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{{DISPLAYTITLE:Rolex 16758 GMT-Master}}
{{#seo:
{{#seo:
|title=Rolex GMT-Master 16758 — BezelBase
|title=Rolex GMT-Master 16758 (1979–1988), Production & Dial Guide | Rolexopedia
|description=The `16758` is the solid yellow-gold GMT-Master of the `16750` generation. It keeps the older linked-hand GMT logic, adds the quick-set date through…
|description=The 16758 is the all-yellow-gold GMT-Master from approximately 1980–1988. It uses caliber 3075, a caller-GMT layout, a sapphire crystal, and black or brown aluminium bezel inserts; gem-set SARU examples are a separate branch.
|keywords=Rolex, 16758, GMT-Master, specifications, reference guide
|keywords=Rolex, 16758, GMT-Master, yellow gold, SARU, Sultanate of Oman, caliber 3075, champagne serti, nipple dial
|type=article
|image=Ref 16758 hero.webp
|image_alt=18k gold GMT, quick-set date
|type=Article
|og_type=article
|published_time=2026-04-18T03:21:46Z
|modified_time=2026-08-04T00:10:08Z
|robots=index,follow,max-image-preview:large
}}
}}


<small>[[Reference:gmt-master|GMT-Master]] › '''16758'''</small>


<small>[[Reference:gmt-master|GMT-Master]] → '''16758'''</small>
<div class="rp-lead">
[[File:Ref 16758 hero.webp|thumb|center|640px|alt=18k gold GMT, quick-set date|18k gold GMT, quick-set date]]
</div>


[[File:Ref 16758 hero.webp|thumb|right|340px]]
The 16758 is the all-yellow-gold GMT-Master and the gold counterpart to the steel [[Reference:16750|16750]]. Both use caliber 3075 and the linked-hand caller-GMT layout, but the 16758 is documented with a sapphire crystal while the steel 16750 retains acrylic. Sources place the run approximately between 1980 and 1988, with disagreement over the first year. Regular examples use black or brown aluminium bezel inserts; gem-set SARU watches are treated separately.


<span id="core-facts"></span>


==Core facts==


The [[Reference:16758|16758]] is the solid yellow-gold GMT-Master of the [[Reference:16750|16750]] generation. It keeps the older linked-hand GMT logic, adds the quick-set date through caliber 3075, and moves the gold GMT line into the five-digit era without yet becoming a GMT-Master II. The watch still looks back toward the 1675/8, but it already points toward the [[Reference:16718|16718]] that would follow.
{| class="wikitable rp-facts"
 
The watch is also more varied than the nickname culture suggests. The brown Root Beer branch is real and the black branch is equally real, and the source set is strong enough to keep both in view.
 
<span id="core-facts"></span>
== Core facts ==
 
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
! detail
! detail
Line 29: Line 34:
|-
|-
| family
| family
| GMT-Master
| GMT-Master (all-yellow-gold variant of the [[Reference:16750|16750]])
|-
|-
| production
| production
| roughly 1979-1988
| approximately 1980 to 1988; sources differ on whether the first examples date to 1979, 1980, or 1981. SARU examples are a separately documented gem-set branch
|-
|-
| movement
| total examples
| caliber 3075
| no published Rolex production figure for the regular 16758. A specialist source reports fewer than 36 SARU examples, a count that is not a Rolex factory record
|-
|-
| case
| case
| 40mm solid yellow-gold Oyster case
| 40mm 18K yellow gold Oyster with crown guards
|-
|-
| crystal
| crystal
| sapphire in the stronger source set, though one brown listing still describes acrylic
| sapphire crystal with Cyclops, documented on the gold reference while the contemporary steel 16750 and 16753 use acrylic
|-
|-
| water resistance
| water resistance
| 100m
| 100m
|-
| movement
| caliber 3075, 27 jewels, 28,800 vph, quick-set date and hacking seconds. Published reserve figures vary around 48–50 hours; no 16758-specific tuning is documented
|-
| GMT mechanic
| caller GMT, 24-hour hand stays linked to the local hour hand, second zone reads off the bezel
|-
| dial generations
| surviving examples include early matte dials, glossy sunburst dials, gold-surround "nipple" markers, and champagne serti dials. The boundaries overlap in the surviving record
|-
|-
| bezel
| bezel
| bidirectional 24-hour aluminum insert in black or brown branch language
| black or brown ("rootbeer") bidirectional aluminium 24-hour insert on regular examples. SARU watches use a gem-set red-and-blue visual scheme
|-
| main dial split
| black and brown dial branches
|-
|-
| key transition
| bracelet
| last GMT branch with nipple indexes, first with a gilt coronet
| published examples use 18K Jubilee 8386 or 18K Oyster 8385; Phillips documents a SARU example on a diamond-set President bracelet
|}
|}


