Recommended Reading: "Bubble Backs" By Masahiro Endo Is An Education On The Original Rolex Collectors' Watch
If you've never collected Rolex Bubblebacks before, you should probably forget nearly everything you know about vintage watches. At least, that's what it feels like you should do when you start wading into the space. Things like reference numbers are much less valuable to remember than movements, case designs, printing details, and a general ability to just remember everything you've seen to get a sense of feel for what is right and what isn't. And trust me, a lot isn't. You could spend decades looking at these watches, but "Bubble Back" by Masahiro Endo, the owner of vintage retailer Private Eyes in Tokyo, is a great reference to jump-start your understanding of an iconic (and currently underappreciated) model. I mentioned this in last week's review of John Nagayama's "96," but the only watch I'd be more afraid to deep-dive into than the Patek ref. 96 is the Rolex "Bubbleback." It's not even an official model, but a nickname for Rolex watches made from 1933 to the mid-1950s with a domed, "bubble-like" caseback. So when you open Endo-san's book, you'll probably immediately be struck by the fact that none of the examples (except the later ref. 6062 and ref. 8171) have reference numbers. According to collectors, that's not the most useful thing for understanding the Bubbleback. Basically, every other detail matters more. We've previously published a story about the bubbleback with a lot of thoughts and tips for understanding these models, courtesy of Ken Jacobs and Justin Gr...
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