Hi,
The story :
I always knew my dad had a Rolex Submariner. During last Christmas holidays I decided to get it out of the safe and look for more information about it.
After hours of research, I found out it was a 1958 Rolex Submariner 5508. (I also discovered that it's quite a "collectible" item...)
Several days later, I found the bracelet in a desk drawer. It's a 1969 7206 with 80 endlinks.
As my father passed away in 2009, I can't get all the information "at the source", I've to deal with my family's memories.
My mom met my dad in the late 60's and she is pretty sure that he bought the watch from the dealer. She told me he wore it
every single day until the 80's. He stopped wearing it daily when my mother offered him a Cartier.
I remember my dad telling us that once he broke the bracelet and had to buy a new one. That should be the reason for the 1969 bracelet.
In the 90's, the watch went to Rolex in Geneva for servicing. I'm sure of that as we drop it off on our way to ski holidays in Italy. During our holidays, Rolex called him saying something like "
we can't read the serial number". Several days later, they called him back saying they found all the necessary information. I don't know more about that.
Since then, he did not wear it that much because the bracelet was pretty weak. He was afraid of losing the watch.
I can't find the box and papers yet. And I'm a bit hopeless as he moved more than 5 times since the purchase of the watch.
Pictures :
And the bracelet :
As you can see, he's a bit tired and one endlink is damaged.
The restoration
I know the watch is far from being perfect. It has a late service dial, service hands, the wrong bezel insert, and the crystal need to be replaced.
At the moment the watch is in Brussels for a mechanical-only servicing. I brought them a N.O.S. Tropic 16 too. I specifically asked them to not polish the case.
My goal isn't to have a "catalogue original". But I would like to have only genuine 5508 parts on it, even if it's service parts. The ultimate objective is to have a nice, reliable and "consistent" 5508, not a Frankenstein.
Regarding the bracelet, it think I'll send it to Mr Michael Young. I don't know if he will be able to repair the broken endlink or if I have to provide him with a new one.
This why I'm looking for those parts:
- a 5508 bezel insert;
- 2x 58 endlinks or at least one 80 endlink (but the 58 seems to be to good ones for the 5508);
- 5508 hands;
- 5508 dial (a nice service dial will do the job);
I'm still discovering the amazing world of vintage Rolex. So I'm 100% open to your comments, remarks or advices.
PS : I don't want to sell this watch. It will stay in the familly