Reference guide

Rolex references

17 Rolex references, each one built from what Rolex itself publishes about that reference — case, movement, water resistance, bracelet — with what a dealer should check before buying one.

Where Rolex states nothing, these pages say so rather than filling the gap. Last reviewed 2026-09-23.

1908

1908, 39mm 18 ct yellow gold52508The Rolex that is not an Oyster: a domed transparent case back, a leather strap, 50 metres, and a Syloxi silicon hairspring instead of Parachrom. Almost every habit from the sports references has to be set aside.Specifications

Air-King

Air-King 40mm, black dial126900Mechanically the plainest current Rolex: three hands, no date, smooth bezel, 100 metres. What makes it identifiable is entirely on the dial, which is where any question about an example gets settled.Specifications

Cosmograph Daytona

Cosmograph Daytona 40mm, white dial126500LNA chronograph rated to 100 metres, not 300, with a tachymetric scale moulded into the ceramic bezel rather than printed on it. The calibre 4131 and its 72 hours are what separate this reference from its predecessor.Specifications

Datejust 41

Datejust 41, White Rolesor, fluted bezel126334Steel case, white gold bezel. White Rolesor means two metals in one watch, and the fluted bezel is the gold part — which makes bezel condition a materially different question from bezel condition on a steel watch.Specifications

Day-Date 40

Day-Date 40, 18 ct yellow gold, green dial228238Solid gold case and solid gold President bracelet, joined by a clasp designed to be invisible. The weight of precious metal is the product, and the concealed clasp is where wear concentrates.Specifications

Explorer

Explorer 36mm, Oystersteel124270Thirty-six millimetres, a smooth bezel, no date and a Twinlock rather than Triplock crown. The simplest steel Rolex, which makes case condition almost the entire conversation.Specifications

Explorer II

Explorer II 42mm, black dial226570A GMT with a fixed bezel: the 24-hour scale is engraved into steel and does not rotate, so the second time zone is read rather than set. Forty-two millimetres and a Twinlock crown.Specifications

GMT-Master II

GMT-Master II 40mm, grey and black bezel126710GRNRCalibre 3285 with an independently rapid-setting hour hand, on a Jubilee bracelet, under a two-colour grey and black Cerachrom insert. The suffix in the reference is the bezel, and it is how you identify what you are being offered.Specifications

Land-Dweller 40

Land-Dweller 40, White Rolesor, honeycomb dial127334An Oyster case with a transparent back — a combination almost nothing else in the catalogue offers. Syloxi hairspring, 66 hours, a flat Jubilee on a concealed clasp, and a honeycomb dial.Specifications

Oyster Perpetual 41

Oyster Perpetual 41, Yellow Rolesor, slate dial134303An Oysterclasp, not an Oysterlock. The clasp here has no safety catch, and knowing which one a reference carries stops you querying a correct watch.Specifications

Rolex Deepsea

Deepsea 44mm, Oystersteel, D-blue dial136660Three thousand nine hundred metres, a 5.5-millimetre crystal and a helium escape valve. Four features here exist on no other Rolex documented on this site.Specifications

Sea-Dweller

Sea-Dweller 43mm, Oystersteel126600Rated to 1,220 metres with a helium escape valve, and fitted with a Cyclops lens the previous generation did without. Saturation-diving hardware in a 43mm case.Specifications

Sky-Dweller

Sky-Dweller 42mm, White Rolesor336934An annual calendar with dual time zones, set entirely through a rotating bezel rather than a pusher. The most complicated watch here, and the one where the setting mechanism itself is what you inspect.Specifications

Submariner

Submariner 41mm, Oystersteel, no date124060No date, and therefore no Cyclops and a different calibre. Three linked differences from the date model, all visible before you pick the watch up.Specifications

Submariner Date

Submariner Date 41mm, Oystersteel126610LNCalibre 3235 at −2/+2 seconds a day, 300 metres, a platinum-coated Cerachrom bezel and a Glidelock clasp. The most traded steel sports watch there is, and the one most worth checking carefully.Specifications

Yacht-Master 40

Yacht-Master 40, Rolesium, platinum bezel, slate dial126622A solid platinum bezel with raised numerals, on a bidirectional ring. Platinum is soft, the numerals stand proud, and there is nowhere for wear to hide.Specifications

Yacht-Master 42

Yacht-Master 42, 18 ct yellow gold on Oysterflex226658Solid 18 ct yellow gold on an Oysterflex bracelet: metal blades overmoulded with elastomer. The bezel numerals are raised and polished rather than filled, which inverts the usual Cerachrom inspection.Specifications

Not affiliated with Rolex. Specifications are read from the manufacturer's own published documentation on the date shown on each page and may change; the manufacturer's current documentation governs.