Rolex Explorer 214270 (Hands-On Review): First Week On The Wrist

[Applause] the day has arrived and i'm currently wearing a rolex explorer reference 214-270 on my wrist i'm still pinching myself this watch has been lent to me for the next month thanks to springs and wheels i'll link his instagram on the screen he has an absolute gent for anyone to put that kind of trust in someone it really is beyond kind and i hope to not squander this opportunity and really dig in deep about this watch over the next few weeks this first video is going to be almost like an initial impressions i've been wearing the watch for just under a week my opinions have changed just in this time period alone there are a lot of factors to discuss and i guess the one main question that many might be wanting to know is whether or not this will be my first rolex that'll be something we can expand on as this video continues but i should also mention that i have been very critical of this watch in the past and it's worth rediscovering those points too so it would be good to discuss that more as this video continues so the very initial presence actually getting the watch out of the pouch for the first time what was funny is that there wasn't this you know holy choir singing in the background it wasn't this catch your breath moment you know the light glinting off the case and this angelic moment suddenly appears i was surprised by how plain it looked once i had the watch on the wrist for about 12 hours the feeling hadn't changed and that was starting to worry me and it took a while i would say a few days to actually understand what i was thinking and what the problem was simply put i have been very spoiled with the watches that i've seen over time and when you think about the price of the piece and you think about the status and the name and everything else you expect to see something lively you expect to see polish you expect to see some form of dynamism to the dial but it is so plain and basic that you feel a little bit deflated at least i was i actually felt quite disillusioned then it got me thinking the pieces that i wear and i own generally have some kind of dynamic nature to them they play with the light a certain way their dials are very dynamic the crystals have all sorts of features to them the cases and bracelets are a combination of brushing and polishing some watches have articulating end links and those kinds of features all play into the visual complexity of the watch picking up the explorer and wearing it you realize that there's none of that with the piece now for someone who's coming in from a different area of this hobby this watch might feel like a downgrade to you and that was my first thought as strange as it is the one watch that appealed to me the most in rolex's line was not as dynamic and vibrant as i thought it would be but then you get to thinking you understand that rolex is the master of restraint they attempt to do more with less and it's a factor that's difficult to wrap your head around if you come from a different zone in the luxury watch space everything being fully brushed the dial actually being extremely flat this is also the introduction to professional rolex so let's talk about the details that really caught my attention the finishing the metal work is just sublime it's on another level people say that rolex treats steel like a luxury material and they really do in a sense that all the components are sharp the tolerances are insane even though the watch feels sparse everything seems considered at the same time and that is very appealing the 39 millimeter size i was very skeptical but the watch fit so well and it's due to the relationship between the flatness of the case the overall profile of the 39 millimeter size and how it works with the lugs with the bracelets such a great combination and just from that alone your experience changes completely it's all well and good having the watch on for five hours maybe at a push but when you have it on for a few days you get to understand a little bit more about how it integrates into your life and sadly that's an opportunity that is not offered to us in this space very often so fit finish comfort nailed what is also peculiar is that i don't find myself looking down to the watch very often as i usually do with new pieces does it mean that the watch is too plain for my eye or on the other side does it mean that the watch is so good so integral that i don't even need to look at it it just feels correct that's the subject i'm still debating in my head when we look at the scale of the dial they have done an excellent job here bringing it up to 39 millimeters it doesn't feel very much like the traditional models like the 36 mils that we know so much it does move into a different area and this is one factor that i do want to clarify a little bit more in the second part of the review series but you feel when wearing the watch that this is modern rolex this is not them trying to go back look at their past inspirations this is them moving in a different direction with that size increase so the legibility is much sharper it's very easy to read the time at a glance as a watch built for the application of being the everyday every man watch it does an excellent job here when it came to working this watch and wearing it in different lighting areas i found one aspect very irritating and that is the flat sapphire crystal little did i know that none of the watches in my collection have flat crystals they either have acrylic boxed or domed crystals instead because of that you never have to worry about things like glare and it's awkward in a way when you're wanting to enjoy the gorgeous ink black dial you let down sometimes by how the watch plays in certain lights especially indoors and you find that the watch face goes gray if i owned this watch i would take it to a watchmaker ask for a boxed domed acrylic crystal that's how much it irritates me the time when the dial is truly expressed the best is when you are in direct sunlight preferably outside in a way this watch forces you to go outside to appreciate its beauty in the purest sense since it is a watch that is made for an explorer good call a lot of the time when i'm wearing the watch i'm questioning its size proportion scale if it could be improved in places one of the main points i put across when considering the rolex releases this year was wondering whether or not they could bring the watch's scale down to about 37 38 millimeters just to affect the dial a little bit more bring the scale of it down ever so slightly and primarily that would be done to just reduce the negative space on the dial overall wearing the watch surprisingly it's not something that bothers me the space has been considered my next thought was about the bracelets and how it tapers and whether or not increasing the lug width by one millimeter would also improve its scale relative to how the bracelet works because there does seem to be a divide between the case and the bracelet with this model the 39 millimeter size wears a lot bigger that of course is due to the fact that there is no true retaining bezel to the piece with a flat bezel like this watch has it looks broader when we look at models like the op-39s that have just been discontinued with domed bezels what that use of material allows it to do is to bend the light around it making the visual size look smaller but the wearing