Rolex Explorer II 16570

A checked version of this page, approved on 24 September 2026, was based on this revision.

Rolex introduced the Explorer II 16570 in 1989. It kept the 40mm steel case and fixed 24-hour bezel of the 16550, with calibre 3185 adding an independently adjustable local-hour hand. Rolex replaced it with the 42mm 216570 in 2011. Over the 16570’s long run, lume markings, bracelet fittings, lug holes, the rehaut and movement changed at different times. The white dial is commonly called Polar by collectors.

Core facts

detail	value
reference	`16570`
family	Explorer II
production	1989–2011 in most histories; Monochrome ends the run in 2010
movement	calibre 3185, then calibre 3186 in later examples
case	stainless steel Oyster case, 40mm
crystal	sapphire, with Cyclops date magnifier
water resistance	100m
bezel	fixed steel bezel with engraved 24-hour scale
dials	glossy black or white Polar; dial finish and lume markings vary by period
lume	tritium, then LumiNova, then Super-LumiNova in published accounts
bracelet	Oyster; bracelet and end-link fittings changed during production
predecessor	Explorer II 16550
successor	Explorer II 216570

Where it sits in the line

The 16570 retained the 16550’s overall layout and 40mm case. Its calibre 3185 lets the wearer move the local-hour hand in one-hour steps while the red 24-hour hand continues to show home time. The fixed bezel gives the watch a second-time-zone display; unlike a GMT-Master, it cannot be turned to read a third zone.

The next reference, 216570, arrived in 2011 with a 42mm case, calibre 3187 and a larger orange 24-hour hand. That launch year overlaps the end dates assigned to the last 16570s.

Production outline

Some collector guides group the 16570 into four versions. Lume text, bracelet fittings, lug holes, rehaut engraving and movement each changed on a different schedule, so the features are more useful as separate dating clues than as a single serial-band formula.

Monochrome describes the lume change as mid-1990s; Jorg Weppelink dates LumiNova and the SWISS-only dial to 1998, followed by Super-LumiNova and SWISS MADE in 1999. Read these as approximate bands rather than exact cutoffs. Earlier tritium dials print SWISS – T < 25 at six.

Rolex phased out drilled lugs and folded end links during roughly 2000–2003. Watches can combine solid end links with drilled lugs. Rehaut engraving appeared later, around the mid-2000s. The calibre 3186 also arrived late in the run, with sources placing its 16570 introduction around 2006–2007. These changes overlap: Bonhams catalogued a circa-2006 3185 example with an engraved rehaut, while Time+Tide documented a 3186 example with a plain rehaut.

Monochrome ends the run in 2010; Weppelink dates it through 2011. Christie's catalogued one case as circa 2011 and says it remained with an authorized retailer until 2019. The circa-2011 date describes that case; 2019 is when the retailer’s stock was sold.

Black dial, mid-run.

Movement notes

Calibre 3185 powered the 16570 from launch. It has 31 jewels, runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour and lets the local-hour hand jump in one-hour steps. The date follows the local hour through midnight. Calibre 3186 appeared late in the reference’s run; it added a Parachrom hairspring and revised the setting train to reduce play in the 24-hour hand.

Published power-reserve figures for calibre 3185 differ. The cross-family Movement reference lists 48 hours, while Monochrome gives 50; the 3186 is listed at 50 hours. The literature places the 3186 change in the Explorer II around 2006–2007, rather than at a firm serial cutoff. A 3186 can appear without an engraved rehaut, and a 3185 can appear with one. The movement itself is the deciding evidence.

Some guides use movement-hand play while setting as an initial clue. Treat it as a screening check; servicing can affect the feel, and the movement should be identified directly when the distinction matters.

Dial map

Black dial

The black dial remained glossy through the 16570 run. It has applied white-gold markers with luminous plots, white-gold hands and a red 24-hour hand. The six-o’clock line records the lume generation: SWISS – T < 25 for tritium, SWISS on the short LumiNova transition, and SWISS MADE on later Super-LumiNova dials.

Tritium plots can age to beige, yellow or brown. Collectors call heavily yellowed plots chicchi di mais (“corn kernels”), a nickname for the lume’s appearance. Assess originality from the dial, hands, movement and service history together.

Black dial with tritium-era text.

