New Arrival - Rolex 114060 - thoughts and musings

[Steppy]

I have a pretty slim area of what I like when it comes to watches - 38-40mm, under 12.5mm thick, Bracelet, with date. I tend to go for Sporty pieces with a hint of classy.

My favourite kind is dive watches, but due to most dive watches these days not being in the 38-40mm area theres pretty slim pickings as what models I would go for, and I've tried !! I have a 7 inch wrist so I should be able to accommodate most watches - but I can't, I have a thick wrist and not a flat one, so anything over 40mm or 48mm lug to lug I just don't like the look of aesthetically.

Omega SMPc - 41mm, only 12.5mm thick, really comfortable - but it was the 41mm that did it for me, I just found it too wide for a thin watch.
Tudor Pelagos - 42mm, 14mm thick, titanium, great bracelet, great clasp - I loved my Pelagos, it was perfect, a great piece and I would highly recommend it to anyone - just not me - the 14mm thickness was my issue, it felt like a brick on my wrist (albeit a light titanium one).

** Did think about the Tudor Black Bay, but again 41mm size put me off, and I really like Ceramic Bezels **

Its pretty obvious which Dive watch would tick all the boxes for me, and I knew it of course, but I didn't want to go down that route (not sure why- I don't have any negative views towards rolex or rolex owners).

I did try to quench the thirst with an IWC Ingenieur but try as I might I couldn't resist, the IWC with its pi** poor lume and skeleton hands lost the battle and the war.

So last week I sacrificed my IWC and Grand Seiko Hi-beat (so technically I'm up cash wise) which also wasn't getting worn due to my Grand Seiko Spring Drive (still my favourite Domo) and brought in the 114060. As much as I prefer the date on a watch I thought I'd rather have the Iconic dateless model (plus I'm not a huge fan of the cyclops). Also if your going to own 1 watch with no date, may as well make it this one.

First Impressions - Yep, this does it, that'll do !! Its perfect for me and what I was looking for all this time (damn all this flipping to get here !!)

So I thought I share some of my opinions and thoughts based on things (some silly) i've read about this watch before purchasing

1) "It wears far too big compared to the previous 14060, those damn square lugs" -- is something I have seen often. Its true, it does wear slightly larger than I thought it would, but still well within my comfort limits, and once on the wrist its not as "boxy" or "square" as some people would like to tell you (on the internet). Truth be told the only problem I have with the lugs is that they are straight and therefore do not hug my non-flat wrists as much as other watches do, due to the caseback bump it wears flatter than most and doesn't hug the wrist like a Omega SMPc does. But its still comfortable and theres no problem.

2) "The ROLEX ROLEX ROLEX on the rehaut is silly and off-putting" - You can't even see the damn thing, unless you specifically look for it

3) "too blingy" - apart from a polished case side and the bracelet sides everything else is brushed, and most are doing Ceramic bezels these days. It still looks toolish enough to me

4) "too much writing on the dial" - yup, not going to argue with that one. Superlative and Officially Certified are just not needed. 3 Lines would be better aesthetically. Saying all that it doesn't bother me one bit

5) "Best Bracelet in the business" - its good, very good. Looks great, comfortable and is finished well. But it doesn't hold a torch to the bracelet of the IWC Ingenieur. And I'm my opinion the 5 Link Grand Seiko bracelet is far more comfortable and smooth (but far more dressy)

6) "Best Clasp" - Bang on there, can't argue with that. I thought the Pelagos clasp was good, this is far better . Glidelock is simple but very effective, its better than the pelagos clasp and in a smaller package.

7) "lack of AR is off putting and you can't see the dial sometimes" - haha, what rubbish. At no point have I not been able to tell the time. Its true, there are more reflections (especially compared to my omega Aqua Terra which looks like there is no crystal but constantly has smudges that need to be wiped off) but its not off putting, and the difference is good, more character

8) "The rolex crown action is second to none" - oh my, thats a very true statement. This crown action beats every other watch I have had experience with, by far, no comparison (even the pelagos was poor compared). Just for comparison reasons, my Omega AT 8500 is one of the worst crown actions I have used, awful at screwing in, too much force to hack, and just generally not enjoyable to use.

9) "Rolex make accurate movements" - yep, no argument there. Its +1sec a day, can't beat that (well my Grand Seiko Spring Drive does easily), no complaints

10) " the rolex submariner is not cool" - that was me, I said that, in Raza's cool wall thread, and I stand by it. Its not cool, but its so good it doesn't matter, theres a reason why so many people buy one, they are very good. But I agree they are not cool, OhDark called them vanilla and Der Amf said it was like the Felicity Kendall factor in the 70/80's. I agree but I still like!

and some pics



For the record I now have an Omega, Grand Seiko and a Rolex - expect an IWL SOTC versus thread soon, ready to break the internet.

Ps. Sorry for selling the SBGH005 Hi-beat Domo, the SBGA081 kicked its ass and for the record is still my favourite!

Pps. Seiko/GS - make a damn 40mm diver and i'll buy it!!

[FuzzyB]

Well done! I have a strong feeling that I would have the same reaction as you if I ever make the mistake of trying one on. Most of same statements apply to the Datejust, which I'm wearing today. I never imagined I would like or wear a Rolex, but it turns out they do actually make very nice, comfortable watches.

[CFR]

I agree with most of your observations and comments. In fact, I believe this was one of the best - read: neutral, non-biased - short reviews I've read recently. Well done!

At the end of the day, the Sub is a very well executed and solid timepiece; probably no more, but certainly no less.

Congratulations! Enjoy your new watch.

[JAGtime]

Beautiful watch; it looks great on you, Steppy. Thanks for the review. Congratulations on your new timepiece!

Jane

[geoffbot]

Looking good, Steppy! A fine collection of classics there that I thoroughly approve of, if you were interested

[Der Amf]

Is the Sub thinner than the GS?

[Steppy]

My SBGA081 is 12.3mm whilst the sub is 12.8mm. The GS wears considerably smaller/thinner though, it hugs the wrist more

The lumpy caseback of the sub represents a large percentage of its thickness, hence why it doesn't hug the wrist

[Der Amf]

My SBGA081 is 12.3mm whilst the sub is 12.8mm. The GS wears considerably smaller/thinner though, it hugs the wrist more

The lumpy caseback of the sub represents a large percentage of its thickness, hence why it doesn't hug the wrist

Sorry, meant the GS you sold, the Hi Beat

[Steppy]

The Hi-Beat was 13mm, but looked much thicker on the wrists (and had those long polished lugs)

[OhDark30]

Congratulations on your new watch, Steppy!
Enjoyed reading your very detailed, even-handed review. That rightness thing, it's a coming together of so many small details
Enjoy!