User experience with SD43 - picture heavy!

[pl2se]

Most of you have read quite a bit about the new SD43 so I won’t give any back ground to the Sea Dweller line of watches. You all know that this is a serious tool watch that over time has developed into a extremely well engineered mechanical jewelry. (ok guys, let’s be honest – whom of us actually dives with it?) This is my initial thoughts after owning the 126600 almost 3 months. I was probably among the first in Sweden to actually get hold of one.

My first Rolex was a Sea Dweller 16600 which I bought in Italy a few years back. Box & papers, booklets, service card from Rolex and receipts. For what I know only thing that was missing was the hangtags and anchor. Considering it was from 1994 it was in a great shape. Probably because of the SC overhaul. Tritium indexes had started to turn a bit warmer and it looked really nice. You all know about the bracelet and sometimes I worn it on a brown leather strap. The brown strap complemented the slightly warm indexes and gave the watch a bit of a vintage look. I used the 16600 quite a bit so I do know how it compares to the 126600.

The second one I bought/traded was a GMT 1675 from around 1972/73 on a later bracelet. It shows some nice patina both on the hands and the dial. The tritium on the hands have cracked a bit and maybe I should have my watchmaker to stabilize it with some lacquer on its back? Indexes has turned yellowish, but not even. They are all slightly toned color wise from the edges towards the center. Moist? Maybe, but the movement looks really nice and It runs very well. I still have own it but I´m contemplating to sell it.
The third one was a GMT16700 from around 1990. On a jubilee bracelet, original with visible chamfers and all. Box and papers. I have not worn the 16700 very much so I won’t elaborate on wearing experience but I have noticed how comfortable the jubilee bracelet is.

As soon as I saw the release of the 126600 in Basel I understood that it was doomed to be a rare piece. At least in the beginning. So lining up for one was an easy decision since I didn’t have to pay any deposit. If I didn’t like I could let It pass. So the day after, as soon as the boutiques opened, I started to call around. I put myself on a que at three Rolex stores. And lo and behold – in June I got the call from one of the dealerships.

I live far away from any Rolex store so I had it shipped to my home. Unboxing it was not as exciting as I had expected. I have for a long time wished to buy a new Rolex but my newly found experience is that its more exciting to unbox an old watch that has been bought at an online auction. A new watch is new, an auction find could be everything from a total failure to extremely good. Pealing of all the protective plastic from the SD43 was tedious task. Last piece was actually removed last week, almost 3 months later…

If you’re on this forum I know you have seen a lot of pictures of the watch itself. The brushed bracelet, the polished sides of the case, the HEV (which I don’t pay a lot of interest in) ceramic bezel (my first) and of course the date magnifier. It wears smaller than expected. I have worn an Omega GSOTM, 44,25mm – 16mm thickness. The 126600 feels smaller but slightly thicker. Sometimes my shirt sleeve get stuck on the bezel even if the Rolex is 1mm thinner than the Omega. That’s because of the bezels very rough edges. One thing I do miss is the bevels that’s visible on the old cases. I do like the slightly thinner lugs compared with the other sports models.

And now on to the “elephant in the room” – the date magnifier.

Parts of the Rolex community have gone through the roof about Rolex putting on the date magnifier and increasing the size. A lot of people are praising the previous 116600, but please remind yourself about some of the reviews and opinions from 2014:

“it wears well and looks great, but it doesn't create enough space between Rolex Sea-Dweller and the more affordable, thinner and arguably more practical Submariner. While few, if any, will utilize the considerable increase in water resistance and the helium escape valve, the Deepsea has already proven there is a market for larger Rolex dive watches and the Rolex Sea-Dweller might have had a wider appeal at 42mm.”

“the new case is also less refind than the one on the earlier model, just as with the other Rolex sports watches”

“…16600 is Rolex at its absolutely best”

“…never cared for the added features of the 116600”

I don’t want to trash the 116600, it’s a really nice watch, but I think that the debate about size and magnifier will stop and maybe eventually SD43 will be praised in the same way the 116600 opinion has turned (well… as with the 126600 - quite a few loved it from the beginning!).

The 43 mm size, and the wider bracelet, makes the watch a lot more balanced than the 16600. The difference it big and noticeable. Even more so the new clasp and its extension mechanism. I don’t care much about the diver extension and after removing it I think that the clasp sits better, more centered on my wrist. I have worn the watch about 6 weeks in total and of course it now have a few “scars”. Noting big but you can easy see it on the bracelets brushed parts. I understand its totally normal and that it’s easy to remove. But just as with a new car, you DO see he first small blemishes as well as a stoplight on a dark empty road! Remember that this is my first new watch since 1997.

The ceramic bezel is also a new experience for me. At least on a Rolex. (GSOTM is all ceramic). It’s very beautiful with its glossy shine. It reflects light in a nice way looking anywhere between dark black and steelish gray. The dial has a similar way of behaving. Most of the time I don’t think it looks matte, but sometimes, in certain angles, it is very obvious. Maybe its somewhere between the glossy 16600 dial and the 116600? Lume is very good. The wider hands and indexes, compared with the GSOTM, makes it a lot easier to see in the dark. This morning it was clearly visible after 7h in total darkness.

I have now worn the watch for a couple of weeks. Since I put it on I have been using the app Twixter to measure how it keeps time. If I wanted exact time I could have bought a Casio Quartz but the new, top notch movement, impresses me a lot. As of today it measures -1,1s a day.
All in all – I´m very happy with the 126600!

BR
/Peter