Patina on SubC or GMT-C?

[No SUBctitute]

Now that the SS ceramic Sub and GMT have been around for a decade, is there any part of the dial or bezel that has shown any fading? I'm pretty certain the bezel is a "no." The answer on the dial seems to be a "no" as of several years ago.

[Chewbacca]

The early 6d versions won't patina until 2060 or so. The dials are designed to maintain 'aesthetic originalität' for a min 50 years.

On the early Turn o Graphs you'll see bezel fade and light hand age but that's it.

[No SUBctitute]

Originally Posted by Chewbacca

The early 6d versions won't patina until 2060 or so. The dials are designed to maintain 'aesthetic originalität' for a min 50 years.

On the early Turn o Graphs you'll see bezel fade and light hand age but that's it.

Great! (I would be a bad vintage collector, as I think patina looks lame.)

[exador]

Patina = degradation. Something that Rolex engineers strive hard to prevent.

[Tomas Eriksson]

Bezels are ceramic, the dials are clear lacquered, chromalight is supposed to not yellow over time. So na, not much patina during our lifetime.

[TempoKing]

2060...?.... I don’t think I will be seeing any “patination” ...

[mountainjogger]

No.

[Rashid.bk]

Rolex is seemingly future proofing it's watches. With the advent of random serials we can no longer date the watch unless you have the papers which is why this is now more important than ever for collectors and enthusiasts.

Patina has also been all but eradicated at least in our lifetimes. Ceramic bezels and whatever they are making their dials out of, are now fade resistant. This ironically is why I like Rolex a bit more today. While some may consider their products sterile I consider them evolved to surgical precision to last perpetually, function indefinitely and aesthetically please generations.

However, I did see a thread a few years ago where a poster showed us a set of Milgauss watches bought around the same time. His which lived a normal day to day life as we know it while the other was his father's which spent(or lived by the beach) a huge amount of time on the coast with his watch soaking up sun rays.
The outcome was dramatic. His watch looked the same, new still, while his father's looked aged, vintage almost. The matte black dial had turned to a chocolate brown and the green accents had turned olive. I liked it.

With a huge amount of uv exposure some of these dials will experience some fading or "patina", however I doubt the outcome will be as appreciated on some models.

[No SUBctitute]

Originally Posted by Tomas Eriksson

Bezels are ceramic, the dials are clear lacquered, chromalight is supposed to not yellow over time. So na, not much patina during our lifetime.

Right. Except for maybe the hard-working 16 year olds who buy a Rolex with their own money and wear it until they die.

Originally Posted by TempoKing

2060...?.... I don’t think I will be seeing any “patination” ...

HAHA.

Originally Posted by mountainjogger

No.

Originally Posted by Rashid.bk

With the advent of random serials we can no longer date the watch

Milgauss...soaking up sun rays...matte black dial had turned to a chocolate brown and the green accents had turned olive.

Ya, the random serial thing is a little annoying as you can't date a watch unless you have the papers.

Very interesting on the Milgauss!

[904VT]

Originally Posted by No SUBctitute

Right. Except for maybe the hard-working 16 year olds who buy a Rolex with their own money and wear it until they die.



HAHA.







Ya, the random serial thing is a little annoying as you can't date a watch unless you have the papers.

Very interesting on the Milgauss!

There are some certain features you can use to approximately date certain models. For example, laser etched rehauts started to replace engraved late 2015/early 2016 in most models. The move to random serials happened in 2010. Some “tricks” to help approximate with certain models. For example the tall ft rating dial on LN Sub Dates happened a few years into 116610ln production and almost all LVs had this from the start. Nowadays the LNs use the short ft dial, so combining with a rehaut review it may help figure the time period. These weren’t hard and fast rules though but still better than no indications.

[AJMarcus]

The fact is the average buyers like their watches looking brand new all the time. Look how upset some folks get when there’s a scratch on their bracelet ot bezel! So the move by Rolex to making their watches outwardly age resistant was the impetus for all the improvements already mentioned. Vintage collectors are not who Rolex manufactures for as we all know. They’re a different breed of cat

[jrs146]

Unlikely modern watches will patina. Probably just slight wear from polishings etc. interesting to see how this impacts the vintage market long term.

[Likestheshiny]

It's worth noting that Rolex wasn't particularly expecting the patination and degradation of parts back in the day, either. Obviously Rolex is much more mindful now, but there's still a chance something unforeseen could impact the appearance of our watches. If the dial lacquer formula unexpectedly turns bright pink with age, for example, we might see a whole new generation of "tropical" dials.