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Can I go swimming in a luxury watch?

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“Can I go swimming in a luxury watch?”

This is a question that I am often asked by our clients. Of course what they are referring to is whether their watch is water resistant – will it leak and ruin the movement, dial and hands?

There are usually three areas that need to be considered when the water resistance of a watch is under examination;
<ul>
 	<li>the caseback</li>
 	<li>the glass</li>
 	<li>the crown</li>
</ul>
During testing, these three components are checked for condition and damage or corrosion. Next the seals fitted between the component and the case are inspected and often replaced. The watch is then pressure tested using a purpose built piece of equipment. When it passes – voila! Your watch is waterproof.

So yes, if it passes the test, you CAN go swimming in a luxury watch. But hang on, there’s another question that needs to be asked ……

<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-8735" src="https://cms.oakleighwatches.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Swim2.jpg" alt="" width="943" height="530" />

“SHOULD I go swimming in a luxury watch?”

All the watches that we sell here at Oakleigh Watches are superb examples of their type and are all of course very valuable.

I can’t imagine a more hostile environment for a luxury watch than a beach with its salt and sand, or a swimming pool full of chlorine, steel and ceramic tiles. And that’s before you even mention the water! So our advice would be – “yes you can swim in a luxury watch but NO, you probably shouldn’t.”

If you’re at the pool or the beach – relax, forget about the time! Or, if you’re like me and feel a bit lost without something stylish on your wrist, switch your luxury time piece for a much more practical G-Shock!

Oakleigh Watches works alongside local Rolex and Omega service agents <a href="https://www.michlmayr.com/?_ga=2.204148883.2033394945.1721402847-623201293.1721402847">Michlmayr &amp; Co.</a> All of our luxury pre-owned watches are tested to ensure they are water resistant and comply to COSC spec. Some of our more vintage stock will not be water resistant and this will be made clear in the description.

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The-Tudor-Big-Block-listing

In 1970 Tudor entered the chronograph market with a watch that was very different from its Rolex Daytona brethren – The two incarnations of the ’Monte-Carlo’ were bold, bright and colourful and occupied their own place in the Rolex family lineup, as a slightly inferior model to the Daytona.

Then in 1976 there was a shift and the ‘Big Blocks’ were born. Far from establishing a point of difference from the Rolex Daytona by continuing with the ‘fun’ slightly ‘junior’ theme, Tudor made a watch that was similar to the Daytona and in one key way, actually superior….

As well as toning down the colour palette and producing monochrome chronographs (although exotic-dialed 9000-series ‘Big Block Monte Carlos’ were made), Tudor adopted the Valjoux 7750 movement, not only adding an extra chrono sub dial but also a quick set date and an automatic movement. This automatic movement made the Big Block the first self-winding chronographs from the Rolex group – it would take Rolex themselves well over ten years to make an automatic Daytona and 25 years to make one with an in house movement.

As well as an advanced set of features, the Valjoux movement brought with it the necessity for a deeper case than its predecessors to house the self-winding mechanism and rotor, hence the nickname “Big Block”.

The first Big Blocks were the 9400’s consisting of three references that gave the option of three different bezels:
<ul class="ul1">
 	<li class="li1">9420 with an acrylic tachymeter bezel</li>
 	<li class="li1">9421 with a 12-hour calibrated rotating bezel</li>
 	<li class="li1">9430 with a steel tachymeter bezel</li>
</ul>
In the late 1980’s, the 9400 series was replaced by the 79100 series of Big Blocks and again, there were three references with three bezel types:
<ul class="ul1">
 	<li class="li1">79160 with a black plastic tachymeter bezel</li>
 	<li class="li1">79170 with a black graduated 12-hour rotating bezel;</li>
 	<li class="li1">79180 with a steel tachymeter bezel.</li>
</ul>
By the mid 1990’s Montres TUDOR S.A. was 50 years old and they started to made decisive moves to differentiate themselves from their Rolex brothers. As a consequence the direct references to Rolex were steadily disappearing from the cases, winding crowns and bracelets of Tudor watches to be replaced with own brand alternatives and the day of the Big Block was over.
An important watch and often overlooked, the Big Blocks are one to watch that’s for sure

The Tudor ‘Big Block’

Understanding Watch Model & Serial Numbers

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Rolex-16570-Polar-2010-listing

Rolex have made several versions of the Explorer II since its launch fifty years ago but here we are mainly concerned with The Rolex Explorer II 16570. We will cover other references but this blog is designed to help you understand why you really should be considering a 16570.

When I first thought of writing this blog piece in the autumn of 2020, the Rolex Explorer II 16570 was one of the most overlooked and undervalued of all modern Rolex sports watches. A few months later I realised that the correction had already begun so I thought I had better get on with the piece

The Rolex Explorer II 1655 – 1971-1984

So firstly, let’s deal with this ‘Steve McQueen’ thing. The first incarnation of the Explorer II was the 1655 and at some time after its launch in 1971, it gained the nickname ‘Steve McQueen’. As no photo has ever come to light of ‘The King of Cool’ actually wearing a 1655 (he was a 5512 man), the reason why remains a mystery.