Line 59: Line 70:
== Where it sits in the line ==
== Where it sits in the line ==


The [[Reference:16758|16758]] is the solid-gold counterpart to the steel [[Reference:16750|16750]] and sits between the vintage gold GMT-Master line and the later gold GMT-Master II. It keeps the linked-hand system, so the 24-hour hand cannot be set independently of the main hour hand. The [[Reference:16718|16718]] that follows in spirit adds the clicking bezel and the separately adjustable GMT hand. The [[Reference:16758|16758]] is therefore the last gold GMT that still behaves like a GMT-Master rather than a GMT-Master II.
Within the five-digit GMT-Master line the 16758 is the gold counterpart to the [[Reference:16750|16750]], the same watch executed in 18K yellow gold throughout. It ran alongside the all-steel 16750, the two-tone 16753 Rootbeer, and from 1983 the [[Reference:16760|16760]] GMT-Master II. The 16758 carries the caller mechanic into 1988 with the 16750 and 16753; the next-generation gold GMT is the 16718 of 1989 onward, on the caliber 3185 flyer mechanic.
 
The 1675/8 predecessor wore acrylic, as did the contemporary steel 16750 and 16753. The gold 16758 is documented with sapphire, a material distinction that helps separate the references when the case and movement are also checked.


<span id="production-outline"></span>
<span id="production-outline"></span>
== Production outline ==
== Production outline ==


The broad production frame is stable at 1979–1988, and the clearest way to read the run is by dial phase. The Vintage Rolex Field Manual treats it as three stages that map loosely to time rather than to hard cutoff years.
The launch year is disputed. Sotheby's and Hodinkee use 1980, while other specialist references use 1979 or 1981. The documented run closes in 1988. Phillips' Geneva X 2019 lot 106 is a circa-1985 SARU example with case 8,510,585 and movement 1,100,222.
 
No total-production figure exists for the regular 16758. A specialist source reports fewer than 36 SARU examples; that estimate should not be read as a complete census.


<span id="early-matte-phase"></span>
<span id="early-matte-phase"></span>
=== Early matte phase ===
=== Early matte phase ===


The earliest [[Reference:16758|16758]] watches read closest to the outgoing 1675/8. Matte dials with the older visual warmth give the strongest continuity with the late vintage gold line. This phase sits at the front of the run, from around 1979 through the first years of production, which places it in parallel with the early matte [[Reference:16750|16750]] watches. The dial surface reads flat rather than glossy, with brown or black printed text and raised nipple indexes carrying the older visual recipe forward.
Some early 16758 examples are documented with matte dials resembling late 1675/8 production. The surviving record is too small to set a clean serial boundary, and a dial should be checked against the case, movement, and service history.


<span id="middle-glossy-sunburst-phase"></span>
<span id="middle-glossy-sunburst-phase"></span>
=== Middle glossy sunburst phase ===
=== Middle glossy sunburst phase ===


Glossy sunburst dials then take over through the middle of the run. This is where the reference starts to look more overtly 1980s while still keeping the old GMT-Master operating feel. Brown sunburst dials from this phase show a radial grain that catches light in concentric rings, and black sunburst dials do the same with less color shift. The finish shifts from the warm, textured matte of the 1675/8 to a more reflective, decade-appropriate surface, though the case, bezel, and movement stay identical. The Field Manual places this phase through the middle of the 1980s without a named cutoff, which fits the 1982 and 1987 watches in the source set sitting on either side of the sunburst window.
Glossy sunburst dials appear in the mid-run auction record. Sotheby's 2018 GE1804 lot 15 is a circa-1984 brown “nipple” example, and the 2019 Driver's Collection lot 8 is a circa-1981 black-dial example. These lots document individual configurations rather than a complete transition schedule.


<span id="late-gold-surround-phase"></span>
<span id="late-gold-surround-phase"></span>
=== Late gold-surround phase ===
=== Late gold-surround phase ===


Later dials add the familiar gold surrounds around the lume plots. A gold-surround dial keeps the applied lume plot but rings each one with a polished gold bezel, which changes the dial reflection pattern without altering the underlying layout. The visual effect is a closer match to the neo-vintage gold GMT-Master II watches that follow, and this is the strongest late-run signal on a surviving [[Reference:16758|16758]] dial.
Some later dials carry applied gold surrounds around the lume plots, commonly called “nipple” markers. The same broad marker treatment appears on later two-tone GMT-Master references, but the surviving 16758 examples do not establish a precise changeover year.


