2017 was really an important year concerning vintage Rolex for me. It is not that I bought a vintage Rolex. Rather it was the year in which I personally made progress as a collector within the Rolex universe.
It was the year in which I finally discovered which Daytona I want. This process took a long time and I want to share it with you. This was also the year in which I realised that I have moved on from collecting just Rolex sports watches and appreciate other lines of Rolex like day-dates and the triple calendar models (see main picture above).
In April I also had to courage to start using Rolex sports watches as they should be used, in the water; I went swimming in Dubai with my trusted 5512. Furthermore while in the South of France, I discovered another weakness; Rolex watches that have so-called Milanese bracelets. It is now my dream to find a nice day-date with one of these soft bracelets.
Finally this year was memorable in terms of an epic GTG of Rolex collectors in New York this year. Although I have written a post about the watches seen, I will explain what this meant as a collector to me and why Rolex will remain a big part of my collecting focus for many years to come.
Allow me to share five special Rolex moments with you that I witnessed in 2017.
1. I finally found a Daytona I actually would buy:
The Rolex Daytona world is complex and difficult to understand. Especially if you like earlier chronographs from Rolex like the 6234 or the 6238 as I do.
But after much soul searching and trying on different models I think I have found a Daytona that I like aesthetically speaking. It is the 6263 in gold. I love gold the material and think it is much warmer than steel. While I also appreciate about gold Daytona is that they much less seldom seen than their steel counterparts. Only an estimated 2000 gold models have been made. For a very long time I could not decide if I liked pump pusher or screw down pusher better on a Daytona. I saw more purity in the pump pusher (like the 6239 which remains my second favourite Daytona) but I just find the screw down pusher much more masculine. I think it is also a far better watch in terms of proportions (not to mention practicality – you can swim with the watch above). This watch was seen at König Vintage watches.
Now I have to decide if I like champagne dial with back sub-dials or black dial with champagne sub-dials. Difficult decisions indeed. Below some more pictures of the Rolex Daytona model I am dreaming about.
The same watch outside in natural sunlight.
A similar 6263 champagne dial that sold in almost NOS condition in New York at Phillips. I am seduced by the power and the warmth of gold.
2. Day-dates have captured my heart:
Day- dates have a special place in my heart.
This surely has to do with the fact that when I was small – it was the first Rolex I got my hands on – my father’s 1960s white gold day-date ref 1803 with diamond bezel (see above). Last Christmas my mother finally gave me the watch after it sat in a safe for 30 years. Day-dates have something magical about them – I can’t explain it properly and probably only other day-dates owner can relate to me here. I feel royal when I wear my father’s day-date – I even sit differently in my chair. 2017 was the year where I wore my day-date and have fallen for the weight, the material, the diamonds, the exclusivity of the watch.
As most readers who follow me are aware, I started out collecting Rolex sports models like submariner, GMT and Explorers. But I have moved on from them and 2017 was the year where I realised that there is more to Rolex than just the sports models. I will never sell any of my Rolex sports-watches – they are part of my collecting DNA – but the Rolex universe is large and it is time to explore other areas. I now am concentrating my collecting efforts on other Rolex models like the 8171, 6062 and special and rare day – dates with special bracelets.
More pictures below of my father’s day-date that has influenced me tremendously.
What I love about some day-dates is the president bracelet and how it closes in the back.
I think until you actually own and try on a day-date you don’t realise how special they are.
3. Swimming with the 5512 in Dubai in April this year:
Many collectors buy vintage watches and stick them in the safe. I do the opposite.
I believe in using all my watches even if they risk damage or can break. A few years ago, I sent in my 5512 to Rolex for service and they guaranteed me that the watch was waterproof. So, I decided to put this 1962 Rolex 5512 to the test and swim with it. You can see the video here. Now some people don’t agree with me as you can read from the Instagram comments – but these watches were meant to be worn while swimming. I am glad to report that the watch promised what Rolex said it would – completely water resistant.
4. Milanese – I love you:
In July this year I attended a watch auction by Boule in Monte Carlo and tried on a beautiful Rolex day-date.
What was very special about this watch was the soft Milanese bracelet that came with the watch. You see Rolex made some exceptional bracelets in the 1960s. Nobody could treat gold and work as well with gold as Rolex could. The result is some of the most spectacular bracelets ever made by any brand ever. Some of the bracelets that Rolex made involve interwoven patterns that are also very complex to make. Other bracelets are fine like the watch above. When I tried on the bracelet, known as the Milanese, it was soft as butter. It simply was the most incredible feeling, the bracelet even though in gold seemed to be so soft and so agile on the wrist.
My dream now is clear: To find a Rolex day – date with a special Milanese bracelet like the watch above and below.
Below another fine bracelet made by Rolex with a complex interwoven pattern.
5. A special Rolex GTG in New York:
There is no watch brand on this planet that bonds collectors like vintage Rolex. It is insane.
Collectors from around the world gathered in New York for the Phillips auctions in November and Analog shift organised a GTG for Rolex collectors. You can read in detail about it here, I dedicated a blog post about this superb gathering. What I noticed at the gathering were three things:
First that vintage Rolex community is really bound by passion. Since Rolex does not help collectors with their old watches, collectors are left to help themselves. This creates a tremendous bond. I am part of a Rolex online community called VRA and the amount of knowledge that is shared on this online platform is incredible. When in doubt collectors can ask members for help. Quite a few members were also at this GTG in New York coming from as far a HK, Indonesia and Australia.
My second observation is the degree to which we are learning is incredible. The level of knowledge today in the Rolex community and the quality that was present at the New York gathering was truly worldclass. Being involved in vintage Rolex is a never-ending learning process and this process is addictive and fun. I would say 80% of what I have learned is through collectors and looking at their watches and talking with them. At the GTG in New York, some of the very best Rolex sports watches on the planet were laid out on the table. You learn just by holding these watches in your hand and looking at the dial and asking the owner questions. For example taking a look at the watch above: Most collectors knew right away – this was a 5512, four line gilt dial with chapter ring, additionally carrying a so called ‘tulip crown’ with pointed crown guards from the very early 1960s. Previously this watch would have been seen just as a 5512 Rolex sports watch (indeed in 2008/9 this is how such a watch would have been described in a watch auction catalogue). We have come a very long way in the last seven to eight years. In large part to collectors sharing information.
The third thing I noticed was the following: There is no stronger design than Rolex sports watches from the time they were born. Their design is timeless and most Rolex sports watches made 50 years ago have aged incredibly well. I have often wondered why Rolex attracts the most loyal and obsessive global following out of any vintage brand. I think the fact that the designs have stood the test of time so well is a major reason collectors are so attracted to this brand.
The GTG in New York proved once more that collecting Rolex watches is special. The community is passionate. Knowledgable. Global. Being part of the vintage Rolex community is a privilege, it truly is. This gathering reminded me of why, at this very moment in time, there is one brand that is stronger than ever in vintage watch world.
It is Rolex.
