Incoming Daytona 16520

[swish77]

Incoming from a yearlong quest to find a black 16520 Daytona, a search that took me to Amsterdam, Tokyo and back to New York. (OK, I was there for work anyway, but I was still looking in every watch shop I could find.) The key for me, as always, was an immaculate tritium dial and super fat case, preferably unpolished. The problem with a lot of these old Zenith Daytonas is that so many have been polished to death and the black dials sometimes develop spotting on the gloss finish. Also, the black dials are harder to find. Rolex made more white-dial versions, one reason the search took so long. (The Patrizzi dials didn’t interest me, which was good, because they’re a lot more expensive.)

I finally found one I liked last November at a local jewelry store/dealer, a U-serial with matching U-stamped bracelet, totally untouched with all original parts, but well worn. The big appeal was it hadn’t been messed with at all, with a razor sharp, crazy fat case and a mint dial with warm patina on the tritium. The watchmaker who opened it to check the movement for me said the watch appeared never to have been opened before.

It took me until this week to finalize the deal after numerous visits to examine it inside and out, and searching for other examples that might be better in the meantime. The seller wasn’t an expert in vintage/classic Rolexes, which helped in a way. I got a good deal, but certainly didn't steal it. The watch wasn’t listed anywhere, so it had just sat in his shop since last November.

Very happy with it. This reference is an acquired taste, and I didn’t appreciate them years ago. Now I find them incredibly beautiful, especially with the patina on the sub-dials, which changes a lot in the light, and also varies on the black dials, just like patina on tritium varies from watch to watch. It has quite a few nicks/scratches, especially on the bezel, but doesn’t bother me at all. Just an honest, used classic Daytona that's about 25 years old. Strange how tough they are to find in this condition, meaning not perfect, but very solid and not polished. And for a watch that presumably has never been serviced, it’s still keeping COSC time with all chrono functions working perfectly. Good companion to my silver/cream 6263.

[eskiserkan]

Congrats, wear in good health.. I also find the Zenith Daytona better than the current ones. The dial is perfectly balanced at 3-6-9 and thin hour markers looks perfect when comparing the fat ones right now in production. Brushed lugs are another plus to me.

[1watch]

Congrats. Very clean case and bezel. Hard to find in that condition. I enjoy my white dial version and think it’s a great complement to my 6263



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[bronxbombers42]

Great shot and a beautiful example you've got there! I love those creamy sub-dials. Wear it in good health

[zapokee]

Super piece - well done. Fat AF and in great condition.

[1665fan]

Very nice!

[kwryeung]

Congrats! Nice watch!


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[swish77]

Thanks, guys. Definitely prefer these to the newer Daytona-Cs and even the 116520s, which are also nice. There's just something about these old 16520s that's more special.

Maybe it's the symmetry of the sub-dials that the newer versions lack, as mentioned above, or the patina, or the modified Zenith movement. Not sure. I do know it feels great on the wrist.

[42itus]

This is such a beautiful watch. And I absolutely agree. Way more interesting than a 116500. These have become so hard to find recently. About a year ago prices start to dip so I thought I would try to see if it would drop more. Bad move. Price keeps going up and lucky if you can even find one.
Great pickup! Love the tritium on this one. I’m very envious.

[kwryeung]

Really beautiful watch!


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[swaini3]

Congrats swish77...... The wait for the right one usually pays off. Enjoy it

[theflywrist]

Congrats Aaron!
The 16520 is a phenomenal watch when they are crisp, in both dial colors!
Wear in best health!

[athom]

My fav' Daytona and my fav' 5 digits Rolex among the others...I hope one day I'll have one

[spoont]

congrats! Was on a similar quest earlier this year and found a very similar spec white dial U serial myself in unpolished condition and never serviced. If you open the caseback you can see that all screws are in perfect condition and they are not scratched from moving with a screwdriver. Small detail but it matters to me. Only thing that most probably has been replaced on yours is the crown as it's a 704 crown installed rather than the 703 (longer crown) they have used back then. This is also the case with mine and I am thus looking for an immaculate 703 to replace it.

[1William]

Congratulations.

[FrenchBigCrown]

Congrats.

Zenith Daytonas are amongst my favourites too - especially the tritium versions and the 'patrizzi' dial versions.

Health to enjoy.

[HERITAGE82]

Beautiful example!

[benzng]

Congrats, one of my favorite daytonas but I chose the white version

[btinl]

Congrats! Looks great. I’m a big fan of the black dial.

[cwilson13]

Congrats Aaron.
Jealous!

[swish77]

Thanks again, guys. Really loving it and how the light changes the sub-dials, going from white/ivory in low light to a creamy tan in the sun.

Originally Posted by spoont

Only thing that most probably has been replaced on yours is the crown as it's a 704 crown installed rather than the 703 (longer crown) they have used back then.

I'm fairly certain the 704 crown (dots farther from coronet) is the factory original crown on my 16520, which is a later U-serial watch. The 703s (dots closer to coronet) were used on the earlier 16520s. That's what my research showed, any way.

What's great about these classic/neo-vintage Rolexes is that there are still some NOS examples out there to compare to, so it's easier to know what parts originally came on the watch from the factory. So, if you look at photos of the U-serial and later 16520s, you'll see them with the 704 crowns. Either way, all good!

[beachboy17]

Great piece....i actually just picked up a 6 digit reference as well. Couldnt find the one you got at my price point.....oh well.

Congrats and enjoy. See you are NY guy as well :)

[spoont]

Originally Posted by swish77

Thanks again, guys. Really loving it and how the light changes the sub-dials, going from white/ivory in low light to a creamy tan in the sun.



I'm fairly certain the 704 crown (dots farther from coronet) is the factory original crown on my 16520, which is a later U-serial watch. The 703s (dots closer to coronet) were used on the earlier 16520s. That's what my research showed, any way.

What's great about these classic/neo-vintage Rolexes is that there are still some NOS examples out there to compare to, so it's easier to know what parts originally came on the watch from the factory. So, if you look at photos of the U-serial and later 16520s, you'll see them with the 704 crowns. Either way, all good!

Oh wasn‘t aware of that! Thanks for the info and I will rethink replacing the crown.


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[Yzord]

Maybe i overlooked it, but may i ask how old this watch is?

[spoont]

Originally Posted by Yzord

Maybe i overlooked it, but may i ask how old this watch is?

U serial dates back to 1997 to my knowledge.


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[1665fan]

I seriously doubt a watch that has never been serviced has a replacement crown....I’m sure your is original

[swish77]

Originally Posted by Yzord

Maybe i overlooked it, but may i ask how old this watch is?

It’s a U serial, so about ‘96-‘97.

[jaisonline]

Congrats and welcome to the 16520 club.

[Cloudchaser]

Very nice! You are right...tough to find them like that. Congrats!

[thanakornl]

very nice! you prefer tritium version over the non tritium? why is that?