Today there is quite a high premium on original vintage pieces simply because they’re extremely rare and becoming increasingly harder to find. Decades ago, when people bought luxury watches like Rolex for example, it was perfectly normal for them to get the watch serviced, polished, or have parts replaced if you scratched or dented them up. The problem is that while they were done by the company with authentic later-era parts, they still weren’t original parts or features of the watch. Since this was such a common practice, today it’s really special – and highly valuable – if a vintage watch is totally original.When posed with the question of which watch to buy and when, every industry “expert” probably begins their answer with some variation of the same caveat: Buy for love, not for money. Watch collecting is a wild and unpredictable hobby. Auction prices for classic models have been known to hit eight figures (and then some), but most of the Rolex watches out there depreciate the moment you strap them on your wrist.I have a young friend who is ready to buy his first luxury watch. He’s been thinking about it for weeks (good boy), but every few days he calls me (bad boy) and labors the same point: He wants a watch that is an investment (even worse boy). There exists in modern watch collecting a problem: collectibility is now treated as a selling point. But the problem with everybody and their dogs knowing that something is collectible is that everybody and their dogs are quite likely to collect it.The most expensive wristwatch ever sold was the Rolex Daytona worn by Paul Newman himself. It fetched $17. million at a 2017 auction. That’s a pretty good price for a watch that was so unpopular when it was initially launched that it lingered on dealers’ shelves with relatively few actually making their way onto customers’ wrists. One of those wrists happened to be Paul Newman, who had reputedly been bought the watch by his wife, Joanne Woodward. And it isn’t that she made a sound investment, but rather her purchase created an investment piece by her gifting it to her stratospherically famous husband.
The green-tinted sapphire crystal fitted to the reference 116400GV Milgauss has quickly become one of the defining characteristics of Rolex’s anti-magnetic line of watches. The Rolex Milgauss was first introduced in 1956; however, it was not until 2007 that it received its now-signature, green sapphire crystal – an exclusive feature that was originally introduced as a way for Rolex to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their Milgauss line.No other watch in Rolex’s current catalog is fitted with a green-tinted (or any other color) sapphire crystal. However, at the present time, all Milgauss watches that are currently in production leave the factory with green sapphire crystals. Rather than simply being a layer or coating, the light green tint is present throughout the entire material of the crystal, and will not fade or discolor after prolonged wear and use.Rolex claims that it took them many years of research and development to master and perfect the secret procedure of manufacturing their green-tinted sapphire crystals and that the actual process of producing the crystals takes multiple weeks. What is most interesting is that despite a usual eagerness to patent their various in-house technologies, Rolex claims that the green sapphire crystal in the Milgauss is “not patented, as it is so difficult to make that no one else would even venture to try.”Rolex will never reveal their exact formulas and secrets about how they manufacture the green-tinted sapphire crystals fitted to the Milgauss; however, we do know some general information about green-colored synthetic sapphire and the production of sapphire watch crystals as a whole.There are a number of different ways to produce synthetic sapphire, all of which fall into the following general methods of production: melt growth, solution growth, and high-temperature/high-pressure growth. It is hypothesized that Rolex uses a hydrothermal method of production for its synthetic sapphire crystals, which is slow, expensive, and uses heat and pressure to imitate the conditions present deep inside the earth that is responsible for the production of naturally-occurring crystalline gemstones.
The Oyster case was an innovation of its time when it was developed by Rolex in 1926. It ushered in a brand new era of durable, everyday watches that could be worn during almost any activity without damaging the internal movement. The Submariner takes the design of the Oyster case one step further and increased its waterproofness up to 300 meters/1,000 feet.The ref. 16613 features a standard 40mm case in highly corrosion-resistant 904L stainless steel. An 18 karat yellow gold screw-down crown and unidirectional bezel accompany the case, giving it a desirable two-tone design. The dial and bezel set are most commonly available in either black or blue, with some examples of the gem-set “Serti” dial (either champagne or silver in color and set with diamonds and blue sapphires) also available on the secondary market. Depending on the year produced, the ref. 16613 also features either a holes or no holes case and either Tritium or LumiNova used for the luminescence on the dial and hands.Regardless of the year of production, all two-tone Rolex 16613 Submariner watches are powered by Rolex’s trusty Caliber 3135 automatic movement. The 31-jewel movement beats at a rate of 28,800bph and includes a date complication, a 48-hour power reserve, automatic winding technology, and a sophisticated Breguet overcoil balance-spring. The movement has been a fixture in many Rolex wristwatches for more than three decades, and for a good reason. The Cal. 3135 has proven itself to be an accurate and robust movement, which can deliver decades of reliable performance if properly maintained.
