Rolex Sea Dweller 16600 Review
Dec 18, 2014 23:27:35 GMT -6
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Post by Baco Noir on Dec 18, 2014 23:27:35 GMT -6
Here is a mini review of my old Rolex Sea Dweller that I parted with at the end of 2013 to help fund my AP.
Summary Data:
Rolex Reference #: 16600
Serial #: Z75xxxx
Movement: 3135
Bracelet: 93160 with 14 links
Case:
The stainless steel Oyster case is milled from a single piece of cold-formed 904L stainless steel block. Rolex uses the 904L for its superior anti-corrosion properties over the more common 316L stainless steel.
One of the main design features that sets the Sea Dweller apart from the Sub is the Helium Escape Valve (HEV). The HEV is made of titanium and looks slightly darker than the 904L stainless steel case and is located on the side of the case opposite the crown.
The Z-series has an easy to grip 7mm crown with the raised Rolex coronet with 3 small dots below the coronet signifying the Rolex patented Triplock system. The Triplock system includes an extra O-ring on the stem tube as the first line of defense against harmful elements such as water, dust and humidity in the surroundings, in addition to the other two o-rings on the stem. The HEV and Triplock crown are the key design features that allows Rolex to achieve a 4000 foot depth rating for this watch.
The Z-series Sea Dwellers do not have drilled-through lug holes on the side of the case for the spring-bars to attach the bracelet to the case, which give the case a more elegant look and cleaner profile in my opinion, but does make strap changes a little more difficult.
The only thing that bugged me about the case was the thickness. 9 out of 10 times, I never noticed it but occasionally I'd be wearing a shirt with tight cuffs and it'd catch. The thickness also made it feel a little top heavy and if worn loosely, it would slide to either side of the forearm or into the wrist pretty easily.
Bezel:
The uni-directional rotating bezel has the traditional 60-minute marker, with the first 15 minutes marked off with the individual minute markers and the remainder marked off at 5-minute intervals. The 0 / 60 minute mark is noted with the large inverted triangle with a luminous pearl in the center. The bezel turns smoothly with 120-clicks. The coin edge treatment on the outside of the bezel makes it extremely easy to grip.
Crystal:
The Sea Dweller is fitted with a flat 4mm thick sapphire crystal. Because of its thickness, about 1mm of the crystal protrudes above the bezel, but the polished edge of the protruding crystal gives it a very smooth feel. The Sea Dweller is also not fitted with the standard Rolex cyclops magnifier over the date window, which in my view makes it a much more legible dial. On the Sub and other models with the cyclops, I find it hard to read the date unless you are looking square at the dial and it also distorts the minute hand as it passes under the magnifier, which you do not get on the Sea Dweller.
On this watch, there is also a tiny laser-etched Rolex Coronet at the 6 o'clock position on the sapphire crystal. Since about 2002, Rolex has etched this tiny and almost indiscernible coronet into the sapphire crystal of all its watches as added security measure to help differentiate between the real deal and fakes.
Movement:
The Sea Dweller is fitted with an in-house Caliber 3135 movement, which is a workhorse of the Rolex line as indicated by the fact that is was first introduced in 1988. It goes to show that even Rolex believes in the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" mentality!
The 3135 movement diameter is 28.1mm, thickness is 6.0mm, frequency 28,800 bph, the movement is adjusted for five positions, 31 jewels, bi-directional automatic winding, balance bridge height adjustable with two nuts, date calendar function, center seconds hand with hacking capability, annular balance with 2 pairs of nuts and regulating Microstella Breguet, red oxidized reverser wheel, the KIF shock protection, decorated plates and bridges finished with circular graining, and a stated power reserve of ~50 hours.
Here's a nice detailed review of this workhorse in the Rolex line... www.chronometrie.com/rolex3135/rolex3135.html
Dial/Hands:
The Z-series Sea Dweller comes with a gloss black dial with white gold outlines on the hour markers filled with luminova paint. The hour, minute, and second hands are also white gold filled with luminova paint. The date is positioned at the 3 o'clock point on the dial and has a high contrast white date wheel with black numbers for easy reading.
Bracelet:
The Oyster Flip-lock bracelet is a classic design that served Rolex well for many decades until being recently replaced on some models with the Glidelock clasp. There are four (4) micro adjustments on the clasp itself to allow for minor adjustments in size that can occurs from summer to winter or with a little weight gain/loss. The clasp also includes a hidden diver extension that springs out when the link with the small O stamped on it is depressed. The Sea Dweller was the first Rolex Professional watch to receive the Solid End Links, which are not only more pleasing cosmetically, but also less noisy than the rattling hollow end links of the older Oyster. The bracelet tapers from 20mm at the lugs to 17mm at the clasp tapered links and the links have a finely brushed finish.
I imaging the new SDc with the updated bracelet/clasp may balance out the weight a little better to reduce the tendency to shift on the wrist if worn loosely.
Overall, the SD is still one of my favorite Rolex watch lines of all times. If I ever buy another, I think I'd tend towards a vintage model with a matte dial, tritium markers and lug holes. If money were no object, then it'd be the double Red Sea Dweller for sure.
