GMT II (3185) vs GMT II (3186)

[dgguidry]

Is one better than the other or is it personal preference? I just purchased a T series and love it, keeping good time so far.

Thanks

[SWISSAHOLICS]

I believe 3186 was only produced for about a year....late Z to M serial....resale value is higher on the 3186 from what I have noticed here on the forum.

[Tools]

Originally Posted by dgguidry

Is one better than the other or is it personal preference? I just purchased a T series and love it, keeping good time so far.

Thanks

No, there is no noticeable difference in function, accuracy, or longevity. The 3186 is simply an "update" of the earlier version.

As mentioned, Internet hype has given the latter an artificially inflated premium. Rolex has made many models with different movements as they update them without anybody noticing, so in a few year it will likely not be a discussion item.

Your T will last you a lifetime.. I wear a T serial 16700 frequently - it's one of my favorites..

[padi56]

Originally Posted by Tools

No, there is no noticeable difference in function, accuracy, or longevity. The 3186 is simply an "update" of the earlier version.

As mentioned, Internet hype has given the latter an artificially inflated premium. Rolex has made many models with different movements as they update them without anybody noticing, so in a few year it will likely not be a discussion item.

Your T will last you a lifetime.. I wear a T serial 16700 frequently - it's one of my favorites..

Have to agree with Larry whether 3185, 3186, and now 3187,they are all chronometers and tested to exactly the same standard.There was no fuss when Rolex updated the cal 3035 into the cal 3135 but that was before the now internet generated Rolex hype.

[Speed]

The T Serials always ran a few minutes slower...


JK

[Brandon(phila)]

Well, they are newer so the price should be a little higher at this point in time (2013)
A 3-5 year old watch should fetch a little higher price than a 6-10 year old watch unless it was just serviced.
It's probably in better shape, less dings and scratches and almost due for a service. Where an older watch is due for service and probably a little more beat up looking.

[Roller07]

[QUOTE=dgguidry;4044583]Is one better than the other or is it personal preference?

Little difference. Its just a preference.

[Watchdog]

However due to hype the 3186 can fetch more.

[padi56]

Originally Posted by kingkongkelley

However due to hype the 3186 can fetch more.

But only to those who are willing to overpay for them.

[dgguidry]

Thanks for replies. I purchased this GMT from Tony (justrolexes).

[ludicree]

The 3186 Gmt 2 from the very last production runs are rather rare and therefor expensive. The movement is slightly different, but nothing affecting the wearer.

I see no sense in seeking a 3186 Gmt 2 for daily use. I consider it a collectible.

[alexxelor]

Originally Posted by dgguidry

Thanks for replies. I purchased this GMT from Tony (justrolexes).Attachment 372622

stick dial , very very nice .

[KBM]

Honestly, I see nothing collectible about a 3186. Even though there are less of them than 3185s, they still were produced in the thousands and do nothing special or worthy of distinction. When buying a discontinued watch, I can understand wanting the newest possible specimen - which incidentally would have a 3186 inside - but not for the movement.

Everything a seller can use to set his product apart from others will become a "desirable" detail, or "collectible" characteristic. It's all hype, IMO. And, as with everything, there will be those willing to pay a premium for it.

[KBM]

Heck, even here, one of the most knowledgeable places on the world about Rolex, there still is a lot of people who would pay 1.5k more for the 3186.

[SeaDweller50]

Originally Posted by Tools

No, there is no noticeable difference in function, accuracy, or longevity. The 3186 is simply an "update" of the earlier version.

As mentioned, Internet hype has given the latter an artificially inflated premium. Rolex has made many models with different movements as they update them without anybody noticing, so in a few year it will likely not be a discussion item.

Your T will last you a lifetime.. I wear a T serial 16700 frequently - it's one of my favorites..

How can you say that their is no difference in accuracy or longevity? You cannot say either for certain, only Rolex can answer that. And they have stated YES, the parachrom hairspring does provide better accuracy and I have to agree with them. My 3186 and 3187 are both incredible timekeepers unlike my 3185's before them.

Rolex have quoted that there are 3 main parameters for loss of accuracy. 1 is magnetic fields, 2 is shock and 3 is temperature variations. The Blue spring has been designed to counter all three of these parameters.

[padi56]

Originally Posted by RolexplorerII

How can you say that their is no difference in accuracy or longevity? You cannot say either for certain, only Rolex can answer that. And they have stated YES, the parachrom hairspring does provide better accuracy and I have to agree with them. My 3186 and 3187 are both incredible timekeepers unlike my 3185's before them.

Rolex have quoted that there are 3 main parameters for loss of accuracy. 1 is magnetic fields, 2 is shock and 3 is temperature variations. The Blue spring has been designed to counter all three of these parameters.

No hairspring will make any watch more accurate,accuracy is down to how well the movement is regulated.So even with the all singing and dancing parachrom if its badly regulated accuracy will suffer same for any other hairspring no matter what its called.And many vintage watches with the 15 series movements run to a second or so a day.Plus the millions upon millions of other Rolex watches in this world today with and without a parachrom. They are all mostly chronometers and tested to the same COSC standard no matter the name of the hairspring.Plus the factor that there are other parts in the watch that could get magnetised there is nothing magical in a hairspring.And if this parachrom hairspring was so wonderful and it was first released in 2000 in the 4130 Daytona but then it was a grey colour. Why has it taken almost 8- 10 years to introduce into all the Rolex movements if it was such a fantastic improvement.

[padi56]

Originally Posted by ludicree

The 3186 Gmt 2 from the very last production runs are rather rare and therefor expensive. The movement is slightly different, but nothing affecting the wearer.

I see no sense in seeking a 3186 Gmt 2 for daily use. I consider it a collectible.

