Rolex Red Submariner Watch, ca. 1972
Watch
GUEST:
In 1972, I worked with a gentleman, and we scuba-dove together. He had a Rolex watch, and we went diving. I thought it would be nice to have a watch like that, so he went to Jamaica, picked it up at the Freeport store for me, and I've owned the watch since 1972 and have worn it almost every day until about 2008.
APPRAISER:
This is the original purchase price of the watch?
GUEST:
That's correct.
APPRAISER:
$100 and...?
GUEST:
$129.
APPRAISER:
And this is the store that it was purchased in.
GUEST:
That's correct, out of Montego Bay.
APPRAISER:
Right. And then this is the original warranty that came with the watch.
GUEST:
That's correct.
APPRAISER:
And you also have all the other accompanying paperwork that you had showed me before.
GUEST:
Yes, I do.
APPRAISER:
How deep did you go?
GUEST:
We went to about 90 feet.
APPRAISER:
Okay.
GUEST:
So I can't claim that I took it as deep as it said it could go.
APPRAISER:
So the watch was purchased in 1972 and made within a few months of that time period, so it's a 1971, 1972 watch.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
This is called the Red Submariner. This is the first version of the Submariner that had a date on it. And they've started putting the "Red" name on it for about five or six years.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
Previous to that, it was a "no date" sub.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
So this watch has been increasingly more popular, and right now, there's a monstrous cult following for what they call the “Red Sub”. Rolex is one of the premier sports watch brands in the world. They're noted for dependency, they're noted for their waterproofness. The versions today now have sapphire crystals, whereas yours was plastic. They keep making improvements, but the vintage watches, people just love the watch and just worldwide, clamor for the watch. And it's always been since the early days one of the top watches in the world and is for sure the most popular watch in the world.
GUEST:
Very interesting.
APPRAISER:
All Rolex watches are made in Geneva, Switzerland. Have you ever had it repaired?
GUEST:
Yes. I had it cleaned and a new crystal put on it, and I have the paperwork for that.
APPRAISER:
It's a good thing that at whatever point you sent it to Rolex they didn't do the work on it, because Rolex tries to bring the watch up to today's standards. Doing that to this watch would have diminished the value tremendously. They would not be able to put the red dial on, so if you would have come in today, it would have had a standard dial, and it would have been worth probably a fraction of what it could be as an original piece.
GUEST:
Interesting.
APPRAISER:
So in the retail market, this watch would have a value of about $15,000 to $17,000 given that you have all the original papers and you've not had the watch refinished or any major work done to it. Um…It’s - it's amazing that—
GUEST:
Wow.
APPRAISER:
--you've been able to wear it all those years, enjoy it, and turn $129 into $15,000 to $17,000. Congratulations.
GUEST:
Amazing. Thank you.
Appraisal Details
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