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Old 24 October 2019, 12:40 PM   #1
Danbruski
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Non “watch guy” gifted a 30yr old Rolex - now what?

Hello,
What a great form. I’ve only just joined today but I already appreciate the community and the tone of the posts and comments.

Last week, my father gifted me his Rolex Oyster perpetual DateJust. It was gifted to him when he entered the quarter-century club at IBM, in 1990. I believe these were special commissioned watches from Rolex to IBM. Neither my father nor I are high-end watch people. We wear watches, but a $200 watch is expensive for us.

I’m very proud to have his watch, and to own a Rolex. It’s truly a gift and quite amazing. I want to do the right thing with it next. But I don’t know what that is, particularly regarding service. It seems to be running fine and has no issues. My father only wore it for Easter and anniversaries. So I’m guessing it’s movements were active less than 100 hours. It has never been serviced. It has never been in the water/sand nor Exposed to vibration or shock.

I’ve read other threads on this forum about the stinginess of people who spent $4000 on a watch, and complain about five or $700 of maintenance every 7 to 10 years. I definitely understand that thought process. However, I didn’t choose to spend $4000 on a watch fully aware of ongoing preventative maintenance.

I understand one choice is to sell the watch. I don’t like that option. If anything, I will keep it as an heirloom and maybe when I get older and have $1000 to spend on refurbishing I will do so.

However, do you have any other wise recommendations? Do I just keep wearing it until it no longer keep time properly? From my brief reading on this form, it doesn’t sound like there is a lower cost Service with lubrication option without taking everything apart and doing a proper job.

Any sage advice would be appreciated.
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Old 24 October 2019, 02:01 PM   #2
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It's your fathers watch.

Wear it, take care of it when it breaks; you will never need to buy another watch for the rest of your life.
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Old 24 October 2019, 02:08 PM   #3
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Toss it on! If you notice it’s not keeping great time consider service, I bet you won’t even notice a gaining or losing of time.

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Old 24 October 2019, 02:33 PM   #4
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Lol why is it always the "non watch-guy" who gets the cool heirloom handed down?? I'm just jealous...

Awesome story and it sounds like you really appreciate the watch. My only advice is don't think/worry about the cost, wear it often, and only service it if you notice any irregularities. Otherwise enjoy the watch and memories!
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Old 24 October 2019, 03:04 PM   #5
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Post pics?
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Old 24 October 2019, 03:57 PM   #6
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Please post pics.

NEVER EVER sell it imho. It's dad's watch, and he EARNED IT from IBM due to being loyal. Even if you don't 'get it', your children might (or if you have them, your brothers/sisters). IMHO dad gave you this very special timepiece, so please take care of it. Dad entrusted you with something he earned.
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Old 24 October 2019, 09:41 PM   #7
Danbruski
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Thank you everyone for your thoughtful advice. I appreciate knowing I won’t be doing it a disservice by wearing it until it needs help.
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Old 24 October 2019, 10:17 PM   #8
Danbruski
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Pics

There’s some pics. I hope I’m doing it right.
I’d love to try to understand more about what I have.

The band is stamped 78360 And what looks like 558 and then below it a B

What model or type is this? And I’m curious, what’s the $value. I should probably list it in my insurance, along with the wedding rings.


92D718FD-8BC6-4C66-A725-9D15667A943A.jpeg

179852E5-C08E-49E1-922F-4A43F8AA770C.jpeg

8AB79D43-3D48-4AF3-8FCD-8B19A92F865E.jpeg
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Old 24 October 2019, 10:24 PM   #9
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Ooohhhh man, what an awesome heirloom!!! I'd consider a service at a reputable place in MN, just do not let them polish it at all. Keep the scratches and ask your father what he was up to when he got them. It'll be something you can look back on later when you put it on for special occasions. Then, pass it onto your own kids.

Enjoy brother....and Skol Vikings.
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Old 25 October 2019, 12:38 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Danbruski View Post



What model or type is this? And I’m curious, what’s the $value. I should probably list it in my insurance, along with the wedding rings.




It’s a Datejust 16014 with an Oyster bracelet. Some were mated to a Jubilee bracelet like the photo below.

I’d insure it for replacement value of $4000 but you can’t replace the sentimental value of the engraved caseback. One option to consider is buying a used, plain caseback and installing it. This would preserve the engraved one for posterity in case the Watch was ever lost/stolen.

You can find them for sale between $3000-4000 depending upon condition.




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Old 25 October 2019, 12:42 AM   #11
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Wear and enjoy it! The watch is a tank and frankly requires very little service until it doesn’t keep time.
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Old 25 October 2019, 12:44 AM   #12
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Very nice, even if your not a "watch" guy. its from your Dad and that makes it special in anybody book.

Wear it and if it eventually starts losing time. Then you can look at getting it serviced at one of the recommended Independent specialist.

Wear it well.
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Old 25 October 2019, 02:14 AM   #13
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Awesome. Thank you.

77T, The aftermarket case backs, is that something a watch servicing customer needs to do? Or is that a home job? A clear one would be cool.
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Old 25 October 2019, 02:51 AM   #14
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Nice gift from your Father! Personally I think if you wear a watch normally anyway and you were just gifted a Rolex you should wear it.

Call Tom at D's (owner)Time Watch Service. You can send him the watch and they can do a full service for a lot less than $1k. Ask him about his TRF Discount too!

http://www.dstimeservice.com/

Please Wear and Enjoy the Watch Daily!
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Old 25 October 2019, 02:54 AM   #15
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. . .The aftermarket case backs, is that something a watch servicing customer needs to do? Or is that a home job? A clear one would be cool.

