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The Explorer History:
The Explorer series is perhaps one of the more underappreciated lines by Rolex. Yet, it is the oldest Rolex series that’s still being produced today. While versions of the Explorer existed prior to (See 6150, 6298, & 6098), it was not officially registered until 1953 when Rolex register the first Explorer with their 6350 model. As a comparison the ever-popular Submariner series came a year later in 1954, followed by their GMT series in 1955.
Their 6350 was also the first to carry the name ‘Explorer’ on the dial. It can be argued that it was simply Rolex’s marketing, which coincided when Sir Hillary climbed Mt. Everest that gave the line its allure today.
The Passion and Pursuit:
The Explorer line has been my personal favorite. The simplicity of the dial and case, combined with the distinct 3-6-9 drew me to the superfluous 1016s. My first was from Stan, which I sold after owning the piece no more than 3 weeks.
Since letting that go, I’ve been wanting to get my hands on another. I decided to build my own as I came across a great deal on 1016 cases from @stonep, who I was lucky to connect. He now owns my wallet. In fact, I built a pair: one for wife and one for myself. Extra kudos as I was able to finish right before Mother’s Day: https://forum.replica-watch.info/vb...y-finished-My-wife-s-1016?highlight=wife+1016
Being the serial flipper that I am, the build I made for myself found itself on the m2m sales thread shortly after. But I was drawn to the Gilt 1016 dial which belonged to my wife. I knew @jmb case was the only way to go for another 1016 build so I had Justin make me one. The Gilt dial I chose was Yuki and it’s been my favorite since. While I flip watches frequently, this one will certainly stick around: https://forum.replica-watch.info/vb/showthread.php/264329-My-Ultimate-1016?highlight=wife+1016
A simple question by @Mendota regarding the chapter ring on the dial landed me to this article: http://le-monde-edmond.com/in-depth-review-rolex-6350-explorer/. I was hooked. The 6350 was going to be my next project. In this article I learned not just the Explorer history, but one of the most collectible version of the 6350: The Honeycomb. When @vito1 found the refinished Beyeler dial on the Bay, I knew it had to be mine. Once I secured the dial I couldn’t hold myself back. And now it’s complete: My 6350
The Result:
Specs:
- Refinished Beyeler 6350 Honeycomb dial
- jmb v2 case vintaged and caseback bubbled by Justin; Engraved with my birth year
- Gen 6mm Brevet + crown
- Gen T22 domed plexi
- Felsa 4007n from Ofrei
- Lollipop hands
- Vintage 20mm strap from Etsy
- 2mm spring bars
The Struggles:
This wasn’t without its fair share of challenges. The T-22 wouldn’t fit inside the jmb bezel and the Brevet crown wasn’t made for modern gen tubes. Thankfully Justin told me to hold off on tapping the case until I verify the size. I had a rep crown that happened to thread with the Brevet, but was too long and needed to be shaved. All of the above, jmb handled for me.
Once I began assembling everything together, I ran into a few more problems. The lollipop hands I got looked weird with the white lume paste, so I had to remove it and re-apply a yellowish paste. The dial diameter was too big to fit the case so I had to shave it down. Same with the movement holder. Felsa says it’s 11.5 ligne, but I think it’s a bit bigger than that since none of my movement holders worked. Finally, I had to broach the second hand. The 4007n has a 0.21mm for their second hand vs. 0.25mm on ETAs. After a few attempts I was finally able to put this thing together.
Acknowledgement:
Special thank you to those mentioned in this thread and to RWI. I especially want to thank Justin for working with me on this project. I’m very fortunate that we share the same passion for the Explorers and wouldn’t have been able to finish this without his help. Cheers to you, sir.
The Explorer series is perhaps one of the more underappreciated lines by Rolex. Yet, it is the oldest Rolex series that’s still being produced today. While versions of the Explorer existed prior to (See 6150, 6298, & 6098), it was not officially registered until 1953 when Rolex register the first Explorer with their 6350 model. As a comparison the ever-popular Submariner series came a year later in 1954, followed by their GMT series in 1955.
Their 6350 was also the first to carry the name ‘Explorer’ on the dial. It can be argued that it was simply Rolex’s marketing, which coincided when Sir Hillary climbed Mt. Everest that gave the line its allure today.
The Passion and Pursuit:
The Explorer line has been my personal favorite. The simplicity of the dial and case, combined with the distinct 3-6-9 drew me to the superfluous 1016s. My first was from Stan, which I sold after owning the piece no more than 3 weeks.
Since letting that go, I’ve been wanting to get my hands on another. I decided to build my own as I came across a great deal on 1016 cases from @stonep, who I was lucky to connect. He now owns my wallet. In fact, I built a pair: one for wife and one for myself. Extra kudos as I was able to finish right before Mother’s Day: https://forum.replica-watch.info/vb...y-finished-My-wife-s-1016?highlight=wife+1016
Being the serial flipper that I am, the build I made for myself found itself on the m2m sales thread shortly after. But I was drawn to the Gilt 1016 dial which belonged to my wife. I knew @jmb case was the only way to go for another 1016 build so I had Justin make me one. The Gilt dial I chose was Yuki and it’s been my favorite since. While I flip watches frequently, this one will certainly stick around: https://forum.replica-watch.info/vb/showthread.php/264329-My-Ultimate-1016?highlight=wife+1016
A simple question by @Mendota regarding the chapter ring on the dial landed me to this article: http://le-monde-edmond.com/in-depth-review-rolex-6350-explorer/. I was hooked. The 6350 was going to be my next project. In this article I learned not just the Explorer history, but one of the most collectible version of the 6350: The Honeycomb. When @vito1 found the refinished Beyeler dial on the Bay, I knew it had to be mine. Once I secured the dial I couldn’t hold myself back. And now it’s complete: My 6350
The Result:
Specs:
- Refinished Beyeler 6350 Honeycomb dial
- jmb v2 case vintaged and caseback bubbled by Justin; Engraved with my birth year
- Gen 6mm Brevet + crown
- Gen T22 domed plexi
- Felsa 4007n from Ofrei
- Lollipop hands
- Vintage 20mm strap from Etsy
- 2mm spring bars
The Struggles:
This wasn’t without its fair share of challenges. The T-22 wouldn’t fit inside the jmb bezel and the Brevet crown wasn’t made for modern gen tubes. Thankfully Justin told me to hold off on tapping the case until I verify the size. I had a rep crown that happened to thread with the Brevet, but was too long and needed to be shaved. All of the above, jmb handled for me.
Once I began assembling everything together, I ran into a few more problems. The lollipop hands I got looked weird with the white lume paste, so I had to remove it and re-apply a yellowish paste. The dial diameter was too big to fit the case so I had to shave it down. Same with the movement holder. Felsa says it’s 11.5 ligne, but I think it’s a bit bigger than that since none of my movement holders worked. Finally, I had to broach the second hand. The 4007n has a 0.21mm for their second hand vs. 0.25mm on ETAs. After a few attempts I was finally able to put this thing together.
Acknowledgement:
Special thank you to those mentioned in this thread and to RWI. I especially want to thank Justin for working with me on this project. I’m very fortunate that we share the same passion for the Explorers and wouldn’t have been able to finish this without his help. Cheers to you, sir.
