My first Rolex ... decisions decisions ...

[BlueStu]

Hi,

This could easliy be a very silly question (especially to this well informed community), and there is the whole 'personal preference' thing, but i'm now in the market for my first Rolex - pressie off the mrs for my imminent coming of age (40th birthday !!!) ...

I'm not planning on ever getting rid of it, and it's something i'll keep 'forever' so it's obviously a big deciosn and a lot of £££ for me to so i'm after any useful advise i can find :-)

i've been tearing myself up over the last few weeks as to which to go for ...

The money is there to spend (well about £4000 is ) but which should i go for .. i think i'm down to a choice of 3 :

Sub no Date - new (why is it so much cheaper without the date ?)
Sub with date - 'slightly pre-owned'
Milgauss - 116400GV - i think this is the ltd edition one ?

i'm sure a lot of you will have to cast your mind back a long time to your first Rolex purchase, but if you can put yourself in my shoes, which of these would you go for (and can i expect to get one with the £££ i have ?)

i like in Birmingham (UK), and there's 3 AD's in Brum .. but there's also the "world famous" Jewellery Quarter here too ... is there a chance i could get a better deal in the Jewellry Quarter, or i'm in a risky category here ..

Arrrgghhhh !!! so many questions, i've lost plenty of sleep already and i'm driving the mrs crazy ... hope that dipping my toe in this fountain of knowledge will help :-)

Thanks guys !

[padi56]

Originally Posted by BlueStu

Hi,

This could easliy be a very silly question (especially to this well informed community), and there is the whole 'personal preference' thing, but i'm now in the market for my first Rolex - pressie off the mrs for my imminent coming of age (40th birthday !!!) ...

I'm not planning on ever getting rid of it, and it's something i'll keep 'forever' so it's obviously a big deciosn and a lot of £££ for me to so i'm after any useful advise i can find :-)

i've been tearing myself up over the last few weeks as to which to go for ...

The money is there to spend (well about £4000 is ) but which should i go for .. i think i'm down to a choice of 3 :

Sub no Date - new (why is it so much cheaper without the date ?)
Sub with date - 'slightly pre-owned'
Milgauss - 116400GV - i think this is the ltd edition one ?

i'm sure a lot of you will have to cast your mind back a long time to your first Rolex purchase, but if you can put yourself in my shoes, which of these would you go for (and can i expect to get one with the £££ i have ?)

i like in Birmingham (UK), and there's 3 AD's in Brum .. but there's also the "world famous" Jewellery Quarter here too ... is there a chance i could get a better deal in the Jewellry Quarter, or i'm in a risky category here ..

Arrrgghhhh !!! so many questions, i've lost plenty of sleep already and i'm driving the mrs crazy ... hope that dipping my toe in this fountain of knowledge will help :-)

Thanks guys !

Well any of the watches on your list will be fine,the Milgauss is not a limited edition in any way just a normal model.Myself would buy used from any good reliable sourse the Non date Sub is the last of the classic Subs its cheaper mainly just because its not got the date complication and different non SEL bracelet.But when buying used if say over approximately 5/7 years old it would be wise to budget a service.Most Rolex watches and there movements have hardly changed much since 1988/9.We have since around 1998 Luminover dials and a few very minor font changes and a LEC all oyster are now COSC tested and thats about it.Good luck with your watch but buy from a trusted reliable sourse for your first Rolex. Used or new it will last 50 plus years and more with just normal routine service.

[Andrea1978]

I bought my first Rolex very recently as well (about 1 month ago) and being a lot uncertain between Sub and Milgauss Black Dial.
Eventually it won Milgauss but I must admit sometimes I am thinking if I've done the right choice.
The Sub is "iconic" and a must-have of any Rolex collection. However, if you often dress up business style, I must say that the Milgauss is a very good match.

So... just do like me, go the AD and try them both... then go where you heart will take you... You will have plenty of time to buy another one in the future!!! Best of luck with your choice!

Andrea

[BlueStu]

Wow ... service ... it didn't even cross my mind ... !!! that's a great heads up ... Thank you .. would you expect a AD to include a servie in the price if i was buying somthing that was 5 years plus ? just looking around the forums, i now see a lot of discussion on servicing ... plenty more to read today !

i was hoping to get something less than 3 years old i think ..

So the non-date sub is really a question if i know what day of the week it is :-) ? there's nothing more complex than that .. it's quite a big price hike for the date ... or am i being naive ?)

[BlueStu]

Thanks Andrea - glad to hear i'm not alone !!!!

My mrs is going spare at the moment ... "that watch is all you think about at the moment" blah, blah, blah ... but i know i want to make the right decsion.

i'm in Holland at the moment working but fly back to UK tonight. it looks like there is an AD in Schiphol airport, so i'm making a bee-line for it this afternoon - lets hope they are open !!!! their website doesn't show opening times ... Grrrr !!!

Andrea, did you manage to 'haggle' or get a discount when you bought from an AD ?

[denzo]

I dont think there is an AD in Schipol airport (Amsterdam) - but there are lots and lots of watch vendors in Schipol -so be careful

As for discount in Schipol ... Good Luck or pob lwc as they say in welsh

[__ma]

I'd get a used green glass milgauss (was that an option?)

sub no date 3130 movement
sub date 3135 movement

[dddrees]

Originally Posted by BlueStu

Wow ... service ... it didn't even cross my mind ... !!! that's a great heads up ... Thank you .. would you expect a AD to include a servie in the price if i was buying somthing that was 5 years plus ? just looking around the forums, i now see a lot of discussion on servicing ... plenty more to read today !

i was hoping to get something less than 3 years old i think ..

