Watches are getting bigger and bigger nowadays. You can easily see a lady wearing a 44mm Deepsea or Panerai. So, is it the bigger the watch, the better?

Look at Patek Phillipe. They seldom make watches that are larger than 40mm. Most are in 38-39mm. It is about proportion.

Look at A Lange. Similarly, most of their watches do not exceed the size of 40mm. The Datograph was in 39mm although it is now in 41mm. The 1815 chronograph is in 39.5mm.

Smaller watches are not only harder to make. they are also more sophisticated. They carry a lot more discretion than those flamboyant 44mm or 47mm pieces of boast that are meant to be worn to show off one’s wealth.

But some watches, such as Panerai, and some pilot watches are meant to be big because of their military origins.

So, whether or not to wear a big watch (a clock!?) is totally a personal choice. It sometimes depends on whether you have a big wrist or not. It is however essential to bear in mind that a big watch is not always a good watch.

Photo courtesy of the owners (including myself) of the photos

The rare Onyx Submariner

Rolex produced some very special 16618 yellow gold Submariner in the late 1980s and early 1990s, probably only in E, X and N serials. These ultra rare Submariners come with either a Lapis lazuli dial or an Onyx dial. A Lapis Submariner 16618 was auctioned not long ago and it fetched a whopping price of HKD570,000. A Submariner 16618 with an Onyx or a Lapis dial is considered to be one of the rarest Submariner. Why is that?

First of all, Rolex put most of their precious stone dials on Datejusts or Daydates, which are both dress watches. Seldom do we see precious dials used on sport models such as the Submariner. The Daytona, however, has several versions with which Rolex produce with exotic stone dials. These stones include Sodalite, Mother of Pearl, Turquoise, etc. But on a Submariner? Never. Therefore, a Submariner with a precious stone dial is very collectible.

Efforts required to craft an Onyx dial

Other than that, an Onyx dial requires a lot of craftsmanship. As an Onyx dial is very fragile, it is complicated to produce with machines. As a result, an Onyx dial could only be produced by hand. Due to the complicated processes involved and its fragility, only 2 out of 10 dials could be used. It took long hours of polishing and precise cutting (including the cutting of the date window) to produce on flawless Onyx dial. It is the craftsmanship that counts when it comes to producing an Onyx dial, and that is also what makes each 16618 with an Onyx dial so precious and unique.

Why is an Onyx dial special and how to tell?

Rolex only produced very few 16618 with Onyx dials because people could hardly tell the differences between an Onyx dial and an ordinary black lacquer dial. The long hours of work was therefore not worthy. However, when you examine the dial closely with a loupe , especially under good lighting, you can see that the dial surface is very smooth and it reflects light in a way that is completely different from how a lacquer dial reflects light. An Onyx dial is much more like a calm lake without any ripples. It is like a black mirror while a lacquer black dial is much more like a painting in black. The dial has a shine that , when combined with a yellow gold case, is impeccable while still understated. It is simply mesmerizing.

Another way to tell that it is an Onyx dial is through the golden frame on the date window. Rolex puts a golden frame on every precious stone dial. The Onyx dial itself also has a gentle slope around the rim of it. You can see a bit of glue around the rim where the dial touches the case. The bezel is also different from any ordinary 16618. The numbers on the bezel is yellower than those on the bezel of a 16618 with a lacquer black dial.

A rarity that is powerful

The 16618 Submariner with an Onyx dial is a watch that is very powerful though understated as most will misunderstand it as a ordinary black 18k gold Submariner. How and why this watch is important can only be known when one examines it closely. Only a true watch aficionado can appreciate this beauty. With it on your wrist, you have every secret of this watch kept to your very own self. A 16618 with an Onyx dial in good condition is around HKD400,000 – HKD500,000.