experience overall you can understand that this is a professional's watch it gives off that status which i really like not only with the clasp but just how it sits so flat to the wrist and broad one question that was on my mind about this piece was looking at the size of the crown and wondering whether or not the scale of it should be increased a bit because the crown does feel a little bit out of proportion with the rest of the watch but then it's considering how often you use the crown with an automatic without question there are many peculiarities to this piece even when we refer to the arabics on the dial yes they are modern but where do they exactly sit this typeface does it refer to early 2000s motifs is this something that will stand the test of time as well as the 1016 format shall we say the explorer to me has always been a watch that you would wear when you don't want to think about watches i have been in a fortunate position to own the smith's everest which is a 36 mil piece very much an homage to a 1016 and i fully get the idea around it the aesthetic and i enjoy using that watch in some of the most peculiar situations like when i'm outside working on the car barbecuing sunbathing because of its sterility i feel like this watch is made to be used and abused luckily the owner of this watch has put lots of scratches on the piece already he wears the piece as he should and the more i look at it the more i feel like it's a watch that deserves to show its scars it's not something that should be put in a safe or looked after and considering the other pieces that i own that can be admired for their visual complexity this one can be admired for its capability of being built to be worn i've had some interesting questions asked of me with family members and friends who don't know anything about watches one asked whether or not it was a seiko another said it looks ugly and boring i have some interesting friends the question then the big one does this make for an excellent everyday wearing watch absolutely is this a watch that you could buy getting into the rolex brand and getting out of it at the same time yes does it speak to rolex's design identity with features like the oyster case the perpetual movement yes it does and then some are there peculiarities with this piece that would raise eyebrows in a few places hmm i think so what made the explorer special was its subtlety many believe that once it transitioned away from the 36 millimeter size to 39 it lost that but if you're lucky enough to have a wrist that can actually sport the watch it looks just as subtle as you would expect so for the everyday man yes it makes a fantastic watch would the explorer be an excellent everyday wearing watch for me no this watch if i had to own it would have to be a part of a rotation and in this category that's where it loses points i'm someone who does crave that complexity with the dials with the bezels those kinds of features that do change what the watch looks like in different settings this model because it's so plain doesn't have as many faces as you think it might which is quite unfortunate for my overall love affair with this piece what it stands for and its history and then at the very end you start judging the watch by its price is this piece worth the price it's going for and i don't think it is if this watch retailed for between two and a half three thousand pounds and i'll put the us dollar equivalent in the video i would be buying this watch without question i think that is a justifiable price when we consider what this watch is and what it encompasses a time only reference with no other feature apart from excellent machine work excellent finishing a great amount of presence on the wrist i don't believe you're getting a lot for your money sadly the reality is now that we are paying more for the brand than for the watch itself which is a real shame and just because everyone says it's a great piece me included it doesn't mean that it's worth the price it's going for and i think it's so important that in this space you need to step back and think about what you're doing why are you buying this watch in the first place are you buying it because of the name because of the prestige that comes with it i guess are you buying it to impress someone in this community do you feel justified in buying it because everyone says it's good or are you buying it simply to know that your money is safe in a watch if i had to own this piece this watch would not be treated with kit gloves you spend that amount of money on a simple steel sports watch you better wear the thing so after having this watch on the wrist for just under a week my attention is divided in a few places the fit the feel the machinery the actual movement itself is very accurate the watch does feel like a professional's instrument and that is exactly what it was intended for but then there are aspects to this watch that still makes me question its profile things like typeface negative space on the dial the lug width the crown size the flat crystal if given the opportunity i would want to address these details myself and that's what leaves me on the fence with this model one thing's for sure i can appreciate how rolex has managed to transition this watch into the modern era it feels a lot more built for purpose it doesn't feel like a stylized dress watch its breadth on the wrist and overall thickness all says that it's a watch that has been well tailored shows us that it's a watch that was made for many purposes not to just be something flashy to wear over sports equipment there's no heaviness it doesn't feel cumbersome and throwing all the negatives aside the wearing experience actually having the watch on the wrist is what keeps me fascinated with this model in particular so i hope you enjoyed that brief overview around this watch if you would like to reach out and send more of your pieces in i would be happy to oblige my email is generally in the description of these videos but as we reach the second part of the review we're going to be comparing this piece to a classic and there we will be able to see and i hope to express just how these two designs are so fascinating when you look at them side by side because in that situation you're dealing with watches from two different timelines completely one that is very true to its original roots the other that has taken the blueprint and evolved it so in a few words the 214270 hasn't disappointed me at all there are a few features around the watch that i would like to change if given the opportunity but i have to concur as far as an everyday wearing watch goes that doesn't attract attention that is so sterile that many would find boring and unappealing if this is the route you would like to go with an everyday wearing watch this is a fantastic option if you can get your head around the price

Channel: IDGuy

Views: 82,054

Rating: 4.7927461 out of 5

Keywords: IDGuy, IDGuy Rolex, Rolex Explorer Review, 214270, Rolex Submariner, Rolex GMT, Rolex Daytona, Pepsi GMT, Batman, Hulk Submariner, Omega Seamaster, Seamaster 1957, Seamaster 300, Speedmaster, Aqua Terra, Tudor Black Bay, Black Bay 58, Pelagos, 14270, 114270, 1016, Smiths Everest, Smiths PRS-25, 114060, 116610, 216750, 216570, 16520, 116500LN, Watch Review, Sports Watch, Dress Watch, Dive Watch, Oyster Perpetual

Id: QrCWNDXOHr0

Length: 14min 12sec (852 seconds)

Published: Wed Sep 30 2020