Here is everything that you want to know about a clear caseback.

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthre...08#post2196008
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Old 25 October 2019, 02:56 AM   #16
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Fantastic! Not too many employers do this any more.

A couple of year ago my AD had shipment of Rolexes for a local business. I don't know what they were or if anything special was engraved on them. He said he still gets these requests every once in a while. Nice to hear.
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Old 28 October 2019, 05:49 AM   #17
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It’s a Datejust 16014 with an Oyster bracelet.
Pretty sure it's actually a reference number 16220. If you look closely, the bezel is engine-turned, not fluted.
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Old 28 October 2019, 05:59 AM   #18
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Non “watch guy” gifted a 30yr old Rolex - now what?

Ah thanks - but a 16014 with 3035 caliber had engine turned bezel, right?

16220 had the 3135 caliber and fluted bezel I thought.

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Old 28 October 2019, 06:15 AM   #19
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^^ It's a close call if the OP's watch is a 16030 or 16220...

16030 = Acrylic crystal and 3035 movement

16220 = Sapphire crystal and 3135 movement

Tough to tell acrylic vs. sapphire from the photo provided. I went with 16220 because the year 1990 seems a bit late for the 16030 although I suppose that IBM may have purchased a large quantity of watches earlier than 1990 and distributed them over time? I dunno...
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Old 28 October 2019, 06:29 AM   #20
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What I wouldn’t do: send it to Rolex for a factory service, have it polished, insure it

What I would do: send it to a trusted service person who specializes in older models (knowledgeable TRF’ers have plenty of good options), this person will service it and make necessary replacements with factory parts and pressure test, after that, I’d wear the crap out of it. Be cautious of one thing, the watch hobby is a slippery slope.
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Old 28 October 2019, 08:04 AM   #21
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^^ It's a close call if the OP's watch is a 16030 or 16220...

16030 = Acrylic crystal and 3035 movement

16220 = Sapphire crystal and 3135 movement

Tough to tell acrylic vs. sapphire from the photo provided. I went with 16220 because the year 1990 seems a bit late for the 16030 although I suppose that IBM may have purchased a large quantity of watches earlier than 1990 and distributed them over time? I dunno...


Ahh...good point about IBM possibly having a pre-stocked supply.



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Old 28 October 2019, 09:02 AM   #22
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So it’s a
16030 Or 16220. Thank you. I’m surprised the number is t stamped somewhere. Maybe inside?
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Old 28 October 2019, 11:09 AM   #23
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So it’s a
16030 Or 16220. Thank you. I’m surprised the number is t stamped somewhere. Maybe inside?
The reference number is engraved at 12 o'clock between the lugs, under where the bracelet attaches (you would need to remove the bracelet to view it). But an acrylic crystal is much taller than a sapphire crystal which is more flush. Or just tap on the crystal with your fingernail. Does it feel and sound like plastic or more like a piece of glass? That'll be your answer.
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Old 28 October 2019, 11:09 AM   #24
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Non “watch guy” gifted a 30yr old Rolex - now what?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Danbruski View Post
So it’s a
16030 Or 16220. Thank you. I’m surprised the number is t stamped somewhere. Maybe inside?


The number is stamped somewhere.
Here is where you find it (sample photo)




Use a toothpick to press the springbars in and remove one side of the bracelet. Make sure to remove the end of the bracelet that attaches to the watch on the 12 o’clock side.

If you remove the other side (the 6 o’clock side), you’ll see the unique serial number for that watch. Judging by the year it was presented, it will have a long 7-digit number preceded by a letter - in your case prolly an R or an L or an E (most likely and L)


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Old 29 October 2019, 04:34 AM   #25
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Its definitely a 16220.
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Old 8 February 2020, 06:47 AM   #26
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I just stumbled on this thread - Danbruski, I hope you're enjoying your (dad's) Rolex! I just started wearing my dad's IBM Quarter Century watch - it's from 1983, but it looks exactly the same.

It was nice that IBM presented these watches to their emplyees back in the day. On a side note, it's interesting to see that IBM decided on Datejust watches with an Oyster bracelet, instead of the more typical Jubilee. I actually prefer the Oyster, but wonder why they went with the Oyster...
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Old 8 February 2020, 09:47 PM   #27
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I'm pretty sure Rolex Datejust with oyster bracelet cost less than ones with jubilee. Never the less, a company gave its employees Rolex! Amazing!
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Old 8 February 2020, 10:27 PM   #28
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Please post pics.

NEVER EVER sell it imho. It's dad's watch, and he EARNED IT from IBM due to being loyal. Even if you don't 'get it', your children might (or if you have them, your brothers/sisters). IMHO dad gave you this very special timepiece, so please take care of it. Dad entrusted you with something he earned.
This.... /\

Yes you must absolutely keep it. My father died some years ago and I have nothing personal of his to remind me of him - I wished I had something like a Rolex that he wore.

If it loses time, have Rolex service it. That's all you need to do - unless you're thinking of swimming or showering in it, in which case it might be worth having it pressure tested (not expensive) just to make sure it's still watertight.

A lovely thing to own and something to pass on to your own children eventually.
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Old 9 February 2020, 01:25 AM   #29
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Wixson in Bloomington is an authorized Rolex dealer, and I believe they have an in-house watch repairmen.
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Old 9 February 2020, 02:41 AM   #30
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It's your fathers watch.

Wear it, take care of it when it breaks; you will never need to buy another watch for the rest of your life.
What Tools said.
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