OVERVIEW

There was a time back in the day when if someone saw a watch this faded by the sun they would consider it trashed. As the name indicates, a “tropical dial” is a dial that has been exposed to copious amounts of sunlight for many hours a day for several years or decades. Typically this would only happen in tropical climates since those are the only places on Earth that much exposure to sun would occur, but the other important factor contributing to them is the paint used by watchmakers in the past being susceptible to this type of fading. It’s unlikely this would happen with a modern watch even with decades of prolonged sun exposure since the materials we use today are more stable.

That’s what makes this dial so special (besides being absolutely stunning), a lot had to happen over a long period of time in order for the dial to look like this. Add on top of that many of these dials being replaced in the past because they were “damaged” finding a dial like this is rare. Other than the sun deterioration, this dial is unmolested and perfect and UNIQUE. You will never find another watch look exactly like this one.

CONDITION NOTES

CASE: Fantastic and rare “pointed crown guard” (PCG) case. That’s all I gotta say.

DIAL: As I said above, besides its patina and deterioration it’s completely unmolested with all original lume. I would call this dial ideal for any dial but especially a tropical. As always, beauty in in the eye of the beholder.

HANDS: Excellent original long flat with matching patina and original lume. Lots of Subs from this era have replaced hands, evidenced by them being too short among other things. Try to find the correct hands for this watch, it’s damn near impossible.

MOVEMENT: Clean and keeping great time.