It’s not always that we see a line expansion from Rolex just one year after launching a new model (which itself is exceedingly rare for the brand), but that’s exactly what we are getting for Watches and Wonders 2024. After discontinuing the Cellini collection last year and introducing the 1908 at last year’s show, the brand saw fit to give consumers another option aside from the existing yellow and white gold models. With a captivating dial and the same sleek, elegant presence, the new Rolex 1908 in platinum (Ref. 52506) is a weightier, somewhat edgier alternative.
The case of the 1908 remains unchanged from last year’s debut except for its platinum makeup. It still offers a wrist-pleasing 39mm diameter with a 9.5mm thickness. As was plain to see in our hands-on with the original models, those dimensions equate to an effortless wear. The case is a classic rounded Rolex design that is somewhat evocative of vintage dress models, but still modern, with a fixed rounded bezel that has a fluted edge. You’ll note that the brand doesn’t use Oyster labeling anywhere on the case, and that’s because the 1908 has a pull-out crown and just 50m water resistance compared to the Oyster minimum of 100m. The case is completed with a curved-end leather strap with a Rolex Dualclasp. This clasp is a double-folding butterfly clasp in matching platinum that features a locking internal folding segment in addition to the main locking component, ensuring that the strap doesn’t pop open when it’s on the wrist. Unfortunately, no quick-release mechanism yet from the brand (I would’ve thought this a great line to introduce such a thing).
The dial on the platinum 52506 is quite different. Unlike the flat dials of the original models, which were offered in black or white, the platinum model gets the Rolex platinum treatment: an ice-blue dial. A rice grain guilloché pattern emanates from the sunken 6 o’clock subsidiary seconds that offers a contrasting circular brushing. The handset, with its hour aperture, matches the case and is rendered in 18k white gold, along with the applied numerals and indices. A keen eye will also note the guilloché pattern on the very outer edge of the dial.
On display through a sapphire caseback crystal, the Rolex 1908 features the Rolex caliber 7140, which was introduced last year with the debut models and was developed just for the 1908 line. You probably know that most Rolex watches don’t show off their movements, and Rolex has fittingly given this movement additional finishing, with a skeletonized gold rotor and “Rolex Côtes de Genève,” striping that differs from traditional Côtes de Genève with a polished groove separating each band. The architecture itself is also a bit more intentional, with a balance suspended by a pleasingly symmetrical bridge. In addition to the brand’s Chronegry escapement and Paraflex shock absorbers, the movement features a Syloxi hairspring, a patented silicon hairspring with particular geometry to ensure greater accuracy in all positions. That accuracy, of course, is certified by Rolex’s Superlative Chronometer standard (as stated on the dial), with the caliber running at -2/+2 seconds per day and delivering a power reserve of 66 hours at 28,800vph.
It’s great to see Rolex committing to the 1908 line so soon after its release, a sign that they’re perhaps more serious about it than they were the Cellini in its later years. Rolex is certainly not what most people think of when it comes to dress watches, but in my opinion, the 1908 is one of the cleanest formal timepieces on the market, and while I don’t love The Crown too much, the 1908 line has always piqued my interest. Now with a platinum model that offers something at once more luxurious and a bit more casual, the collection has been fleshed out. Hopefully, this is just a sign of things to come — perhaps a moonphase is next? Pricing for the Rolex Perpetual 1908 in platinum (Ref. 52506) is set at $30,900 USD. For more information, please visit the Rolex website.
