A Weekend with A “Meters First” Rolex Submariner 5512

By Charlie Dunne

Embarking on a long drive to see my family for Thanksgiving, I grabbed at the watch tray of Wind Vintage inventory in search of an interesting watch to wear. “Eric, I would LOVE something unfamiliar to look at on the long drive. Cool if I borrow something over the weekend?” “Of course!” Eric responded sneaking in the caveat “Just bring a few of these watches to also list on the site!” “Cool with me!” I responded while grabbing a bubble-wrapped pouch containing a Rolex Submariner reference 5512 that had just came back from service that day.

The following morning I was on the road. Riding passenger side was a gigantic briefcase filled with an assortment of watches reminiscent of Barry Cohen’s tour across America on the Greyhound bus in Gary Shteyngart’s novel Lake Success. While sizing the C&I bracelet, Eric covertly stuffed a collection of timepieces into my briefcase. My attention was focused on the dial of this reference 5512. It was beautiful in the early morning sunlight. Throughout the course of the two-hour drive, I continuously stared through the TrueDome D19 crystal in awe of the lume on the 5512.

It was a superb warm yellow with a domed shape rising tall above the gradient matte dial. I called Eric on speaker. “Hey Charlie! Have you listed the watches?” “Not yet! Hey! What’s the deal with this lume on this Sub. It is like the lume on glossy, gilt dials.” “Totally! This is how they are on matte-dial Subs shortly after the transition from gilt. This one is from 1968. Since it is not a “neat font” dial, it’s possible that it is from a bit earlier and was stamped with the “Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified” font closer to the case production. But yeah, it is some of my favorite lume! Where are you?” “I’m about an hour out from Orlando." “That’s great! Let me know when you knock out those watch listings!” “Cool, I’ll let you know!”

Stopping for fuel at around the halfway mark, I lugged the 20-pound briefcase into the gas station over my shoulder. While standing in line, I looked down at the time. 9:26 AM. I was making decent time - “Nice Sub!” an unfamiliar voice rumbled from behind me. I turned to witness a gargantuan man with a wide gap in his smile. He excitingly raised his balled up fist with a much larger model - a no-date reference 124060 behemoth. “Oh nice one!” I replied building rapport with the stranger. “What year is yours?” “Circa 68, and yours?” “I got it last year!” “Retail?” “Yes!” he exclaimed with pride.

I arrived in Orlando and was greeted by my father. We caught up and he noticed the Submariner on my wrist. “New watch?” “No. I’m saving.” “For what?” “Your inheritance” I responded. I took the watch off and showed it to him. “Rolex Submariner. I know this one. What year?” “Circa 1968.” “I quite like this one. The bracelet, not so much”. “It was made in the United States!” “How can you tell?” I proceeded to show him the interior clasp, then pulled out a Double Red Sea-Dweller with the Swiss-Made bracelet to compare. “If these watches are different, why did they make them look the same?” “It’s not a bad question. Do you want the long answer, or a short answer?”

“The Submariner is nice” my father reemphasized after my long-winded answer on Rolex design DNA. He was holding it inches away from his face staring intensely at the dial. He was squinting - likely trying to read the SCOC font. “You want one?” I asked. “No, I’m happy with my TAG” referring to the Carrera 1887 on his wrist that I purchased him around seven years back. “Hey, how much does my Baume sell for?” he inquired. “Probably $400-$600.” “So we got ripped off?” he responded. “Dad, we bought that watch for like $700. We did alright.” “Okay” he said relieved. “Hey, can you find me a replacement strap so I can put it on the buckle?” “I’ll work on it” I replied.

That night while knocking out some work on my laptop, I continually stared at the 5512’s case. It wasn’t super mint, but the proportions were quite even, and the polishing was not jarring. In fact, it was quite an attractive (dare I say honest?) case. It was not recut like a cyborg and clearly just had a light polish one time during a service at Rolex or by a Rolex-trained watchmaker, probably at an Authorized Dealer (AD). The steel bezel assembly helped a lot as it was unpolished and not soft. This added a level of coherence to the Sub. The insert was super attractive. A “Long 5” - although I was told a while back to not focus on the 5 in 50 and instead pay attention to the shape of the 10. It was in good shape. Jet black with little signs of damage. The monochromatic look was growing on me - despite having a penchant for red and blue bezel inserts on the reference 1675.

I lost track of time and suddenly my phone began vibrating from across the room. I was on Do Not Disturb Mode, but I was somehow getting alerts. I turned it off and immediately FaceTime video call from Eric. “Hi Eric. Oh, hey Gemma!” The screen opened up with Eric and his 2-year old daughter, Gemma, both waving. “Hey! Gemma and I wanted to call you and wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!” “Oh nice, Happy Thanksgiving!” I responded. “Okay we’re super busy so we gotta run. How was your Thanksgiving?” “I’m actually working on listings right…” “That’s great! Well, gotta go! You’re killing it!” Eric interjected while Gemma and him simultaneously waved before the screen went blank.

I arrived back in West Palm Beach a couple days later, listings complete and pretty tired from the long drive. Eric called me into the office. “Did you finish the listings?” he inquired as I walked in the door. “Yeah. Hey, this case - it’s not too bad. I mean it’s polished, but it is pretty full to be honest.” “Yeah, it is pretty great. I love that Submariner. It actually came out of Florida! The thing about the 5512 is that it is basically like a Turbo versus a stock Porsche being a 5513. You would have had to pay something like 30% more back in the day for a 5512 compared to a 5513. You have to think about the client wanting to spend that premium just for the same look, but a better movement. “Yeah, and the U.S. clientele back in the 1960s probably had minimal understanding of chronometer-grade wristwatches vs a regular watch. Maybe in Switzerland you could argue the person buying it knew, or had at least heard about chronometers, but good luck selling a 5512 back then to some random Florida man,” I replied. “Exactly, for every 5512 produced I would estimate there has to be 10 5513s. I love my 5512. It is just the quintessential Rolex in my view. Anyways, do you have a second?” “Yeah, I’m not really in a rush, but do you want to work?” “No. I wanted to ask if you want to go out tonight with the Wind Vintage staff for a senior watch specialists and above pizza party?” “Just us? Or is Christine and the kids coming?” I replied genuinely perplexed. “We need to celebrate!” Eric responded. “Celebrate what?” I asked thinking in my head “What the hell is he talking about?” “Your promotion to Vice President, Senior Watch Specialist! Also, that you’re the proud new owner of a 5512!” Eric exclaimed with enthusiasm as he walked away. Still exhausted and perplexed by the long drive south, I replied “Wait, what? The Sub is mine?!?! Eric returned with several FedEx boxes that arrived while we were out of town. “Yes!” he replied. “Do you mind opening these packages and getting the new watches added to the inventory system before we head out?” “Definitely! Thank you!”

Learn about the Submariner 5512 in Charlie Dunne’s article ‘Collector's Guide: What To Know About The Rolex Submariner Reference 5512’.