The Rolex Explorer II, reference 216570, along with the Submariner, GMT Master, and the Datejust, constitute Rolex’s most popular watches. While the Explorer model, like the others, is a child of the late 1950s; unlike the others, it has two current models, both popular, but also quite different. The first model, the Rolex Explorer, is 39mm and is closest to the original version, while the Explorer II is 42mm and more adapted to modern tastes. In this post, I review the latter model. And while any of the Rolex Explorer models make for a solid tool watch, in this review, I am not taking it to some mountain trekking odyssey, but instead I am doing modern day exploration. My account is based on taking it for a month long journey to Asia, exploring a distant land, an ancient people, and a fascinating culture: China.
First off, the Rolex Explorer was one of the first wristwatches to be designed for exploration, in particular, exploring new lands and varied terrains. While today, a Casio ProTrek or similar solar-powered multifunction watch will serve you well on a distant trek, in the 1950s and early 1960s when real exploration of the poles and the high peaks of the world was taking place, no quartz watch existed. And even today, if you were to attempt to explore the earth’s pole or climb Mt. Everest, the Rolex Explorer might still be a better choice than a quartz device, since these suffer when exposed to high and low temperatures and depend on an external source of power. However, the Rolex Explorer II is guaranteed to work as well as it does day to day even under extreme temperature gradients and with no source of power, except wearing it daily and moving a bit (or winding the crown).
In all cases, what was great was the Rolex Explorer II never felt out of place.A great thing about Rolex sports watches, especially modern versions, is that they tend to be multipurpose. That is, they fit well into both business and casual situations as well as the more sporty settings for which they were specifically designed. So during my month long visit, and with various meetings at all levels of the organization, I never had to use any other watch, really. The Rolex Explorer II fit in great.
The Rolex “Mercedes” hour hand (originally designed to appear totally different to the minute hand for easy legibility) and the minutes hand are larger, bolder than their counterparts on the Submariner or GMT Master II. Also, here they are outlined in black paint and filled with blue Chromalight, whereas on other Rolex models, they tend to be done in 18k white gold. The look is pretty unique to the Rolex Explorer II in Rolex’s line up and has acquired the moniker of “maxi-hands” from collectors. The rest of the dial is in the iconic white “polar” color with cardinal markers and hour markers (round), also with a black painted outline, completing the unique – and uniquely legible – maxi-dial.
So while the Rolex Explorer II 216570 is not necessarily my absolute favorite Rolex stainless steel sports watch, its imposing size, easy wearability, and lack of popularity make it one that I often go to when I need a modern multi-purpose watch that I can wear for business, casual, or for sporty occasions – and yet that is not a common one. For this exact reason, the Rolex Explorer II was a great companion for my travels, exploring the great land of China and earned a special place in my permanent collection. Price for the Rolex Explorer II 216570 is $8,100.
