Posts Tagged ‘Submariner’
Gilt 5513 Rolex Submariner
A true gilt dial just hits different. See, there is no one perfect 5513 dial; there are some less common such as the ‘Bart Simpson’, some more common such as the latter productions with white gold surrounds, some common yet gorgeous such as Maxi dials, some a bit bizarre such as 80s Spider dials, and…
Read More6536-1 Small Crown Rolex Submariner
The classic, iconic (I can actually use that adjective here) small-crown Submariner is ageing remarkably well. Every single Black Bay 58 you see plastered across your Instagram feed owes its existence to this design. The red triangle bezel, proud small crown, tapered lugs, and Mercedes handset went on to define a design language for the…
Read More‘Swiss Only’ 16610 Rolex Submariner
Succeeding the 1680 was never going to be an easy task. Yet, the 16610 took on this challenge in 1987 as one of the earliest of Rolex’s five-digit releases. Thankfully, it maintained the perfectly proportioned 39mm Oyster case, the last date Sub to do so. The 16610 was so successful that its production ran 21…
Read MoreValue Proposition: 9411/0 Tudor Snowflake
The Rolex Submariner is perhaps the most iconic wristwatch of all time. The Tudor Submariner, well it isn’t. And it’s all the better for it. Tudor’s 9411/0 Snowflake sub is not rare. But it is purposeful, eccentric, inconspicuous, and a value still today. Moreover, unlike a 5513, you’d have to be well down the road…
Read MoreTropical Mk2 Red 1680 Rolex Submariner
This sub truly does have it all: meters first, red single line, vanilla plots, chocolate dial, and faded fat font bezel. The 1680 was not Rolex’s first Sub with a red line of text (that was probably the 6536/8), but it was the most widely-distributed watch to do so. It was, however, definitively Rolex’s first Sub…
Read MoreNew-to-Market Comex 5514 Rolex Submariner
Comex is a sacred grail to those who worship at the altar of flat fours and frog feet. When one ventures deep into the details of meters first, underline dials, and exclamation points, all roads lead to milsubs or this: Comex. The 1960s gave birth to a partnership between Rolex and the Compagnie maritime d’expertises…
Read MoreSquare Crown Guard Rolex 5512
One may spend an entire lifetime learning about vintage Rolex. The variation is of infinite depth. The very earliest Submariners, big crown and small, lacked crown guards. We will all be familiar with that fact, courtesy of Sean Connery. However, when crown guards made debut on the Submariner, Rolex being Rolex, they evolved. Collectors will…
Read MoreValue Prop: 76100 Tudor Submariner
Given the feature of a 3970 in this round, I felt compelled to balance the scales with a down-to-basics, no-nonsense steel diver. I did not expect to stumble upon one so lovely or of the same era. Neo-vintage is not just collectable in Patek, VC, or AP, the era has more practical offerings as well.…
Read More5513 Rolex Royal Navy Milsub
Watches which have lived a full life and have that story to tell on their exterior hold pride of place for many us. In that pantheon, Rolex’s milsubs are arguably the most highly collected military watches of all time. Records denote ~1250 delivered examples across the three reference varieties. The run has everything: slight variation,…
Read MorePumpkin Mk1 16800 Rolex Submariner
Rolex changed the 1680 sub over to the 16800 in 1980. As usual, the changes were subtle. The bezel became racheted and uni-directinal, the crystal went sapphire, a slimmer case was introduced with a 100m deeper rating, and quick-set date function was added to a higher-beat movement. Okay, maybe the changes weren’t so subtle. Here’s…
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