Rolex
Founded in 1905 in England by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis as Wilsdorf & Davis, the partnership soon became known as the Rolex Watch Company in 1915, moving to its new Geneva headquarters in 1919. The success of the wristwatch can be largely attributed to many of Rolex’s innovations which made the company one of the most respected and well-known of all luxury brands. These have included its famous “Oyster” case — the world’s first water-resistant and dustproof watch case, invented in 1926 — and its “Perpetual” — the world’s first reliable, self-winding movement for the wristwatch, launched in 1933. These would form the foundation for Rolex’s Datejust and Day-Date, respectively introduced in 1945 and 1956. Also and equally importantly, Rolex is known for its sports watches, such as the Explorer, Submariner and GMT-Master, launched in the mid-1950s.
Description
A simply wonderful Rolex Precision gentleman’s dress watch. A stunning watch in every regard with a beautiful, restored dial, wonderful movement and an exceptional Rolex rolled gold case. This is a very clean and well cared for example which has undergone complete restoration and is in tip-top condition. The watch also carries a high grade Cal.10½ hand-wound movement, which is in spectacular condition.
The Dial
The wonderful classic dial with raised gilt 3, 6, 9, 12, numerals mixed with ‘baton’ hour indices is one of our most popular and sought after dial designs. The original period ‘leaf’ hands and blued steel centre seconds hand, complete the unmistakable period look and charm of this watch.
The dial has been faithfully and sympathetically restored in its original silver-white. This slightly changes colour depending on the ambient light, as we have tried to demonstrate in the photographs. It is signed ‘Rolex’ and ‘Precision’ with ‘Swiss’ at the very bottom.
The lens is a new original part, fitted as part of the restoration.
This is the original dial which has been sympathetically restored to the very highest standards by our dial restorers, considered to be the best in the UK. This makes this is as fine a vintage dial restoration as you are likely to see.
The Movement
This watch carries the original high grade Rolex Calibre 10½ Hunter, 17 Jewel Super Balance movement, which is in sparkling condition. This hand-wound movement has been fully overhauled and serviced. This means it has been completely disassembled, cleaned, inspected and rebuilt using original Rolex parts and specified lubricants as required, by our vintage Rolex specialist watchmaker. When tested and calibrated, this watch was running to within +5 seconds per day, which is outstanding for any vintage watch of this age. When fully wound, this movement also has a 44-hour power reserve. The movement is all correctly signed ‘Rolex’, and ‘17 Jewels’.
These movements are strong, accurate and very reliable, making this watch perfectly appropriate for regular everyday use. This particular movement is in top condition and with regular servicing every 3 – 4 years, we would fully expect this watch to run very happily for many more decades to come! We are therefore more than pleased to offer a 12 month warranty on this watch movement* and regular servicing in the future.
Please note – our 12 months’ warranty is only applicable if the full list price is paid.
The Case
The case measures 34mm in diameter, excluding the wonderful nipple crown and is in perfect condition. Even under high magnification, it is very hard to find any signs of wear, indicating this watch has seen very little use and has had a charmed life.
Unusually, the watch case is made of 20 micron rolled gold. This is sometimes referred to as a gold-filled case and is simply a 20 micron layer of gold, fused to the base metal of the case.
The case has been inspected, cleaned and lightly hand-polished to bring it back to the immaculate condition you see here, with no scratches, dimples or marks visible to the naked eye. The rounded case-back is of full-thickness and has never been inscribed. Inside the case-back, all is as expected and shows the serial number 688872 and the model reference 4132.
This watch case has been previously restored to a very high standard and is in excellent condition for its age.
As ever, our standard advice applies: Vintage watches should be kept clean and dry at all times.
The Strap and Buckle
A new dark brown leather strap has been fitted, along with a matching gold-plated Rolex buckle. However, if a different colour or style of strap is preferred, please let us know and we will do our best to oblige free of charge. We carry tan, conker, dark brown and black in stock in plain padded leather, crocodile skin or lizard skin. We can also obtain most types and colours from our partners at ‘Watch Obsession’ within 48hrs. Please take a look at their huge range of straps if you wish here.
Box and Papers
Although there are no original papers with this watch, the reference numbers, markings, signatures and hallmarks are all correct and indicate the date of manufacture as circa 1958.
Detailed particulars will be included with the receipt, along with our 12 months’ warranty*. A separate insurance valuation for the replacement value of this watch will also be provided at the time of sale along with our unique ‘Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee’ which states: “If this watch proves to be anything less than totally authentic, or not as described, Vintage Gold Watches of London will offer you a full refund at any time”.
The Rolex presentation box shown in the photographs is included in the sale.
This is a truly first class example of a 1958 vintage Rolex Precision which is ready to wear and completely practical for everyday use. If treated with care, it will make an excellent investment or heirloom piece. Even though vintage gold Rolex prices have risen markedly recently, we still feel good examples such as this are still undervalued and as each year goes by and the world market for vintage gold Rolex watches continues to expand, prices will continue to climb ever higher.
A word on our prices – We always try our hardest to acquire the very highest quality watches we can find, before restoring them to the highest possible standards. We then offer these at the fairest prices we can, taking into account our pre and post sales care and service. This approach means we will never be the cheapest, but nor will we be the most expensive. Indeed there are some well-known stores in West London which are highly successful charging between two to three times the price you see here. We therefore consider our prices to be fair, given the quality of watches we have to offer.
We are happy to accept PayPal as this is the quickest method of payment. However, if you would like to pay by UK cheque or by UK bank transfer we will be pleased to assist you with this and pass on a 3% saving to you. Similarly, if you wish to pay by International SWIFT or Bank Wire Transfer we will provide you with our BIC / Swift number and our IBAN number.
If you have any questions please call on our Landline 0207 727 7095 or Mobile 07515 949250 or if calling from overseas, on Landline +44 207 727 7095 or Mobile +44 7515 949250.
Please note, we also welcome part exchanges. If you have a watch or small collection for sale, please contact us as we will be happy to discuss.
We will also be happy to Service your watch, Repair your watch or Restore your watch, all at ‘sensible’ prices. Please see here.
Please take a look at our other fine vintage gold watches.
Thank you.
Andrew M via feefo 
3rd December 2024 
JLC1891 
