Rolex Oyster 3351

A checked version of this page, approved on 14 October 2026, was based on this revision.

Surviving records place small, manual-wind Oyster watches marked 3351 from about 1935 into the 1940s. Catalogues call individual examples Standard, Regent, Lincoln and Extra Precision; a photographed Seaforth example also has “Observatory” on the dial. Wanna Buy A Watch reports “Rolex Oyster, Standard” on its Standard dial. The names appear on individual watches; the sources do not document a factory hierarchy.

Core facts

detail	value
reference	3351
family	Oyster, manual wind
documented dates	Catalogue dates run from circa 1935 into the 1940s; the production span is unknown.
movements	Cal. 59 in several catalogued examples; Extra Prima in a Christie's example.
case	Round, hooded-lug and cushion forms are documented; reported diameter is 28–29 mm.
materials	Stainless steel, gilt or gold-filled cases, and a gold-and-steel example are recorded.
catalogue labels	Standard, Regent, Lincoln and Extra Precision; one photographed listing has Seaforth and Observatory dial text.
bracelet	Two photographed examples are on leather straps; reference-specific bracelet fitment remains undocumented.

Where it sits in the line

The catalogues identify 3351 on small manual-wind Oysters. Christie's describes its 28 mm Standard with a screw-down crown and caseback; other 3351 records show circular hooded-lug and cushion cases. Wanna Buy A Watch calls its 29 mm Standard a “boy's size”; that is the dealer's label.

Production outline

Heritage Auctions dates one gold-filled Regent to circa 1935. Christie's places a Standard in a group dated circa 1940s, and Dawsons estimates a Lincoln at circa 1942. Christie's records a separate two-tone Extra Precision but gives no date. Together, the catalogues place documented examples from circa 1935 into the 1940s; they do not settle the production endpoints.

The cited records give case numbers 118141, 118404 and 118412; Dawsons lists serial 170648. Each number belongs to a separate watch. Heritage dates case 118141 to circa 1935, Dawsons gives serial 170648 circa 1942, and Christie's places case 118412 in a 1940s group. Its Extra Precision entry gives no date. The sample is too small to build a serial-year sequence.

Movement notes

The records pair Cal. 59 with a circa-1935 gold-filled Regent and a circa-1942 Lincoln. AntiWatchman's separate Regent image shows a movement marked 59. The evidence establishes Cal. 59 for those examples.

David Boettcher identifies an Oyster Watch Co. movement as FHF 30, 10½ ligne. In his account, Cal. 59 is Tudor's designation for that movement. Auction and dealer records use the name for individual 3351 watches. See the Cal. 59 movement record for the broader evidence.

Christie's records a 3351 Extra Precision with a signed Extra Prima movement timed to six positions. Its catalogue entry does not connect that movement to Cal. 59.

Seaforth example: Rolex-signed, 17-ruby movement. Photo: eBay seller watchnj
Regent example: movement marked 59. Photo: AntiWatchman

Dial map

catalogue label or observed dial text	documented example	what the record supports
Standard (dial text reported by one dealer; catalogue label in another record)	Christie's case 118412; Wanna Buy A Watch's 118xxx stainless-steel example	Christie's describes a silvered dial with luminous Arabic and baton numerals and an inner 24-hour ring, and calls the watch Standard. Wanna Buy A Watch describes its black dial as signed “Rolex Oyster, Standard”; it has luminous Arabic and baton markers and subsidiary seconds.
Regent (catalogue label)	Heritage case 118141; AntiWatchman's photographed example	Heritage describes a refinished silver dial with luminous Arabic numerals. AntiWatchman shows a separate cushion-case watch with full Arabic numerals, a red 24-hour scale and subsidiary seconds.
Lincoln (catalogue label)	Dawsons serial 170648	Dawsons describes an off-white dial with Arabic numerals and a red 24-hour sub-index.
Extra Precision (catalogue label)	Christie's case 118404	Silvered dial with Arabic quarter divisions and subsidiary seconds.
Seaforth / Observatory (observed dial text)	Marketplace photographs show a 3351 caseback; a 2020 collector post also describes a 3351 Seaforth	The eBay dial reads “Rolex Oyster Seaforth,” with “Observatory” above the subsidiary seconds. The seller dates it to 1924. A Reddit post credits its Seaforth 3351 photograph to Derek Dier and describes that pictured example as 28 mm, gold-plated steel and circa 1942. Neither date establishes when the eBay watch was made.

The records show both center seconds and subsidiary seconds. Auction catalogues describe luminous numerals and hands, though the surviving dates do not place those layouts within the run.

Seaforth / Observatory dial. Photo: eBay seller watchnj
Regent dial with Arabic numerals and a red 24-hour scale. Photo: AntiWatchman

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown notes

The records show circular hooded-lug and gilt cushion cases. Christie's Extra Precision has stepped hooded lugs; its Standard has a cushion case, steel screw back and screw-down crown. Heritage describes its Regent as gold-filled. Dawsons' catalogue photograph shows a gold-tone Lincoln, while its text leaves the metal unspecified. Reported diameters are 28–29 mm across separate examples, not a factory-wide specification.

One photographed watch has 3351 stamped outside and Oyster Watch Co. patent text inside the caseback. David Boettcher documents Rolex-branded Oyster watches in cases marked Oyster Watch Co., but does not identify a 3351 or settle how those cases were paired. The photographs record the markings on this watch; they do not establish when its case and movement were assembled together. (eBay listing; David Boettcher, “Oyster Watch Co.”)

Dawsons describes an acrylic crystal on its Lincoln. Christie's names a screw-down crown and back for the Standard; the Seaforth photographs show a screw back. Bezel measurements and crown revisions remain undescribed in the cited sources.

Crown and cushion-case profile. Photo: eBay seller watchnj.
Caseback stamped 3351. Photo: eBay seller watchnj.
Inside caseback with Oyster Watch Co. and patent markings. Photo: eBay seller watchnj.

Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes

The documented watches are shown on leather straps: Wanna Buy A Watch and eBay show leather, while AntiWatchman identifies its Regent strap as aftermarket. The reviewed records do not tie a period bracelet, end link, clasp, box or papers to this reference.

Dealer-recorded 3351-F examples

Two dealer archives append an F to the number. Darlor writes 3351-F for a 29 mm rose gold-filled cushion Oyster, serial 118,489, and dates it to 1941 with a Cal. 59 movement. The date is Darlor's serial-based attribution. Trebor's Vintage writes 3351f for a 28 mm Oyster with sweep seconds, dated circa 1930; its text says the pictured watch instead has subsidiary seconds. These listings do not explain whether F is a factory suffix or how it relates to the different case and seconds descriptions. (Darlor; Trebor's Vintage Watches)

Historical market and auction record

The auction record includes a circa-1935 Regent (Heritage Auctions, lot 56280), a circa-1940s Standard in a three-watch Christie's lot, a circa-1942 Lincoln (Dawsons, lot 387), and an Extra Precision in Christie's 1994 sale. Heritage describes its Regent dial as refinished. Dawsons' published catalogue gives an estimate only for the Lincoln.

Gallery

Oyster 3351 with Seaforth / Observatory dial. Photo: eBay seller watchnj
Dial inscription and subsidiary seconds. Photo: eBay seller watchnj.
Case profile and crown. Photo: eBay seller watchnj.
Caseback stamped 3351. Photo: eBay seller watchnj.
Rolex-signed, 17-ruby movement. Photo: eBay seller watchnj.
Regent movement marked 59. Photo: AntiWatchman
Inside caseback markings. Photo: eBay seller watchnj.
Oyster Regent dial. Photo: AntiWatchman

Sources