Rolex James Bond 5508 submariner

Debuting in 1953 and released to the public the following year, the Rolex Submariner has become one of the most iconic timepieces of all time thanks to its legendary status as Rolex's flagship dive watch. The Submariner is still in production today, it has gone through multiple incarnations throughout its 72 years history from the early Rolex 6202, to 5513, 1680, 16800 till now with the modern versions. 

Its popularity has been endorsed as it was used extensively by the British Royal Navy and professional diving operations like COMEX, the Submariner set the bar for all dive watches to follow. Featuring a genuinely timeless design that has remained relatively unchanged throughout its history, this Rolex has become the archetypal sports watch. 

With very few large-scale aesthetic upgrades made to it over the years except for timely advancements like introducing a date function to the collection in the late '60s, and its modern cerachrom bezels as well as movement and case updates. The overall design and feel for Submariner is consistenct.

The Submariner has earned its status as a legendary watch, with it today remaining as one of the most sought-after timepieces around. The ref 5508 and 5510 both came out in 1958. While early generation examples notably had either a "small" or "big" crown, Rolex gradually introduced crown guards in the mid-1960s to make the model more robust and durable. 

The Reference 5508 was manufactured between 1958 and 1962. This Submariner model, nicknamed “small crown” is the last one to carry a 100m depth rating and no crown guards.  The Submariner 5510 was thicker, at about 15mm, and featured an 8mm so-called “big crown.” Rolex rated its water resistance at 200 meters. 

Rolex 5508 gilt dial from the year 1959

Reference 5508, on the other hand, measured only 12.6mm thick and had a small crown and water resistance rated at 100 meters. You will find versions with a red triangle as well as ones with a silver triangle on the bezel for the 60-minute marker. 

The Submariner ref. 5508 is a famed reference amongst collectors for a host of reasons. Famed as the last 38mm Submariner reference, the ref. 5508 features purest essence of the Submariner’s vintage spirit, which is also communicated through its lack of crown guards and accompanying small crown, which was only 6mm – 2mm smaller than crowns on previous and subsequent Submariner references. Additionally, given the evolving demands of dive watches at the time, the ref. 5508 was the last Submariner reference to be water resistance to 100m and this is also the last Submariner generation without crown guards.

The 5508 Submariner is the purest representation of the diver's tool watch period. It has been nicknamed by the watch collector aficionado community as the "Small Crown" the reference 5508 and its easily distinguishable from other "no crown-guard" Submariner references due to 6mm screw-down crown which is much smaller than those outfitted to following models, including the "James Bond" versions made famous by Sean Connery who played James Bond in the 1960s.I am lucky to have found two 5508, one in gilt dial and the other in the later matt dial.

Rolex 5508 Matt dial from the year 1962