My first vintage Rolex

Watch of Nature welcomes you to join the passion and love of wrist watches. I have thought long about what watch to post as the first topic of this site. I thought of it and of course it should be my very first vintage Rolex watch; the Rolex Explorer II 16570 aka "Black Cave". My Rolex dates back to 1994 and purchased at Rolex hometown in Geneva, Switzerland. I love this piece and cannot stop having it on my wrist. It is smooth and feels very comfortable, the movement is superb and has never been wrong. Amazingly the watch was serviced for the first time last year with very little complications and restoration costs, which amazes me with its mint condition since it is 24 years old.

The Rolex Explorer II 16570 also known as the Black Cave among few collectors. The nickname is not an established name however used among few that enjoy the black dial over the white which is named "Polar".

History

The Explorer has an impressive history of 46 years in making, however it has not always been ref. 16570. The original was 1655 and looked quite different from this model. The arrowhead for instance is much broader with orange color and the reason is for the cave diving experience to visualize the time difference underground and in dark spaces. The original came only in black, it was not until 16570 came as the white version appeard. At this time the Rolex Explorer II was a big seller and more popular than the Submariner and GMT, which is not the case today. After the neglected 1655 there was a short period of time with 16550 which introduced a much less frenetic dial design (some of which are quite sought after due to a defect causing creamy dial patina). In 1989 the 16570 came and introduced the red arrow and has not changed until the latest version in 2011 with ref. 216570. The case went up in size from 40 mm to 42 mm and a few more differentiated changes.

The watch is and has always been profiled for cave diving, explorations and adventure. It has always been that way with both the white and black version. 

Dislikes

The downside of this watch and any Rolex watch from this time period is the Oyster bracelets. It feels good on your wrist however the thin capacity and quality holds very short. When taking the watch off to hold and examine it feels a bit cheap and low on quality and could be improved. I enjoy the new Oyster bracelet much more on modern watches.

Final Grade

The love of this watch for sure weights over the dislikes so I would recommend anyone who thinks of having a Rolex Explorer II Black Cave to buy it. It is beautiful and made with perfect condition. It is iconic on the wrist and people will recognize it anywhere.

4 out of 5