2008 Deep Sea Review

[lanikai]

2008 Deep Sea Review ~ Macro Pictorial

After a much anticipated wait, the 2008 Deep Sea Replication has been released, the rep. has been made with a genuine as sample..

We have many members here that are experts in the Rolex brand .. in fact that is all they will wear, be it genuine or replication.. one such member is ~ freddy 333 .. freddy has dedicated I believe 2 decades to the passion of the rolex timepieces.. mainly the vintage models.

But it has been my experience that the best knowledge comes from those who are concerned with the History as well as the watch itself .. so for this reason (one of them) I have requested that freddy lead us into the review..

I hope this thread is of use to your decision making ..

Thank you in Advance for viewing ~

Lani

Intro by ~ freddy 333

Plumbing the Depths of Rolex at Sea

A (Very) Brief History & Overview of the DEEPSEA

Ever the Masters at Marketing, in 1953 Rolex strapped their newest submersible prototype, the 57mm X 40mm X 39mm, Calibre 1000-powered Deep Sea Special, to the outside hull of the Bathyscaphe Trieste and successfully completed a test dive to a record depth of 3150 meters.

Several years later, in 1956, Rolex Canada, taking a huge (technological) leap backwards in resurrecting the 'DEEPSEA' moniker, released the very staid & quite gentlemanly Oyster Perpetual Deep Sea Model 6532

Then, in 2008, Rolex SA released the Sea Dweller DEEPSEA Model 116660

The new Oyster Perpetual Sea-Dweller DEEPSEA is waterproof to an extreme depth of 3,900 meters (12,800 feet). This next-generation diving watch confirms Rolex's supremacy in the mastery of waterproofing. Entirely developed in-house by Rolex, the Sea-Dweller DEEPSEA is a completely new wristwatch that benefits from several important technical innovations. It is equipped with the newly designed and patented RINGLOCK SYSTEM, which resists the massive pressure exerted by water at extreme depths. It is the first watch with a double extension bracelet system, making it easily adaptable for improved comfort when worn above a diving suit. The Sea-Dweller DEEPSEA name is a tribute to the Deep Sea Special.

116660 Technical Specifications

Case: Stainless Steel (SS)

Dial Color: Black

Watch Bracelet/Strap: SS

Watch Clasp: Slide Lock clasp for ratcheted fine adjustments

Movement: Rolex 3135 with Parachrom Hairspring

Functions: Hours, Minutes, Center Seconds, Date

Crystal: Sapphire

Case Diameter: 43.0 mm

Case Thickness: 17.68 mm

Caseback: Titanium TA6V Grade 5, 3.28mm thick, Vanadium and Aluminum alloys, 4x stronger than SS

Bezel Material: Black Cerachrome Disc with 60-minute graduations

Bezel Function: Unidirectional/Rotating

Water Resistance: 3900m/12800ft

Crown: Triplock Winding Crown with three gaskets

Calendar: Automatic Date at 3

The Genuine

The Replication

The Rep. Specs.

Case: Stainless Steel (SS)

Dial Color: Black

Watch Bracelet/Strap: SS

Watch Clasp: replicated from genuine ratchet action

Movement: ETA

Functions: Replicated

Crystal: Sapphire domed .. (height is in question from genuine)

Case Diameter: 43.07

Case Thickness: 18.70

Caseback: replicated TI/SS

Bezel Material: whatever they used ?

Bezel Function: replicated

Water Resistance: Advertised at 3 atm

Crown: reo. trip lock

Calendar: Auto date @3

The Look ~ The Feel

First of all .. this is the biggest Rolex SD to date, and it is a Monster ! But there is a reason I believe for rolex breaking away form their Norm .. and that is functionality .. it is after all a "Deep Sea" Working timepiece and of course if the genuine is to reach it's advertised depths.. well, nuff said.

the "Look" of the Rep is very close to the genuine, as I never expect a 1:1 for the Rolex Line of replications.. but IMO there are vast improvements in this replication ..; the one most important for me is the dial.. more on that later..

The Mirror finish to the bezel insert is excellent .. again IMO.. it appears to be made of glass as far as the reflection and when in the right lighting the bezel will appear silvery-gray .. nice !!

I defer the rehaut until more info from the genuine appears on the board.. some of the pics of the genuine show the rep to be very very close as far as spacing .. the engraving itself looks very good.. and I am impressed with the disappearing engraving on the lower portion of the rehaut. the (Rolex) lettering is very faint .. being more noticable in dim lighting..

your going to like the coronet marking on the crystal .. if you can see it without a loupe.. the macro picks it up .. but other than that.. it is not really visible..

