E-mail from Reader : What Rolex To Get Next?

I received the following e-mail from a reader i.e. Richard, which served as the basis for the current entry :

Now, I would admit that I have a soft spot for the Rolex brand. A jubilee ago (all pun intended as Rolex is renown for its jubilee bracelet), my grandfather had a goldsmith business (half the shop) and the other half was utilised by my Dad in his watchsmith business. Ask my Dad and you would find that many of those whom came to shop for gold jewellery would also asked if there was any "Kam Lor" (slang for gold Rolex watch) in stock- and of course, Rolexes' price were much more down-to-earth back then.

Rolex watch's price was on the expensive side, but you get a very good watch with its prestige- at a big chunk of your one-month salary perhaps. Today, you still get a very good watch with its prestige- but you would be looking at sacrificing some months of your salaries perhaps. Yes, Rolex's prices had been on the increase with every passing year and it may not be as easily accessible as per the yester-years. But their quality was time-tested and I remembered a vintage Datejust from the 70's that I had, which was still attractive and ticked beautifully even when placed next to the newer Datejust of today.

I wore the 70's DJ for my Datoship ceremony.

His-and-hers. My wife wore her ladies DJ with rubies.

Both my DJs were 40 years apart. Can you tell?

The DJ was a businessman's perfect dinner watch for networking functions. The jubilee bracelet was very comfortable on one's wrist and you would blend in easily with the crowd sporting a DJ. Therefore, I could understand Richard's collection having a DJ- although I would prefer the 36mm collection as it was IMHO the gentleman's classic size for a dress watch. Richard's choice of the DJ II at 41mm was IMHO more suitable for a sports watch than a dress watch size.

After the DJ, the next Rolex that I added into my collection was the Submariner Ceramic and Explorer 2. I initially had the classic black 116610LN, which was later flipped when I was offered a Hulk-green 116610LV. The SubC was a great sports watch and could be worn for any occasions.

I liked the Explorer 2 for its dash of orange GMT hand, which added casualness into a watch that was great on casual Friday and weekends. Between the 2 models, if I could only choose 1 piece, I would recommend that Richard pick the SubC, as it was a piece that everyone would recognise as a classic Rolex sports watch with its unidirectional bezel, maxi-dial design and 2.5x cyclops.

Both watches were definitely under his pre-set budget, and a point to note was that one could generally get a better price with Rolex ADs overseas (minus the pesky 6% GST locally which could add to quite a sum). From personal experiences, I found that Rolex ADs in UAE, Hong Kong, Macau and Europe tend to give very competitive pricing after discount and VAT rebates; although you have to factor in the Forex. Now that MYR has finally strengthened somewhat and was expected to reach 3.7 (which I thought was a tad too optimistic though) within this year, it should make the purchases easier to digest too.

All the best with your choice then.