Vintage? Kind of boring story about my hardworking 1680

[mambo]

I escaped LA during the 1984 Olympics to go surfing in Indonesia. A friend's wife said I should buy a Rolex watch while in Hong Kong, so I purchased this used 1978 5.6m 1680 there for $400. It had Farsi writing on the back which I had buffed off. The Sub with the red writing was $600 and the two tone datejusts were $800, both too expensive for this blue collar Teamster. The watch enjoyed the big waves of Kuta Reef and Uluwatu, the exotic refreshment stands on Patpong Road, and lap swimming at the HK YMCA. In the USA I sunburned this watch on my left hand every day, beaten up and never babied. My left cheek suffered melanoma while the bezel faded some. It has been serviced 4 times and is 100% original except for the top hat. The band has a couple dings and I always wore it when taking a shower, hardly ever taking it off.

My 15 year-old son is itching to take it off my (arm) hands but he's going to have to wait till I check out.

[jdmi32]

Not boring at all. What a history you have with this watch and it's great that your son already shows an interest. My seven year old son already has his eyes on my 1675.

[Strider]

Beautiful Sub you have there! That fade on the insert is great and it shows that it's been through some stories. Thanks for sharing and here's to many more years of wear.

[MitchSteel]

Very cool

[roll9]

Great story.

[omitohud]

Patpong rd makes a hard man humble. Txs for sharing. 👍


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[Vincent65]

Thanks for the great story, and it's a classic old sub - love it.

[toneafficianado]

Beautiful story about a now-classic watch. Thanks for sharing it. I hope I get to keep my Sub that long!

[Beaumont Miller II]

Great watch. Great story.

[andromeda160]

Great story, the watch has lived a good watch. Should be good for another 37 years.

[JohnBaker3]

Great story and a great watch. Best part was the surfing in Indo!

[watchcrank]

Worn like it should be :-) Congrats, M

[PoderEsBueno]

Nice to see the spirit of the waves on the faded bezel. Enjoyed reading it - Great watch.

[threemonkeys]

[pdoukas]

Excellent story! Excellent watch! I'm still shaking my head over a $600 dollar red.


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[c41006]

Not boring at all. Very cool story! Love seeing vintage Rolex tool watches that have been ridden hard and put away wet.

[bluemartinifan]

Loved reading your story - great history with it

[dbhak22]

AWESOME! Very cool, thanks for sharing.

Couple things that came to mind as I was reading...

1. They charged more for the reds even back then? What was the reasoning I wonder?
2. This is REAL patina. Original dial so no re-luming or 'painting'. Makes me wonder how other patina'd dials get so dark (ie. brown, yellow, orange, etc.). Yeah, some say it's darkness that causes the patina but if a watch is in a safe (ie. in darkness) but then if it's shown use like this watch has, I don't see how it can get so much patina. I'm beating a dead horse here.

OP, VERY cool watch and story. Also a nice lesson in patience for your boy, :)

[dysondiver]

great watch , great story ,,,

[Alcan]

Great story!

Do you remember when/how you got that divot in the bracelet?

[Jetkopite]

Lovely story indeed. Loved the bit when you said your son has to wait till you check out ... Hahahaha. Great story and watch. Not boring at all..

[TheTimeAndTraveller]

Beautiful watch and story. That bezel looks killer!

[GMT993]

Cool story, cool watch!

[dukerules]

Fantastic story behind that watch. Thanks for sharing!

[Chad M]

Very cool!! I have to ask, how did you get the dent in the link?
This is truly an heirloom piece.

[brandrea]

Coooool

[1976]

Every Rolex tells a story, thanks for sharing!

[The moose]

Your story is what vintage Rolexes is all about! A Rolex with years of use in different situations, different weather conditions etc...creating memories. The dings on the bracelet all have a story behind them, every scratch on the crystal have another story!

Love your story! And the watch is just amazing!!

[mambo]

Originally Posted by Alcan

Great story!

Do you remember when/how you got that divot in the bracelet?

I have no idea, probably happened at work. The watch was ripped off my arm three times, riding home in my pocket each time. They were able to fix-replace pins etc easily. I never knew the watch was worth what it was until 1998, so I just wore it like a $20 casio. Anyone that noticed it and commented, I told them it was a Phonex. After 1998 I took (a little) better care of it, and stopped wearing it in the ocean.

[1675-David]

Love it, great story!!