The Rolex Day-Date is a great watch to own and a great watch to wear. In a watch market that is obsessed with the Daytona particularly and Rolex sports watches in general, the Day-Date is in some ways the forgotten King. A nice matte dialed Submariner is twice the price of a good Day-Date. To be clear, we are not talking about the hyper-rare Day-Dates, the kind sold in the Phillips’ 2015 themed auction. These best replica Rolex watches have a microcosm economy all of their own. We are talking about good, honest 1803s (to be specific) with nice dials and fat cases. If it’s a question of style, then these little guys have it in spades!
The Day-Date (DD) was launched in the spring of 1956 at the annual trade fair Baselworld. The rolex replica featured Rolex’s Datejust technology, but were enhanced with the additional complication of a Day window.
The watches were available in precious metals only, including yellow, white and pink gold and platinum. There are a tiny number of 1:1 fake Rolex watches in steel that were probably test pieces that found their way into collectors’ hands. Dare we say prototypes? Interestingly, the very first DD cases have 1955 serial numbers, which ties in with Rolex manufacturing the watches a year before launch to stockpile pieces. The first references available were the 6510 and 6511 which were manufactured for one year only. In 1957 the second series was launched in references 6611 (with a coin edge bezel), 6612 (with smooth bezel) and 6613 which was made in platinum in very small numbers. Both series one and two were monoblocco cases, where the midcase and bezel were of one piece.
Four year later in 1971 the most iconic of all vintage Day-Dates was launched – the mighty 1803. The 1803 had a long run until the late 1970s when it was superseded by the new sapphire glass quick-set AAA+ Rolex copy watches. The 1803 was available in all three golds (yellow, white and pink) and had a reeded bezel. Other watches in the third series of the DD were the smoothe bezel 1802 and the platinum 1804 that was often adorned with a diamond set bezel and diamond hour marker dials.
There were other interesting references in this series including a ‘Morellis’ engraved bezel on the 1811 and for the Italian market, a ‘bark finish’ yellow or pink gold 1807. It is the 1803 that became known at the rolex replica watches and that many people associate with the Day Date. Worn by Presidents, Rappers, Wall Street traders and Tony Soprano…it’s a watch with mass appeal.
A new bracelet accompanied the introduction of a top-of-the-range watch from Rolex in 1956. Only ever made in 18kt gold or platinum, the President bracelet was the new dress watch bracelet from the brand.
The Oyster bracelet was conceived for their tool cheap clone Rolex watches and the introduction of the jubilee bracelet was the option to have a slightly dressier option. The president bracelet was, however, heavy and gave the watch real gravitas. The construction was a hybrid of a sort – the more rounded links of the jubilee bracelet but larger and constructed in a similar way to an Oyster bracelet. The dressier option before the president had always been a leather strap, which takes the watch in a whole different direction…