GMT IIc - one week in and some other thoughts

[gc1969]

Background :

For many years, I was the happy owner of an automatic Tag Heuer 4000 which I trusted and wore 24/7 since 1995. Bought a Rolex DJ for my wife in 2008 and always had an interest in the Rolex sports watches for myself. After about three years of deliberation and looking at many, many watches in the market (IWC Aquatimer, TAG Heuer Grand Carrera GMT, Omega Planet Ocean among others) I finally took the plunge and picked up my GMT IIc last week

Preliminary thoughts and observations on the experience so far:

Weight : really like the overall weight of the watch. Feels substantial without being over the top

Lume : great when charged near a light source, pretty legible at night using normal indoor light or outdoor sunlight. Time will tell whether the lume lasts past five years - I hope so

Build quality : perhaps the strongest point. The metal bracelet feels dense and reminds me of a precisely machined bank vault door. The overall feel of the piece is very satisfying both in terms of the materials and the finishing

AD experience (Toronto) : very good, apart from their unwillingness to discount lower than 19% of MRSP........ The price (and related 'value for money question) is something we all have to deal with on an individual basis

Specific component pieces

Bezel : beautiful, although I must admit that I am scared of knocking and cracking it after reading some horror stories. Really like the precise and rugged feel of the engraved numbers in the bezel and the decision to move to 24 increments (instead of 60)

Crown : substantial yet smooth and no wiggle. Compared to my old watch, this is much easier to use and has a stable, solid feel. I like seeing the rubber gasket when adjusting the time and the precise 'tick-tick-tick' of the movement

Horns : unnecessarily sharp underside, but since they don't touch my wrist, I guess I am OK with the design.

Bracelet : since I never owned the previous watch with hollow links, can't provide, much here. I would say that the polished center links are a little bright for me and I would have preferred the option to have the brushed version (like the current Sub C). The polished center links will show scratches, but ultimately this is a tool watch not a piece of jewelry so I am looking past the wincing from the first few scratches

Clasp : a beautiful, seriously well machined piece of architecture. Since this is on my wrist 24/7, I will be cleaning it to maintain it in good working order. The three pieces of the clasp fit together very crisply

Cyclops : I am getting used to the protrusion from the main crystal. Not sure if I would have necessarily chosen this design, but understand and accept this as part of the Rolex design language. The anti-reflective coating does work well so glad they made decision to do this

Accuracy : running about 4 seconds fast after one week. If I remember, I'll try and report back after six months or so

And now the controversial part of the post ............. Things I would think about if I were king for a day at Rolex:
1) Give people different bracelet options (brushed, sandblasted matte, polished) when ordering through AD
2) Offer micro adjustment clasp like on the Submariner as an option
3) Sapphire caseback - ultimately, I think I am OK with a plain caseback, but then again, some days it would be nice to see the 3186 and the new hairspring in motion.....
4) Consider a "reverse cyclops" (where the magnification is done on the inside of the crystal) - a good example of this can be found in the Ulysse Nardin Marine Chronometer
5) Consider putting the words "superlative chronometer officially certified" in a more discreet font color (Grey instead of white, on a black face) or remove altogether. I know a bunch of people may react to this but here is my reasoning. We all know that the watch is solid inside - I don't really care to shout about it
6) Rehaut - instead of the ROLEXROLEXROLEX around doing the dial, could engrave something more interesting like ROLEX SUPERLATIVE CHRONOMETER OFFICIALLY CERTIFIED (and delete from the dial) or consider engraving movement number beside the serial number

As I am typing this, I can already hear the outrage at the suggestions above, and don't want people to think I am complaining - I love my GMT IIc, but as a student of the art, also recognize that Rolex doesn't have an exclusive license on all the "good ideas" and needs to move forward in a thoughtful way if it to retain its spot in the horological universe

Hope you enjoyed reading my rambling thoughts on this ......

[Scary Hat]

Nice write up on a watch of interest to many on the Forum.
Glad you like the watch, and I enjoyed your observations about what you
would do " If you were King at Rolex".



Good first post!



Tom

[ManUtd]

That's a great first post. If you added a pic or two it would've been even better.

[NutNut]

Great suggestion on #6 and a fantastic write-up!

[RBNY]

Great write up.

I just picked up my GMT IIc this past weekend-my first Rolex. It's the Rolex watch I've always wanted and I consider mysefl very fortunate to finally have one.

I do agree agree with offering different bracelet options since I would prefer to have the middle links brushed instead of polished and I do find the horns unecessarily sharp. But other than that I think it's a fantastic watch.

I appreciated your detailed evaluation.

[A.J.R.]

I think your suggestions and ideas hold merit.

[jnkay]

Your review and thoughts make for a good read. Well said.