Rolex Daytona 116520 Black Dial Box and Papers

The Dial

Featuring one of the most recognizable dials in all of watchmaking, the ref. 116520 sports silver subdials and 18kt white gold applied indices and hands which sit atop its black dial and reflect the aesthetic of its famed stainless steel construction.

The Construction

Measuring 40mm in diameter, the Daytona wears on the wrist with a comfortable familiarity that enables almost anyone to easily pull it off. But, without doubt, the latest generation’s most significant upgrade was Rolex’s new (at the time) in-house automatic cal. 4130 chronograph movement. Designed to be ruthlessly efficient, it has just 201 parts—a 20% decrease on the previous movement, the cal. 4030—making for an even more reliable movement requiring even less servicing.

Additionally, with more space free to accommodate a larger mainspring, Rolex increased the cal. 4030’s power reserve from 50 to 72 hours in the cal. 4130. All in all, even for a 20+ year old movement, the cal. 4130 is incredible even by today’s standards and fitting for the Daytona’s legendary legacy.

Condition

Watch is in excellent to near mint condition. There is minor surface wear evident on the watch, but nothing major. The bezel still retains all of its black enameling. Bracelet has minor surface wear throughout, and is full length and has little to no stretch.