TeeJay Posted July 30, 2012 Report Share Posted July 30, 2012 The other day, Justlounging posted this rather fantastic photo: For some reason, it reminded me of the 16800s, and that got me thinking, was there ever a matte-dialled/silver marker GMT dial? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeyB Posted July 30, 2012 Report Share Posted July 30, 2012 I don't think so. The last matte dial was the early 16750, but had no surrounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavidoc Posted July 30, 2012 Report Share Posted July 30, 2012 TeeJay, A big misconception by some is that Rolex made a matte dial with white gold surrounds. Reports on the Gen forums would lean towards that not being correct. When Rolex released the first run of glossy dials with the white gold surrounds, the lacquer had a tendency to age strangely. In some cases the lacquer cracked and the result are the spider web dials you see from time to time. Rolex views them as a failure while some collectors view them as collectible. The 2nd thing that could have happened was that the lacquer eventually turned dull, resulting in a matte dial with the white gold surrounds. Thus the reason some believe Rolex issued the matte dial with white gold surrounds. In either case, there was never a GMT Master issued with the dial you asked about. Is it possible to find a matte dialed/ white gold surround GMT Master? Possible. Was it from the factory like this? More then likely no. If you could find it you would have to look for one of the following: late serial 16750, 16760 (fat lady), early 16700, or an early 16710. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmg Posted July 30, 2012 Report Share Posted July 30, 2012 I have yet to see a matte dial GMT either with indice surrounds but in the world of Vintage Rolex -never say never. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted July 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2012 Thanks for the feedback, amigos I figured that there might not be a 'factory issued' silver on matte dials, same as with the 1984 16800, but I wondered if there might have been some unusual aging examples the same as the 16800 Needless to say, I might well be modifying the en-route GMT to reflect my vision Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panerai153 Posted July 30, 2012 Report Share Posted July 30, 2012 I have looked at a fair number of GMT's, especially when i was on a quest to find a nice 16750. The only matte dial 16750's were the non WG surround models. All of the later 16750's with WG surrounds were gloss dials. As others have said, over time lots of strange things happen to painted surfaces. spiderweb cracking, "tropical" brown , and I'm sure overall dulling of the dial. My 16750 from 1983 is still glossy, however the tritium indices and hands have aged to a wonderful creamy vanilla color. Also the bezel insert has faded quite a bit. I wear mine outside in the sun a lot, but thus far no dial changes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
correctime Posted July 31, 2012 Report Share Posted July 31, 2012 There seems to be a great deal of knowledge regarding GMT's here so I'd like to trouble this thread for some expert info please. What model GMT would this particular dial in a holed Case ( Cartel Exp.II case with WM9 v2 bezel with drilled lug holes) replicate ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
correctime Posted July 31, 2012 Report Share Posted July 31, 2012 And then what model would it be using this particular dial ?? Also....is the 62510H Jubilee with 555 end pieces correct for both ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justlounging Posted July 31, 2012 Report Share Posted July 31, 2012 First one might be from a 16700.. Second pic is an early GMT Master II dial, possibly around E series.. The jubilee can be used for both but some GMT Master came fitted with the 580/93150 Oyster bracelets Gmt master II comes in 3 variations; Oyster 78360, 78790 and Jubilee 62510 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavidoc Posted July 31, 2012 Report Share Posted July 31, 2012 First one might be from a 16700.. Second pic is an early GMT Master II dial, possibly around E series.. The jubilee can be used for both but some GMT Master came fitted with the 580/93150 Oyster bracelets Gmt master II comes in 3 variations; Oyster 78360, 78790 and Jubilee 62510 Correct on all counts. Pic is of a 16700. Last of the original GmT master. 16700 came with 501 end links but 593 also work if with the 93150. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeyB Posted July 31, 2012 Report Share Posted July 31, 2012 The watch in reply #7: If that is an acrylic crystal it is a late 16750. If it is a sapphire, then it's a 16700. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panerai153 Posted July 31, 2012 Report Share Posted July 31, 2012 The dial in the first image looks exactly the same as my 16750. It's hard for me to tell from a straight on view if the crystal is acrylic or sapphire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted July 31, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 31, 2012 I have looked at a fair number of GMT's, especially when i was on a quest to find a nice 16750. The only matte dial 16750's were the non WG surround models. All of the later 16750's with WG surrounds were gloss dials. As others have said, over time lots of strange things happen to painted surfaces. spiderweb cracking, "tropical" brown , and I'm sure overall dulling of the dial. My 16750 from 1983 is still glossy, however the tritium indices and hands have aged to a wonderful creamy vanilla color. Also the bezel insert has faded quite a bit. I wear mine outside in the sun a lot, but thus far no dial changes. Interesting stuff, maybe Rolex used a different dial varnish on the MTs than was being used on the 16800's I was considering modifying my incoming dial to a matte finish, to be a bit 16800-esque, but if there's no precedent for that dial turning matte, I might just leave it gloss Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
correctime Posted August 1, 2012 Report Share Posted August 1, 2012 Anyone need the gen dial ?? PM me. The dial in the first image looks exactly the same as my 16750. It's hard for me to tell from a straight on view if the crystal is acrylic or sapphire. gen 25-295-C sapphire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.