Stronger bezel, Cerachrome

Stronger Bezel Cerachrom

Rolex's strategy of giving unique names to materials and making them their own has always been effective. For example, Rolesor or Oyster Perpetual. I believe this is also an excellent marketing strategy by Rolex.

Ceramic, An essential material in modern watches, Is called 'Cerachrom' by Rolex. It is a compound word of ceramic and chrom, Which means color. The Cerachrom bezel was created to be a rotating bezel mainly used for professional watches. Major models such as the Submariner, GMT Master 2, Daytona, And Yacht-Master widely and beautifully use it. But what is the background behind the birth of the Cerachrom bezel?

Advantages of Ceramic Material

Before the Cerachrom bezel, Aluminum was mainly used. The aluminum bezel did not meet the durability that Rolex pursues.

ⓒ HODINKEE

It scratches easily and tends to discolor significantly over time. Of course, Vintage watches with yellowed dials and discolored aluminum bezels can sometimes be extremely valuable.

From left aluminum ceramic / ⓒ swisswatchexpo

However, Ceramic does not change color under sunlight, Is lightweight, Does not irritate the skin, And is very hard. For this reason, It is a beloved material not only by Rolex but also by many watch brands these days.

The Cerachrom bezel is not only more durable but the indexes filled with gold material have improved legibility. Previously, The aluminum bezel had printed indexes that often wore off. With this increased durability, The Cerachrom bezel has also increased in value as a pre-owned item.

The First Model with a Ceramic Bezel
GMT Master 2 Ref. 116718

ⓒ collectorsquare

The first Rolex model to use a ceramic bezel was the GMT Master 2 Ref. 116718, Released in 2005. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the GMT Master, The ceramic bezel was applied for the first time, And it was launched as a full yellow gold model with a green dial symbolizing Rolex. For as long as eight years after that, Only a black bezel color was released. It seems that it was difficult to find the optimal manufacturing method for a two-tone bezel, As each color requires a different temperature to be properly expressed on a single ceramic disk.

GMT-Master 2 116710BLNR

40mm, Black, Oyster

However, In 2013, Rolex finally succeeded in producing a two-tone ceramic bezel, Which signaled the great popularity of the GMT Master 2. Needless to say, Rolex manufactures all these materials in-house. They also hold the patent for Cerachrom. It is said that they even cast gold for their watches, So making a bezel is not a big deal for them.

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