However, here are a few things that we do know about the 1655:
<ul>
 	<li>It was launched in 1971</li>
 	<li>It was designed mainly for cavers or ‘spelunkers’, hence the massive luminous GMT hand that told you not only the hour but splits of 2 1/2 minutes too, even in the dark.</li>
 	<li>Unlike the Submariners of the time, the Explorer II had a 39mm case.</li>
 	<li>Despite having the same movement as the GMT Master, a pattern that continued until 2011, the 1655 only told the time in one time zone. The ‘GMT’ hand was fixed with the hour hand so it told the same time, just REALLY clearly.</li>
 	<li>Its other nickname is ‘Freccione’ from the Italian word ‘Freccia’ meaning ‘arrow’.</li>
 	<li>Production was discontinued in 1984</li>
 	<li>There were five different dial variations over the 13 year production run</li>
 	<li>It was a popular watch in Germany and the USA but apart from that it was thought a bit of an ugly duckling and sales were disappointing (Great news for collectors and those who have had them from new….)</li>
</ul>
The Rolex Explorer II 16550 – 1984-1989The 16550 is what the watch world refers to as a ‘transitional model’ although to be honest, I’m not sure that the description really fits the bill. While it wasn’t made for very long in Rolex terms, it was made for almost five years so that’s not really a transition.

The thing that makes the 16550 particularly interesting is the dial – for the first time the Explorer II was available with the option of either a black or white dial and while the black dials were fine, the white ones were nearly always faulty. Instead of staying a lovely bright white as Rolex intended, most of them turned a creamy colour, giving them the nickname ‘Panna’ (Cream in Italian). A LOT of these have been replaced by Rolex with lovely shiny white ones, making the remaining cream ones highly collectible and valuable.

There are also some ‘Rail Dial’ examples out there – a Rail Dial is one where the words “Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified” line up perfectly with an even gap through the middle – like train tracks. These are rarer still and command a higher price.

The hands were changed from the ‘unusual’ design of the 1655 to the more ‘normal’ Mercedes style and this helped to create a look that was more acceptable to the masses.

Again using the GMT Master movement, this time the 3085 from the 16760, the 16550 now had an independent GMT hand so that it was a two time zone watch. The case was made from 316L steel as was the norm in the day and this makes it slightly less bright than the later models – the cases were also made slightly fatter than the later ones to accommodate the 3085 movement.

By the end of the 1990’s Rolex had a new movement and were working with improved 904L steel so they took the opportunity to fix the dial issues and launch a new model.

The Rolex Explorer II 16570 – 1989-2011

This is where things get interesting and lead us to the purpose of the piece that I alluded to way up there in the introduction.

The Rolex Explorer II 16570 is a very similar watch to the 16550. It has a slightly slimmer case that’s made from a different type of steel and an improved movement but apart from that it’s basically the same watch but less than half the price and that’s a situation that’s unlikely to last for long.

16550s aren’t going to get any cheaper so when the price gap closes, and it will, it will happen through an increase in the price of the 16570.

So, there are four main types of 16570, all available with either a black or white dial:
<ul>
 	<li>1989 to 1998 Tritium dial – expect to pay between £9,000 and £12,000. These are the early watches and prices have already risen alot recently – there’s lots more room yet though.</li>
 	<li>1998 to 1999 Swiss only dial – expect to pay between £8,000 and £10,000. These are the rarest of all Explorer IIs and again, prices are rising sharply.</li>
 	<li>1999 to 2007 Swiss made dial with 3185 movement – expect to pay between £8,500 and £10,000. These are the bulk of 16570s as production numbers were higher in the 2000s and they were made for eight years.</li>
 	<li>2008 to 2009 Swiss made dial with 3186 movement – expect to pay between £10,000 and £12,000. These watches have the updated GMT movement and engraved rehaut and are sought after by those who like the most recent versions of things.</li>
</ul>
The Rolex Explorer II 216570 – 2011 to date.

Also available with both black and white dials like the 16550 and 16570, the 216570 is something of a fusion of old and new.

The 216570 still has the fixed bezel that Explorer IIs have always had and now they have brought back the oversized orange ‘GMT’ hand – so that’s the old. The new is that the GMT hand moves independently and the case size has been increased to 42mm in keeping with modern tastes.

This brings us to the statement made at the beginning of the piece about how the Explorer II 16570 is a classic, appreciating asset.

You see, the 1655 isn’t to everyone’s taste, it’s properly vintage and it’s priced well out of most people’s reach.

In January 2022, a nice 1655 Full Set will set you back something north of £20,000

In its original Panna form, a Full Set 16550 Rail Dial costs over £25,000 these days and even a nice Full Set Polar with a replacement dial can be £17,000 or so (admittedly, black ones are less) and prices are still rising.

Prices of the last 16570s made with the engraved rehaut and the 3186 movement have risen sharply too but the ‘standard’ 16570s, whether Tritium or Superluminova are still great value – it won’t last long though as these things have a way of correcting themselves so if you fancy one then my advice would be not to hang about….

To see the Rolex watches in our current collection <a href="https://www.oakleighwatches.co.uk/brand/pre-owned-rolex">click here</a> and you can see the current range of new Rolex watches <a href="https://www.oakleighwatches.co.uk/shop/new-in?pa_brand=170">here.</a>

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