Reference:116508: Difference between revisions

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The 116508 is the full yellow gold cal 4130 Daytona on a yellow gold Oyster bracelet, with an engraved 18k yellow gold tachymetre bezel — the 2016 successor to the [[Reference:116528|116528]] and the second-to-last engraved-gold-bezel yellow gold Daytona Rolex produced before the line moved to Cerachrom. Same 40mm case profile as the rest of the cal 4130 family, same vertical-clutch column-wheel chronograph, same 72-hour power reserve, executed in 18k yellow gold from end-link to bezel. The difference from the 116528 is a refreshed dial programme — Rolex used the 116508 launch to introduce the green sundust dial that John Mayer would single out three years later in his 2019 Hodinkee Talking Watches appearance, and the meteorite dial that joined the catalogue in 2021.

The 116508 sits in the editorial scope on the same basis as the [[Reference:116500LN|116500LN]]: it is the gold-bracelet half of the cal 4130 generation, discontinued at the cal 4131 successor's launch, and now closed. Production ran from 2016 to 2023, when the 126508 took its place with ~~the Cerachrom monobloc bezel that the steel 116500LN had carried since 2016~~ and ~~the~~ precious-metal ~~references had picked up gradually in the years that followed~~.

The 116508 sits in the editorial scope on the same basis as the [[Reference:116500LN|116500LN]]: it is the gold-bracelet half of the cal 4130 generation, discontinued at the cal 4131 successor's launch, and now closed. Production ran from 2016 to 2023, when the cal 4131 126508 took its place in the yellow-gold Oyster Daytona slot with revised case, dial, clasp, and movement architecture while retaining an engraved precious-metal tachymetric bezel.

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The 116508 sits inside a cal 4130 family that ran in parallel through 2016 to 2023: the steel 116500LN with Cerachrom from 2016, the engraved-bezel 116503 Rolesor that ran through 2017, the engraved-bezel 116508 in yellow gold and 116505 in Everose through 2023, and the Cerachrom-bezel precious-metal references (116515LN Everose, 116519LN white gold) on Oysterflex from 2017 onward. Rolex deliberately kept engraved-gold and Cerachrom in the catalogue alongside one another across the generation, with the strap and bezel choices working as configuration options rather than as successive eras. The 116508 is the engraved-gold yellow gold Oyster choice in that lineup.

The 2023 transition to the cal 4131 generation reset the catalogue. The 126508 took the 116508 slot with ~~a Cerachrom bezel~~, ~~a thinner~~ case, and a reworked Oysterlock clasp. The 116508 became the last ~~engraved~~-~~gold-bezel yellow~~ gold Oyster Daytona ~~Rolex produced — and,~~ with the ~~parallel discontinuation of the 116500LN, the last~~ engraved-~~or-aluminum-~~bezel ~~Daytona of any configuration to leave~~ the ~~factory~~.

The 2023 transition to the cal 4131 generation reset the catalogue. The 126508 took the 116508 slot with cal 4131, revised case proportions, updated dial furniture, and a reworked Oysterlock clasp. The 116508 became the last cal 4130 yellow-gold Oyster Daytona with an engraved gold bezel; the engraved precious-metal bezel itself continued into the cal 4131 generation.

==Production outline==

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For the full caliber lineage and the 4030-to-4130-to-4131 architecture comparison, see [[Reference:Movements#cal-4130]].

The 116508 carries no hidden late-run caliber change; what matters is how mature the 4130 platform already was. Rolex designed the 4130 with a lower parts count than the Zenith-derived 4030, which left room for the larger barrel behind the automatic Daytona's roughly 72-hour reserve and made the movement easier to service. Movement condition on a 116508 is judged the same way as the rest of the 2000-2023 in-house Daytona family: service history, amplitude, reset behaviour and pusher feel rather than any reference-specific caliber variant.

==Dial map==

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The meteorite-dial variant was introduced in 2021 with a reverse-panda layout — meteorite base, three black-finished sub-dials, applied gold markers and hands. Production ran two catalogue years before the cal 4131 successor took over in 2023. The dial is cut from a slice of the Gibeon meteorite (Namibia, 1836), and individual examples differ in the visible Widmanstätten pattern. The variant entered the secondary market at a clear premium to the standard layouts and has held that position through the post-discontinuation period.

The 116508-0015 was part of a three-watch precious-metal Daytona meteorite group rather than a one-off yellow-gold experiment. Rolex paired meteorite with yellow gold 116508 and Everose 116505 on Oyster bracelets with engraved metal bezels, while the white-gold 116519LN used the Oysterflex/Cerachrom configuration. That matters because the 116508-0015 is the yellow-gold Oyster expression of the programme: full bracelet, gold bezel, black registers, and a natural-material dial that makes every correct example visually non-identical.

===Tiffany & Co. and other double-signed examples===

Retailer double-signing ~~on the~~ 116508 ~~follows the broader pattern of~~ the ~~cal 4130 era —~~ Tiffany-signed ~~dials are documented on standard champagne~~ and ~~black layouts, with the signature applied below the 6 o'clock Cosmograph block~~. Other retailer signatures are thinner on the ground than in the Zenith-era catalogue, and 116508-specific double-signed lots that anchor a market-grade record have not surfaced through 2025 in the published auction literature.

Retailer double-signing is not a documented 116508 branch in the published auction record. Treat any Tiffany- or retailer-signed 116508 dial as an authentication problem first, not as a catalogue variant, unless it is accompanied by unusually strong provenance and expert dial examination. Other retailer signatures are thinner on the ground than in the Zenith-era catalogue, and 116508-specific double-signed lots that anchor a market-grade record have not surfaced through 2025 in the published auction literature.

