Vintage Submariner Waterproof-ness

[yod4]

I own a 60's 5513 Submariner which just came back from servicing.

The watch had some visible corrosion (rust) for years at the edge of the glass (now cleaned up - see photos*) and apparently also at the edges of the back plate, on the inside. Two days before I took it to service, the watch showed some water vapour on the inside of the glass for the first time ever, from swimming at a pool.

Rolex service informed me that due to the corrosion, warranty wouldn't cover waterproofing. They also advised me to keep the watch away from water. When asked if this meant "no swimming" only or also no showering with the watch, they replied no showering, and what's more, to remove the watch when sweating.

My question is, how literal is this advice? I can live with removing the watch before swimming, and also before excercising, but removing the watch before washing hands or having a shower is a bit too impractical. What's the chance of a water leak without outside pressure?

Thank you.

*Sorry can't post proper links so photos can be seen at

bit[dot]ly/rolexrust1
bit[dot]ly/rolexrust2

[Tools]

No way of telling without seeing the extent of the corrosion. It would also be nice to see if it did, or did not, pass an initial tightness check.

Most vintage watches can be brought back to their original, or close, water specifications with some filling, welding, and/or machine work. Too bad that Rolex and many other shops do not have the expertise for this.

[J!m]

Michael Young can rebuild the case...

[yod4]

Thank you both for the replies.

Originally Posted by Tools

No way of telling without seeing the extent of the corrosion. It would also be nice to see if it did, or did not, pass an initial tightness check.

Most vintage watches can be brought back to their original, or close, water specifications with some filling, welding, and/or machine work. Too bad that Rolex and many other shops do not have the expertise for this.

I'm guessing it didn't pass the initial check, since it was already leaking water*? I'm pretty sure this can be fixed by a good craftsman, and yes, it's too bad Rolex won't offer to do this. Instead they offered a new one (as an option) for a discount. I've forgotten the amount, but it was around €1.400-1.800.

*On the other hand, it could just be the sealing rubber's fault, in which case, yeah, that would be a different story.

Originally Posted by J!m

Michael Young can rebuild the case...

Maybe I should check this out.

[pc109]

My watchmaker, who works at my AD, services my 1680. I asked the top hat crystal not be changed, so he said that he couldn’t guarantee water tightness. But, he did take me to his bench and we did a dry test for water resistance. That is the small silver one left of the 3 Rolex testers. It passed that test, but he didn’t attempt any further tests which would require the use of the 3 Rolex machines from left to right with each one able to measure increasing bars of pressure...

Anyway, it would be nice to at least get a result from the low pressure dry tester...don’t know the technical term for that particular device...maybe others can elucidate.

[roosvelt]

Im thinking rolex is just protecting their ass. I'm sure everything would be fine except swimming !

[Chunky]

I think you’ll be ok with “sweating”
My 1680 came back from servicing and I was told that I could swim with it if I wanted, but why chance it damaging a rare and expensive dial if something out of the ordinary happens ? My 2 cents. Cheers

[Beelzy]

The words Vintage and waterproofness seldom belong in the same sentence.
Heed this simple caveat, "It's all in the dial"... don't get it wet.
That's the only reason I left the Dark Side. I work around water and I had one
that got moisture in it. I almost had a heart attack!

[harry in montreal]

Just hop in the shower with it! No joke I tested my Tudor subs like that back in the day.

If it’s a $15k plus watch, best not to swim with it anyway. My Tudor ranger used to fog up when I washed the mustang. Took 2 day to finally vanish. Lol