Here are some photos I took of it for the ad just before I sold it.
Summary Data:
Rolex Reference #: 16600
Serial #: Z75xxxx
Movement: 3135
Bracelet: 93160 with 14 links
Case:
The stainless steel Oyster case is milled from a single piece of cold-formed 904L stainless steel block. Rolex uses the 904L for its superior anti-corrosion properties over the more common 316L stainless steel.
One of the main design features that sets the Sea Dweller apart from the Sub is the Helium Escape Valve (HEV). The HEV is made of titanium and looks slightly darker than the 904L stainless steel case and is located on the side of the case opposite the crown.
The Z-series has an easy to grip 7mm crown with the raised Rolex coronet with 3 small dots below the coronet signifying the Rolex patented Triplock system. The Triplock system includes an extra O-ring on the stem tube as the first line of defense against harmful elements such as water, dust and humidity in the surroundings, in addition to the other two o-rings on the stem. The HEV and Triplock crown are the key design features that allows Rolex to achieve a 4000 foot depth rating for this watch.
The Z-series Sea Dwellers do not have drilled-through lug holes on the side of the case for the spring-bars to attach the bracelet to the case, which give the case a more elegant look and cleaner profile in my opinion, but does make strap changes a little more difficult.
The only thing that bugged me about the case was the thickness. 9 out of 10 times, I never noticed it but occasionally I'd be wearing a shirt with tight cuffs and it'd catch. The thickness also made it feel a little top heavy and if worn loosely, it would slide to either side of the forearm or into the wrist pretty easily.
Bezel:
The uni-directional rotating bezel has the traditional 60-minute marker, with the first 15 minutes marked off with the individual minute markers and the remainder marked off at 5-minute intervals. The 0 / 60 minute mark is noted with the large inverted triangle with a luminous pearl in the center. The bezel turns smoothly with 120-clicks. The coin edge treatment on the outside of the bezel makes it extremely easy to grip.
Crystal:
The Sea Dweller is fitted with a flat 4mm thick sapphire crystal. Because of its thickness, about 1mm of the crystal protrudes above the bezel, but the polished edge of the protruding crystal gives it a very smooth feel. The Sea Dweller is also not fitted with the standard Rolex cyclops magnifier over the date window, which in my view makes it a much more legible dial. On the Sub and other models with the cyclops, I find it hard to read the date unless you are looking square at the dial and it also distorts the minute hand as it passes under the magnifier, which you do not get on the Sea Dweller.
On this watch, there is also a tiny laser-etched Rolex Coronet at the 6 o'clock position on the sapphire crystal. Since about 2002, Rolex has etched this tiny and almost indiscernible coronet into the sapphire crystal of all its watches as added security measure to help differentiate between the real deal and fakes.
Movement:
The Sea Dweller is fitted with an in-house Caliber 3135 movement, which is a workhorse of the Rolex line as indicated by the fact that is was first introduced in 1988. It goes to show that even Rolex believes in the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" mentality!
The 3135 movement diameter is 28.1mm, thickness is 6.0mm, frequency 28,800 bph, the movement is adjusted for five positions, 31 jewels, bi-directional automatic winding, balance bridge height adjustable with two nuts, date calendar function, center seconds hand with hacking capability, annular balance with 2 pairs of nuts and regulating Microstella Breguet, red oxidized reverser wheel, the KIF shock protection, decorated plates and bridges finished with circular graining, and a stated power reserve of ~50 hours.
Here's a nice detailed review of this workhorse in the Rolex line... www.chronometrie.com/rolex3135/rolex3135.html
Dial/Hands:
The Z-series Sea Dweller comes with a gloss black dial with white gold outlines on the hour markers filled with luminova paint. The hour, minute, and second hands are also white gold filled with luminova paint. The date is positioned at the 3 o'clock point on the dial and has a high contrast white date wheel with black numbers for easy reading.
Bracelet:
The Oyster Flip-lock bracelet is a classic design that served Rolex well for many decades until being recently replaced on some models with the Glidelock clasp. There are four (4) micro adjustments on the clasp itself to allow for minor adjustments in size that can occurs from summer to winter or with a little weight gain/loss. The clasp also includes a hidden diver extension that springs out when the link with the small O stamped on it is depressed. The Sea Dweller was the first Rolex Professional watch to receive the Solid End Links, which are not only more pleasing cosmetically, but also less noisy than the rattling hollow end links of the older Oyster. The bracelet tapers from 20mm at the lugs to 17mm at the clasp tapered links and the links have a finely brushed finish.
I imaging the new SDc with the updated bracelet/clasp may balance out the weight a little better to reduce the tendency to shift on the wrist if worn loosely.
Overall, the SD is still one of my favorite Rolex watch lines of all times. If I ever buy another, I think I'd tend towards a vintage model with a matte dial, tritium markers and lug holes. If money were no object, then it'd be the double Red Sea Dweller for sure.
Here are some photos I took of it for the ad just before I sold it.