Page 48 - Albert's Diamond Jewelers

watchenthusiast
by CAROL BESLER
COLLECTING
PRE-OWNED ROLEX
A PRIMER ON COLLECTING THE WORLD’S MOST COLLECTED WATCH
Rolex is the most collected watch in the world, and because the brand has produced so many timepieces for so long, the number of options and the subtle nuances within collections adds up to a vast universe of pre-owned models to choose from. Several books have been written about Rolex, including the highly regarded The Ultimate Rolex Daytona Book and Rolex Day-Date: Timeless Elegance by Pucci Papaleo, or the recently published The Watch Book: Rolex by journalist Gisbert Brunner. These and other experts can spot the subtle differences that separate every version of a model throughout its lifespan. When you consider that these distinctions exist for every model, some of which have been around since the 1940s, and that Rolex produces nearly a million watches a year, you get an idea of how complex it can be to collect Rolex timepieces.
Essentially, the world of Rolex consists of a tight collection of very well-made models that have been around since the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s — Oyster Perpetual, Day-Date, Datejust, Daytona, Submariner, and Explorer — as well as newer models — Yachtmaster, Sea-Dweller, GMT-Master II, Sky-Dweller, and Explorer, for example. Within these collections, Rolex makes cases out of gold, steel, platinum, or two-tone, and offers five types of bracelets and a handful of bezel and dial variations, some with the iconic Rolex cyclops date window. Because of Rolex quality standards, considered the highest in the world of mass-produced watches, most pre-owned Rolexes are still in good condition. Any one that strikes your fancy is a good investment.
The first rule in collecting Rolex is to learn some of the lingo. Here are a few terms, all of them coined by Rolex collectors, that will help you spot some of the special pieces. Starting in the 1980s, collectors started making up nicknames for certain vintage Rolex references, based on their features, as an easy way of describing and dating them. Here is a quick lesson on how to speak Rolex. Note: These are not official Rolex terms. Those come later, starting at the midpoint of the next page.
A Rolex Daytona Ref. 6239 yellow gold chronograph made circa 1970, sold at a recent Sotheby’s auction for $456,000.
DOUBLE SWISS UNDERLINE: An early Daytona from 1963 with two Swiss designations, one barely peeking up above the bezel, and the other just above it at 6 o’clock. The underline refers to a line under the signature to signify the use of tritium rather than radium to illuminate the indexes.
SOLO DAYTONA: A post-1965 Daytona with only the “Daytona” signature under the Rolex logo, with no “Oyster” or “Cosmograph” text.
SIGMA DIAL: An early Daytona with Sigma marks flanking the “T Swiss T” text at 6 o’clock on the dial, designating the use of gold for the hour markers. The T indicates the use of tritium on the dial.
JOHN PLAYER SPECIAL: A rare “Paul Newman” Daytona, so-named for the John Player & Sons sponsorship of the Lotus Formula One team in car racing. It is identifiable by the black and gold coloring to match John Player corporate colors.
48]ALBERT’S DIAMOND JEWELERS MAGAZINE