Passing the one year mark

[briansp82593]

It’s been just over a year since I’ve made a major shake up in my collection of Rolex. Worked and saved for almost two years and bought a brand new yellow gold submariner ceramic from my AD in April of last year.

Thought for sure that a yellow gold sub would be the end all “exit” watch for me.

Wore it for two months. Sold it to Davidsw. Took a pretty decent loss.

In the process I acquired from him a BNIB 216570 Explorer II white dial last June.

I’ve always loved that explorer, but for such a long time it was an easy model to get I never felt rushed to acquire one. My AD told me it would be a year before I could get one local, so I took the opportunity and snagged one from Davidsw as partial trade.

Being that I am of the smaller wristed variety, the 42mm size and 50mm lug to lug always seemed to be on about the maximum size I could pull off comfortably.

For a few months the explorer took a back seat in my watch box while I primarily wore a 36mm Datejust. Fast forward a bit- the explorer has taken #1 for wrist time. It’s such a great watch with great lume and visibility. I do think it is a large watch but I’ve really warmed up to the size. It’s been averaging about -1/-2 seconds a day for 12 months.

At one point I even considered trading it off for something else 40mm or smaller. Boy am I glad I didn’t do something so foolish.


TL:DR
I love the explorer II even though it took some time to get used to the size.

[kieselguhr]

Glad to see you are enjoying it for a while

[ks58]

Keep enjoying it and then I guess when you’re done, sell it or keep it in a collection.

[brandrea]

Great watch Brian, enjoy it

What didn’t you like about the PM Sub?

[briansp82593]

Originally Posted by brandrea

Great watch Brian, enjoy it

What didn’t you like about the PM Sub?

Well, I really thought the PM Sub was my grail piece.

I found that I did not care for the weight of the watch. Found that it took on scratches much easier than I anticipated. And I didn’t think I was enjoying it as much as the price tag reflected.

I plan to add a two tone sub to the stable eventually and I think it would provide as much enjoyment as the full gold watch for much less cash invested.

My personal judgment was clouded by all of the responses on TRF as there is nothing better or no upgrade to a solid gold watch. That just wasn’t the case for me after having owned one.

[brandrea]

Originally Posted by briansp82593

Well, I really thought the PM Sub was my grail piece.



I found that I did not care for the weight of the watch. Found that it took on scratches much easier than I anticipated. And I didn’t think I was enjoying it as much as the price tag reflected.



I plan to add a two tone sub to the stable eventually and I think it would provide as much enjoyment as the full gold watch for much less cash invested.



My personal judgment was clouded by all of the responses on TRF as there is nothing better or no upgrade to a solid gold watch. That just wasn’t the case for me after having owned one.

Thanks for your feedback. I've often been tempted by a PM.

For me, I prefer the SS professional references as in my mind they are truer to the brand heritage.

Also, I agree, I prefer watches that are lighter weight and comfortable to wear.

I realize it's very subjective.

Sent from my SM-G960W using Tapatalk

[Richard2]

Keep enjoying it, great maintenance culture

[Texex]

By FAR my most worn watch. Wear it more than twice as much as anything else I have. I really do enjoy the rest of my collection but for some reason I always grab my EX II polar.

[10klakes]

Explorer 2 is a staple in my collection/rotation. Started with a black dial 16570, got the polar 216570, and loved it so much I added the black 216570.