The 2004 Rolex Submariner 14060M

The Rolex Submariner hardly needs an introduction, even to those who may not be watch enthusiasts or are new to watch collecting. The submariner was one of the world’s first dive watches and has become the iconic design for dive watches, Rolex watches, and dare it be said, watches in general. Even when watching cartoons and one of the characters is wearing a nice watch, it often looks like a Rolex Submariner.

Because of the iconic nature of the Submariner and how it is easily one of the most in demand watches on the market, since its launch in 1953, Rolex has made incremental changes to the watch. It is safe to say some prefer modern models and some prefer vintage, but the 14060 is known by many collectors as being one of the best models produced. Some believe it to be the last best model released.

Before we get to the 14060M, we have to look at its predecessor, the reference 14060. The 14060 was released in 1990 after Rolex discontinued the reference 5513. The 5513 was extremely collectable but the 14060 did a nice job of modernizing the piece. The watch came with the caliber 3000 automatic movement, which replaced the caliber 1520. It also was the first no-date Submariner o have a sapphire crystal and triplock crown which made sure it had water resistance up to 300 meters (1,000 feet). This was more than the 200 meters that the reference 5513 offered. The watch was what collectors refer to as a “two-liner” - which means it only had two lines of text below the center of the dial. The watch was chronometer certified but that was never written on the dial. Many collectors enjoy two-liners because it is closer to the original Submariners aesthetic, unlike the four-liners.

Then, in 1999, Rolex released the 14060M - the ‘M’ standing for modified. A few modifications were made to the original 14060. First, the caliber 3000 was upgraded to the caliber 3130 which was a no-date version of the caliber 3135 which ahd been used in Submariner Date’s since 1988. It upgraded many elements on the movement that it was previously missing, namely the Breguet overcoil, a large balance wheel and the balance cock was replaced with a bridge for better stability. Rolex also changed the luminescent material from tritium to Luminova.

The 14060M is 40mm in diameter and extremely wearable. You can definitely feel the heft of the watch when it is on the wrist, although the older Oyster bracelets do not feel as stable as the recent versions. The two-line vs four-line discussion is really a matter of taste. The two line definitely avoid clutter on the dial, especially with no date at 3 o’clock and really allows the aesthetics of the watch to be the focus. It is pleasure to wear on the wrist, especially with the dive bezel making the watch stand out. Whether this is the last best model of the Submariner is personal opinion. Whatever your thought is and whichever watch you plan on having on your wrist, it remains to be an icon for the ages.