Reference:116523: Difference between revisions

Line 58:

| predecessor || 16523 (Zenith caliber 4030, 1988–2000)

|-

| successor || 116503 (~~Cerachrom~~ Rolesor, ~~2017~~)

| successor || 116503 (Rolesor, 18k yellow gold engraved bezel, 2016)

|-

| siblings || 116520 steel, 116528 yellow gold, 116519 white gold, 116518 yellow gold on leather

Line 68:

The 116523 succeeds the [[Reference:16523|16523]], the Zenith-era Rolesor Daytona that ran from 1988 to 2000. Case profile carries over almost unchanged: the same 40mm Oyster shell, the same screw-down pushers, the same engraved tachymetre bezel in 18k yellow gold. The change is internal. The Zenith-based cal 4030 left in 2000, and the fully in-house cal 4130 took its place.

It runs alongside the rest of the in-house first-generation family on the same cal 4130: the 116520 in steel, the 116528 in solid yellow gold, the 116519 in white gold, and the 116518 in yellow gold on a leather strap. The 116523 occupies the middle slot — gold for presence, steel for everyday wear, the Rolesor compromise that has been part of the Sport-model catalogue since the 1970s. The 116503 replaced it with a revised yellow-gold tachymetre bezel and an updated Rolesor execution. The 116523 is the last engraved-gold-bezel ~~Rolesor Daytona~~ Rolex ~~made~~.

It runs alongside the rest of the in-house first-generation family on the same cal 4130: the 116520 in steel, the 116528 in solid yellow gold, the 116519 in white gold, and the 116518 in yellow gold on a leather strap. The 116523 occupies the middle slot — gold for presence, steel for everyday wear, the Rolesor compromise that has been part of the Sport-model catalogue since the 1970s. The 116503 replaced it with a revised yellow-gold tachymetre bezel and an updated Rolesor execution. The 116523 is the last Rolesor Daytona of the COSC-only era: the 116503 kept the engraved gold bezel but moved to Rolex's Superlative Chronometer certification, tested to -2/+2 seconds a day after casing.

Line 104:

| 2009–2014 || Black, White, MOP, champagne || Chromalight || 78493 || SEL || Chromalight introduction; the 78493 bracelet is documented on 116523 production through this era

|-

| 2014–2016 || Black, white, MOP, champagne || Chromalight || 78493 || SEL || Final production years before the ~~ceramic-bezel~~ 116503 succession in ~~2017~~

| 2014–2016 || Black, white, MOP, champagne || Chromalight || 78493 || SEL || Final production years before the 116503 succession in 2016

|}

Line 167:

The presentation watch does two things for the reference. It ties the 116523 to the race that gives the Daytona its name, which the steel 116520 cannot claim: by the in-house era the trophy watches were Rolesor and gold. It also puts a grey-rhodium soleil dial on record as a Rolex-issued specification rather than a non-original swap, a configuration the standard catalogue text does not enumerate. Whether other 116523 trophy presentations went out for GT-class wins in adjacent years is not documented.

The trophy context is broader than that single caseback. Rolex became title sponsor of the 24-hour Daytona race in 1992, and engraved Daytona watches became part of the victory ritual alongside the trophy. Later ~~documented~~ winner watches ~~used~~ the two-tone 126503, ~~which makes~~ the 2011 116523 ~~less of an isolated oddity and more of~~ an earlier Rolesor expression of the same race-prize pattern.

The trophy context is broader than that single caseback. Rolex became title sponsor of the 24-hour Daytona race in 1992, and engraved Daytona watches became part of the victory ritual alongside the trophy. Later winner watches are reported on the two-tone 126503, though Rolex's own race coverage names no reference, so the 2011 116523 reads as an earlier Rolesor expression of the same race-prize pattern.

Line 181:

The Rolesor 116523 trades at a meaningful discount to its yellow gold sibling. Revolution's 2017 coverage of the Eric Clapton 116528 sale at Bishop & Miller and Bonhams documented the yellow gold reference at a GBP 15,000 secondhand market floor at the time; the Rolesor 116523, carrying steel where the 116528 carries solid gold, has historically traded below that figure.

The 2016 ~~ceramic-bezel transition~~ to the 116503 reset Rolesor Daytona pricing along the same line as the steel 116520 to 116500LN transition. The 116523 became the last ~~engraved-gold~~-~~bezel~~ Rolesor Daytona, and used prices have climbed in the years that followed, particularly for full-set examples with the early Sotheby's-documented gold-trim configurations and for the rarer sunburst and Tahitian MOP dials.

The 2016 renumbering to the 116503 reset Rolesor Daytona pricing along the same line as the steel 116520 to 116500LN transition. The 116523 became the last COSC-only Rolesor Daytona, and used prices have climbed in the years that followed, particularly for full-set examples with the early Sotheby's-documented gold-trim configurations and for the rarer sunburst and Tahitian MOP dials.

