Rolex Watch Review 2020
In 1905, the two brothers-in-law Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis decided to import Swiss watch movements to England for other jewelers to put into their watches.
- By 1908, they registered the name Rolex and opened an office in Switzerland. Six years later, Rolex received the prestigious class A precision certificate by the Kew Observatory.
- In 1919, the company relocated in its entirety to Switzerland. In 1926, Rolex invented and patented the Oyster which was the first truly waterproof watch case.
- In the 1940’s, Rolex watches became the timepieces of choice for fighter pilots because they were a lot more accurate and precise than what the military issued to them. So it doesn’t come as a surprise that a Rolex watch was used to time The Great Escape. During World War II, the Nazis confiscated the highly coveted Rolex watches from the prisoners of war but Hans Wilsdorf, the founder of Rolex, issued new watches for free to prisoners of war if they asked for them. In an unusual financial move, Wilsdorf decided to put all of his shares into a private charitable trust because that way, he could guarantee that the profits of his growing company, and he knew he was on to something, would go to deserving causes. Interestingly, today, Rolex is still a private charitable trust and some people argue that it’s mainly for tax evasion. I can’t really judge what the main motivator is but it definitely saves a lot of taxes.
Hans Wilsdorf – The man behind Rolex- In 1945, Rolex launched the Datejust and the innovation was that it automatically changed the date on the watch. Today, that’s not a big deal but back then, it was a big innovation.
- In 1953, Sir Edmund Hillary wore an Oyster Perpetual when he summited Mount Everest. To commemorate this unusual achievement, Rolex issued the Explorer watch. A year later, the Rolex GMT Master was introduced for Pan Am pilots so they could keep track of two time zones.
- In 1962, Sean Connery wore the Rolex Submariner in the Bond movie, Doctor No. Interestingly, Connery would continue to wear the same watch on the next four Bond movies exchanging the strap on them each time. Likewise, Roger Moore and Timothy Dalton wore Rolex watches as Bond, Steve McQueen was also a big fan of the brand and he wore a Submariner in his private life as well as in his movies.
Rolex Submariner Date
The fourth Rolex I got was a Submariner Date with a 40 millimeter case which is a little thicker and bolder, there’s a black bezel and dial and retails for $8,550.
Even though these four Rolex watches are all vintage, they look extremely similar to the current version you can buy new from the Rolex website or any authorized Rolex dealer. Unless you’re a Rolex expert who knows the differences by year or you really care about a specific look, you’ll be happy no matter if you buy a new Rolex or an old one.
Rolex Construction
When you buy a Rolex watch, you get a Rolex watch. Basically that means, it is designed, developed, and produced all in-house, nothing is out sourced. The casting of the gold, the machining, the crafting, the assembly, the finishing, all of it is done in-house. It includes the movement, the case, the dial, as well as the bracelet. Now, if you think about it, with 800,000 watches produced every year, it is hardly an artisanal product, it is a mass-produced product.
So the Rolex I got have the Oyster Perpetual Movements, it is a self-winding mechanical movement that is also certified as a chronometer. According to Rolex, these movements are designed to ensure precision, reliability, shock resistance, efficient self-winding, and ease of maintenance. Now, these are very bold claims to make but in the marketplace, Rolex enjoys the reputation of building tough reliable watches that don’t need much maintenance. So it’s more than just a marketing gimmick, it is actually true.
All the watches feature the oyster steel which is a 904 L stainless steel. Rolex uses it for cases as well as the bands. The 904 L stainless steel is so popular because it’s very resistant and the finish stays in the same shape even though you use it in harsh conditions. Now if you think about it for a moment, stainless steel is an extremely inexpensive material. The 904 stainless steel cost anywhere between ten and $19 a pound depending on where you buy it in the world. That’s 454 grams for $10-$19. Now on the other hand, a pound or 454 grams of fine gold, right now, sell for $19,400, so depending on what price you get on the steel, that gold material is worth a thousand to two thousand dollars more than the stainless steel. Ironically, in the used marketplace, stainless steel Rolex watches seem to maintain their value much better than gold or gold and steel combination watches.
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