A Year on the Wrist – Rolex Submariner 16613 (Part One)

(With apologies to Hodinkee and their “A Week on the Wrist” column)

Last year my father handed down his watch to me. This is certainly not an uncommon story in the watch world. Among watch enthusiasts, a watch’s history is as important as the watch itself, if not more so. Case in point – the record-setting auction of Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona for $17.8 million. For reference, the list price of a Daytona is $12,400. Certainly not cheap by any means, but this watch’s unique cachet has earned it a perceived value that is several orders of magnitude above its brothers-on-arms. (I’d apologize, but I’m actually pretty proud of that one). Brands are aware of the importance of a watch’s legacy, and their slogans speak to this sentiment. Patek Philippe famously states that, “You never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely look after it for the next generation.”

Rolex has quite a few stories they can be proud of, the most famous of which is Sir Edmund Hillary’s summit of Mt. Everest while wearing an Oyster Perpetual. The Oyster Perpetual would go on to become the Explorer line. Hillary’s expedition is just a small part of Rolex’s history, and I could go into detail about numerous other stories.

But this is not one of the above stories. This story belongs to my father and me.

As some of you may recall, my first attempt at building up a watch collection was thwarted when my house was broken into and burglarized in January of 2016 –  an experience I would not wish on anyone. Although no one was hurt and most everything was replaceable, it was nonetheless an ordeal that took the better part of the year to completely resolve. That said, the support from my family and friends was… I don’t want to use the words incredible, or unbelievable, as that seems to imply they wouldn’t be up to the task. They are, and they were. Frequent Wristgazers have already seen one of those acts of kindness. Unbeknownst to me, my dad had one of his own in mind.

I still remember that afternoon vividly. I guess you never forget the day your father gives you his watch. It was his birthday, and dinner was set for Fonda San Miguel, one of the city’s few true Interior Mexican restaurants. I arrived a bit early, so I took a seat at the bar, and discovered that they make a pretty mean margarita. On a side note, this was relatively early in my “sitting at the counter” phase. If you’re by yourself and the restaurant has a bar or a counter, give it a try. Seating is generally easier, and as a bonus, you might get to know the bartender. But I digress – let’s get back to the story.

As we were finishing up dinner, my dad told me not to leave just yet, and to meet him at his car as he had something for me. Here’s where I need to make a confession. There was a small part of me that thought, “What if it’s the watch?” I have the vaguest memory of being there with my father when he purchased the watch some 18 years ago. For most of that time, thoughts of the watch hadn’t been much more than the memory of that moment. Once I started to get into the hobby in earnest, however, thoughts of “whatever happened to that watch?” started to creep into my mind.

Sure enough, meeting my dad at the car, I saw him reach into the center console, and he pulled out his old watch. He told me that he had been thinking of me and how I lost my old collection and thought that I would appreciate it. I don’t remember my exact reaction other than to say I was overwhelmed. I’m sure the words amazing and incredible came out of my mouth more than once. I only hope I said thank you enough.

My dad and I almost have the same wrist size, but he’s about a link skinnier than I am. It was a tight fit, but naturally I wanted to start wearing the watch immediately, so I put up with a little bit of a squeeze until I had the opportunity to get the bracelet resized. The watch also hadn’t been serviced in the 18 years since it was purchased, so that was my top priority.

Fortunately, I’m good friends with the daughter of a jeweler, and that was my first call. She recommended a locally owned and family run shop, and they could not have been friendlier or more professional. When I took it in, I was given an estimate that the service and repair would take four weeks. I of course wanted them to take their time, and my patience has been one of my few qualities that has improved with age, but this was still a wait.

Finally, the day came. It was an eventful one for a couple of reasons. Earlier, I had gone through a stressful interview at work. The yoga practice at the end of the day helped to release some of the stress. But the text that was waiting for me when I got out was what really lifted my spirits – “Your watch is ready!!!” I didn’t have the opportunity to pick it up until the weekend, but it was a short 48 hours in comparison. Next on the list was sizing the bracelet.

When I attempted to put the watch on right as I picked it up, one of the store owners noticed the tight fit and warned me not to wear it like that for too long, since it could wear out the pins that kept the links in place. He told me that he could order a replacement, but recommended I try to find the original links first, since even a link from Rolex is more than an impulse buy.

This is the part of the story where I owe my mom a thousand apologies. She’s a bit of a collector and has been known to hold onto things for much longer than I or my siblings deem necessary. She has a good eye, though, and many of the things she holds onto are the right things. When I called her to ask if she might still have the original links, I was optimistic, but wasn’t really sure what to expect. She called me back a few days later, and not only had kept the links, but the original box, manual, warranty card, and every item the piece came with. I went back to the store with everything in hand, since I wasn’t sure what they might need. They put an additional link on in approximately five minutes and didn’t take payment.

As I mentioned in my review of the Seiko Cocktail Time, the Submariner has become my daily driver. So what is the watch actually like as a watch? Incredible. I realize that I’ve written over a thousand words and haven’t really gotten into the watch itself. I mentioned this to my friends and they compared it a food blog entry where the recipe only comes at the end of a long story. I may have gotten a little carried away, but I felt the story needed to be told, and at least I’m not trying to write instructions on how to build a watch.

Next time, I’ll go into the details of the watch, and there’s a lot to cover. In addition to the basics such as the construction and accuracy, there’s a lot that makes this watch special to me. The faded bezel, for example, reminds me every day that this watch had a lifetime of its own before I inherited it, and with any luck, it will have many more once I pass it down.

For now, I’d like to offer one final thank you to my family and friends, and any reader who’s made it this far.