DESCRIPTION
| Manufacturer |
Rolex |
| Model Name |
Explorer II Steve McQueen (GMT) |
| Model Number |
1655 |
| Movement |
Automatic |
| Case |
Stainless Steel, 38mm |
| Dial |
Black |
| Strap Band |
Original Rolex Stainless Steel Link Bracelet with Deployant Buckle |
| Serial No |
XXX |
| Approx. Retail/ Replacement Price |
Pricele$$ |
| Additional Information |
Pre-owned by a Collector, Very Good Original Condition with Original Rolex Box and No Papers |
For information call Mauricio at 310.433-9293
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Rolex SA is a Swiss manufacturer of wristwatches and accessories founded in 1905 by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis. Rolex is the largest single luxury watch brand by far, producing over 2000 watches per day. Rolex is the best known and most sought after watch brand in the world.
The story of the Rolex Watch Company is quite fascinating. It was first established in London in 1905 by a Bavarian, Hans Wilsdorf and Wilsdorf's brother-in-law, William Davis, hence the first name of the company, Wilsdorf & Davis. At this time, they did not manufacture their own movements, cases or dials. They mostly produced pocket watches at that time, and only later began specializing in wristwatches.
Wilsdorf had three main concerns in mind in when developing his watches: accuracy, water and dust resistance, and eventually using a movement which did not require the wearer to unscrew the crown to wind the watch to ensure greater waterproofing capabilities. They eventually overcame all of these.
First, to ensure the greatest accuracy possible, Wilsdorf traveled to Switzerland where he commissioned a special wristwatch movement which could keep time with great accuracy. Next, in an effort to design a watch which was sealed perfectly from dust and water, Wilsdorf bought all of the rights to the patent for the first Screw-down crown and the first "Oyster" watch (so named because it was waterproof) was introduced in late 1926. And later in 1931, after Wilsdorf had bought out his brother-in-law and entered into a joint shareholding with the Aegler family of Bienne forming the Rolex Watch Company, Rolex patented a perpetual (or automatic) winding system. As a result, the it was no longer necessary to wind the watch every day, and the crown was used solely to set the time (reducing the chance that water may enter the watch if the crown was mistakenly left un-screwed). Consequently, Rolex watches were not only the most accurate watches in the world, but also the most durable as well. In 1945, Rolex recorded another highly important patent: along with the automatic winding system, a date was added at 3 o'clock. This model was introduced as the "Datejust" and it became an immediate best-seller.
On a very interesting and little-known side note about Rolex is that Wilsdorf died childless in 1960, and since he had no heirs, the company was bequeathed to a charitable trust which directs the company to this day. Most of the company's profits go to Swiss charities.
The Explorer II model, 1655, was introduced in 1971 as a GMT with a fixed stainless steel bezel. It had a distinctive dial with an extra hour hand that was designed specifically for speleologists, or cave explorers, who Rolex claimed, " soon lose all notion of time: morning, afternoon, day, or night." The extra hour hand, or 24 hour, would tell the explorers whether the 4 on the dial was 4:00 a.m. or 4:00 p.m. (16:00 hrs).
When it was first introduced into the market, the second hand was straight and the extra hour hand was a bright orange (ours is one of these). Later, in 1974, a luminous circle was added, and after 1975 the extra hour hand was painted a bright red. Production continued until 1985.
A debate exists in regard to when the orange hand was no longer used on the dial. Reference texts seem to agree that the orange hand was discontinued by the mid 70's. It is interesting to note that many 1655's made after the mid 70's and into the 80's have orange 24 hour hands. Perhaps the explanation is that the red hands faded to orange, just as orange hands have been known to fade to yellow.
You may know that Tag Heuer makes a Steve McQueen version of their Monaco sport watch. It's a great looking watch, and McQueen wore the original version during the filming of the movie "Le Mans" in 1971. The truth is, though, that the real Steve McQueen, the man, not the man he played in the movies, wore a Rolex Explorer II (model 1655) with an orange 24-hour hand. That is why the 1655 is now known as the "Straight Hand Steve McQueen Rolex." They are extremely collectible and extremely rare. This one has the original Rolex box. In fact, in Antiquorum's record breaking 8.5 Million Dolar Rolex Auction last month, one just sold for $40,000!!!
