It’s hilarious just how much that subtitle title will trigger a lot of “men” out there. Don’t believe me? Here’s an actual exchange prompted by a comment I wrote on a friend’s Instagram post referring to the Rolex Explorer 124270, jokingly, saturated in flamboyance:

“There are only two types of people in this world. Those that know the 36mm to be the true Explorer, and those that have yet to try on the true Explorer 36.”

And here’s someone’s actual response to that comment play I was having with my friend:

“(The 36mm) is for two types of people : ladies and very effeminate guys.”

It’s amazing how offensive a 36mm Explorer is, or any other 36mm, 34mm, or other-than-40mm watch is to the general masses. Because they (the offended) have been fed over and over on this idea of ‘the perfect watch’, the 40mm case, the 20mm lug width, etc, etc., by the brands, the blogs, YouTubers, their bros, and so on and so on, they give their money, attention and validation to all those sources who feed it right back as a result.

An echo chamber, a macrocosm of the same tropes over and over. And that’s why I love making absurd comments like the one in the title.

Do I believe 36mm to be the true “men’s” size? No, I don’t really care to be honest. I enjoy this hobby and watches in the manner that suits me, devoid of anyone else’s considerations. Hell, I’m spending my own hard-earned, LIMITED, cash pool here.

But I make those remarks because I know this hobby is still saturated with people who would be offended by it. People who have bought into the watch zeitgeist of our time, who strut around proudly displaying the watch they were told to buy, the identity on their wrist, that they so define themselves by, made to feel prideful, to feel MASCULINE! HOW DARE A SPORTS WATCH NOT BE 40MM, OR, CLOSE TO IT?!

But in their moment of offense, they show just how insecure they really are. Thank god for marketing, imagine having to think for yourself?!

So what does a tirade of social commentary on the watch scene have to do with the newest Rolex Explorer 124270? A lot actually, because the Explorer is an experience that is as much external as it is internal. It’s an icon, and if you buy into the white noise you just might miss it.

It’s an experience that started for me with the 112470 of the early 2000s, a watch that I had previously owned, and requires no introduction, a topic that’s been beaten to death. But what stood out to me the most about it was its simplicity, albeit other things also stood out, like its lackluster bracelet and dated technology. Don’t get me wrong, all previous versions of Explorers are wonderful timepieces, and I truly wanted the 114270 to be a modern go everywhere watch because I loved the design, but it didn’t quite cut it. So, I fostered a hope then: what if Rolex ever remade the 36mm Explorer? And with that hope I sold my first Explorer to fund another watch, to fund this addiction…

Then, with some fast-forwarding, Rolex remakes the 36mm Explorer with the 124270… and makes all the BDSM worth it.

A modern Oyster-Steel, entirely solid bracelet, with a milled, adjustable (only by 5mm) clasp made it worth the wait and hoping after all this time. Sure, there’s an upgraded movement, the usual “anti-magnetic, power reserve increase, blah blah” spiel, an industry-standard for most at this point, except Rolex. But in actual usability, the bracelet change is the only difference that mattered. The neo-vintage 36mm Explorers always felt like they were on the cusp of change, one foot in the old and the other in the new, a duality of ideas but never quite “whole”. Whereas this new 124270 feels considered, all parts of equal calibre contributing jointly to one distinct identity, a modern go-anywhere, do-anything watch… Except the only thing that probably wasn’t considered very well is the clasp, can’t win them all, eh?

While I did mention 5mm of adjustment, built into the clasp, its nature is a take-it-or-leave-it, 5mm or nothing at all, no adjustment in-between. Yes, even though Rolex has long had Glidelock tech, they’re still too cheap to give it to you in this Explorer. Not being a fan of a watch rattling on my wrist, I would have appreciated the ability to adjust by 1mm increments to find that perfect fit. Otherwise, the status quo remains the same… and I’m not disregarding the other changes, such as the 19mm lug width, when I say that. I just mean that this is a continuation of the Explorer we all know (yes, the 39mm too) and love.

It’s a boring watch to be honest, there’s nothing intrinsically special about it. I hardly ever look at it when I’m wearing it as I usually have an idea of the time of day and it isn’t all that captivating compared to other design-laden watches I own. It’ll catch you no special attention nor favors throughout your day. But that’s what’s so great about it. It’s like a trusty companion, the dog on your wrist, that will follow you wherever you go, that you’ll never have to fret over. True to its namesake, it will be there to harbor your stories, the ins-and-outs of your daily life, no matter how mundane, and when you’re at death’s door, the Explorer will still be there, working, a culmination of memories and experiences of the life you lived…

And doesn’t that make the Rolex Explorer 124270 the perfect watch?