Strictly Vintage Watches: Eric Wind On The Rolex Oyster Perpetual Reference 1018

Charlie Dunne, founder of Strictly Vintage Watches, recently wrote a collector’s guide on the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Reference 1018 with the help of Eric Wind. One particular example included (seen above) had been sourced by Wind for Dunne’s personal collection and was his first Rolex. Within the article, Dunne wrote about several 1018s which Wind helped source and provide background on.

“The Explorer I016 is generally the watch I receive the most inquiries about. While it no where near the amount of collectors attention, the rarer Oyster Perpetual reference 1018 is essentially a 36mm model with the look and feel of the Rolex Explorer reference 1016 case, but in a slightly thinner case. [In regard to the Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified” text”,] it is likely a result of the font plates being oriented for a smaller Oyster Perpetual model, perhaps the reference 1002, which was 34mm instead of 36mm.”

Wind would also provide details on the appearance and dial technique found in certain silver dial 1018s by sharing “[These dials are] much more silver than in the examples with a more grey appearance. The sunburst finish appears to be “double grained” and bends at the edges of the dial. Whereas the later examples with a more milky-white appearance has a sunburst finish that is barely visible, the sunburst finish on this model is almost blinding. The change is almost the inverse of what we see with the evolution of the silver dial “Big Red” Daytonas. The earliest “Floating” Big Red” Daytonas have dials from circa 1978-1980 are more milky-white in appearance, while the later examples from the mid-to-late 1980s (the end of the Big Red Daytonas was from circa 1988) have a more intense silver sunburst appearance.”

You can read the full article and watch the video below:

https://www.strictlyvintagewatches.com/the-rolex-oyster-perpetual-reference-1018