Reference:6238: Difference between revisions
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The 6238 is the chronograph Rolex sold immediately before the 6239 took the Cosmograph name in 1963: same 36mm Oyster case, same Valjoux 72 base, same pump pushers (non-screw-down chronograph pushers), but a smooth bezel and the tachymetre still printed on the dial. Production ran from 1962, overlapped with the 6239 for several years, and stopped around 1968. Roughly 3,965 examples total per Teddy Dewitte’s figures, published by [https://www.acollectedman.com/blogs/journal/rolex-pre-daytona-forgotten-classic Russell Sheldrake in A Collected Man], split across steel and a small gold subset. The “Pre-Daytona” tag is editorial shorthand the collector market settled on later; Aurel Bacs has argued in the same piece that the 6238’s production overlap with the 6239 makes it more sibling than predecessor. | The 6238 is the chronograph Rolex sold immediately before the 6239 took the Cosmograph name in 1963: same 36mm Oyster case, same Valjoux 72 base, same pump pushers (non-screw-down chronograph pushers), but a smooth bezel and the tachymetre still printed on the dial. Production ran from 1962, overlapped with the 6239 for several years, and stopped around 1968. Roughly 3,965 examples total per Teddy Dewitte’s figures, published by [https://www.acollectedman.com/blogs/journal/rolex-pre-daytona-forgotten-classic Russell Sheldrake in A Collected Man], split across steel and a small gold subset. The “Pre-Daytona” tag is editorial shorthand the collector market settled on later; Aurel Bacs has argued in the same piece that the 6238’s production overlap with the 6239 makes it more sibling than predecessor. | ||
[[File:Ref 6238 hero.webp|thumb|right|340px|alt=Rolex Pre-Daytona Ref. 6238|Rolex Pre-Daytona Ref. 6238 | [[File:Ref 6238 hero.webp|thumb|right|340px|alt=Rolex Pre-Daytona Ref. 6238|Rolex Pre-Daytona Ref. 6238]] | ||
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== Dial map == | == Dial map == | ||
[[File:Ref 6238 dial-detail-reddit.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=6238 dial detail|6238 dial detail | [[File:Ref 6238 dial-detail-reddit.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=6238 dial detail|6238 dial detail]] | ||
Edmond Saran cataloged 14 distinct dial / case iterations across the 6238 run for [https://le-monde-edmond.com/in-depth-review-rolex-6238-pre-daytona/ Le Monde Edmond’s 2016 in-depth review]. That taxonomy is the definitive working reference, and the per-mark photographic capture is in his French-language piece rather than in the English-language survey work. The English literature treats four variants with confidence. | Edmond Saran cataloged 14 distinct dial / case iterations across the 6238 run for [https://le-monde-edmond.com/in-depth-review-rolex-6238-pre-daytona/ Le Monde Edmond’s 2016 in-depth review]. That taxonomy is the definitive working reference, and the per-mark photographic capture is in his French-language piece rather than in the English-language survey work. The English literature treats four variants with confidence. | ||
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== Case, bezel, crystal, and crown == | == Case, bezel, crystal, and crown == | ||
[[File:Ref 6238 case-side.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=6238 case profile from the side|6238 case profile from the side | [[File:Ref 6238 case-side.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=6238 case profile from the side|6238 case profile from the side]] | ||
The 6238 case is the same 36mm Oyster shape that runs through the entire manual-wind Daytona generation. Stainless steel for the bulk of production, with 14k and 18k yellow gold variants in small numbers. Lugs are 19mm, no crown guards, polished bezel-side surfaces and brushed top — the chronograph case profile that becomes the foundation for the 6239 and 6240 to come. The pushers are pump-style; screw-down pushers do not arrive on the line until the 6240 in 1965. | The 6238 case is the same 36mm Oyster shape that runs through the entire manual-wind Daytona generation. Stainless steel for the bulk of production, with 14k and 18k yellow gold variants in small numbers. Lugs are 19mm, no crown guards, polished bezel-side surfaces and brushed top — the chronograph case profile that becomes the foundation for the 6239 and 6240 to come. The pushers are pump-style; screw-down pushers do not arrive on the line until the 6240 in 1965. | ||
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== Bracelets, end links, and clasps == | == Bracelets, end links, and clasps == | ||
[[File:Ref 6238 bracelet-7205.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=6238 with period-correct 7205 rivet Oyster bracelet|6238 with period-correct 7205 rivet Oyster bracelet | [[File:Ref 6238 bracelet-7205.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=6238 with period-correct 7205 rivet Oyster bracelet|6238 with period-correct 7205 rivet Oyster bracelet]] | ||
The 7205 rivet bracelet is the period-correct fitment for steel 6238s through the production run, riding on 271 end links. The 7205 is the 19mm-lug Oyster rivet bracelet shared with the 6239 and with the time-only Air-King and Precision references of the same era; the 6234 used the earlier [[Reference:Bracelets#bracelet-6635|6635]] rivet bracelet on the same end link family. Gold-case 6238s left the retailer on matching gold bracelets, typically a 7205-equivalent in 14k or 18k to match the case karat. The 6635 turns up on early 6238s during the brief 1962 overlap with the end of 6234 production, then drops out. | The 7205 rivet bracelet is the period-correct fitment for steel 6238s through the production run, riding on 271 end links. The 7205 is the 19mm-lug Oyster rivet bracelet shared with the 6239 and with the time-only Air-King and Precision references of the same era; the 6234 used the earlier [[Reference:Bracelets#bracelet-6635|6635]] rivet bracelet on the same end link family. Gold-case 6238s left the retailer on matching gold bracelets, typically a 7205-equivalent in 14k or 18k to match the case karat. The 6635 turns up on early 6238s during the brief 1962 overlap with the end of 6234 production, then drops out. | ||