At BaselWorld 2014, Rolex finally brings back the red and blue bezel beloved of GMT Master collectors everywhere in the world. Since the creation of the new GMT Master II in 2005, when the watch was updated for the 21st century, the watch-loving public has been waiting for the return of the red and blue bezel. Visually, nothing characterizes the GMT Master aesthetic more than this so-called “pepsi’ color for the bezel. Why has Rolex taken nearly 10 years to make this color happen? Well, from its fortress within BaselWorld, the mighty Swiss watchmaker explains at length in a document titled How Rolex Achieved the Impossible how it took much more than 10 years…
Yes, conventional thinking had it that a single cerachrom piece (the ceramic insert used for the bezel had to be made as a single piece) could not be manufactured in bulk with anything other than a single color. In 2013, the company effectively did the impossible by introducing the black and blue bezel for the GMT Master II. This year, the red and blue is back, with two patents protecting the process for achieving the colors. In terms of specifications, the GMT Master II is no different from the iterations from 2005 onwards but collectors should take note that the watch is being offered only in 18k white gold.
The story first appeard on Luxury Insider
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