It's not very often that Rolex does something new.
Indeed, when most people think of a Rolex wristwatch, chances are they are picturing a Datejust, Submariner, GMT-Master, or Daytona. This simple name recognition and model association is part of why Rolex is as successful as they are, and why so many of their watches set the bar for iconography in timepieces. With that said, it makes their "oddball" pieces all the more intriguing!
Enter The Yacht-Master. Introduced in 1992, this was a spiffed up lite diver, and rumor has it — if you can even believe it — was originally intended to replace the Submariner all together. Of course, that did not happen. What we did get, however, was a sporting, more polished, higher-end lite diver, complete with a timing bezel, screw down crown, a sporting Oyster bracelet, sapphire crystal, and the build quality that the world had come to expect with any other Rolex.
The Yacht-Master line continues to expand until this day, now offering not just a wide selection of metals, but with another model that bears the Yacht-Master name: the Yacht-Master II — which is also one of Rolex’s most complicated watches.
Back in the 20th century, the brand made plenty of complicated pieces — full calendars, multiple chronographs, moon phases, and more. Not so anymore. These days, there are just a handful of these in the Crown’s oeuvre — but the Yacht-Master II is special.
Released in 2010, it makes use of a unique ‘Ring Command’ bezel that allows the user to select between one and 10 minutes for timing. Designed for sailors crewing large boats during regattas, it’s a highly specialized piece, and one of the brand’s most interesting designs.
Housed in a 44mm stainless steel and Everose gold case with a sapphire crystal, a Triplock crown, dual barrel pushers, and a bi-directional bezel with a blue ceramic insert, it features a luminous, gloss white dial with applied indices, an inner countdown scale, a 'skeletonized-Mercedes’ handset, and a sub-seconds register above 6 o’clock.
Powered by the automatic, in-house Caliber 4161 from Rolex with a 72-hour power reserve, it comes paired to a matching, two-tone Oyster bracelet with a signed Fliplock clasp with Rolex's fantastic Easylink system.
You’d be hard pressed to find too many watches — contemporary or vintage — that include an entirely new complication. And even if you’re not timing race starts at the America’s Cup, the Yacht-Master II’s panache is enough to melt the heart of even the most grizzled collector.
Snag it before somebody else has the same idea!
