First submariner advice

[Brny11]

Originally Posted by SwissTimepieces

Advice- should I get my first sub as a date/non date, and also a birth year or new ceramic ? Are they equal in investment terms ?

Kind regards
Dan

<=14060 (no date) classify as the classic icons of the bunch IMO. However, build quality, ceramic, glide lock, etc. on modern make the 5 dig feel cheap (they are not cheap btw, just feels that way relatively speaking).

I could NEVER go to 5 dig at this point. So BB58 ticks that box along with my SubC date.

Also IMO, no date classic blah blah went out the window with 6 dig. They are modern iterations and are by no means “classic”. If you go ceramic (which I recommend), go 116610, it is a better watch. I traded a 114060 for one and couldn’t be happier. With that said, many would disagree, and they are not wrong. Different strokes!

In order of preference...

116610ln
14060 (I’d rather a BB58 and save 4-6k)
16610
114060

[alanjnr123]

I am also looking for a no date and ideally new 2020 as it's for my wedding and I would like to keep it.

They are £6,300 new but with no relationship with an AD I feel like my chances are next to none. On Chrono 2020's are going for around £8,500. Does this seem toppy to you guys?

[juktagt]

Everyone has their own personal preferences with regards each iteration, so I think only the individual can truely make the call.

For me, the 14060 or 14060M is my preference.

[Ranger67]

Originally Posted by alanjnr123

I am also looking for a no date and ideally new 2020 as it's for my wedding and I would like to keep it.

They are £6,300 new but with no relationship with an AD I feel like my chances are next to none. On Chrono 2020's are going for around £8,500. Does this seem toppy to you guys?

As I said previously I was waiting over 2.5 years from AD’s for a Sub either date or no date with no sigh of ever getting, some advice was go grey but I personally think the mark up in the UK is excessive and I wasn’t prepared to pay that much over, maybe send some emails to various AD’s and you may strike lucky, good luck.

[gwozhog]

SubC no date is the way to go. Never could understand why they put a date wheel on a dive watch.

[JChips]

14060M. Built to be used and abused. Easy choice, in my opinion.


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[BroncoOne]

Originally Posted by SwissTimepieces

Advice- should I get my first sub as a date/non date, and also a birth year or new ceramic ? Are they equal in investment terms ?

Kind regards
Dan

As almost everyone posting has said, do not look at this as an investment. Buy a watch that you will enjoy wearing. Yes, Subs are popular and can be resold but no one can tell you what its value will be in the future and there are lots of them out there and newer models may come out that affect value of prior references. There are a million other factors that influence value that you can or cannot comtrol.

On new verses vintage, my personal opinion is that only very experienced buyers should buy vintage because of all of the potential issues that can come up. Deep knowledge and luck are very much in
play, as is a trusted seller.

On a date or no date, personal preference, how you yourself and need and will use it that should dictate. I have a Sub and not a Sub date because I have other watches with a date (e.g. I have GMTs for business travel, back what that was happening anyway) and others with a date. I use the Sub for boating, skiing, snowbalrdimg and the like and I want a clean face that is very easily read whether underwater or not, that I can glimpse when pulling down a ski glove etc. . It's just how it is most useful to me personally.

If it is your daily watch for work AND play, maybe a date function is more important to have when you don't want to pull out a mobile phone.

[996marty]

I would buy pre owned lots to choose from and I’d forget about the birth year just buy the best your money will buy you,If it goes up in value over time even better.

[AF_Rob]

As a one and only, get a Sub date. If you plan on building a collection, get the no date version.

Not sure of the current market, but I would just go new model from the secondary market, unless you don't mind waiting.

If you are concerned about investment value, don't be. It's a Sub. Also, ask yourself why. Unless you really like it, I wouldn't recommend buying it.

[Jefferyasher]

14060m definitely!

[JRell]

114060 come on don’t ask! Classic modern watch, most popular ever, come on!!!!

[JSCP]

Sorry bithday marching watch age seems funny. But I would get a new one if you can. Unless it’s great vintage model

[rolexest]

I was debating the birth year vs new thing when i purchased my first watch. I went new and am happy that I did.

[campfire]

Welcome to the forum.

Me personally, I'd get a new Sub and with date. Good luck and post pics when you get them.

[vette]

Go to as many stores as you can. Consider all options then you ll get a good idea on the one you like. Get the one you like the most. Then get it and enjoy it. Thats why we get them to enjoy them

[Polarexplorerii]

this one…

[flal]

I’ll say what’s been said before. You need to choose what’s best for you and what speaks to you and what’s important to you. What are the pros and cons you’re debating between? With some more specifics the community may be able to at least let you know what they were debating between when making a decision or what you may want to consider. For example, when I was debating between a sub and sub date I was thinking about dial symmetry and history. I wanted new, and thought the pervious reference had a flimsy clasp. Also, the ND would be easier to set since I have many other watches in my collection. If you want the community’s option help us out by letting us know what’s important to you.

As for investment value, watches may not be a bad investment, but you should buy what makes you happy. It’s nice to have something on your wrist that won’t drop in value to nothing like a car, but still, the main priority should be what’s good for you and makes you happy.

[ToyotaMoe]

Just buy what you like. You shouldn’t really buy a watch if your first thoughts are how much will I make off this thing. Birth year.... yeah I don’t know about all that.

[Tomzoula]

If you're not sure, wait until you are?

[Sandpit]

Many will say the 114060 is superior, often simply because of the bracelet and clasp.

Ultimately, the 14060m (2 liner) is in my opinion a much much better looking watch. The bracelet and clasp on those will outlast all of us and many generations after us. I think it's also the last of the true tool dive watches (alongside the 16600).

They're totally different watches though. I find the 6 digit subs unwieldy and a bit clunky, although I'm on the list for both a date and no date and would happily take them if they ever land. The 5 digits are however perfectly proportioned.

Either way, both a fairly similar money now. I would simply go with which watch you find the most appealing to look at as performance wise, they're not too dissimilar.

On the glidelock benefits, people forget that the 14060m has plenty of adjustability too on the clasp. All you need is a toothpick.

[docmarioce]

I bought my first sub date to wear 16 years ago because I loved it since the first time I saw one. Since then I got tempted to trade in and get other watches which I did. I had ceramic sub dates, 5 digits SD, SD43, 5 digits GMT, Ceramic GMT, bluesy, TTYM, etc. Finally, after expending a huge amount of money and having had so many different Rolex watches, I ended up with a used 5 digit SubDate again as my only Rolex watch.

The moral of the story is: Buy the watch you love and wear it. There are going to be many other beautiful watches out there but the one you love will always come back to you.

About the date, as some say before me, I cannot look at a watch without date. I got already used to the date and I never know what day of the month it is anyway.

Happy shopping! (God knows I miss my old days...)