Reference:114270: Difference between revisions

|description=The Explorer 114270 replaced the 14270 around 2001. It kept the 36mm case and Explorer dial while introducing caliber 3130, a solid-end-link bracelet, and a no-lug-hole case.

The 114270 replaced the 14270 around 2001. It kept the 36mm steel Oyster case and the Swiss Made Explorer dial, while introducing caliber 3130, a solid-end-link bracelet, and a case without drilled lug holes. The movement's balance bridge and Breguet overcoil hairspring are the main technical changes from caliber 3000.

Production ran from 2001 to 2010. The 214270 followed with a 39mm case, so the 114270 is the final 36mm Explorer of that period; Rolex returned to 36mm with the 124270 in 2021.

==Core facts==

| about 2001 to 2010

| caliber 3130, balance bridge, Breguet overcoil hairspring, 28,800 vph, about 48-hour power reserve

| black lacquered, "Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified" and "Swiss Made"

| later examples engraved "ROLEX ROLEX ROLEX" with serial number

==Where it sits in the line==

During production, the reference changed little on the outside. The useful identifiers are the caliber 3130, the solid-end-link bracelet, the absence of drilled lug holes, and, on later examples, the engraved rehaut.

The 124270 returned the Explorer to 36mm in 2021. That gives the 114270 a clear place in the sequence: it is the last 36mm Explorer before the 39mm 214270. It was produced alongside the Submariner 14060M and 16610, which received similar bracelet and rehaut changes during the same period.

==Production outline==

The dial is simpler than the 14270's documented sequence. Published examples use Super-LumiNova and the "Swiss Made" marking, with the Superlative Chronometer text above it. The case has no drilled lug holes and the bracelet uses solid end links throughout the reference, while the engraved rehaut appears only on later examples.

Because the documented changes are limited, check an individual watch through its movement, bracelet, rehaut and serial placement rather than a dial-generation label.

==Movement notes==

[[File:Ref 114270 movement.webp|thumb|right|300px|alt=Caliber 3130 balance bridge and movement plate|Caliber 3130 balance bridge and movement plate]]

Caliber 3130 is the main technical change from the 14270's caliber 3000.

The balance bridge replaces the balance cock and supports the balance at both sides. The movement also uses Microstella regulation and a Breguet overcoil hairspring. The current movement registry does not assign the blue Parachrom hairspring to Cal. 3130; later derivatives such as Cal. 3131 and Cal. 3132 use it. A blue-looking spring in a photograph should therefore be checked against the movement marking and source record rather than assumed from the 114270 reference.

Published specifications give caliber 3130 a rate of 28,800 vph and a power reserve of about 48 hours. Caliber 3000 has the same frequency but is generally listed with about 42 hours. The 114270 dial carries the Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified text used on the reference.

==Dial map==

The dial does not have the Blackout, tritium, or single-word "Swiss" variants associated with the 14270. On a loose or poorly photographed watch, check the end links, movement, and rehaut as well as the dial. A late 14270 Swiss Made dial can look very similar, but its caliber and bracelet construction differ.

The main dial-adjacent change is the rehaut. Early production has a plain inner bezel ring; later examples have repeating "ROLEX ROLEX ROLEX" text and the serial number at 6 o'clock. Published guides place the change in the middle to late serials, but no single 114270 transition serial is established here.

==Case, bezel, crystal, and crown==

The case carries forward the 36mm Oyster platform with a flat polished bezel, sapphire crystal without Cyclops, screw-down crown, and 100m water resistance. The 114270 has no drilled lug holes; the 14270 had already moved to the no-lug-hole case late in its run.

Some examples also show a laser-etched coronet in the sapphire. The engraved rehaut appears on later serials and carries repeating Rolex text plus the case serial. Check the crystal, rehaut, and serial placement together rather than assigning a watch by year alone.

==Bracelets, end links, and clasps==

Documented 114270 examples use Oyster bracelet 78690 with 558B solid end links. Auction records and the parts references identify the bracelet, while the clasp code dates the bracelet rather than the watch head. The clasp is an Oysterlock folding type.

The solid-end-link change is also seen in contemporary Rolex sports references, but the Explorer and Submariner do not provide a shared delivery date. Date an individual bracelet from its own markings and documented fitment.

Bonhams sold an early example, case serial F413301 and catalogued circa 2003, in Hong Kong in May 2008 for HK$24,000 with buyer's premium against a HK$20,000–30,000 estimate. A second Bonhams example, delivered new in June 2007 with its box, outer card, and warranty photocopy, sold in London in November 2020 for £3,800 hammer against a £2,000–3,000 estimate (£4,845 with premium). Phillips catalogued a G-series example in a December 2022 Hong Kong online sale. The lot records case G030'393, movement 3'014'666, and a clasp stamped "78690" and "LT7"; it sold for HK$100,800 against a HK$30,000–50,000 estimate. These are individual auction results, not a price guide.

==Related references==

See also the [[Reference:explorer|Explorer family index]], [[Reference:Movements|movement reference]], [[Reference:Bracelets|bracelet & clasp guide]], and [[Reference:Serial-numbers|serial numbers by year]].

File:Ref 114270 hero.webp|Rolex Explorer 114270

File:Ref 114270 movement.webp|Caliber 3130 movement

File:Ref 114270 hero 2.webp|Explorer 114270 dial and bracelet

===Editorial===

===Specialist registries===

* [https://www.blackbird-watchmanual.com/manual/icons/the-rolex-explorer-reference-14270-114270/ The Rolex Explorer Reference 14270 & 114270] — Cherie Wong (Blackbird Watch Manual, 2020)

===Auction lots===