The featured watch is a Rolex "Steve McQueen" Explorer II Vintage GMT watch from the 1970s. It is an early Straight Hand Edition, which is a Very Rare Rolex Collector's Item. It is in Very Good Original Condition. It has a Black Dial with Painted Luminous Hour Indexes and Luminous Hour, Minute and Seconds Hands at Center. It also has a 24-Hour (GMT or Second Time Zone) Hand at Center with a Large Luminous Orange Arrow at the End and a Magnified Date Display Window at 3 o'clock. Water Resistant.
Personal Note--Simply put, this is definitely one of the most highly sought-after Rolex watches. It is rare and hard to find. This one is in great condition as well. Vintage Rolex have proven over time to increase in value and this one in particular is likely to be an excellent and sound investment, especially when you can get it at such a great price and value. This is a dream watch for just about every watch collector.
Please read carefully:
By placing a bid you agree to the following:
Terms of Sale:
| Contact Us: |
If you would like to reach us at any time for any reason, please contact Mauricio:
By telephone: 310-433-9293
By email: classwatches@yahoo.com |
| Bidding: |
The top bidder is legally obligated to buy at the end of the auction (once the reserve is met). Therefore, when you press the "commit to buy" button, please do so only if you intend to follow through on the purchase as we immediately remove items from our inventory once that button has been pushed.
While we are happy to accept bids from everyone, please contact us if your are new to Ebay or your feedback is less than 10 so we may speak with you prior to purchase. This is due to the high cost of the items we have for sale. |
| International bidders: |
Must be PRE-APPROVED prior to bidding!
|
| Payment: |
Domestic USA: Watches under $10,000 can be paid with a Bank Wire Transfer or PAYPAL & must have a verified address by Paypal. This applies to US Customers ONLY. **Will ship FedEx overnight immediately upon receipt of funds.
All: Watches over $10,000 can be paid with a Bank Wire Transfer ONLY!
International Customers: BANK WIRE ONLY!-- Payment must be received no later than 5 days after the auction ends.--Will ship priority USPS or FedEx immediately upon receipt of funds. |
| Sales Tax: |
California residents must add 9.25% to the final bid price for state sales tax. Tax will not be charged for non-California residents. |
| Shipping: |
Domestic USA - Overnight FedEx Shipping will be a flat rate of $60. Other service may be available upon request.
International - FedEx International Priority to anywhere in the world will be a flat rate of $120. Other service may be available upon request. |
| Insurance: |
All watches shipped by FedEx are insured for $500US. Additional insurance is available at an extra cost. We recommend that you do purchase this, however, this is optional. The cost for such insurance is always included in your invoice and can be accepted or denied by the customer when payment is made. |
| Refunds & Returns: |
In the event that any item fails to meet the description provided in the listing, you may return the item in the same condition it was received (using the same shipping method as the one used to send the item to you, with insurance, at your cost) and we will issue a full refund with no re-stocking fee. We want this to be a positive experience for everybody. Please check our feedback and bid with confidence. |
| Feedback: |
Customer Service means everything to us and we want every buyer to be extremely happy with their purchases and overall buying experience. We always strive to provide 5-star service at every stage of each transaction. Therefore, we ask that you give us a 5-Star rating for each category when leaving your feedback on Ebay. In the event that you feel that we do not deserve this rating, please contact us prior to leaving your feedback with Ebay so that we can discuss your experience and attempt to make it better. Thank you kindly. |
Let me start by saying, I have looked over Ebay, and boy, there sure are a lot of suspicious looking watches and suspicious looking sellers out there! That being said, many people are apprehensive to buy an expensive item on Ebay and, on the Internet in general. What if something goes wrong? PLEASE be careful & know who you are buying from.
I have been a Watch Collector for more than 30 years & I personally have a huge collection. We have been selling, buying and trading watches since the early Internet days. In addition, I have been selling Cars on Ebay since 1998 with 100% positive feedback at Classbenz (check it out under seller's name search).
I take great pride in only selling watches that I would personally want to own and wear. All of the watches that I sell are authentic; we do not sell or purchase replicas. Even if you are not ready to purchase now, feel free to explore the many watches that we have in stock by clicking on the link below which will direct you to our other listings.
We do take trades. If you have a watch and were considering buying one of ours, let us know and we will try to help you work out a fair transaction.
If, upon receipt, you discover that a watch is not exactly as described in the auction, we will gladly accept it back for a 100% full refund. We want this to be a positive experience for everybody. Please check our feedback and bid with confidence.
We have over 100 watches in stock and are constantly buying, selling and trading. Please feel free to consider us for your next purchase. We have an extensive network and deal with all brands. We are not an authorized dealer for any particular brand, nor do we claim to be.
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