Watchmakers International sponsors Ian Fleming Rolex for James Bond watches exhibit

[delldeaton]

Given the interest here on TRF in the upcoming James Bond Watches exhibit opening this June in the US and the positive experiences many of us have had with Bob Ridley, I thought the following might be of interest.

Official News Release

Columbia, Pennsylvania (2/9/2010)— For over 50 years, James Bond fans have had the need to know what watch Agent 007 wears. Fans fantasize: They are James Bond when wearing his watch.

Vintage Rolex watches — similar to the Sean Connery Submariner in Dr. No, the George Lazenby pre-Daytona chronograph in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and the Rolex Explorer worn by the literary Bond and author Ian Fleming — can be restored today to their original performance standards.

Bob Ridley of Watchmakers International gives a new lease on life to even the oldest (and most desirable) James Bond Rolex models, including those originally worn in the earliest Eon Productions films. Watchmakers International has also signed on as exclusive sponsor for display of Ian Fleming’s personal Rolex 1016 Explorer throughout the upcoming National Watch & Clock Museum exhibit, “Bond Watches, James Bond Watches,” June 18, 2010, through April 30, 2011.

“These watches were meant to be worn,” says Ridley. “My team makes that possible.”

This is particularly important to Bond watch owners. “When I approached Bob with my own 1016 Explorer, my hope was that he could take it to a point where I could wear it on special occasions without a lot of worry,” recalls Dell Deaton, guest curator of the James Bond Watches exhibit. “Bob said he could bring it back to a standard where I could wear it every day, the way it was designed to be worn.”

“If you think about the 6538 Submariner that fans associate with the movie Goldfinger,” Ridley adds, “these Rolex watches are increasingly hard to find in any condition. Proper functional restoration often begins by addressing neglect, water damage, and quite frequently the need to back-out previous misdirected repair issues. With that, we almost always have to source Rolex parts or fabricate corrections based on a watch that even the most experienced Rolex researchers haven’t seen more than a handful of times in an entire career.

“By focusing only on the Rolex brand, we’ve developed that necessary familiarity. We’ve also earned a respectable interface with Rolex technical support departments, with which we exchange information.”

At the same time, Watchmakers International brings a true collector’s eye to restorations — balancing desired performance against a commitment to retain investment value. “The dial on my 1016 Explorer is cracking,” Dell Deaton notes. “But replacement and even refinishing are out of the question: My Rolex is just like what Ian Fleming saw on his wrist when he wrote that ‘Bond glanced at his watch’ in the final pages of On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. That’s what I will still want to see after any work on it is done.”

“I gave Dell a number of proprietary options we’ve come up with for arresting the deterioration without any visual change to aesthetics,” Bob Ridley explains. “These are things we have done for Watchmakers International clients that we’ve served for many, many years; the proof of longevity is reconfirmed upon intake inspection each time one of these watches comes back now for routine maintenance.”

“The addition of Bob Ridley, personally, and Watchmakers International, as a sponsor, raises an already high bar on what we expect this exhibit to deliver,” says Noel Poirier, director of the National Watch & Clock Museum. “As an international association and repository for horology, our Museum and this exhibit can both show a great range of Bond-affiliated wristwatches, and then go beyond that to provide a great depth of understanding about how many of them functioned then and now, their design evolution paths, and, in particular to the Ian Fleming Rolex 1016 Explorer and related pieces, what their present condition tells them about their service to wearers as timekeepers.

“Watchmakers International is the ideal sponsor for the Ian Fleming Rolex as part of our ‘Bond Watches, James Bond Watches’ exhibit. We’re truly honored to have them be a part of this.”

Watchmakers International is the exclusive sponsor for bringing the original Ian Fleming Rolex Explorer 1016 to the entire run of this year-long exhibit. With over 30 years experience in fine wristwatch work, certified horologist Bob Ridley offers a unique balance of technical skill, resources, and an understanding of value-aesthetics to the sole of his business: Vintage Rolex restoration. See www.watchmakers.com for more information.

Dell Deaton is guest curator of this “Bond Watches, James Bond Watches” exhibition and author-creator of www.jamesbondwatches.com. He is a member of both the National Watch & Clock Association and American Marketing Association, and an internationally recognized expert on Ian Fleming and James Bond horology.

“Bond Watches, James Bond Watches” will be unveiled at the NAWCC Annual Convention on June 17, 2010, and runs June 18, 2010, through April 30, 2011, in Columbia, PA.

The National Watch and Clock Museum is operated by the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors, Inc., a nonprofit 501(c)(3) association close to 20,000 members, representing 52 countries. April through November the Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. December through March hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Discounts are available to seniors, students, AAA members, and groups of 10 or more. Groups of 10 or more are encouraged to call ahead. For more program information, directions, or general Museum information, call 717-684-8261 or visit our website at www.nawcc.org.

Image: Vintage Rolex Explorer 1016 wristwatch with original Radium dial — just like James Bond wore in the 1963 novel, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Background items include a copy of that first edition book, a pre-publication Uncorrected Proof, and the very first publication of this story (part 1 of 3) in the April 1963 issue of Playboy magazine. Photo copyright www.jamesbondwatches.com, 2010.

