Is my bracelet original to my pre-owned Rolex?

[DTROLEX]

Hi everyone,
New to the forum and I just recently bought my first luxury/Rolex watch (pre-owned). I bought a 2010 registered Polar Explorer II 16570.

I’ve been doing quite a bit of research given my new purchase and slight obsession now that I own one! The year of production of the watch case, going by internet codes, is 2009 but the bracelet/clasp production year, also going by internet codes (DT) (coincidentally my initials and username) is 2002. Is it likely that the bracelet is not the original to the watch case? I know, or believe, it’s the correct bracelet for the model/variant. Having tried looking online I’m not sure if it should be within a couple of years of the production of the case as I saw somewhere that someone said it could be a number of years but 7 seems high to me.

Thanks for reading and looking forward to any insight you can give me!
Dan

[padi56]

Originally Posted by DTROLEX

Hi everyone,
New to the forum and I just recently bought my first luxury/Rolex watch (pre-owned). I bought a 2010 registered Polar Explorer II 16570.

I’ve been doing quite a bit of research given my new purchase and slight obsession now that I own one! The year of production of the watch case, going by internet codes, is 2009 but the bracelet/clasp production year, also going by internet codes (DT) (coincidentally my initials and username) is 2002. Is it likely that the bracelet is not the original to the watch case? I know, or believe, it’s the correct bracelet for the model/variant. Having tried looking online I’m not sure if it should be within a couple of years of the production of the case as I saw somewhere that someone said it could be a number of years but 7 seems high to me.

Thanks for reading and looking forward to any insight you can give me!
Dan

No internet charts can give a exact date of production, only a approx time when the case or clasp was stamped and this is not always when it was made and many serials overlap a year or so.

[Tools]

Originally Posted by DTROLEX

Hi everyone,
New to the forum and I just recently bought my first luxury/Rolex watch (pre-owned). I bought a 2010 registered Polar Explorer II 16570.

I’ve been doing quite a bit of research given my new purchase and slight obsession now that I own one! The year of production of the watch case, going by internet codes, is 2009 but the bracelet/clasp production year, also going by internet codes (DT) (coincidentally my initials and username) is 2002..
. .

There is more to check.

A Exp II from around 2010 is dated by actual paperwork, not the charts which are for dating when no other method is overriding. Actual paperwork overrides chart guesses. All Rolex prefix letter serials were made over a several year period, not all at once on a certain date or month. No chart should give you a 2009 date as no new prefixes were released during this changeover year to randoms. to note, G serials and randoms came out in early 2010 concurrently.

To the bracelet. A 78790A SEL would likely have been original, and the "date" codes would be on the ends of the end links. There may also be a clasp code, but in 2010 those were going random, as were serials.

End link codes should be within a couple of years of both the case and clasp, if present. For a 15+ year old watch it is not uncommon to see the clasp or even the bracelet replaced, they don't last forever.

[worldofoyster]

it's very difficult to tell

[thesharkfactor]

Originally Posted by Tools

There is more to check.

A Exp II from around 2010 is dated by actual paperwork, not the charts which are for dating when no other method is overriding. Actual paperwork overrides chart guesses. All Rolex prefix letter serials were made over a several year period, not all at once on a certain date or month. No chart should give you a 2009 date as no new prefixes were released during this changeover year to randoms. to note, G serials and randoms came out in early 2010 concurrently.

To the bracelet. A 78790A SEL would likely have been original, and the "date" codes would be on the ends of the end links. There may also be a clasp code, but in 2010 those were going random, as were serials.

End link codes should be within a couple of years of both the case and clasp, if present. For a 15+ year old watch it is not uncommon to see the clasp or even the bracelet replaced, they don't last forever.

Great info as usual!

[DTROLEX]

Originally Posted by Tools

There is more to check.

A Exp II from around 2010 is dated by actual paperwork, not the charts which are for dating when no other method is overriding. Actual paperwork overrides chart guesses. All Rolex prefix letter serials were made over a several year period, not all at once on a certain date or month. No chart should give you a 2009 date as no new prefixes were released during this changeover year to randoms. to note, G serials and randoms came out in early 2010 concurrently.

To the bracelet. A 78790A SEL would likely have been original, and the "date" codes would be on the ends of the end links. There may also be a clasp code, but in 2010 those were going random, as were serials.

End link codes should be within a couple of years of both the case and clasp, if present. For a 15+ year old watch it is not uncommon to see the clasp or even the bracelet replaced, they don't last forever.

Thanks for the info. After some more digging, and which is now very obvious, the bracelet has in fact been replaced as my watch currently has a 93150 on it when the card says the bracelet should be a “78790”. I thought it was the correct one as it looked similar to the 78790 but I didn’t know about the reference number on the clasp.
My next question is even though the card says “78790” could this actually mean 78790A as it seems SEL would have definitely been part of the watch given when it was released and my watch’s year of production or would the card explicitly say “78790A”?

[Kevin of Larchmont]

Congratulations on your new-to-you watch! I hope one day soon you’ll be able to relax and enjoy wearing it.

Welcome to the forum.

[77T]

I think it means you'll never know with certainty.

Let's say it's all original.
Let's see how that feels...
H-A-P-P-Y

Or...

Let's say it's not all original.
Let's see how that feels...
H-A-P-P-Y

So I think that sort of answers it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[Tools]

Originally Posted by DTROLEX

Thanks for the info. After some more digging, and which is now very obvious, the bracelet has in fact been replaced as my watch currently has a 93150 on it when the card says the bracelet should be a “78790”. I thought it was the correct one as it looked similar to the 78790 but I didn’t know about the reference number on the clasp.
My next question is even though the card says “78790” could this actually mean 78790A as it seems SEL would have definitely been part of the watch given when it was released and my watch’s year of production or would the card explicitly say “78790A”?

A watch from the early 2000's would have been an SEL so likely any watch documentation could have left the A off as it is implied by then.

The 93150 was an option for both the GMT and the Exp II for many years so you do see them on these watches, although it is likely that yours is a replacement. The 93150 was never fitted with SEL so none have this feature.

[rmagoo57]

Originally Posted by DTROLEX

Hi everyone,
New to the forum and I just recently bought my first luxury/Rolex watch (pre-owned). I bought a 2010 registered Polar Explorer II 16570.

I’ve been doing quite a bit of research given my new purchase and slight obsession now that I own one! The year of production of the watch case, going by internet codes, is 2009 but the bracelet/clasp production year, also going by internet codes (DT) (coincidentally my initials and username) is 2002. Is it likely that the bracelet is not the original to the watch case? I know, or believe, it’s the correct bracelet for the model/variant. Having tried looking online I’m not sure if it should be within a couple of years of the production of the case as I saw somewhere that someone said it could be a number of years but 7 seems high to me.

Thanks for reading and looking forward to any insight you can give me!
Dan

What does "registered" mean? Post some pics of this unicorn.

[DTROLEX]

Originally Posted by rmagoo57

What does "registered" mean? Post some pics of this unicorn.

Sorry I mean date of purchase. I’ve just realised that the bracelet is likely a 78790 as it has polished sides instead of brushed so assuming it’s likely that just the clasp has been replaced with a 93150?