Marcus Hanke
[PuristSPro Moderator]
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Basel 2008 Report: Rolex
Basel 2008 Report: Rolex
Text: Timm Delfs, pictures: Rolex
Text: Timm Delfs, pictures: Rolex
The most noteworthy timepiece at the castle-like Rolex booth this year was the new Sea-Dweller Deepsea, a really impressive piece of engineering machined out of a massive block of stainless steel. It was developed with the support of the French elite divers of COMEX in Marseilles. They tested the watch to a depth of 4750 metres. Nevertheless Rolex stays humble and declares the watch water-resistant to up to 3900 metres. No man will ever go as deep as that, but isn’t it reassuring to own a timepiece as sturdy as that?
For Rolex it is also a reverence to one of its own creations, the Deep Sea Special that in 1960 reached a depth of close to 11’000 metres in the Mariana Trench, attached to the hull of Auguste Piccard’s batiscaphe “Trieste”. The new super-robust watch features Rolex’ own helium escape valve and a new locking system of the rotating bezel whose inlay is made of high-tech ceramics. The Genevan Rolex team redesigned the clasp of the bracelet that becomes smoother every year. The clasp now has a double extension to be able to adapt the length of the bracelet even to thick neoprene diving suits. As usual with the famous brand the dial is very sober. However the writings “Original Gas Escape Valve” and “Ring Lock System” on the inner dial ring would not have been necessary for a professional instrument like this.
The new Day-Date II in platinum is almost a small revolution for Rolex. One of the models comes with a black dial featuring black (!) riveted Roman numerals. However, the hands are polished and thus guarantee legibility at all times. The Datejust comes with the famous Super-President bracelet with Crownclasp. The automatic movement is now equipped with Rolex’ own Parachrom hairspring and a Paraflex shock-absorber for the balance wheel.
The latest Submariner Date are all equipped with the new Glidelock clasp that can be adjusted without steps to any intermediate size.