Rolex made the history of tool watches and the Rolex Explorer 1016 created the history of Rolex’s tool watches.

Among all the vintage Explorers, reference 1016 is my favorite, especially those from the 70s and 80s. There are rarer and older Explorers, but I have figured out during the years that the 1016 has the kind of patina and “369” font that I like the most. What is more, the reference 1016 has marked two important records in the history of the sought after 4 digit vintage Rolex family: it is the more long-lived 4 digits Rolex reference (30 years: 1959-1989) and it has been the last 4 digits reference in the Rolex catalog in 1989. Having said that, bumping into an Explorer 1016 is not common at all, as for some reason, it was a poorly understood model and slept peacefully in the dealers shop until being reevaluated in the mid-90s.

Due to its clean, elegant and innocent look and the robust, professional characteristics, I could consider the Rolex Explorer 1016 as the perfect “one-watch collection”.

The dial, with the typical 369 Arabic numerals, is the most characteristic part of the Explorer. It has a logic, it was born with its sense: guaranteeing maximum visibility even in the worst weather conditions. In the case of the Explorer, the dial is not a “design”, it’s a tool. The case of the 1016 is very robust and is 100m water-resistant. My example is from May 27th, 1980 and has a Mark 4 dial with a particular tall crown. For my small wrist of 16.5 cm, the Explorer 1016 represents a perfect fit in terms of diameter, sporty but yet elegant.

Essentially, the Rolex Explorer 1016 has remained the same since 1953, probably because the perfect design cannot be improved. To close my review, I think the Rolex Explorer 1016 is a fabulous watch that follows these two easy principles: less is more and form follows function.