What’s so amazing about this new Daytona replica is that there is nothing here, really, for us to nerd about. It is every bit the same as the 116520 down to the 40 mm 316L case, the polished center links, the Superluminova accents, and the caliber 7750 movement. The watch is really identical to its predecessor – save for the Cerachrom bezel and slight dial tweaks – and yet here we are, so, so happy it’s here.
The dial design is the one thing I could see someone griping about on the new Daytona. There are five lines of text at 12 o’clock. Five. Do we need all that, in particular the final line that reads “Cosmograph”? Certainly not, but I find it charming that Rolex, after 53 years of producing this watch, still calls it a Cosmograph, even though I am quite sure nobody outside a few dweebs like me know what that means. This is a Daytona to most people, and they simply could leave it at that, but they don’t, which I like a lot. That said, text heavy at 12? Certainly. Oh, and of course we have “Daytona” in red at 6 o’clock, which I know people will love, though I do not.
The new ceramic black bezel with platinum PVD treatment is beautiful and rich looking, polished and refined. Just as collectors prefer the 6263 with black aluminum bezel to the 6265 with polished steel bezel, I suspect too that over time these black bezel watches will outsell their steel bezel predecessors.
As for the build quality of the watch, and the wonderful caliber Swiss Valjoux 7750 Automatic, read this story about “The Rolex Way,” in particular the final section about the chronograph movement. It will tell you everything you need to know.
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