==Auction record==

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 The 116508 is the full yellow gold cal 4130 Daytona on a yellow gold Oyster bracelet, with an engraved 18k yellow gold tachymetre bezel — the 2016 successor to the [[Reference:116528|116528]] and the second-to-last engraved-gold-bezel yellow gold Daytona Rolex produced before the line moved to Cerachrom. Same 40mm case profile as the rest of the cal 4130 family, same vertical-clutch column-wheel chronograph, same 72-hour power reserve, executed in 18k yellow gold from end-link to bezel. The difference from the 116528 is a refreshed dial programme — Rolex used the 116508 launch to introduce the green sundust dial that John Mayer would single out three years later in his 2019 Hodinkee Talking Watches appearance, and the meteorite dial that joined the catalogue in 2021.
-The 116508 sits in the editorial scope on the same basis as the [[Reference:116500LN|116500LN]]: it is the gold-bracelet half of the cal 4130 generation, discontinued at the cal 4131 successor's launch, and now closed. Production ran from 2016 to 2023, when the 126508 took its place with the Cerachrom monobloc bezel that the steel 116500LN had carried since 2016 and the precious-metal references had picked up gradually in the years that followed.
+The 116508 sits in the editorial scope on the same basis as the [[Reference:116500LN|116500LN]]: it is the gold-bracelet half of the cal 4130 generation, discontinued at the cal 4131 successor's launch, and now closed. Production ran from 2016 to 2023, when the cal 4131 126508 took its place in the yellow-gold Oyster Daytona slot with revised case, dial, clasp, and movement architecture while retaining an engraved precious-metal tachymetric bezel.
 [[File:Ref 116508 hero.webp|thumb|right|250px|alt=Rolex Daytona 116508 yellow gold|Rolex Daytona 116508 — yellow gold Oyster with engraved gold tachymetre bezel, c.2018]]
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 The 116508 sits inside a cal 4130 family that ran in parallel through 2016 to 2023: the steel 116500LN with Cerachrom from 2016, the engraved-bezel 116503 Rolesor that ran through 2017, the engraved-bezel 116508 in yellow gold and 116505 in Everose through 2023, and the Cerachrom-bezel precious-metal references (116515LN Everose, 116519LN white gold) on Oysterflex from 2017 onward. Rolex deliberately kept engraved-gold and Cerachrom in the catalogue alongside one another across the generation, with the strap and bezel choices working as configuration options rather than as successive eras. The 116508 is the engraved-gold yellow gold Oyster choice in that lineup.
-The 2023 transition to the cal 4131 generation reset the catalogue. The 126508 took the 116508 slot with a Cerachrom bezel, a thinner case, and a reworked Oysterlock clasp. The 116508 became the last engraved-gold-bezel yellow gold Oyster Daytona Rolex produced — and, with the parallel discontinuation of the 116500LN, the last engraved-or-aluminum-bezel Daytona of any configuration to leave the factory.
+The 2023 transition to the cal 4131 generation reset the catalogue. The 126508 took the 116508 slot with cal 4131, revised case proportions, updated dial furniture, and a reworked Oysterlock clasp. The 116508 became the last cal 4130 yellow-gold Oyster Daytona with an engraved gold bezel; the engraved precious-metal bezel itself continued into the cal 4131 generation.
 ==Production outline==
@@ Line 100: / Line 100: @@
 For the full caliber lineage and the 4030-to-4130-to-4131 architecture comparison, see [[Reference:Movements#cal-4130]].
+The 116508 carries no hidden late-run caliber change; what matters is how mature the 4130 platform already was. Rolex designed the 4130 with a lower parts count than the Zenith-derived 4030, which left room for the larger barrel behind the automatic Daytona's roughly 72-hour reserve and made the movement easier to service. Movement condition on a 116508 is judged the same way as the rest of the 2000-2023 in-house Daytona family: service history, amplitude, reset behaviour and pusher feel rather than any reference-specific caliber variant.
 ==Dial map==
@@ Line 194: / Line 196: @@
 The meteorite-dial variant was introduced in 2021 with a reverse-panda layout — meteorite base, three black-finished sub-dials, applied gold markers and hands. Production ran two catalogue years before the cal 4131 successor took over in 2023. The dial is cut from a slice of the Gibeon meteorite (Namibia, 1836), and individual examples differ in the visible Widmanstätten pattern. The variant entered the secondary market at a clear premium to the standard layouts and has held that position through the post-discontinuation period.
+The 116508-0015 was part of a three-watch precious-metal Daytona meteorite group rather than a one-off yellow-gold experiment. Rolex paired meteorite with yellow gold 116508 and Everose 116505 on Oyster bracelets with engraved metal bezels, while the white-gold 116519LN used the Oysterflex/Cerachrom configuration. That matters because the 116508-0015 is the yellow-gold Oyster expression of the programme: full bracelet, gold bezel, black registers, and a natural-material dial that makes every correct example visually non-identical.
 ===Tiffany & Co. and other double-signed examples===
-Retailer double-signing on the 116508 follows the broader pattern of the cal 4130 era — Tiffany-signed dials are documented on standard champagne and black layouts, with the signature applied below the 6 o'clock Cosmograph block. Other retailer signatures are thinner on the ground than in the Zenith-era catalogue, and 116508-specific double-signed lots that anchor a market-grade record have not surfaced through 2025 in the published auction literature.
+Retailer double-signing is not a documented 116508 branch in the published auction record. Treat any Tiffany- or retailer-signed 116508 dial as an authentication problem first, not as a catalogue variant, unless it is accompanied by unusually strong provenance and expert dial examination. Other retailer signatures are thinner on the ground than in the Zenith-era catalogue, and 116508-specific double-signed lots that anchor a market-grade record have not surfaced through 2025 in the published auction literature.
 ==Auction record==