The Rolex Submariner has long been one of vintage-watch collectors’ most pursued and celebrated timepieces, and it is, without a doubt, one of the most iconic and recognizable wristwatches ever produced – by any manufacturer. To many collectors, the Submariner is synonymous with the essence and spirit of Rolex, and today we are taking an in-depth look at the very first Rolex Submariner ever released to the public: the reference 6204.
In 1953, Rolex introduced their Submariner line of dive watches in the form of the reference 6204. At the time of the Submariner’s initial release, scuba diving was still a very new sport, and the concept of a watch specifically designed for underwater use was still just in its very beginning stages. Although Rolex had no idea of it at the time, their Submariner line of watches would go on to become one of the most storied and successful timepieces on this planet.
The Submariner’s DNA has its roots in the reference 6202 Rolex Turn-O-Graph that was released shortly before the Submariner made its debut. Within the very first year following its initial introduction, the following three Submariner references were released.
There is some debate regarding the exact commercial release of these three different Submariner references - along with some production overlap, which complicates things further; however all three references made appearances within the same year, and it is generally believed that the reference 6204 holds the honor of being the very first. Based on serial number records, among these three early Rolex Submariner references – the 6200, 6204, and 6205 – the earliest serial number case engravings appear on reference 6204 watches that have caseback stamps from II.53.
Some of you may remember last year about this time I started on a small crown 6536 build. The dial never materialized so recently I dug out the case as I had discovered a plan B
The new split logo 6204 sub dial - from Raffles was quietly released and I just happen to stumble upon accidently .
It arrived and the lume was that yellow tone.
I decided to bake the dial 260 F 15 mins face up on coffee.
It gave the dial a bit of a semi gloss finish and the lume dulle down to a tolerable ligjht yellow/almond tone. It now matches the lume tone on the pencil hands he offers.
This is the first draft. I plan on doing more aging on the dial and lume but I felt I wanted to stop and try it for a few days before I went further. kinda like when you are walking into a lake in the early days of summer you stop and take a break when the water gets to nuts level.
The gilt is brighter in person than the stock picture. The cornet and fonts look good, crisp and accurate . unbeatable value for $35.00
The take away is that if you dont like the bright lume colour...bake it for a bit. the colour fades.
Here is the current state of the 6204
I think a janky straight end link bracelet suits this early sub so well.
The third watch in my collection of firsts.
first gmt master 6542
first explorer 6350
first submariner 6204
Build specs:
alix x case set
raffles 6204 dial
raffles pencil hands.
TC no hash insert.
Eta 2824
alix bracelet 18mm
As always, thanks for looking and comments and questions welcome.
369
In 1953, Rolex introduced their Submariner line of dive watches in the form of the reference 6204. At the time of the Submariner’s initial release, scuba diving was still a very new sport, and the concept of a watch specifically designed for underwater use was still just in its very beginning stages. Although Rolex had no idea of it at the time, their Submariner line of watches would go on to become one of the most storied and successful timepieces on this planet.
The Submariner’s DNA has its roots in the reference 6202 Rolex Turn-O-Graph that was released shortly before the Submariner made its debut. Within the very first year following its initial introduction, the following three Submariner references were released.
- Reference 6200
- Reference 6204
- Reference 6205
Some of you may remember last year about this time I started on a small crown 6536 build. The dial never materialized so recently I dug out the case as I had discovered a plan B
The new split logo 6204 sub dial - from Raffles was quietly released and I just happen to stumble upon accidently .
It arrived and the lume was that yellow tone.
I decided to bake the dial 260 F 15 mins face up on coffee.
It gave the dial a bit of a semi gloss finish and the lume dulle down to a tolerable ligjht yellow/almond tone. It now matches the lume tone on the pencil hands he offers.
This is the first draft. I plan on doing more aging on the dial and lume but I felt I wanted to stop and try it for a few days before I went further. kinda like when you are walking into a lake in the early days of summer you stop and take a break when the water gets to nuts level.
The gilt is brighter in person than the stock picture. The cornet and fonts look good, crisp and accurate . unbeatable value for $35.00
The take away is that if you dont like the bright lume colour...bake it for a bit. the colour fades.
Here is the current state of the 6204
I think a janky straight end link bracelet suits this early sub so well.
The third watch in my collection of firsts.
first gmt master 6542
first explorer 6350
first submariner 6204
Build specs:
alix x case set
raffles 6204 dial
raffles pencil hands.
TC no hash insert.
Eta 2824
alix bracelet 18mm
As always, thanks for looking and comments and questions welcome.
369
