{"id":21826,"date":"2026-10-20T08:04:52","date_gmt":"2026-10-20T12:04:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.truefacet.com\/guide\/rolex-explorer-buying-guide\/"},"modified":"2026-10-20T08:04:52","modified_gmt":"2026-10-20T12:04:52","slug":"rolex-explorer-buying-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.truefacet.com\/guide\/rolex-explorer-buying-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Rolex Explorer Buying Guide: Explorer 36, Explorer 40 and Explorer II Explained"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Some watches win you over with complications, precious metals or a famous waiting list. The Rolex Explorer wins you over by doing almost nothing extra. A black dial, three bold numerals, a steel Oyster case and a self-winding movement: that is essentially the whole recipe, and it has barely changed in seven decades. For many collectors that simplicity is exactly the point. This Rolex Explorer buying guide covers where the watch came from, how today’s Explorer 36 and Explorer 40 differ, how the Explorer II fits in, and what to check before you buy one pre-owned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Born on Everest<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On 29 May 1953, Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers to reach the 8,848-metre summit of Mount Everest. Their British expedition was equipped with Oyster Perpetual watches, and Rolex had already been supplying Himalayan expeditions since the 1930s, using the feedback to make its watches tougher and more precise (Rolex<\/a>, Rolex history<\/a>). The Explorer was launched in 1953 to celebrate the ascent, and its black dial with large 3, 6 and 9 numerals was designed to be read at a glance in any conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Collectors still debate which reference counts as the very first Explorer, but the 6150 and 6350 from 1953 laid down the design. The 1016, made from 1963 to 1989, became the long-running classic. The sapphire-crystal 14270 followed in 1989, then the 114270 in 2001 and the 214270 in 2010, which grew the case from 36mm to 39mm (Mostra<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explorer 36 or Explorer 40?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In 2021 Rolex took the Explorer back to its original 36mm diameter with reference 124270, on a redesigned case and resized bracelet (Rolex<\/a>). The same year brought the 124273, a two-tone version in steel and yellow gold that gives the tool watch a dressier side. Then on 27 March 2023 Rolex added the 224270, the Explorer 40 (Rolex Newsroom<\/a>). Today you can choose the size that suits your wrist rather than the size the decade dictated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two current steel models share the same specification:<\/p>\n\n\n\n