What is rare how many numbers equate rare today, now Rolex left hand wind watches now they are really rare Rolex watches.As for the GMT11 with a 3186 possible many hundreds or thousands.

[Tools]

Originally Posted by RolexplorerII

How can you say that their is no difference in accuracy or longevity? You cannot say either for certain, only Rolex can answer that. And they have stated YES, the parachrom hairspring does provide better accuracy and I have to agree with them. My 3186 and 3187 are both incredible timekeepers unlike my 3185's before them.

Rolex have quoted that there are 3 main parameters for loss of accuracy. 1 is magnetic fields, 2 is shock and 3 is temperature variations. The Blue spring has been designed to counter all three of these parameters.

I can say it because it has not been proved otherwise...

Marketing ads aside (which all compare to a "standard" hair-spring, whatever that is), the previously used Nivarox FAR hairsprings too were designed to be non-magnetic, shock resistant and temperature stable.. These are the characteristics of all modern hairspring patents and why a Rolex is no more "accurate" or longer lasting than a comparable Omega, Patek, or Seiko..

[SeaDweller50]

Of course regulation is paramount if you want an accurate movement. However, the regularity is determined by other factors which are very well known, such as shock, temp change and magnetism. The use of Niobium and Zirconiun makes the Blue spring impervious to magnetic fields but most importantly the Blue spring is thicker than the Nivarox equivalent which means less susceptible to shock forces, and therefore temp change, because the magnetic poles within the particles remain parallel. It took Rolex 5 years of research which confirms to me that the hairspring plays a vital role in assuring the accuracy of a mechanical movement. It also looks really cool too.

[Casey VP-26]

I wish Rolex would stop making these improvements that are worthless according to some.

Rolex if you are paying attention you could have saved a lot of time and trouble (money) if you would have just stayed with the 3185 movement.

I for one welcome the improvements, OMHO.

[moonlightdr]

Sorry for the newbie question - how do i tell which movement my pepsi gmt 2 has.. It has a two sticks dial if that helps....?

[Aventura]

Originally Posted by Tools

No, there is no noticeable difference in function, accuracy, or longevity. The 3186 is simply an "update" of the earlier version.

As mentioned, Internet hype has given the latter an artificially inflated premium. Rolex has made many models with different movements as they update them without anybody noticing, so in a few year it will likely not be a discussion item.

Your T will last you a lifetime.. I wear a T serial 16700 frequently - it's one of my favorites..

Very true my friend. After spending three years in the forums and pay attention to what they said and for me things were wrong several times. Do not blame anyone but myself..In a lot of cases there was anything but commercial intentions for this to inflate or create demand for any particular model. That happened with some models, they there were top of the line to buy them they were selling like anything used that one will sell. I lost some money but gain much experience. Such is life ...
Enjoy your serial T..is a great watch..

[Tools]

Originally Posted by moonlightdr

Sorry for the newbie question - how do i tell which movement my pepsi gmt 2 has.. It has a two sticks dial if that helps....?

The type of dial is meaningless..

A 3186 is a 3185 with a modified gear assembly for the jump feature.. Since the gears were relocated away from the main handstack; when you pull out the stem to set the jump hand the rest of the hands remain fairly stable where they move quite a bit in the 3185 (wiggle test)

The other test is to jump the hour hand.. the 3185 gear-set jumped the hand about 5 hours for a 360 degree turn of the crown.. The 3186 gear ratio increases that to about 8 hours per turn..

[novae500]

Mine are a few seconds off every month

[moonlightdr]

Sorry newbie again - so if I move the hand with the Mercedes logo, the minute hand and the red hand stay still I should assume its a 3186 movement...?

[SeaDweller50]

The red hand should not wiggle at all. Well mine doesn't anyway.

[Zoran]

Hi guys,

My 2 cents on the matter;
Could there be a internet hype created for the 16710 3186? Possibly, only time will tell...
Same goes for certain 16610LV's, Sea-Dwellers and especially Daytona's.

Fact is that there are quiet some people following the "new hype" where by definition it increases the demand and popularity of a certain piece (watch in this case) and therefore also the price.
This has NOTHING to do with being better, nicer or even more rare then any other pre-defined "rare" piece, but EVERYTHING with the (current) demand.

In this case, this is mostly to explain due to personal opinion's on certain sites (even mentioned on this forum) that you get as a result when Googling the model name. Never the less, you have to acknowledge the FACT that this group of people, growing every day, who look for them, are willing to pay more money regardless of the pre-defined value in comparison to other Serials or Movements.

Where previously the internet did not play such a big issue in purchasing a watch before, nowadays it has become a great platform for pictures, reviews and offers (new or used). This switch has changed the perspective of what people want and look for, mostly also to have something that is not as common (by their own definition) and identifies them more individually.

This is not only so with watches, but with many consumer goods. People want something that makes them stand out from all the rest. Exclusive cars, designer clothes, antique furniture; all of these are subjected to what the buyer is willing to pay for it, not at all by exact value or cost.

True story by example from my years in college; After developing a product, the cost+profit should determine the selling price. This has been the ideology for decades. Nowadays, the sales department determines the selling price, by knowing their clients and market so good, by the simple fact of what they are WILLING to pay for it. Never underestimate the power of suggestion or a solid marketing campaign. Our world economy revolves mostly on consumer goods that are totally overpriced with the sole purpose to increase the profit, and you pay for it on a daily base without even the slightest hesitation.

So, in conclusion, it is my personal opinion that this "hype" will continue growing. Mostly because more people will read more about the popularity of these watches (in this case) and it will get a life of it's own, purely by suggestion of truth.
And if not so, for those who bought it by now, at least they had a few happy moments in this mostly disappointing world we live in

Have a great evening!
Zoran