<span id="movement-notes"></span>
<span id="movement-notes"></span>
== Movement notes ==
== Movement notes ==


Caliber 3075 defines the [[Reference:16758|16758]] in the same basic way it defines the [[Reference:16750|16750]] and [[Reference:16753|16753]]. It added the quick-set date and hacking seconds, ran at the higher five-digit beat rate, and kept the linked-hand GMT behavior of the older family rather than moving to the separately adjustable local-hour system of the GMT-Master II. That last point is the real dividing line. The [[Reference:16758|16758]] looks newer than the 1675/8, but mechanically it still belongs to the GMT-Master side of the family tree.
Caliber 3075 is shared with the 16750 and 16753. Published specifications give 27 jewels, 28,800 vph, hacking seconds, and a quick-set date; reserve figures vary around 48–50 hours. The caliber retains the linked-hand caller-GMT mechanic, so the 24-hour hand cannot be set independently. An independent local hour arrived with caliber 3085 in the 16760 and continued in later GMT-Master II references. A 3175 in a 16758 case is a service or replacement movement unless its history proves otherwise.


<span id="dial-map"></span>
<span id="dial-map"></span>
== Dial map ==
== Dial map ==


[[File:Ref 16758 root-beer-brown.webp|thumb|right|280px|Brown Root Beer 16758]]
Regular 16758 examples include black, brown, and champagne serti dials; tropicalized or cracked lacquer is a condition of some dials rather than a separate factory branch. SARU watches stand apart as gem-set variants. Period examples use tritium markings, but service dials can differ, and champagne serti dials do not use the standard nipple-marker layout.
[[File:Ref 16758 black-dial.webp|thumb|right|280px|Black-dial 16758]]
 
[[File:Ref 16758 dial-closeup.webp|thumb|right|280px|Black dial close-up]]
<span id="black-nipple"></span>
The source set supports two main branch colors and a three-step dial phase story.
=== Black nipple ===
 
<gallery mode="packed" heights="180">
File:Ref 16758 black-dial.webp|alt=Black-dial 16758|Black-dial 16758
File:Ref 16758 black-nipple-square.webp|alt=Black nipple 16758 on gold Jubilee, lifestyle flat-lay|Black nipple 16758 on gold Jubilee, lifestyle flat-lay
</gallery>
The black branch uses a glossy black ground with applied gold markers and is commonly shown with the all-black 24-hour insert. Auction frequency does not establish that it was the most common factory dial, and condition varies from example to example.


<span id="brown-root-beer-branch"></span>
<span id="brown-sunburst-nipple-rootbeer"></span>
=== Brown Root Beer branch ===
=== Brown sunburst nipple ===


This is the branch most collectors reach for first. A brown dial, brown bezel insert, and the lingering visual vocabulary of the older gold GMT line keep the watch tied to the 1675/8 even though the mechanics are newer.
[[File:Ref 16758 root-beer-brown.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=Brown Root Beer 16758|Brown Root Beer 16758]]
The brown branch pairs a brown sunburst dial and applied gold markers with a brown 24-hour insert. Sotheby's catalogued a circa-1984 example with this combination. Patina, lacquer damage, and service work need to be assessed on the individual dial.


<span id="black-branch"></span>
<span id="champagne-serti"></span>
=== Black branch ===
=== Champagne serti ===


The black branch is not secondary. The Field Manual states that [[Reference:16758|16758]] watches were offered with either black or brown dials, and the direct market examples support that reading.
[[File:Ref 16758 dial-closeup.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=Black dial close-up|Black dial close-up]]


<span id="nipple-indexes-and-gilt-coronet"></span>
A factory gem-set branch uses a champagne sunburst dial with ruby and diamond hour markers. Bonhams Skinner's October 2021 timed sale lot 1095 documents a circa-1984 example with serial 8,108,474 and a 1990 receipt. The lot supports the configuration; it does not establish production volume or Rolex's intended customer.
=== Nipple indexes and gilt coronet ===


The Field Manual adds the key visual takeaway. The [[Reference:16758|16758]] is the last GMT branch with nipple indexes and the first with a gilt coronet, which gives the reference a usable identity beyond color.
<span id="tropical-and-aged"></span>
=== Tropical and aged ===


<span id="case-bezel-crystal-and-crown-notes"></span>
Some brown and black lacquer dials show colour change or cracking described by cataloguers as tropical or aged. Important Watches lot 228 (circa 1984, serial 8,390,209, caliber 3075) is one documented example; the condition label does not prove the cause of the change.
== Case, bezel, crystal, and crown notes ==