White Polar dial

Collectors call the white dial Polar. Its applied markers and hands have black outlines around the luminous material. Early tritium examples can have a glossy white surface; later dials are commonly described as matte. The six-o’clock text and lume identify the period more reliably than dial finish alone.

White Polar dial.

Lume and dial printing

Collector guides sort 16570 dials by lume and printing. The sources used here describe those features without a shared reference-wide Mark-number system. When the dial text and case date seem apart, compare the hands, plots, movement and service papers before calling it a replacement.

Case, bezel, crystal and crown

The stainless-steel Oyster case measures 40mm across. Weppelink reports roughly 47mm lug-to-lug and 12.2mm thick; those are editorial measurements, not a separate factory cutoff. The screw-down Twinlock crown, crown guards, sapphire crystal and Cyclops date carry over across the run. Rolex rated the watch to 100m.

The steel bezel is fixed and radially brushed, with an engraved 24-hour scale. Its markings and font changed from the 16550, but the Explorer II’s bezel remained fixed throughout the 16570 run. Drilled lug holes disappeared in a phased transition around 2000–2003. The engraved rehaut arrived later and should be read as a separate change.

Bracelets, clasp and packaging

Beyond the Dial identifies reference 78360 on earlier examples and 78790 later. Weppelink documents the folded-to-solid end-link change during the same broad transition as the lug-hole change. Examples with mixed features occur. The center links remain hollow on these bracelets; solid end links do not mean the whole bracelet is solid.

Weppelink notes that pre-1998 examples can lack the later Fliplock extension. Bracelet, end-link and clasp details should be assessed on the bracelet itself. A clasp stamp dates the clasp or bracelet, not the watch head. Boxes and papers document an individual sale or delivery and should be assessed with that watch.

Special branches

Swiss-only dial

“Swiss-only” is collector shorthand for the transitional dials marked SWISS without MADE. Weppelink associates them with LumiNova around 1998, before SWISS MADE appears with Super-LumiNova in 1999. Weppelink places it around 1998, between tritium and SWISS MADE dials. The available examples date the transition approximately; they do not establish a factory serial boundary or production count.

SRR watches

Christie’s and Sotheby’s describe an SRR-marked run of 139 Explorer II 16570s, individually numbered and made for the Special Reconnaissance Regiment. Christie’s example Z667317 is number 113 of 139; its lot includes a Rolex certificate dated September 2007 and a guarantee dated October 2007 naming the regiment as purchaser. Sotheby’s catalogued Z506008 as number 27 of 139, circa 2007, also with calibre 3185. Together, the lots document the numbered run. Each watch still needs to be assessed from its own serial and components.

Van Cleef & Arpels signature

Sotheby’s catalogued a circa-1995 white-dial 16570, case S781923, with the dial signed Rolex and V.C.&A. The accompanying chronometer certificate is dated 27 March 1995 and names Van Cleef & Arpels as the authorized jeweler. It is an individual retailer-signed watch within reference 16570.

Auction record

Auction catalogues provide dated examples, not a production ledger. Their dates below remain attached to the individual watches.

source example	catalogue description	what it documents
Sotheby’s, 1991, case X520153	white dial, calibre 3185, 31 jewels, 40mm	early individual example; catalogue estimate circa 1991
Sotheby’s, 2002, case Y353032	white Polar dial, calibre 3185, 31 jewels, 40mm	later white-dial example; catalogue estimate circa 2002
Bonhams, lot 118, circa 2006	white dial, calibre 3185, engraved rehaut	overlap between the rehaut and movement changes
Christie’s, SRR, case Z667317	number 113 of 139; calibre 3185; certificate September 2007 and guarantee October 2007	numbered military-issue example with dated documents
Sotheby’s, lot 642, SRR, case Z506008	number 27 of 139; calibre 3185; circa 2007	second catalogue record for the SRR count and specification
Sotheby’s, lot 109, circa 1995, case S781923	white dial, calibre 3185; V.C.&A. signature and dated certificate	retailer-signed example; certificate names Van Cleef & Arpels
Christie’s, circa 2011, case 232T6474	Polar dial; catalogue says the watch remained retailer stock until 2019	a late case estimate, distinct from its later sale date

Related references

Gallery

Explorer II 16570, black dial
Mid-run black dial
Black dial with tritium-era text
White Polar dial