Baco Noir
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Post by Baco Noir on May 17, 2015 8:13:27 GMT -6
Vintage watch collectors have always seemed to speak in code to me - one which I do not understand well. I've heard the term "rail dials" in the vintage world for a long time but never had seen an explanation of what defines a rail dial - until now. quillandpad.com/2015/03/11/rolex-sea-dweller-reference-1665-with-rare-rail-dial/Now that I read this, it makes a lot of sense and will be easy to remember. Thought I'd share. Then there is the term "gilt dial". Well, this article explains that term, as well as the "Bart Simpson" dial and others... Gilt is “covered thinly with gold leaf or gold paint” The Rolex coronet on the dial evolved over the years and the examples made predominantly in 1966 featured a considerably more short and stout version of the coronet that seems to resemble the head and hair of the mischievous cartoon character, Bart Simpson. www.woundforlife.com/2015/02/09/under-the-loupe-rolex-submariner-gilt-5513/The vintage market has always intrigued me, but due to the number of variations, and fakes or pieced together watches out there I've always stayed away from it - especially since the descriptions seems to have their own code words that aren't always obvious. So what other vintage terms have you heard of for years, but didn't know the meaning of? Let's use this thread to put together a reference for key terms in the vintage market. I know some of these guys know a heck of a lot more than I do about vintage, so please chime in and share what you know. vincent65 charlie3755 aerome Nicko Pete pawnshopkiller Archer jocke Kiwi
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Post by vincent65 on May 17, 2015 10:20:34 GMT -6
Vintage Rolex; it's a mad world with so many names, but they help to identify/differentiate, of course, as with any other names. Some seem perfectly logical, some don't make a lot of sense; I never got the 'rail dial' thing either. A rail is usually quite long (curtain-rail, train-track) not just a small vertical space between a couple of lines of tiny text, but that's what they call 'em!
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CHIP
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Post by CHIP on May 17, 2015 12:02:31 GMT -6
Agreed. Every time I hear Rail Dial I think of the minute chapter ring in the shape of train tracks.
The two letters C lining up is news to me! Learn something every day.
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Pete
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Post by Pete on May 18, 2015 3:42:22 GMT -6
Very true guys. Some vintage dealers love coming up with new terms to make pieces sound uber rare or super special.
One I love is the term " pre Comex dial" for late 60's 5513's
WTF? Spider dials is another great term for completely stuffed and cracked glossy dials.
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Pete
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Post by Pete on May 18, 2015 3:47:58 GMT -6
Another one that always annoyed me was the Orange hand explorers with totally faded 24 hr hands = albino exp2??
Give me a break! You can't polish a turd as Jed once said.
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Post by Nicko on May 18, 2015 7:14:01 GMT -6
I have picked up quite a few terms about inserts over the years anywhere from kissing 4 to long 5, fat font mid font Mk 1 through 5. I just picked up a long 5 at a decent price, but for the on informed buyer it's extremely difficult. Here's mine.
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Post by Nicko on May 18, 2015 7:17:06 GMT -6
Very true guys. Some vintage dealers love coming up with new terms to make pieces sound uber rare or super special. One I love is the term " pre Comex dial" for late 60's 5513's WTF? Spider dials is another great term for completely stuffed and cracked glossy dials. I hear you Pete, gotta love the spider dials, it kills me when someone asks for a premium for a dial it's actually ruined and not just ruined it looks like hell too. Another one that I ran into some time ago was a blackout dial, this refers to a dial that is so beat up and water damaged and black that you can barely see it, the buyer was actually touting it and asking a premium price. Unbelievable.
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Baco Noir
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Post by Baco Noir on May 18, 2015 7:35:28 GMT -6
I have picked up quite a few terms about inserts over the years anywhere from kissing 4 to long 5, fat font mid font Mk 1 through 5. I just picked up a long 5 at a decent price, but for the on informed buyer it's extremely difficult. Here's mine. So what is a "kissing 4" bezel and what makes this a "long 5" bezel Steve? Hoping to make this an educational thread so explaining these terms would be appreciated.
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Post by Nicko on May 18, 2015 8:05:03 GMT -6
A kissing four is also known as a Mk1, it is the thickest of the fat fonts, so thick that the number 4 on the 40 is actually touching the 0 hence "kissing 4". Now the long 5 is a Mk2, the number 5 is elongated, but not the entire number just the inside bottom part of the 5. The Mk1 is probably the most expensive of the non-red triangle inserts, fetching past a grand and even higher depending on the desirability of the fade and condition. This long 5 pictured here is a bit less expensive but still high priced for a piece of painted tin.
Oh, I forgot the flat 4 service replacement from the 70's to the early 80's and it is probably the most common of the service replacements for most Subs of that period. I'm sure others can comment of serifs and other anomalies that I may have missed.
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Post by Nicko on May 18, 2015 8:12:34 GMT -6
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Baco Noir
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Post by Baco Noir on May 18, 2015 9:23:59 GMT -6
Thanks Steve ( Nicko)! Best explanation of these I've seen.
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Post by Nicko on May 18, 2015 10:39:06 GMT -6
No worries Roger.
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Post by Kiwi on May 19, 2015 1:09:11 GMT -6
Great thread, Roger. There are almost endless terms for different watches and mostly dials which is certainly not a 5 min. job to learn and to describe. Just to throw a few terms in as well from the many, Pizza dial Washed dial Underline dial Exclamation dial and many more, I be here all night, lol. Hope the link I put in works, as I haven't posted for a while and forgot how to insert links. Entering the Dark side is certainly a minefield now as the fakes are getting better and better, this is a very good read and explanation on what goes on out there at the moment. Any questions about any terms, please feel free to ask and hope I find the time to explain,....and hopefully someone can remind me on how to post links again. rolexpassionreport.com/15348/be-aware-high-quality-fake-vintage-rolex-dials/
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Post by Kiwi on May 19, 2015 1:15:40 GMT -6
Another one that always annoyed me was the Orange hand explorers with totally faded 24 hr hands = albino exp2?? Give me a break! You can't polish a turd as Jed once said. Hate to say this Mate, but they do exist, The Albino that is. The watch was certainly examined to pieces from a watchmaker who's been servicing Rolex for 40 years. ....that is probably why Jed bought my Albino. lol.
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Post by carbon6 on May 19, 2015 6:47:28 GMT -6
Excellent thread! I mistakenly thought rail dial referred to the two II, serif or sans serif. Now I know.
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