What make a Rolex a Rolex? Some people think that Rolex is just an expensive watch because of its name and it really is no better than any other watch. Rolex sets very high standards in the watches they make and they are one of the few watch companies that still make their own watch movements. Here are some facts about Rolex and why it is such a high quality watch.
1. Water Resistance: The standard Rolex is water resistance to 330 feet, which means that every Rolex (except a select few fashion Rolex) can be worn while swimming. The Rolex Submariner is water resistant to 1000 feet and the Rolex Sea Dweller is water resistant to 4000 feet. The Sea Dweller also have a helium escape value. Rolex is called an oyster, because it is as water tight as an oyster. Rolex is considered water proof, because when it is tested they use a system of positive water pressure to see if water will go in and negative pressure to get air out.
2. Crown: Rolex uses either a Twin or Triple Locking screw down crow on most every watch. The twin lock has 2 gaskets and the triple lock has 3 gaskets. If you look on the end of the crown, if it has two dots then it is a twin lock, if it has three dots then it is a triple lock.
3. Crystal: Every Rolex watch has a synthetic sapphire crystal that is cut at an axis, then it is ground and polished to the desired shape. Most watch companies cut the crystals strait, but by cutting in at an axis it makes for a harder and more durable crystal.
4. Metals: The stainless steal that Rolex uses is a 904L, while most other watch companies use a 316L stainless steal. It takes 40,000 lbs of pressure to stamp out the Rolex oyster cases. When stamping out the cases the building will actually shake due to the force. All the white gold that Rolex uses is alloyed with palladium. This is a much higher quality alloy than either silver or nickel. Rolex also uses solid 18K gold and never uses gold plating or gold capping.
5. Movement: All Rolex perpetual movements are Certified Chronometers. This is the testing done by the Swiss watch agency that tests each watch accuracy under 3 different temperatures, at 5 different positions for 15 days. A Rolex watch should be accurate within 0 to 5 seconds per day. There are over 200 components in every Rolex watch movement and it takes up to 1 years for the movement to be made with many techs working on each movement. Rolex also uses the same high quality and expensive movement in every watch from the Air King to the Presidential.
6. Counterfeits: Rolex is by far the most counterfeited watch in the world. No Rolex is sold online and it is against the Rolex company policies for even official Rolex jewelers to advertise Rolex on their own websites or to sell Rolex on their websites. The only true way to know you are buying an official Rolex watch is to buy the watch at an official Rolex jeweler that can provide you with the official Rolex two year limited warranty. Every Rolex comes with it own warranty card/form and you should never accept a copy or allow the jeweler to keep the original.
Rolex watches are beautiful watches that are a work of art. While not everyone can afford to own a Rolex it is a wonderful luxury item for those that can. And a Rolex watch always has value. No matter where ever you are in the world if you have a Rolex watch and find yourself in a bad situation, a Rolex watch can be worth a airline ticket home.