The chemical composition of synthetic green sapphire includes copper and aluminum oxide, with the copper being the element that is ultimately responsible for its signature green hue. The process of synthetic sapphire production is an expensive and exacting one; however, the additional obstacles that accompany the addition of copper – and the precision required to achieve the right amount of green tint without compromising the strength or clarity of the crystal are likely responsible for its exclusive use on the Rolex Milgauss line of watches.When synthetic sapphire is manufactured, the material has to “grow” over the course of a period of several weeks. Particles attract to one another, forming layers that fuse together to create a dense and ultra-hard substance. The end result of production is a “boule” – a solid piece of synthetic sapphire shaped like a chunky cylinder, which is then cut and shaped to its necessary dimensions.Due to the high costs of production, most watch crystal manufacturers cut their synthetic sapphire boules in a perpendicular fashion, as to maximize the number of crystals that can be created from a single boule. Although this is entirely unconfirmed, it is rumored that Rolex cuts the boule along a diagonal axis to maximize the clarity and strength of the finished crystal. In addition to complicating the cutting and shaping process itself, cutting the boule along a diagonal axis significantly increases the amount of waste, which further adds cost to an already expensive manufacturing process.Despite not making an appearance until just over ten years ago, the green sapphire crystal has quickly become one of the defining characteristics of the Milgauss line. Its pale green tint possesses no functional advantages over a traditional, clear/uncolored synthetic sapphire crystal; however, the green crystal that is exclusively fitted to the Rolex Milgauss 116400GV is one of the primary reasons that individuals seek out this particular reference. The green crystal is something entirely unique to the Milgauss collection and is not something that is found on any other Rolex watch, past or present.
When we talk about 007 series movie, if you are a watch fan, you will know that James Bond usually wore an Omega watch, in every 007 movie from 1995 to 2018, James Bond would have one Omega watch. Today, the replica watch I will introduce is an Omega Seamaster Commander limited edition model, the genuine watch was published on July 5th, 2017, it was released to commemorate the anniversary of James Bond 007 Series Film.The replica is made by UR factory, it is currently the best version and has improved all defects of previous editions. The replica uses a clone Cal. 2507 automatic movement, correct case back engravings, each watch has an individual limited number engraved on case back.Compared with genuine watch, the replica has two big difference, first, the helium valve button is not working. If you guys like this watch but need to do a long-term diving operation or engaging in oil exploration, I suggest you buy a genuine watch. Second, due to cost and technology limitations, the replica can not use the same co-axial movement like genuine. But the factory tried their best to make this clone 2507 movement look like genuine caliber in outlook.
IW389001 is in whole black, including the dial, it is the model I prefer. While IW389002 has a green dial. There is one little difference between the two watches on the dial, that is IW389002 has a red circle on the center of the dial to display 12 hours. Two subdials are positioned at 12 and 6 o’clock. The subdial with a small red hand is small seconds subdial, while the subdials at 12 o’clock have two small dials in sunken design, the outer one is 60-minute chronograph counter, while the inner one is 12-hour chronograph counter. All hour markers are in white, the markers at 3, 6, 9 and 12 o’clock are applied with luminous material, they will emit a strong green light at night.Compared with the green dial of IW389002, I like the black one of IW389001 more. It has a match of white details in blackground, which greatly increases the dial readability. Black looks cooler too.
Previous:Previous:cloned fossil watches Next:Next:coach silicone watch replica
