And now for something completely different … Ok, maybe it isn’t completely different. After all, the Vintage Team is still bringing a drop of nearly 20 fresh vintage AAA UK Rolex replica watches to the Shop. Nothing will change about our selection, of course; click through to find Heuers, Datejusts, Vulcain Crickets, and the rest. That said, the Vintage Journal could use a bit of a refresh once in a while. Rather than the standard three picks from the team, this week is all about choice – choice within 1980s Rolex Submariners.

The Crown’s switch from matte to modern glossy dials is one of the most important differentiators in the Submariner’s nearly 70-year run. The matte dial had the longest stay within the ref. 5513, but it was eventually phased out in favor of the first modern glossy dial Submariners, around 1984. The examples immediately before and after this switch are becoming more collectible by the day, as are 1980s perfect fake Rolex sports watches, in general. As our collection features both a 1982 “maxi” matte dial as well as a 1989 white gold surrounds, glossy dialed ref. 5513, we figured it was time to pit our team’s experts against one another.

Rich, a purist at heart, argues for the warm and fuzzy feeling that only a matte Submariner can bring to your wrist and Saori takes the more forward-thinking stance. Where do you side? If an ’80s no-date Sub is what you’re after, do you take the road less traveled and go with a glossy dial or stick with Rich and the “real” vintage collectors? Don’t care about Rolex or Subs? 17 other Swiss made Rolex replica watches await your attention in the Vintage Watches section of the Shop.

1982 Rolex Submariner Ref. 5513 Replica Watches With ‘Maxi’ Dial

With vintage Swiss movements fake Rolex watches, I always come back to the Explorer ref. 1016. It is my watch of choice most days and the only vintage piece from the Crown currently in my watch box. So why am I talking about the Explorer in an article supposedly all about Submariners? The early 1980s 5513 shares everything I love about my Explorer and is upgraded in all of the areas I find the 1016 to be slightly lacking. Without a date or an unnecessary, to my non-underwater and non-AARP card-carrying eyes, “cyclops” crystal, I have always preferred the simple look of a 5513. With a more substantial case and the accuracy of a Rolex caliber made in the 1980s, there are creature comforts and ease of wear points here that my Explorer just does not score.

When I say always, I am talking about early episodes of Talking Watches like John Mayer, Matt Jacobson, and Morgan King, the ones that engage with “real” vintage cheap Rolex replica watches culture. This was before I was really on Instagram, a different world. The Submariners presented to me and countless others in those “classic HODINKEE” years? That’s right, they had matte dials. There is something so 2014, New York City, leather gloves and a set of vintage Porsche keys in a lifestyle photo about a good matte-dialed Sub.

That feeling cannot be replicated by a more modern example for me. Once the white gold surrounds hit the dial, somehow a portion of what makes best copy Rolex Submariner watches a Submariner was lost. Even when a late-’80s or -’90s gloss dial has some patina to the tritium lume, it almost feels out of place. There are pros – many pros – to these watches, and I completely understand why our customers continually request them. But give me the matte dial every day of the week and twice on Sundays.

The replica Rolex watches for sale we have this week is what is known as a Mark IV “Maxi” dial which is characterized by the “Submariner” branding above the depth rating and the specific font for the “S” in Submariner having a more aggressive-looking “zig-zag” appearance. I know the nerdy details of vintage Rolex dials are not for everybody but, hey, they are for me. The variation and scholarship are just not on the same level for more modern Submariners. Check out all of the Submariners in the Shop, but make sure this one sells before Saori’s example does so I can say I won.

1989 Rolex Submariner Ref. 5513 Fake Watches

I used to think luxury Rolex Submariner replica watches with the white gold surrounds was not a vintage Sub. For me, a vintage Sub has always been the early gilt/glossy dials or the matte dial version that followed. I think that ideal has been true for most vintage enthusiasts for a long time. But then, when you think about the passage of time, it’s also true that Rolex super clone watches wholesale store from the 1980s and early 1990s are creeping up to be considered as “vintage,” as well. It’s the preconceived notion that was holding me back from embracing this variant for a long time. But now that I have opened up my mind, I’m starting to like it even more than the matte dial version – perhaps because it also aligns with my liking for glossy dials of the early days, without breaking the bank.

This piece from 1989 (L serial) is truly at the tail-end of the near-30-year run of ref. 5513 production, making it the last of the long-running reference. The first thing that stands out is the glossy dial, of course. Let’s admit, it doesn’t have the unmistakable patina of the early glossy dials. Some may say it’s colder-looking than the softer matte dial variants, but I actually find the glossiness on this modern-ish Sub inviting. The smooth black surface makes the dial look extra black and with more depth compared to the slightly rougher texture of the matte dial, which has the tendency to age in a more dusty blackboard black. The biggest part which I was not a fan of, originally, were the so-called “white gold surrounds.” The silver-colored frame around the lume for the hour makers used to throw me off. I recently realized that it wasn’t really because of the frame around the hour markers. It was because of the combination of the often whiter lume color and the silver color of the frame that stood out against the deep black color of the dial. The stark color difference was just too much for me. Lately, I’ve noticed that the white lume color from this era is starting to age beautifully, as well. In many of the examples, the lume color is turning into that signature aged light custard color which feels more authentic.

Combined with the traditional robust 1:1 top fake Rolex Submariner watches case, a workhorse automatic movement, and an Oyster bracelet, it comes together neatly at the cusp of vintage and modern; a proud family member of a true classic. I feel this glossy dial variant is a respectable ode to the original glossy dials from the early 1960s, and also a proper send-off to conclude the reference with a design like the one we have here.