The reference uses a solid yellow-gold Oyster case with crown guards and an aluminum 24-hour insert. Bezel behavior is the most important mechanical detail here. The Field Manual argues that the [[Reference:16758|16758]] keeps the older friction-fit, non-clicking bezel, with the clicking bezel arriving only on the later [[Reference:16718|16718]].
<span id="case-bezel-crystal-and-crown"></span>
== Case, bezel, crystal, and crown ==


The difference between the two bezel formats is straightforward. A friction-fit bezel rotates freely on a smooth spring ring, which lets the insert turn in either direction without any audible or tactile stop. A collector turning a [[Reference:16758|16758]] bezel feels a steady, unnotched rotation with no internal engagement, the same behavior that defines the earlier [[Reference:1675|1675]] and 1675/8 bezel. A clicking bezel sits on a toothed click-spring mechanism that indexes the bezel in discrete stops, most often 120 positions per full rotation. The [[Reference:16718|16718]] uses the clicking format, and every rotation produces a sequence of clicks along with a defined feel at each stop. The change is mechanical rather than cosmetic, and a surviving [[Reference:16758|16758]] with unmodified bezel hardware should rotate smoothly rather than click.
The case is a 40mm Oyster in 18K yellow gold, with crown guards and a sapphire crystal with Cyclops. The reference is rated to 100m in the cited reference guides, as is the contemporary steel 16750. Case and crystal measurements in auction catalogues are approximate.


The crystal story is the main unresolved hardware point. Monochrome and the stronger black listing describe a sapphire crystal, one documented brown listing describes acrylic, and the Field Manual treats sapphire as a defining upgrade of the reference. Sapphire remains the stronger reading, but the contradiction should be presented directly rather than blurred away. The acrylic brown 1982 listing can be read in two ways: either the earliest production watches genuinely kept the acrylic crystal from the 1675/8 platform while the case and movement updated first, or the specific surviving watch has a replacement acrylic crystal from a later service. Both readings are live in the corpus. The cleanest position is that late-run [[Reference:16758|16758]] examples are sapphire and early-run examples may be either, with the changeover not cleanly documented in the current source set.
Regular examples are documented with black or brown bidirectional aluminium inserts. The SARU uses blue sapphires and red rubies to create a red-and-blue bezel effect. A bezel insert can be replaced, so insert colour alone cannot date or authenticate a 16758 watch head.


<span id="bracelets-end-links-clasps-and-packaging-notes"></span>
<span id="bracelets-end-links-clasps-and-packaging"></span>
== Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes ==
== Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes ==


The direct market set shows the watch mainly on the Jubilee bracelet, including a concealed-clasp presentation on the black branch. That is useful observed evidence, not a full born-with delivery chart for the whole reference.
Published examples use the 18K Jubilee 8386 with hidden clasp or the 18K Oyster 8385. Phillips Hong Kong XI 2020 lot 1016 documents the Oyster combination on a black-dial example.
 
Phillips' Geneva X 2019 SARU lot is documented with a diamond-set President bracelet. That lot establishes the fitment on that example; it does not prove that every gem-set 16758 used the same bracelet.


The brown example is the messy one. Heavy service updates extend into the caseback stamp, which drifts toward [[Reference:16750|16750]] territory. The watch is therefore valuable as a realism check rather than as a clean originality template.
A different bracelet or regional delivery needs its own documentation. Clasp codes date the bracelet, not the watch head.


<span id="special-branches"></span>
<span id="special-branches"></span>
== Special branches ==
== Special branches ==


<span id="brown-root-beer-branch-1"></span>
<span id="saru-sultanate-of-oman"></span>
=== Brown Root Beer branch ===
=== SARU (Sapphire And RUby) ===
 
The brown branch is the easiest way to connect the [[Reference:16758|16758]] to the older gold GMT story. Retail buyers ordering a gold GMT in the early 1980s were most often reaching for the warm brown-and-gold visual continuation first documented on the 1675/8, and the [[Reference:16758|16758]] inherited that market expectation when it launched in 1979. That produced more brown dials in period, and the surviving market still reflects the imbalance: brown examples remain the more commonly encountered format at auction and dealer level.


<span id="black-branch-1"></span>
The 16758 SARU is a gem-set branch with a sapphire-and-ruby bezel, diamond hour markers, and a documented diamond-set President bracelet. A specialist source reports fewer than 36 examples, but that is an estimate rather than a Rolex production figure.
=== Black branch ===


The black branch matters because it breaks the habit of reducing every gold GMT to Root Beer. Black dials existed as a parallel factory option across the run, as the Field Manual states, but they appealed to a narrower buyer profile, someone who wanted a gold GMT without the tropical color story. The black branch is not rare in the strict sense, but it is less common, and late-run black sunburst and gold-surround examples have attracted renewed collector attention as the broader gold-sports-watch market has matured.
Phillips Geneva X (November 2019) lot 106 documents a SARU example with Sultanate-of-Oman Khanjar caseback engraving, case 8,510,585, movement 1,100,222, and a full set. Phillips Winning Icons (2017) and Christie's Keystone Collection (2020) provide additional auction records. These are individual lots, not a complete population or price benchmark.


