In the vintage watch world – it can be argued that nothing is more desirable or collectible than Rolex.

Sure Patek might achieve higher results in terms of value at auction (although Rolex is catching up quickly see this post) but Rolex wins in terms of collector numbers and devotion.

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Collectors are so obsessed by Rolex that they even have created a Rolex dictionary of special language that only collectors are familiar with. For example a Rolex submariner might be called: Ref 5512 PCG, CR, Gilt underline dial! Confused?

Yes its takes time to understand the Rolex language. No brand has more collectors which are obsessed by detail than Rolex.

Rolex is by far the most valuable watch brand on this planet. Most valuable watch in terms of brand equity? Rolex. The watch brand with the strongest financials? Rolex. Most valuable in terms of market value if traded on the public stock market? You guessed it Rolex. No matter what measure you take- nothing comes close to the strength of this private company.

So for our first in depth profile of a watch model, it is no surprise that we have chosen Rolex.

Within Rolex there are many legendary lines: The Daytona, the Explorer, Milgauss and the GMT Master are all very important and mythical. But the line with the most following and perhaps the richest history in terms of Rolex DNA- is the Submariner.

After all Rolex invented the diving watch category along with Blancpain in the 1950s with the introduction of the submariner.

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Not all submariners are created equal

There are many great books written on the submariner so we will not go into detail too much broad detail.

We will make it simple. The earlier the submariner, the rarer and more valuable they are today.

The early Ref 6200 is among the most valuable. Other early and valuable submariners are references 6205 and 6204. Early submariners have no crown guards and early references had a so-called ‘big crown’ (8mm) by Brevet. This includes the reference 6538 as well as the reference 5510 both of which got a publicity boost when Sean Connery borrowed Broccoli’s watch and wore it in Dr. No and From Russia with Love.

These early big crown watches (6538 & 5510) are also known as ‘James Bond’ watches among collectors. While many experts believe only the 6538 was indeed worn in the Bond Films we have yet to see any hard evidence of that- so until someone proves us wrong we believe it was either 6538 or 5510. After the big crowns came the small crown references. They are called small crown because these submariners had a smaller crown (6mm) but were still without crown guards- Rolex would introduce crown guards with the Ref 5512. It is these ‘small crown’ references, that will be the focus of this post.

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6536-1 vs 5508

Although there are more than two references of small crowns, we will be concentrating on two very similar models. References 6536/1 and 5508 are both similar in appearance so we thought it would be interesting to compare these two highly collectible small crown submariners.

The 6536/1 came along after the 6536 which was only produced for one year in 1955 and was a transitional model for Rolex. The 6536/1 was introduced in 1956 and ended in 1959 – although it is unclear if the ending year really is 1959. The 5508 came later than the 6536/1 and was introduced in 1957-1961. We are going to look at a model Nr 306 7xxx made in March 1957.

The 5508 was the last Submariner to carry the 100m – depth rating. Both references are similar in size. Both have small crowns (6mm) and have no crown guards. The diameter of the dial is also the same size. Both watches are also similar in size (measured from one end of the bezel to the other end). Lets look the models in more detail starting with the bezel.

Bezel

The bezel on the 6536/1 is different than on the 5508-especially with the early models.

Early models were known to have the markers in 10- minute intervals and also had a red triangle (see picture above). Later models of the 6536/1 then carried the first 15 minute markers (individually marked) which is common on most Rolex models today. The 5508 had only the individual first 15minute marker and are not known to have the bezel marker without it like the 6536/1 (see picture below).

Dial

Both watches share a very similar dial.

Both in original form are CR (Chapter ring) dials with swiss signed below. Naturally both are Gilt dials with the depth writing (100m) for both the 6536/1 and the 5508 in silver. The hands are ‘Mercedes’ type on both models and both in their original form are also glossy (black lacquer dials).

What is interesting to note is that the 6536-1 is more golden than the 5508 which is a gilt dial, but more silver in nature. I personally prefer the 6536-1 which more resembles the most beautiful early submariners like the 6200 or 6538 (both big crowns) and the 6204 and 6205 (both small crowns). The two different colors are only found on dials which are well preserved. Both the 6536-1 and the 5508 are both glossy and shine like mirror (collectors often refer to this as lacquer dial) when found in excellent condition. 

Movement

The movement on the 6536/1 is a caliber 1030. The 5508 came after the 6536/1 and thus carries the newer movement and successor movement to the 6536/1, caliber 1530 which was a more modern and reliable movement than the 1030. Both are so called ‘Butterfly movements’ because of the rotor which is shaped like a Butterfly on both the 6536/1 and the 5508 (see picture below).

Case back

The outer case back of both references are quite different.

The 6536/1 is on the right and is quite different in shape than the smaller diameter case of the 5508 on the left (see picture below). The inner case back of course is marked with the respective dates. On the left you have 5508 which has the smaller diameter also on the inside of the case back. It is also clearly marked with the date 1958. On the right you have the date marked III 1957 – third quarter 1957 of the 6536/1. See picture below.

 

Case

Both cases of the 5508 and the 6536/1 are exactly the same height and exactly the same length as measure from one end of the bezel (45min mark) to the other end (15min mark).

Both watches when unpolished are 38mm from end to end. The height of both watches is 12.8mm. The advantage of both models is that they are relatively slim and can easily fit under a shirt when wearing suit. The big crown models both 5510 and 6538 as well as the 6200 are larger cases in both diameter and thickness.

Concluding thoughts 

Both these early ‘small crown’ submariners without crown guards are charming.

They are more wearable than their larger big crown brother and are just as collectable. The 6536/1 we have shown in the post was available at Bonhams in December 2012 and sold for £21’000 after all fees included. The watch is believed to come from the original owner family according to Bonhams. For the original listing of the watch please click here. Both ref 5508 and 6536/1 are very collectible and still represent good values. Especially when you compare them to the big crown models which are now fetching USD 500’000 in perfect condition (like the one sold earlier this year at Christies for a record ever sum for a submariner).

(We would like to thank Jim Gerber for lending us his fine 5508 for this report)

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No report would be complete without a mandatory wristshot

Here another wristshot of the 6536-1 a hyper rare reference that was produced only for a little more than one year.

Small crowns look excellent also on a oyster bracelet which is the way they were born.

The picture below shows two small crown 6536-1 separated by only 100 case numbers and both from 1957.

The next picture with a combination that works well for me.

This small crown 6536-1 was bought at Bonhams from the original owner family.

The last picture shows two small crowns, the 6204 and the 6536-1 together – both extremely rare references in good condition.