Continuing with the endearing story that we told you a few days ago linked to theRolex Submarinerand in his early days, our actor, José Luis, curiously got a watch that in his day was not even close to what it is today, but he chose it instead of the prestigious Day Date and Datejust. An unusual decision that had nothing to do with the price difference. Nowadays it is difficult to find pieces like this that come from the same family as the original buyer, especially when this person is well-known and recognized.
El Rolex SubmarinerThe protagonist of our story, as we already told you, is this:
A beautiful “Small Crown” 6536/1, a watch on the rise, of which there are very few pieces surviving today, much less in such good condition. It is a very enjoyed watch, with an incredible patina.
The “Small Crown” owes its name to the size of the crown, 5.7mm (6536) or 6mm (6536/1 and the rest), small compared to the “Big Crown” and its 8mm crown.
Both types form what today could be called “Submariner Bond”, due to the appearance of one of them, a 6538, in the Agent 007 film “Dr. No” from 1962.
My particular tribute to Submariner Bond from Dr. No:
The 6536/1 is heir to the first Submariner in history, the legendary 6204, which was followed within the “Small Crown” family by the 6205 and 6536. A 6204 is quite an event, here is one (LunarOyster photo):
The “Big Crown” are considered to be the most desired watches of all Submariners. Simply mentioning their references sends shivers down the spines of fans of the brand: 6200, 6538 (contemporary of our 6536/1) and 5510. These three Submariners top the wish list of fervent Submariner admirers and crown (pun intended) the largest collections of Submariners in the world.
An incredible 6538 (Photo Paul Boutros):
And the no less rare one, 6200 (Photo HQMilton):
On another occasion I will write in detail about another family of “Small and Big Crown” Submariners, that ofTudor, similar to Rolex, but even rarer.
Big Crown Tudor:
Returning to our main clock, theRolex SubmarinerIt is worth highlighting the dial and hands, the best of the piece.
The dial has acquired a golden patina on the indexes and dark gray on the hands. The dial itself has stopped being shiny, giving way to an almost matte tone with a slight brown tone that is beginning to be tropical.
As it should be, the 6 o'clock index is clearer, a way to orient the watch in case of poor visibility conditions. Its brightness was greater than that of the rest of the indices.
Even today, when the material no longer reacts to light, that 6 o'clock index is still excited by dark light.
The legend of the depth has acquired a dark gray hue, which contrasts with the white color it originally wore.
The other spellings are gold and are not painted, but are made of the same brass as the sphere, highlighted through a galvanic process during the production of the sphere.
The hands are also made of brass, with a great patina that has darkened them to an old gold tone. The radioactive material, as I said, is gray, at certain angles it looks almost black.
The seconds hand is painted white, again a detail to give more visibility to the movement of the watch. There are two types, the normal one and the lollipop or one with a large circle like this one. It is the most beautiful in my opinion.
Finding a “Small Crown” with the original hands is quite an achievement, as it is virtually impossible to find one these days.
The glass has suffered cracks internally, as a result of prolonged exposure to radiation. These cracks do not reach the surface since it is perfectly smooth. It is a very nice effect called “icing”. I'm going to put a new original crystal on it and keep this one that could very well be the original one of the watch.
Radius indices:
The cracks in the acrylic glass, which make it more original. It is not difficult to find a new plexi, I will soon change the original to avoid risks of fracture:
It's incredible, but none of those cracks reach the outside of the glass!
The hamburger-type case, with that thin case flanked by a round back cover and a domed crystal, in addition to lacking crown protectors, gives it that classic and elegant character. With perfect measurements for my taste with its 37.5mm.
The profile of the hamburger box:
And an extreme hamburger box:
Obviously the watch has been polished, but even though I could give it a once-over to recover the bevelling, I did not want to do it so as not to lose more steel. Furthermore, this is how its previous owner wore it and I want to keep it intact (except for the glass, but that is to protect the watch).
The Submariners Bond ("Small and Big Crown") are the essence of the sports watch ofRolexand without a doubt, the Rolex sports car with its Oyster case has promoted the professional watch in general like no other, airtight, utilitarian and with chronometric precision, an all-in-one without which the world of watches today could not be conceived.
As I said, with this delivery I begin this new disseminating stage. Here we are going to talk about theRolex historyand also its present, as well as that of its sister brand,Tudor. We will get to know their most important watches, we will see very rare and other truly unique watches, we will discuss the new models, we will meet some of the most important Rolex stores in the world and some collectors and prominent personalities. Because we will talk about both the pieces and the people who have historically worn them and wear them, since watches often mark people as much as they leave their mark on their precious timepieces.
In summary, we will talk about what has made Rolex what it is today, all with original material and in Spanish.
As for the story, it is true, told by Mariano Ozores, previous owner of the watch. I have only allowed myself to add some poetic license here and there. Thank you very much Mariano!
José Luis Ozores wore thisRolex Submarinermany years. Here are some screenshots of an endearing video, in which you can see José Luis with his children Mariano and Pelayo and the Submariner:
I thank Antón for the invitation and the opportunity.
I hope you continue to accompany me. Until another time!
Dedicated to the memory of José Luis Ozores (1923 – 1968) and with respect to his family.
Gustavo
