Rolex Daytona & Explorer 2: A Tale Of Two Series: Successes & Failures of Luxury Watch Redesigns HD

Win an Omega Speedmaster: http://swee.ps/yaafnZkVR This evening, Watches Tonight travels time. Due to live-stream equipment failure, this episode has been recorded and posted for your viewing pleasure. Tim Mosso greets our audience of watch buyers, watch collectors, and watch enthusiasts as a blast from the not-too-distant past with an evaluation of the Rolex Daytona, Omega Seamaster, Rolex Explorer 2, and other case-studies of luxury watch redesign triumphs and travails. Fundamentally, the luxury watch hobby is a passion of aesthetics. Despite fixation on movement engineering, micro-component finishing, and historical authenticity, the reality of collecting is one of arm’s length evaluation; if the watch doesn’t look good, there’s no point in moving forward. Even the most technically accomplished luxury watch can’t beat the rap if it’s ugly or inert. Our stories of success include several of the signature models of elite brands. The 1993 Omega Seamaster stands apart as a transformational model that lifted the fortunes of the Omega watch brand, revitalized the Seamaster dive watch line, and established lasting design language that has endured a quarter century to find new life in the 2018 Omega Seamaster Diver 300M The Rolex Daytona is a chronograph tale in two acts; the first is one of futility, obscurity, and anonymity. The Cosmograph Daytona’s second act was as spectacular as the first was listeless. From 1988, the new automatic chronometer chronograph set luxury watch markets alight with wait lists at dealers, aftermarket price premiums. Many of the features from this redesign remain a part of the 2018 Rolex 116500LN including 40mm case, sapphire crystal, screw-down crowns, COSC-certified automatic caliber, and yes, seemingly endless wait lists at authorized Rolex dealers. Blancpain’s 2007 Fifty Fathoms 5015 was a return to form for the Blancpain watch brand’s iconic dive watch. Upgraded with a hand-finished 45mm steel case, an F. Piguet caliber 1315 automatic with 5-day power reserve, and a lush sapphire-capped bezel, this modern take on the 1953 Blancpain Fifty Fathoms had the historic authenticity of a Rolex Submariner and the high horology pedigree of an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Not every luxury watch emerges from the spa in rare form; Breguet’s 2018 Marine collection was met with near universal regrets by watch collectors and journalists at Baselworld 2018. Despite the importance of the Marine to Breguet and watch buyer affection for the previous 5817 and its ilk, the new Marines were unrecognizable as Breguet watches in general or Breguet Marines in particular. The 2011 Rolex Explorer 2, in contrast, preserved all expected imagery from previous editions, but its 42mm case was 2mm too large for most Rolex buyers. Faced with comparisons to previous 40mm 16570s and the 40mm GMT Master 2, the Rolex 216570 in either dial – black or polar – struggled to win the affection of Rolex collectors. While Tim is a fan of the 42mm Rol