![]() The watch has recently been fully serviced.Ĭraft and Tailored is asking US$40,000 (around A$58,000) for this watch, which includes a full 1-year warranty. Either way, the sharpness of the case is going to be a very attractive feature for collectors. The watch also incorporates a sapphire crystal (Rolex being an early adopter) as well as a clicking mechanism on the bezel (which wasn’t offered on steel GMT Masters until much later).Īccording to Craft and Tailored, the riveted bracelet is still quite tight, and close-up photographs indicate that the watch has either not been polished or was polished conservatively by an expert. As such, this watch runs on the Caliber 3075, which includes a quick set date and, importantly, will be more easily serviced than its predecessors as parts are more readily available. 16758, which debuted in 1980 and ran until 1988. The Hot Lava is an example of the Rolex Ref. By rotating the bidirectional 24-hour bezel, pilots could easily align the 24-hour hand to a second-time zone. The fourth “GMT hand” tracks the same time as the main time, but makes one rotation every 24 hours. The GMT complication allowed these pilots a simple and effective way to track two time zones, a crucial function for anyone leaping across time zones every day. The Rolex GMT was launched in 1954 for Pan Am’s new class of intercontinental pilots. ![]() We can, however, only credit mother nature for the stunning result.Ī 1981 Rolex GMT Master Ref. Rolex’s yellow gold from this era is on the warm side, and the slightly faded brown aluminium bezel insert frames the dial of this Hot Lava GMT as if by design. It’s easy to imagine that the same dial on a steel GMT Master with, say, a Pepsi bezel would not have been nearly as compelling-perhaps even off-putting. The warm tones of the original watch and bracelet have provided the perfect context for this unique tropical dial. ![]() They have nicknamed it the “Hot Lava,” but if you feel like going down a rabbit hole, head over to their Instagram ( to join in on the naming contest and see some of the rather funny suggestions from followers. Vintage watch dealers Craft and Tailored are currently offering just such a watch-a 1981 Rolex GMT Master Ref. This is especially true when that patina happens to heighten the watch’s original aesthetics. Once in a while, a spotty patina develops horological poetry that no evenly faded dial can match. ![]() That’s increasingly changing with collectors now seeking out dials with perfect, but happenstance, signs of age. Further-and to put it bluntly-spots on a dial tend to look like something went wrong, and spots rarely speak as poetically as a nice even patina does. The preference for evenly distributed patina was usually based on the not-inaccurate belief that newly delineated shapes (spots) disrupt the original design. Vintage watch collectors used to avoid spotty patina on a dial. ![]()
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