One member brought up the crystal height as not being as domed as the genuine ... and as he handled the genuine .. I must believe that there is truth to his observation.. but again I defer this issue to a later date..

Bezel Clicks.. smooth and clean.. The overall finish of this rep is very very good.. keeping in mind it is a rep and not "Honored" priced..

It is heavy.. and if you do not care for the Panerai Submersibles.. you may not care for this model Divers ... it is a little top heavy.. but balances very well.. IMO on the wrist.. I believe this is due to the case size plus the tapered lugs.. the design of the bracelet.. and especially the length and thickness of the clasp.. the clasp is a engineering marvel.. again IMO.. it is made for wearing outside a dive suit.. so it can be adjusted while on the wrist.. this for me is great as I can open the ratchet clasp .. put on the watch and then adjust the ratchet perfectly on my wrist as my wrist size will alter from my diet to workouts.. to the climate.. Straps are measured by 5 mm increments per hole .. the ratchets are smaller increments.. so if you are in between sizes your going to love this feature..

I wear my watches so my pinky can fit snugly in between the clasp and my wrist .. so I don't wear the bracelet tight.. and the Deep Sea stays put very well,.. leading me to believe that it is very well balance... if they replicated the size correctly ..a s it appears that they did.. then the feel should be close to the genuine..

The TI case back .. feels very velvety.. although it was engineered for added strength .. but since this a heavy watch (compared to the rest of the Rolex line) the TI keeps it from sticking to my wrist.. if you know what I'm talking about..

The Deep Sea for me feels best worn in a medium fashion.. meaning I usually wear my watches low.. but this feels best for me just above my wrist bone.. it rest perfectly there and does not appear to be riding high..

A pic for comparison.. The Deep Sea is designed nicely for balance., GMTCII ~ 1665 ~ Deep Sea

The bigger variance from past models is the height (L to R) GMTCII ~ 1665 ~ Deep Sea

Bezel

A beauty of a replication ... it look is like black glass ... bringing on a nice silver-gray colour when indirect lighting hits it .. in direct sunlight it turns jet black..

Extreme reflections.. whatever they used to replicate the bezel.. looks like it worked..

Machining .. nothing to be seen with the naked eye.. but just another macro..

Engraving

Gen.

Rehaut engraving .. Maker did a better job with the lower engraving as far as centering it of the edge

Gen.

"Valve" looks a hair to close to the edge, and the "APE" in ESCAPE.. but the engraving looks good..

Gen.

Rolex Rolex Rolex

CG

Gen.

Rep.

Crystal Gen.

Rep.

The coronet at the 6 (etched in crystal) cannot be seen unless you use at least a loupe

Case Back

Gen.

The dial.. Gen.

Rep.. the most beautiful S's I have seen on a rep.. the seriffs are not there.. but with the naked eye.. they look like .. grail fonts..!!

Gen.

The Date Window on the genuine is bit more beveled.. there is a very slight bevel (single) on the rep where the genuine appears double beveled..

also look closely at the small pic of the gen (sorry)... the lume uncharged is like the Opal Stone.. if only .. *sigh*.. am I asking too much of the Z master ?

Lume ..Gen. .. Look at the lumens of the genuine.. do you see hints of green ? .. this means the lume is not fully charged..IMO

this is what happens with the rep. .. the colour blue will be dominant but if the lume is not fully charged green will be dominant slowly turning to blue.. so don't worry if at first your lume shines only green.. it will slowly turn Blue.. especially when it comes fresh out of the box.. it needs a couple of day's out of the box to get adjusted..

This is the lume on the genuine fully charged .. see the difference from the above 2 pics..

Fully Charged .. under 1 second exposure on both rep pics .. charged and uncharged.. as you can see by the second hand.. also this pic was taken in daylight..

The Rep.. not fully charged

The Pearl

Clasp Rep.

Gen.

Well, that's it .. I will be doing a follow up summary in a day or so.. but for now.. thanks again for viewing.. reading or if your just going to look at the pics.. don't post questions ..

thank you to Samura for contributing to the thread by gathering genuine pics.. and to freddy for the excellent introduction.. and for you all for being here..

Aloha Cheers

Lani

[mikellem]

Thank You Lani...

Your work here gets better and better and you amaze me!

I am very very impressed! I have loved this watch

since day one when everyone else balked at its looks!

Thanks again my friend. Reviews don't get any better..

Thanks R..

MM

[AllergyDoc]

Works for me. I've got mine ordered.

Such a sacrifice to do this in Paradise! Thanks for the work!

