightly enjoying antagonizing purists here; a closed mind is boring. This is a service dial, and that’s always less desirable, right? Well, not quite. The 6542 GMT-Master was created with radium dials and was famously recalled for its radioactivity. If one came in for service over the next decade, Rolex would…
Read MoreUAE Ministry of Defence 1675 Rolex GMT-Master
UAE dial Rolexes are about a desirable as it gets, in any context. But the vast majority of signatures are on Datejusts and Day-Dates, the dressier watches. A steel sport Rolex with UAE enamel at 6 is remarkable in every regard. This is particularly the case for the 1675 GMT-Master, where the watches were emblazoned…
Read MoreTropical, Gilt Dial 1675 Rolex GMT-Master
At a collector meetup last year, I encountered a very tan, thin, well-dressed Italian man. He had the kind of skin that let you know he’d spent every day of summer strolling around outside Capri. His glasses were Tom Ford. The calfskin boots he wore had been on foot at least ten years. He spoke…
Read MoreSpider Dial 16750 Rolex GMT-Master
Of all the varied types of ageing a watch may exhibit, what collectors call a spider dial must be the most contentious amongst people who really know Rolex. You think Israel v Palestine has some ardent extremists? Walk this GMT into the Hodinkee office and watch a civil war ensue. Every watch journalist has used…
Read More1675/8 Rolex GMT-Master
Opulence is often said to be distasteful by definition, but a gold nipple dial? C’mon, that’s an exemption many amongst us and I will gladly make. While the GMT-Master was made for the jet set, Rolex recognized early on that its well-heeled, travel-hungry clientelle could afford a little extra aureate. Almost as soon as the…
Read More6542 Rolex GMT-Master Bakelite
More than any other watch, the 6542 embodies the romance of the jet set’s dawn. All the details align to that era. The radium (or not). The understated proportions. The bakelite bezel. This was a watch made to live life the fullest with. However, not all examples age quite this gracefully. The majority of early…
Read MoreFuchsia, Mk1 Long E 1675 Rolex GMT-Master
The difference a simple bezel can make is quite extreme. In the 1675, which enjoyed quite a long run, there was a period of a few years where early aluminum bezels were manufactured with a paint composition that would turn from red to this beautiful fuchsia tone over time. They have all been observed in…
Read More1675/8 ‘President’ Rolex GMT-Master
For what mass hysteria surrounds steel sport Rolex today, I simply cannot imagine a stronger antidote. For what is not a massive price difference compared to the current secondhand market base GMT-Master II value, this insane vintage reference is on the table: 1978 production in full gold, substantially less common, and brimming with nuance and…
Read MoreTropical Gilt 1675 Rolex GMT-Master
As many have pointed out, I have a soft spot for four and five digit Rolex. I could nod toward the charm, immense history, or the fact that I regret letting many go in equal measure as cause. The thing is though, I don’t have to justify it. Everyone loves the 1675, everyone past a…
Read MoreMk5, Pumpkin 1675 Rolex GMT-Master
The difference a bezel can make is extreme. In March 2015, I had the opportunity to attend the Geneva Motor Show. What I expected to find there were many Cosmographs, and I did. But what surprised me, more than any concept, was the sheer quantity of Batman GMTs on wrist. No exaggeration—not Coke, not Pepsi,…
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