I am primarily a Submariner and GMT Master collector. But as a lover of historic automobiles I would be narrow-minded not to be interested in the Daytona.
It has a special and firm place in Rolex history.
By no means do I call myself a Daytona expert, I leave that to the likes of John Goldberger, Pucci Papaleo and other people that are based in Italy. What I heave learned though is that not all Daytona are created equal. Some references are more rare than others.
One of those references is the Rolex Daytona 6264 that was made for a time span of just under two years. The 6264 replaced the 6241 and carried a newer calibre (727). So what is so special about the 6264?
Well several things.
We mentioned it is rare. But so is the sister version 6262. Both the 6262 and 6264 are among the rarest Daytona references and are extremely sought after. But the 6264 has another thing going for it. The black insert. You see the 6262 was fitted with a steel insert. If you see a 6262 with a black insert – it is not original. Optically many collectors prefer the black insert bezel as it makes the watch ‘larger’ and more attractive (for an excellent video of the different Daytona and the details please see this Hodinkee video). This is what makes the 6264 so sought after.
It is rare but optically carries the black bezel insert which makes the watch extremely attractive. What is even more interesting in the example above is the outside minute track. Notice it is red. This Daytona above is called a ’3 colored Daytona’. Notice how beautiful the dial is. Red white and black. With black insert. The watch above, the 6264 also came with a white outside minute track, a so called ‘two colored Daytona’, but we think it is much less attractive than the watch above. For an example of a two colored Daytona see here. So what is our opinion on this watch and it is for sale?
Firstly our opinion: Because the 6264 is so rare especially with this dial configuration- we think it is no doubt an attractive watch for any Daytona collector. The condition of the watch is pretty strong too. The dial is practically mint – the only negative of this watch is the bezel insert. It does not seem to be the original one that belonged to the watch and was probably replaced by Rolex during service. Another attractive asset of this watch is the piece of paper that comes with it. The original guarantee (which comes with the watch) states that this watch was sold in HK almost one year after production. The auction house Boule who is selling the watch checked with Rolex and got confirmation that the sale did take place in HK in 1972.
The watch is for sale and will be sold at auction (Boule Auction) in Monte Carlo on the 28th of July. For more information please click here.