[Samurai]

Amazing review. Thanks Lani.....and am glad that the watch is well made

Didn't much get how the new clasp works....does this mean that you dont have to take out links to re-size the bracelet.....or is it that you need to still re-size the bracelet ...but then can make finer modifications to the size.

Cheers

[rckh]

Amazing Bro!!

Bravo! Bravo!

Best Regards,

Raymond

[Ztech]

Another outstanding review Lani. Thanks so much for taking the time out to do another one for all of us.

[BigNickD]

Thanks Lani for the Great Review. Impressive all around. Simply amazing.

I owe it to you that I ordered this piece. After trying on the GEN at the local AD, I am pumped more than ever for its arrival.

[Samurai]

Hey Lani.....any feedback on the waterproofing of the watch?

[dalayclass]

Just thank you, I am glad I ordered one...

[Limestone]

Great review!!

[silvio]

Another amazing review, Lani.

One question: as you noted "The Mirror finish to the bezel insert is excellent .. again IMO.. it appears to be made of glass as far as the reflection and when in the right lighting the bezel will appear silvery-gray ....".

Do you think that the bezel insert is of different material from the GMT IIc one?

I'm still weighing between the two. Have seen the gen and it's exactly like you described, looks grayish when hit with lights.

Many thanks for your effort!

[noslen]

Bravo Lani!

I see beauty in the beast; I think I will order this one.

[jamesg]

Superb review, thank you.

[RichBlack]

Thanks to everyone involved in providing a very interesting and detailed review . I wasn't keen on the Deepsea when it was announced, but I am lucky enough to have seen (but not handled) the genuine in the flesh and it (along with the price tag) blew me away.

Looks Like more of my money will be going to PT.......

[StormTooper4]

WOW Awesome pictures and a great review, thank you for the time and effort you put into this.

That thing is massive but that lume is very very cool

ST4

[Watchmeister]

Much thanks to Lanikai and the Deep Sea Team. A great review. It is fun to learn about the history and I know how much work it is to line up rep pictures to match gen pictures as closely as possible. What a great watch!

[Stephane]

Thanks for the great work Lani and friends.

It's growing on me. Slowly...but growing.

I guess I'll have to consider it in 2009

Cheers

Stephane

[Toadtorrent]

Great job folks and excellent pictures as always. Do any of the collectors say if the factory waterproofs this one out of the box?

I know Andrew has said there is a DG2813 powered version that uses the same case...but is this same case and dial confirmed to be the same as this version?

An excellent read to start the morning!

[cornerstone]

Another terrific review! Thank you!

[gruva]

Outstanding review and stunning pictures!

For a while back I have ruled Rolex out because they where too small for my taste. I

[marcoxxx1984]

Who is the dealer? Precious Time?

[Yannou]

Excellent review ..congrats Lani

Can't wait for mine from BK...

Edited December 19, 2008 by Yannou

[mjmurphy926]

Great job Lani (and Freddy)...Thanks!!

I was all set to order one from BK because he straightens out the date wheel as good as possible if it's not straight from the factory, but he told me his supplier was out for now.

Now I have to decide if I'm going to order from Josh or Andrew and risk a misaligned date wheel, or wait for BK.

The only Rolex rep I've ever gotten with a date wheel that has all the dates centered in the date window is the SSD I got from Andrew in November of last year (the watch I wear most of all my reps). That includes a few 21j Asian noobs, a 25j swiss noob, and even a WM9 sub from PT.

[HauteHippie]

Great write-up!

This one's really growing on me....

[lanikai]

Amazing review. Thanks Lani.....and am glad that the watch is well made

Didn't much get how the new clasp works....does this mean that you dont have to take out links to re-size the bracelet.....or is it that you need to still re-size the bracelet ...but then can make finer modifications to the size.

Cheers

I need to do a follow up as there are a lot of areas that still need covering.. it would of taken another day to really be thorough .. as it was I got 3 hours sleep.. not whining or playing drama.. I was just compelled to get it out..

anyway.. the clasp.. this can flip open anythime to adjust the ratchet adustment.. so whilst your wearing the watch you just flip open the clasp to get to the ratchet clasp.. which is directly under the Locking coronet clasp.. so a clasp under the clasp..

the 12 oclock side of the bracelet moves in and out of the ratcheting mechanism ... so yes, you can take out fewer links than you normally do.. if you remove 3 to 4 just remove 1 or 2.. and use the adjustment .. it works grat for me as sometimes I am right in between link sizes..

This last pic .. where the coronet is printed ... this side of the bracelet slides along the ratchets ....

if you look at the size of this clasp.. IMO .. another reason the DS balances well for a large watch.. the "base clasp" under your wrist stabalizes the weight of the watch.. the clasp almost takes up the whole underside of my wrist..