So the non-date sub is really a question if i know what day of the week it is :-) ? there's nothing more complex than that .. it's quite a big price hike for the date ... or am i being naive ?)

Typically an AD will service a used Rolex before they sell it from their estate collection. They typically will give you a 1 year warranty as well. At least this is what I have seen when looking at used Rolexs at ADs in the states.

[HL65]

Originally Posted by padi56

Well any of the watches on your list will be fine,the Milgauss is not a limited edition in any way just a normal model.Myself would buy used from any good reliable sourse the Non date Sub is the last of the classic Subs its cheaper mainly just because its not got the date complication and different non SEL bracelet.But when buying used if say over approximately 5/7 years old it would be wise to budget a service.Most Rolex watches and there movements have hardly changed much since 1988/9.We have since around 1998 Luminover dials and a few very minor font changes and a LEC all oyster are now COSC tested and thats about it.Good luck with your watch but buy from a trusted reliable sourse for your first Rolex. Used or new it will last 50 plus years and more with just normal routine service.

X2! Good advice Peter...

[BlueStu]

So a used Sub with no date seems to be the consensus so far .... Mmm .. i was edging that way too ...

What can i expect to pay for a used one that's less than 3 years old ? (ballpark) ?

[TerryTibbs]

Originally Posted by denzo

I dont think there is an AD in Schipol airport (Amsterdam) - but there are lots and lots of watch vendors in Schipol -so be careful

As for discount in Schipol ... Good Luck or pob lwc as they say in welsh

Na, there was when I passed through.

[EchoBlueUK]

I'd see if you can stretch to a 116610LN sub. It's pretty much the benchmark of Rolex sport watches, timeless and classic design with modern features.

[slcbbrown]

Originally Posted by BlueStu

Wow ... service ... it didn't even cross my mind ... !!! that's a great heads up ... Thank you .. would you expect a AD to include a servie in the price if i was buying somthing that was 5 years plus ? just looking around the forums, i now see a lot of discussion on servicing ... plenty more to read today !

i was hoping to get something less than 3 years old i think ..

So the non-date sub is really a question if i know what day of the week it is :-) ? there's nothing more complex than that .. it's quite a big price hike for the date ... or am i being naive ?)

I prefer having a date on my watches, but the last Rolex I bought was the 14060. I don't miss the date at all. It's nice not to have to reset the date when I put it on. There is a sizable price difference.

If you're looking at the newer models of Subs, but not a ceramic, check out the bracelet differences before making your choice. Otherwise, a no-date is a great looking watch.

When you factor in a service, if needed, it can make the price diffences start to "smooth out". Also, I'd pick a Sub every time over the Milly, as my only watch.

[RolexYM]

Which ever one has a date for me. I can't live without a date.

[JACBMW]

I'll give you my .02 cents, start out with the Sub Date. If you go that route, that may be all the Rolex you will ever need. I purchased my first one in 1999 new, sold it and replaced it with a newer version. Sold it and now I have a TT Sub LB. The watch is nice, but the gold links scratch easily, so guess what? I wish I still had the SS Sub Date and now I'm in the process of buying another 16610 or a Sub C.

There is no guarantee that the urge for buying more Rolexes won't get you, ask anyone around here , but the Sub Date is the best way to start IMHO. Good luck with your decision

[Dr. Robert]

Submariner-date

[Andrea1978]

Yes, I have obtained a discount in Milan.
For what concern Schipol, there are several watch sellers, I guess all authorized for Rolex but I would prefer to buy it at one where you can find as well a laboratory, so better if you buy it in Amsterdam city in case.
Not sure which level of assistance they give you in schipol...Since you're not actually buying a book or a magazine pre-flight... I would prefer a "proper" shop

[snog]

I'm guessing you haven't tried any on? the ND sub v the Sub C, to me are totally different watches,Sub C wears bigger has a better bracelet,better bezel and to me looks it's value,my vote would be the Sub C,I think the No date is a great watch but more a watch to be part of a collection rather than the only watch,my advice is get to a AD and try them on and you will know straight away which you prefer.

[BlueStu]

Hi everyone ...

i thought i should give you an update as i'm at Schipol airport now :-)

i found the watch store, and they did have Rolly's.

anyway, they did have a Milgauss, but they did have a ND Sub & Explorer II.

Tried both on (for first time as someone's pointed out) and it's definately the sub over the Explorer II anyway ... the assistant was actually very helpful (i'm sure she was American to be honest) - or was hiding that Dutch accent very well.

Anyway, we got talking and she suggested that the ND sub's are getting harder to get hold of (from a retailing point of view) and that it marked a better investment in the long term ...

She wanted 4116 Euro's and there seemed to be very little negotiation - a quick google and this works out around £3700 ....

as someone's just pointed out, i wasn't buying some aftershave, so have 'walked away' from the deal as i haven't tried the Milgauss yet !

Have i made a mistake, not picking it up i wonder ...

i'll be back in Brum in an hour or so and plan a further trip round the three AD's in Birmingham in the next couple of days ... see what i can get and let you guys know.

if i've made a horrible mistake walking away without the watch at that price, can some one please slap me !

[mrbill2mrbill2]

I suggest a 16610 Sub date. No maxi!!!