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Rolex Air-King Ref. 5500 - 'Brushed' Blue Dial
SOLD
Believe it or not, there are still some great,
lesser-known finds in the world of vintage Rolex.Vintage Air-Kings in particular offer a wide variety of dials and styles across a long production run, all of which do what Rolex does best: Timeless good looks, an Oyster case, and a robust movement. All of this, with a paired down 34mm case size - this is about a classic a Rolex as you can get.
The model was debuted in 1945, and as the name would imply, was honoring those pilots who participated in air combat over the UK in the now infamous Battle of Britain. This was part of a post-war lineup that included more obscure models like the Air-Lion, Air-Tiger, and Air-Giant. Naturally, many have faded into complete obscurity today. Even the likes of Pan Am gifted the Air King to its retiring pilots as a ‘thank you’ for service to the company. While the Air-King went through many iterations - including a stint as the case that housed the Explorer I dials - the Reference 5500 is the predominant reference of note. Like other iconic models (the 5513, and 1675) the reference ran for 37 years from 1957 to 1994, and used one of the incredibly robust 1500 series movements.
This piece, a Reference 5504, dates to circa 1971 and comes to us in honest overall condition. The steel 34mm Oyster case showing normal signs of wear with a small impression on the bottom right lug with a smooth polished steel bezel that shows matching normal wear. The blue dial inside features a gorgeous horizontally-brushed finish with applied
white-painted 'baton' indices, fully-intact Tritium plots, and minor wear around the indices. The correct 'pencil' handset shows light oxidation from age with slightly darker Tritium within.Fitted to a correct steel Oyster bracelet, this piece presents great value next to its more well-known siblings, and truly represents the essence of Rolex.
Condition Report & Details
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Shipping, Returns, & Warranty
At Oliver & Clarke, we offer free global shipping on all orders over $150.
Returns (accepted within 3 days of initial delivery of your purchase) must be sent overnight or by priority international delivery, fully insured and paid for by the customer. For payments via Credit Card, a 5% restocking fee will be in place for any returns or cancellations in order to cover our processing fee. Of course, watches must be returned in the same condition as initially shipped.
If you happen to trade a watch with us, which we welcome, trades are final, except of course if the watch is grossly misdescribed or misrepresented.
We back each Oliver & Clarke timepiece with a one-year mechanical warranty starting at the date of first delivery. We service or perform necessary maintenance to the extent necessary to all of our watches, unless otherwise noted. All watches are listed and sold running and functioning as intended.
*Please note that due to the vintage or antique nature of many of our watches, these machines may not run as accurately as they did when new, nor will any mechanical timepiece keep time as accurately as a quartz or electronic device.
We do not guarantee water resistance, thus do not warranty against moisture incursion or water damage.
*We also do not recommend deliberate exposure to water or worse - steam!
Our warranty is voided under the following circumstances:
- Internal or external damage caused by an accident, mishandling, abuse, modification, or handling/service performed by a third party individual other than one of our own.
Our warranty is non-transferable.
The Oliver & Clarke Guarantee
Through rigorous vetting of each watch offered, we’re able to guarantee authenticity of our pieces. Ultimately, your satisfaction is our mission, as is helping you get YOUR perfect watch. If you have any questions at all, we will get back to you ASAP.
Each of our timepieces are vetted, evaluated, authenticated, and approved by our experienced team prior to sale. We guarantee the period-correctness of all components unless otherwise disclosed. We guarantee the authenticity of each watch in perpetuity.
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Rolex Air-King Ref. 5500 - 'Brushed' Blue DialSale price$3,650.00 USD Regular price
"As collectors themselves, Oliver and Clarke are on a mission to make buying vintage watches as painless as possible."
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From Rolex & Patek Philippe, to Cartier & Audemars Piguet. As collectors first, we love the small details that separate the Submariner from Daytona and Calatrava from Royal Oak. This is why you'll find our curated assortment spans decades of generations of models and brands. We believe that watches don't just tell time, they tell history - and life is too short to wear a boring watch.
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