Rolex Cosmograph Daytona
The biggest name in the watch industry, Rolex, bring you a watch with the race car driver in mind. The Rolex Cosmograph Daytona is the latest edition to the Daytona series which were first released in 1963. The watch grew in popularity into the 80′s until its rarity made it an incredibly sought after piece.
Most watches fall into two categories these days. We either have a stylish modern stainless steel/white gold face or a classic gold face. Both of these are great finishes but it is refreshing to see something different from time to time. The Everose gold finish on the Cosmograph Daytona is part way between stainless steel/white gold and gold. Having the colour of the faded gold but a finish of polished stainless steel makes this watch aesthetically unique. Add the black polished bevel in to the mix and we have a watch that screams masculinity.
I have to admit I am not the biggest fan of leather straps but they are beginning to grow on me. Some of the Panerai models have leather straps which just don’t match the face of the watch. The colours are either too different or the fine finish of the watch would be suited much more to a polished steel/gold bracelet instead. The Cosmograph Daytona has matched the colour of the black leather strap with the polished bevel which makes it look nothing less than seamless. The black leather strap is held together by an oysterlock folding safety clasp.
As I said, the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona was designed with the race car in mind. There are two timers at the 9 and 3 o’clock positions which are used for the timing functionality, recording the hours and minutes respectively. Rolex strived to sell the design of the watch as assisting a driver to keep track of his times to achieve victory. I think having these two counters set aside from each other is just a great intuitive idea for a stop watch. Non-digital watches have always had sub-standard stop watches and focussed more on chronographs but the Cosmograph Daytona’s solution is extremely usable.
The on-board chronograph has a self winding mechanism with a 1/8th of a second accuracy. This is rather high for a watch which isn’t sold as a divers watch. Watches like the MikrotourbillonS By Tag Heuer which have a 1/200th of a second accuracy on its chronograph is more so necessary because of its purpose built design as a diving watch. Racing watches like the Cosmograph Daytona would not need precision this high.
The chronograph which was incorporated into the Cosmograph Daytona was designed specifically for the watch. The 4130 chronograph calibre movement was designed with just 290 components and has been admired for its simplistic design. The power reserve rarely comes into play with a watch like this but with a massive 72 hour power reserve and 66 hours if you are using the stop watch it won’t let you down.
This timeless watch design will be around for years to come but the Cosmograph Daytona is a unique design within the series. It is a great all round piece which is definitely not only for drivers. It’s seamless design and excellent integration does not take away from its lack of simplicity but together it just works. Retailing for around $14,000 this would be a great watch to have.
I really like the overall look of the watch and I agree that the leather strap does suit this particular Rolex. Not sure whether a racing car driver would have time to look at his/ her watch but its a good concept.