@@ Line 58: / Line 58: @@
 | predecessor || 16523 (Zenith caliber 4030, 1988–2000)
 |-
-| successor || 116503 (Cerachrom Rolesor, 2017)
+| successor || 116503 (Rolesor, 18k yellow gold engraved bezel, 2016)
 |-
 | siblings || 116520 steel, 116528 yellow gold, 116519 white gold, 116518 yellow gold on leather
@@ Line 68: / Line 68: @@
 The 116523 succeeds the [[Reference:16523|16523]], the Zenith-era Rolesor Daytona that ran from 1988 to 2000. Case profile carries over almost unchanged: the same 40mm Oyster shell, the same screw-down pushers, the same engraved tachymetre bezel in 18k yellow gold. The change is internal. The Zenith-based cal 4030 left in 2000, and the fully in-house cal 4130 took its place.
-It runs alongside the rest of the in-house first-generation family on the same cal 4130: the 116520 in steel, the 116528 in solid yellow gold, the 116519 in white gold, and the 116518 in yellow gold on a leather strap. The 116523 occupies the middle slot — gold for presence, steel for everyday wear, the Rolesor compromise that has been part of the Sport-model catalogue since the 1970s. The 116503 replaced it with a revised yellow-gold tachymetre bezel and an updated Rolesor execution. The 116523 is the last engraved-gold-bezel Rolesor Daytona Rolex made.
+It runs alongside the rest of the in-house first-generation family on the same cal 4130: the 116520 in steel, the 116528 in solid yellow gold, the 116519 in white gold, and the 116518 in yellow gold on a leather strap. The 116523 occupies the middle slot — gold for presence, steel for everyday wear, the Rolesor compromise that has been part of the Sport-model catalogue since the 1970s. The 116503 replaced it with a revised yellow-gold tachymetre bezel and an updated Rolesor execution. The 116523 is the last Rolesor Daytona of the COSC-only era: the 116503 kept the engraved gold bezel but moved to Rolex's Superlative Chronometer certification, tested to -2/+2 seconds a day after casing.
 <span id="production-outline"></span>
@@ Line 104: / Line 104: @@
 | 2009–2014 || Black, White, MOP, champagne || Chromalight || 78493 || SEL || Chromalight introduction; the 78493 bracelet is documented on 116523 production through this era
 |-
-| 2014–2016 || Black, white, MOP, champagne || Chromalight || 78493 || SEL || Final production years before the ceramic-bezel 116503 succession in 2017
+| 2014–2016 || Black, white, MOP, champagne || Chromalight || 78493 || SEL || Final production years before the 116503 succession in 2016
 |}
@@ Line 167: / Line 167: @@
 The presentation watch does two things for the reference. It ties the 116523 to the race that gives the Daytona its name, which the steel 116520 cannot claim: by the in-house era the trophy watches were Rolesor and gold. It also puts a grey-rhodium soleil dial on record as a Rolex-issued specification rather than a non-original swap, a configuration the standard catalogue text does not enumerate. Whether other 116523 trophy presentations went out for GT-class wins in adjacent years is not documented.
-The trophy context is broader than that single caseback. Rolex became title sponsor of the 24-hour Daytona race in 1992, and engraved Daytona watches became part of the victory ritual alongside the trophy. Later documented winner watches used the two-tone 126503, which makes the 2011 116523 less of an isolated oddity and more of an earlier Rolesor expression of the same race-prize pattern.
+The trophy context is broader than that single caseback. Rolex became title sponsor of the 24-hour Daytona race in 1992, and engraved Daytona watches became part of the victory ritual alongside the trophy. Later winner watches are reported on the two-tone 126503, though Rolex's own race coverage names no reference, so the 2011 116523 reads as an earlier Rolesor expression of the same race-prize pattern.
 <span id="tiffany-co.-and-other-co-signed-dials"></span>
@@ Line 181: / Line 181: @@
 The Rolesor 116523 trades at a meaningful discount to its yellow gold sibling. Revolution's 2017 coverage of the Eric Clapton 116528 sale at Bishop &amp; Miller and Bonhams documented the yellow gold reference at a GBP 15,000 secondhand market floor at the time; the Rolesor 116523, carrying steel where the 116528 carries solid gold, has historically traded below that figure.
-The 2016 ceramic-bezel transition to the 116503 reset Rolesor Daytona pricing along the same line as the steel 116520 to 116500LN transition. The 116523 became the last engraved-gold-bezel Rolesor Daytona, and used prices have climbed in the years that followed, particularly for full-set examples with the early Sotheby's-documented gold-trim configurations and for the rarer sunburst and Tahitian MOP dials.
+The 2016 renumbering to the 116503 reset Rolesor Daytona pricing along the same line as the steel 116520 to 116500LN transition. The 116523 became the last COSC-only Rolesor Daytona, and used prices have climbed in the years that followed, particularly for full-set examples with the early Sotheby's-documented gold-trim configurations and for the rarer sunburst and Tahitian MOP dials.