<span id="transitional-gold-identity"></span>
The SARU shares reference 16758 with the regular gold GMT-Master. Authentication therefore depends on the gem-set components, case and movement numbers, provenance, and service history. Auction catalogues describe the cited examples as factory watches, but Rolex production records for the branch are not published in the sources reviewed.
=== Transitional gold identity ===


This is the broader branch that matters most. The [[Reference:16758|16758]] is the last gold GMT that still lives on the old side of the family split, with caliber 3075, non-clicking bezel behavior, nipple markers, and linked-hand GMT logic all in one place.


<span id="historical-market-and-auction-record"></span>
<span id="historical-market-and-auction-record"></span>
== Historical market and auction record ==
== Historical market and auction record ==


The source set is still dealer-led rather than auction-led, but the market layer already shows the right shape. A brown branch example proves the Root Beer side is real and also shows how noisy service history can get on a surviving gold GMT. A black branch example proves the watch should not be reduced only to brown dials. The Field Manual supplies the best collector-run framing for how the gold branch evolves from 1675/8 into [[Reference:16758|16758]]. That is enough for a first article pass, though a direct auction-house [[Reference:16758|16758]] lot would strengthen the market section considerably.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Sale !! Lot !! Year !! Configuration !! Hammer
|-
| Sotheby's Driver's Collection || 8 || 2019 || c.1981 black dial, black bezel, Jubilee, serial 7,092,867 || est. USD 15,000–25,000
|-
| Sotheby's Important Watches GE1804 || 15 || 2018 || c.1984 brown nipple, Jubilee || not publicly listed
|-
| Phillips Geneva XIV || 91 || 2021 || c.1987 golden serti rootbeer, serial R288227, Rolex-serviced 2020 || not publicly listed
|-
| Bonhams Skinner timed sale || 1095 || 2021 || c.1984 champagne serti, serial 8,108,474, full set with 1990 receipt || est. USD 30,000–40,000
|-
| Important Watches || 228 || 2024 || c.1984 gray-blue tropical, Jubilee, cal. 3075 || est. USD 9,000–12,000
|-
| Phillips Hong Kong XI || 1016 || 2020 || black dial, gold Oyster || not publicly listed
|-
| Phillips Winning Icons || 24 || 2017 || SARU sapphire-and-ruby bezel || USD 240,000
|-
| Phillips Geneva X || 106 || 2019 || SARU Sultanate-of-Oman Khanjar caseback, full set, case 8,510,585 || CHF 256,250 (vs est. CHF 180,000–280,000)
|-
| Christie's Keystone Collection || 224 || 2020 || SARU || est. USD 280,000–320,000
|}
 
The table records individual auction examples across regular, serti, and SARU configurations. Estimates and results vary with condition, service history, provenance, and completeness; they are not a price guide or evidence of a fixed tier structure.
 
== Related references ==
 
* [[Reference:16750|GMT-Master 16750]], 1979–1988
* [[Reference:16753|GMT-Master 16753]], 1979–1988
* [[Reference:16760|GMT-Master 16760]], "Fat Lady", Coke Bezel (1983–1988)
* [[Reference:16700|GMT-Master 16700]], 1988–1998
* [[Reference:1675|GMT-Master 1675]], Pepsi & Root Beer (1959–1979)
* [[Reference:16710|GMT-Master 16710]], Pepsi, Coke & Black (1989–2007)
 
See also the [[Reference:gmt-master|GMT-Master family index]], [[Reference:Movements|movement reference]], [[Reference:Bracelets|bracelet & clasp guide]], and [[Reference:Serial-numbers|serial numbers by year]].
 
<gallery mode="packed" heights="180">
File:Ref 16758 hero.webp|Whole-watch view
File:Ref 16758 black-dial.webp|Black-dial branch
File:Ref 16758 black-nipple-square.webp|Black nipple dial on gold Jubilee
File:Ref 16758 root-beer-brown.webp|Brown Root Beer branch
File:Ref 16758 dial-closeup.webp|Champagne serti dial
</gallery>


== Sources ==
== Sources ==
* The Vintage Rolex Field Manual, Chevalier Edition — unknown, Morning Tundra
 