[Boadicea]

You just have to love the Explorer. The ORIGINAL bond watch

[buz-lh]

Great writeup Dell. Hope I can get to the exhibition.

[STEELINOX]

Fantastic Dell !

[Tools]

Sounds like a great match...........

[Lucy Diamond]

Would love to see that exhibit!

Neat to see Bob's name mentioned....he' the man!

[lolo96706]

Thanks for that great information. It will be a great exhibit.

[ayecarumba]

Always appreciate your informative and entertaining posts!

I've also been a visitor/follower of your James Bond Watch blog and really enjoyed your recent article in WatchTime.

Can you tell us which watches/models will be featured in this exhibit?

I'm looking forward to seeing the opening night pics too!

Cheers Dell!

--Paul

[delldeaton]

It's always so great to read the enthusiasm for this project from my friends here on TRF! As you may have noticed, my Forum participation has really fallen off over the months, as planning and preparation have increasingly shifted into high gear.

Originally Posted by Boadicea

You just have to love the Explorer. The ORIGINAL bond watch

Yup.

Originally Posted by Lucy Diamond

Would love to see that exhibit!

Neat to see Bob's name mentioned....he' the man!

Hope you can make it, Lucy (along with a lot of the other folks here).

As it stands, the "Bond Watches, James Bond Watches" special exhibit opens to the public on June 18. But, as the release says, there will be a special unveiling the night before. This coincides with the start of the NAWCC Annual Convention, which is happening in the same area of Pennsylvania. I believe this will involve a presentation, reception, and special "guided tour" of the displays.

Like so many of you all on this Forum, I've trusted my own Rolex 1016 Explorer to Bob Ridley for work. When we got a firm commitment from the Ian Fleming family to show his watch throughout, I felt that somewhat obligated us to provide resources for collectors who were interested in that end of the Bond watch spectrum. How do you make good acquisition decisions? How do you keep these watches performing to specification?

Watchmakers International was not only a perfect match for that, but also to one of two "special" weekends we'll be hosting at the Museum. One will be a "James Bond fan weekend," the other more focused on horology. As part of the latter, Bob will be providing "under-the-hood" (if you will) information on the key 007-related Rolex models of the 1960s for sure, and maybe some others beyond that.

As a tangential note, let me add that if anyone here has an early Connery-related Submariner or Lazenby-related pre-Daytona chronograph that they think would provide a good case study along these lines, please by all means PM me here.

Originally Posted by ayecarumba

Always appreciate your informative and entertaining posts!

I've also been a visitor/follower of your James Bond Watch blog and really enjoyed your recent article in WatchTime.

Can you tell us which watches/models will be featured in this exhibit?

I'm looking forward to seeing the opening night pics too!

Cheers Dell!

--Paul

Thanks for the kind words on the WatchTime article. I understand that it opened some doors for other "fictional character watch studies" in the magazine, and it's nice to see that they remembered me in their current Editor's Letter.



My complete February 2009 WatchTime article on the original, literary James Bond Rolex 1016 Explorer watch discovery is also now online in both *.pdf and HTML.



Additionally, the NAWCC Bulletin ran in its June 2009 issue an extensive, more technical follow-up that may be of even greater interest to the folks here on TRF. In this one, I was able to get into more detailed information on the watch itself, as well as address some things related to Jacques Cousteau's influence on Fleming's writing - and talk specifically about what Ian Fleming apparently thought about the Rolex Submariner that Sean Connery was wearing in Dr. No.



In terms of specific brands, all I can reveal at this point is that all confirmed brands will be represented and at least one specific piece for each is already in-hand (probably not surprising this close to the opening). So: Breitling, Hamilton, Omega, Rolex, and SEIKO. Additionally, there is also a yet-to-be-disclosed brand that is scheduled for discussion at Basel and perhaps as many as three examples of that will be shown as well.

(I have to hold off on saying much more here - as some of you will recall, as I had to do prior to the WatchTime article publication - but I'll definitely remember to come back here to post images when the announcement is made.)

Finally (and I'm still trying to figure out how to post YouTube videos here, if possible), JamesBondWatches has a YouTube channel now. One of the things that's allowed me to do is upload the PowerPoint presentation I did on James Bond Watches at the 2009 NAWCC Annual Convention in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Segment 5 has a lot of detail on the Ian Fleming watch.

Hope this helps answer questions here regarding further details. Please let me know if there's anything else. And, again: Thank you all so much for your enthusiasm!

[therolexguy]

This is exciting. I may try to go out and see it. Thanks a lot for the info and the time you're putting into this.

[delldeaton]

Originally Posted by therolexguy

This is exciting. I may try to go out and see it. Thanks a lot for the info and the time you're putting into this.

The Rolex Submariner you have shown in your signature is a 6536 if memory serves, correct?

Personally, I'd love to see some pictures of watches from that era added to this Thread. Crowns, bezels, and dial markings will vary, of course: But the range makes for great study and discussion!

Great watch.

[carlhaluss]

Here it is 3AM, and I am sitting here reading your wonderful post! I will be thinking about all of this info and history, when I wear my Explorer today. Thanks for a very entertaining and exciting post!



Again, I have to repeat: "If I could have only one watch, it would be my Rolex Explorer."

Cheers ,
Carl

[SDDS]

nice thanx for sharing