1985 Rolex Explorer 1 ref. 1016 “Full Set, Unpolished, Patina’d”

Up for grabs is a Rolex Explorer 1

Reference 1016 with 36mm case, acrylic crystal

8.8 mil serial number circa late 1985 production and warranty papers dated in January of 1986 at time of purchase as new.

Excellent vintage condition case with sharp lugs and legible numbers, seemingly never polished.

Flawless dial with nice yellow patina and matching tritium hands. No chips, scratches, or stains. No relume or refinish. The seconds hand shows typical oxidation as is common for some reason during this period.

Original Rolex 78360 bracelet with 13 links, tight condition for its age, and I date code, 501 end-links.

The watch comes as a very complete “collector’s set”. Original boxes with outer box having “1016” sticker. The watch has all period correct manuals, including the Japanese ones, original Rolex warranty papers for Japanese market with matching numbers, serial number hang tag, COSC hang tag, as well as store Rolex hang tag with original price of 310,000 Yen, which would equal to about $2500 USD in today’s money using the inflation calculator.

The watch winds smoothly and runs at about +9 seconds at ~295 amplitude. No service history is known.