* [https://monochrome-watches.com/history-rolex-gmt-master-and-gmt-master-ii-1955-2024-iconic-traveller-watch-in-depth-review/ In-Depth: The History of the Rolex GMT-Master and GMT-Master II] — unknown, Monochrome
* [https://newsroom.rolex.com/watches/oyster-collection/gmt-master-ii Rolex, GMT-Master II newsroom — GMT mechanism and model chronology]
* [https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/the-rolex-gmt-master-the-complete-collectors-guide The Rolex GMT-Master: A Complete Collector's Guide] — Stephen Pulvirent, Sotheby's
* [https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/the-rolex-gmt-master-the-complete-collectors-guide The Rolex GMT-Master: A Complete Collector's Guide] (Sotheby's)
* [https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/a-concise-guide-to-the-rolex-gmt-root-beer A Closer Look at the Rolex Root Beer] — Christina Bohn, Sotheby's
* [https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/rolex-gmt-master-reference-points Reference Points: Understanding the Rolex GMT-Master] (Hodinkee)
* [https://www.vrfm.io/gold-gmt-masters.html The Vintage Solid Gold Rolex GMT Master] — MORNINGTUNDRA, VRFM.io
* [https://www.fratellowatches.com/tbt-rolex-gmt-master-16758/ #TBT Rolex GMT Master 16758, Yellow Gold is Here] (Fratello)
* [https://www.bobswatches.com/vintage-rolex-gmt-master-ref-16758-root-beer.html Vintage Rolex GMT-Master Ref 16758 Root Beer] — unknown, Bob's Watches
* [https://bespokeunit.com/articles/watches/rolex-vintage-gmt-master/ Rolex Vintage GMT-Master review] (Bespoke Unit)
* [https://www.bobswatches.com/rolex-gmt-master-16758-yellow-gold.html Rolex GMT-Master 16758 Yellow Gold] — unknown, Bob's Watches
* [https://www.watchcollectinglifestyle.com/home/rare-bird-rolex-gmt-master-ref-16758-saru-for-sultanate-of-oman Rare Bird: 16758 SARU for Sultanate of Oman] (Watch Collecting Lifestyle)
* RolexForums 16758 thread bundle — RolexForums community, RolexForums
* [https://revolutionwatch.com/the-saru-saga-gem-set-gmt-master-story-from-saru-to-bruce-wayne/ The SARU Saga: Gem-Set GMT-Master Story] (Revolution Watch)
* [https://thekeystone.com/blogs/passingtime/saru-16758 Featured: Original SARU GMT-Master Ref. 16758] (The Keystone Watches)
* [https://www.the1916company.com/in-focus/featured/champagne-serti-rolex-16758/ Champagne Serti Rolex 16758 In Focus]
* [https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2019/watches-online-the-drivers-collection/rolex-gmt-master-ref-16758-a-yellow-gold Rolex GMT-Master Ref. 16758 c.1981, Sotheby's Driver's Collection lot 8] (Sotheby's, 2019)
* [https://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2018/important-watches-ge1804/lot.15.html Reference 16758 GMT-Master c.1984 brown nipple, Sotheby's Important Watches GE1804 lot 15] (Sotheby's, 2018)
* [https://www.phillips.com/detail/rolex/CH080219/106 Rolex Sultanate-of-Oman SARU GMT-Master Ref. 16758, Phillips Geneva X lot 106] (Phillips, 2019)
* [https://www.phillips.com/detail/rolex/NY080117/24 Rolex GMT-Master Ref. 16758 SARU, Phillips Winning Icons] (Phillips, 2017)
* [https://www.bonhams.com/auction/skinner-2021-1095/ Champagne Serti Rolex 16758, Bonhams Skinner timed sale lot 1095] (Bonhams, 2021)
* [https://www.windvintage.com/rolex-gmtmaster-reference-16758-yellow-gold-unpolished Rolex GMT-Master Reference 16758 Yellow Gold Unpolished] (Wind Vintage)
* [https://oliverandclarke.com/products/rolex-gmt-master-ref-16758-sunburst-brown-nipple-1980 Rolex GMT-Master Ref. 16758 Sunburst Brown Nipple 1980] (Oliver & Clarke)
* [https://www.amsterdamvintagewatches.com/shop/rolex-gmt-master-16758/ Rolex GMT-Master 16758] (Amsterdam Vintage Watches)
* [https://www.chorost.com/products/rolex-16758-yellow-gold-presidential-mexican-market Rolex 16758 Mexican-Market Presidential] (Chorost & Co.)
* [https://www.rescapement.com/blog/keystone-collection-saru-preview Keystone Collection SARU preview] (Rescapement)
* ''The Vintage Rolex Field Manual'', Colin A. White, Morning Tundra


[[Category:GMT-Master]]
[[Category:GMT-Master]]
[[Category:Working Draft]]

Latest revision as of 06:18, 29 September 2026


GMT-Master › 16758

18k gold GMT, quick-set date
18k gold GMT, quick-set date

The 16758 is the all-yellow-gold GMT-Master and the gold counterpart to the steel 16750. Both use caliber 3075 and the linked-hand caller-GMT layout, but the 16758 is documented with a sapphire crystal while the steel 16750 retains acrylic. Sources place the run approximately between 1980 and 1988, with disagreement over the first year. Regular examples use black or brown aluminium bezel inserts; gem-set SARU watches are treated separately.

