Help with a gen 5500 Explorer (Air King?)

[mgolin]

Couple weeks ago I got myself a nice Rolex 5500 Explorer from a seller on Chrono24. For the price I paid ($2000 without the bracelet), I was expecting it to be a redial and not a rare 5500 Explorer. Anyways, after receiving the watch I took it straight to the Rolex Service Centre for a checkup.

Turns out that Rolex thinks the 5500s never came with the Explorer dial so it should be reverted to the Air King precision dial and hands. Weird! This is not true, the 5500s did come with Explorer dials (from 1958 to 1967 according to Bob'sWatches) so I don't understand why people at Rolex shouldn't know about this.

Other than that, Rolex said the watch is genuine, needs polishing and lubrication so I take it's in pretty good shape. I asked them about the dial and hands and they said "they appear to be gen" but it's impossible to know for sure. WTH?

The serial number of the watch is from 1959. Here are the pictures:







And this is the watch featured at Bob's Watches - the logo, letter spacing, crown, marks, all looks exactly the same, so I am thinking my dial is gen and possibly the hands too.



It's a big decision for me because the dial and hands are aftermarket I am considering returning the watch to the seller. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

[RonSwanson]

The hands do admittedly look a little newer than the rest of the watch, though white gold should age well. Does the Lume match hands to dial? I would expect once a watchmaker removed the dial, it would be apparent, at least if it's Rolex or not. Even if a franken, still a very cool piece in my opinion. Good luck!

[Old Expat Beast]

It's strange that the RSC would say the 5500 never came with an Explorer dial. Likely an error on their part, I would think.

[offrdmania]

The problem with the 5500 is that unless you have the original paperwork, there is no way to say that a 5500 was originally an Explorer or and Air-King. Fake Explorer dials and hands are put on 5500 Air-Kings all the time in order to increase their value.

[Old Expat Beast]

Originally Posted by offrdmania

The problem with the 5500 is that unless you have the original paperwork, there is no way to say that a 5500 was originally an Explorer or and Air-King. Fake Explorer dials and hands are put on 5500 Air-Kings all the time in order to increase their value.

Sure, but Rolex should know if that 5500 was originally an Explorer by looking up the serial. As it is, his RSC seems to think no Explorer 5500 ever even existed.

[mgolin]

Originally Posted by RonSwanson

Does the Lume match hands to dial?

No they don't really match. The dial lume looks more yellowish, brighter, while the hands are of a more creamy tone and a tiny bit darker.

[1675-David]

Sometimes the worst place to get info on your vintage Rolex is from Rolex themselves. I see 5500 case with a aftermarket dial. For further reading check out this informative thread.

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthre...=5500+explorer

[mgolin]

Originally Posted by 1675-David

Sometimes the worst place to get info on your vintage Rolex is from Rolex themselves. I see 5500 case with a aftermarket dial.

I am not even sure the dial is aftermarket, but could be. The reason I think it may be a gen dial is that it matches 100% one from Bob's Watches (I doubt they would be showing an aftermarket dial on the article).

[1675-David]

Originally Posted by mgolin

I doubt they would be showing an aftermarket dial on the article

stranger things have happened it the world of vintage Rolex!!

[MorningTundra]

That's a lovely piece. I think you got a nice one at the price. Have you considered a second opinion at a different RSC?

Sent from my cracked, broken, hand wound Phone

[mgolin]

Originally Posted by MorningTundra

That's a lovely piece. I think you got a nice one at the price. Have you considered a second opinion at a different RSC?

Sent from my cracked, broken, hand wound Phone

They're both redials using Yuki dials. I've done some image research and it's pretty easy to recognize Yuki's and gens.

I am taking mine to a trusted watchmaker next week to get his overall opinion on the watch. I also managed to get some cash back from the seller after I told him the dial and hands weren't gen.

In the end this franken Rolex costed me U$1,790.00 - only dial and hands aren't gen, the rest is all good!

[Dustytrail]

Hands aren't genuine
1. No tapered end on the seconds hand
2. Rectangular lume part on the Mercedes hour hand has wrong proportions
3. The circular dot at the end of the seconds hand is as big as the middle pinion circle

[brand_c]

Its a nice looking watch though!

I personally would not mind wearing it. Maybe buy a regular 5500 dial in a nice color as a spare :)

[Cheld]

The dial on the Bob's Watches 5500 Explorer is from much later than 1959. A 1959 dial would be glossy, (not matte), gold lettering (not white), and say "SWISS" rather than "SWISS T<25" (the former indicates radium luminous, the latter tritium).