Core facts

detail value
reference 16758
family GMT-Master (all-yellow-gold variant of the 16750)
production approximately 1980 to 1988; sources differ on whether the first examples date to 1979, 1980, or 1981. SARU examples are a separately documented gem-set branch
total examples no published Rolex production figure for the regular 16758. A specialist source reports fewer than 36 SARU examples, a count that is not a Rolex factory record
case 40mm 18K yellow gold Oyster with crown guards
crystal sapphire crystal with Cyclops, documented on the gold reference while the contemporary steel 16750 and 16753 use acrylic
water resistance 100m
movement caliber 3075, 27 jewels, 28,800 vph, quick-set date and hacking seconds. Published reserve figures vary around 48–50 hours; no 16758-specific tuning is documented
GMT mechanic caller GMT, 24-hour hand stays linked to the local hour hand, second zone reads off the bezel
dial generations surviving examples include early matte dials, glossy sunburst dials, gold-surround "nipple" markers, and champagne serti dials. The boundaries overlap in the surviving record
bezel black or brown ("rootbeer") bidirectional aluminium 24-hour insert on regular examples. SARU watches use a gem-set red-and-blue visual scheme
bracelet published examples use 18K Jubilee 8386 or 18K Oyster 8385; Phillips documents a SARU example on a diamond-set President bracelet

Where it sits in the line

Within the five-digit GMT-Master line the 16758 is the gold counterpart to the 16750, the same watch executed in 18K yellow gold throughout. It ran alongside the all-steel 16750, the two-tone 16753 Rootbeer, and from 1983 the 16760 GMT-Master II. The 16758 carries the caller mechanic into 1988 with the 16750 and 16753; the next-generation gold GMT is the 16718 of 1989 onward, on the caliber 3185 flyer mechanic.

The 1675/8 predecessor wore acrylic, as did the contemporary steel 16750 and 16753. The gold 16758 is documented with sapphire, a material distinction that helps separate the references when the case and movement are also checked.

Production outline

The launch year is disputed. Sotheby's and Hodinkee use 1980, while other specialist references use 1979 or 1981. The documented run closes in 1988. Phillips' Geneva X 2019 lot 106 is a circa-1985 SARU example with case 8,510,585 and movement 1,100,222.

No total-production figure exists for the regular 16758. A specialist source reports fewer than 36 SARU examples; that estimate should not be read as a complete census.

Early matte phase

Some early 16758 examples are documented with matte dials resembling late 1675/8 production. The surviving record is too small to set a clean serial boundary, and a dial should be checked against the case, movement, and service history.

Middle glossy sunburst phase

Glossy sunburst dials appear in the mid-run auction record. Sotheby's 2018 GE1804 lot 15 is a circa-1984 brown “nipple” example, and the 2019 Driver's Collection lot 8 is a circa-1981 black-dial example. These lots document individual configurations rather than a complete transition schedule.

Late gold-surround phase

Some later dials carry applied gold surrounds around the lume plots, commonly called “nipple” markers. The same broad marker treatment appears on later two-tone GMT-Master references, but the surviving 16758 examples do not establish a precise changeover year.

Movement notes

Caliber 3075 is shared with the 16750 and 16753. Published specifications give 27 jewels, 28,800 vph, hacking seconds, and a quick-set date; reserve figures vary around 48–50 hours. The caliber retains the linked-hand caller-GMT mechanic, so the 24-hour hand cannot be set independently. An independent local hour arrived with caliber 3085 in the 16760 and continued in later GMT-Master II references. A 3175 in a 16758 case is a service or replacement movement unless its history proves otherwise.

Dial map

Regular 16758 examples include black, brown, and champagne serti dials; tropicalized or cracked lacquer is a condition of some dials rather than a separate factory branch. SARU watches stand apart as gem-set variants. Period examples use tritium markings, but service dials can differ, and champagne serti dials do not use the standard nipple-marker layout.

Black nipple

  • Black-dial 16758
    Black-dial 16758
  • Black nipple 16758 on gold Jubilee, lifestyle flat-lay
    Black nipple 16758 on gold Jubilee, lifestyle flat-lay

The black branch uses a glossy black ground with applied gold markers and is commonly shown with the all-black 24-hour insert. Auction frequency does not establish that it was the most common factory dial, and condition varies from example to example.

Brown sunburst nipple

Brown Root Beer 16758
Brown Root Beer 16758

The brown branch pairs a brown sunburst dial and applied gold markers with a brown 24-hour insert. Sotheby's catalogued a circa-1984 example with this combination. Patina, lacquer damage, and service work need to be assessed on the individual dial.

Champagne serti

Black dial close-up
Black dial close-up

A factory gem-set branch uses a champagne sunburst dial with ruby and diamond hour markers. Bonhams Skinner's October 2021 timed sale lot 1095 documents a circa-1984 example with serial 8,108,474 and a 1990 receipt. The lot supports the configuration; it does not establish production volume or Rolex's intended customer.

Tropical and aged

Some brown and black lacquer dials show colour change or cracking described by cataloguers as tropical or aged. Important Watches lot 228 (circa 1984, serial 8,390,209, caliber 3075) is one documented example; the condition label does not prove the cause of the change.

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown

The case is a 40mm Oyster in 18K yellow gold, with crown guards and a sapphire crystal with Cyclops. The reference is rated to 100m in the cited reference guides, as is the contemporary steel 16750. Case and crystal measurements in auction catalogues are approximate.

Regular examples are documented with black or brown bidirectional aluminium inserts. The SARU uses blue sapphires and red rubies to create a red-and-blue bezel effect. A bezel insert can be replaced, so insert colour alone cannot date or authenticate a 16758 watch head.

Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes

Published examples use the 18K Jubilee 8386 with hidden clasp or the 18K Oyster 8385. Phillips Hong Kong XI 2020 lot 1016 documents the Oyster combination on a black-dial example.

Phillips' Geneva X 2019 SARU lot is documented with a diamond-set President bracelet. That lot establishes the fitment on that example; it does not prove that every gem-set 16758 used the same bracelet.

A different bracelet or regional delivery needs its own documentation. Clasp codes date the bracelet, not the watch head.

Special branches

SARU (Sapphire And RUby)

The 16758 SARU is a gem-set branch with a sapphire-and-ruby bezel, diamond hour markers, and a documented diamond-set President bracelet. A specialist source reports fewer than 36 examples, but that is an estimate rather than a Rolex production figure.

Phillips Geneva X (November 2019) lot 106 documents a SARU example with Sultanate-of-Oman Khanjar caseback engraving, case 8,510,585, movement 1,100,222, and a full set. Phillips Winning Icons (2017) and Christie's Keystone Collection (2020) provide additional auction records. These are individual lots, not a complete population or price benchmark.

The SARU shares reference 16758 with the regular gold GMT-Master. Authentication therefore depends on the gem-set components, case and movement numbers, provenance, and service history. Auction catalogues describe the cited examples as factory watches, but Rolex production records for the branch are not published in the sources reviewed.


Historical market and auction record

Sale Lot Year Configuration Hammer
Sotheby's Driver's Collection 8 2019 c.1981 black dial, black bezel, Jubilee, serial 7,092,867 est. USD 15,000–25,000
Sotheby's Important Watches GE1804 15 2018 c.1984 brown nipple, Jubilee not publicly listed
Phillips Geneva XIV 91 2021 c.1987 golden serti rootbeer, serial R288227, Rolex-serviced 2020 not publicly listed
Bonhams Skinner timed sale 1095 2021 c.1984 champagne serti, serial 8,108,474, full set with 1990 receipt est. USD 30,000–40,000
Important Watches 228 2024 c.1984 gray-blue tropical, Jubilee, cal. 3075 est. USD 9,000–12,000
Phillips Hong Kong XI 1016 2020 black dial, gold Oyster not publicly listed
Phillips Winning Icons 24 2017 SARU sapphire-and-ruby bezel USD 240,000
Phillips Geneva X 106 2019 SARU Sultanate-of-Oman Khanjar caseback, full set, case 8,510,585 CHF 256,250 (vs est. CHF 180,000–280,000)
Christie's Keystone Collection 224 2020 SARU est. USD 280,000–320,000

The table records individual auction examples across regular, serti, and SARU configurations. Estimates and results vary with condition, service history, provenance, and completeness; they are not a price guide or evidence of a fixed tier structure.

Related references

See also the GMT-Master family index, movement reference, bracelet & clasp guide, and serial numbers by year.

  • Whole-watch view
    Whole-watch view
  • Black-dial branch
    Black-dial branch
  • Black nipple dial on gold Jubilee
    Black nipple dial on gold Jubilee
  • Brown Root Beer branch
    Brown Root Beer branch
  • Champagne serti dial
    Champagne serti dial

Sources

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