Greetings,

Looking to buy my first Rolex. Decided on the 14270 Explorer with tritium & lug holes which seem like they’re harder to find for sale. I found an example that’s for sale at a reputable local shop. I am curious if you guys think the price is too good to be true? Asking price is $4,000.00. N series claimed condition is “fair”. No box/papers.


Greatly appreciate the advice.

 

Looking at similar Explorers for sale on the Rolex Forum, $4K seems to be a very fair price. If it hasn't been serviced in a while you might want to factor that in the equation. The Explorer is a great watch btw. Good luck.

 

FAIR is quite a low grade. Do you have any more detailed information on why they are grading it that way?

 

I do not. I’m going to see it in person in a few days, I can ask. Maybe it has not been serviced recently?

 

I concur with the above. I'd inquire about the servicing of the watch as that is not the cheapest of endeavors. Also, looks like it's been polished so I'd inquire where/how that happened. I note this bc if you dont mind a polish job, you'd like to ensure they at least used Rolex bristles.

 

I personally don’t mind the polishing, but I’d rather no buy a watch that I have to go and send to Rolex for service that may end up costing $1,000

 

The way I see it, if I can’t find a good 14270 with both lug holes and tritium I’d much rather go with a 114270 with the better movement.

 

That seems to be a pretty fair price point with no box, papers, polished (maybe over polished but not sure - you'll be able to tell better in person) etc. Just weigh the pros and cons of the 14270 vs the 114270. With the 14270 you get the tritium dial and it looks like with this one, the lug holes which do seem to be tougher to find. With the 114270 you get the same look (minus the tritium and lug holes) but same classic explorer dimensions with a much more robust and reliable/upgraded movement for about the same price.

 

I recently spent a good amount of time looking at both 14270s and 114270s. I think $4000 for a 14270 without box or papers is reasonable (as an example, one just sold on the Rolex Forums for $4500). The chances of buying one that shouldn't go in for a service, however, is rather slim. You should add another $600 plus parts--and a 4 week wait--to the price of any 14270 you look at if you plan on having it serviced by a RSC (which you should).

 

Went to go have a look at the watch and turns out it had already been sold, nobody had updated the website

The hunt continues....

 

and a nicer heftier sel bracelet

 

I would say it depends on what you are looking for, an unpolished one would go for higher than that.
As stated above when dealers describe a watch as "fair" expect to have something which have been quite polished in the past, have some defaults, etc. After he might be honest, and most people would have described it as good or even very good.
The watch looks good to me, surely polished, but acceptable to might standard, so depends on yours only.

 

ive accomplished both this year. $4920 ish for 114270 kserial full set and 14270 on ebay which was suppose to be $4550 but after tax came out more than the full set. damn the bay, but ive been wearing this watch every from sheer enjoyment. thats worth something i guess.

 

It looks like polished. If it is serviced the price is fair.

 

Shit... Post of July. These things shouldn't happen.

 

Did you find another?

 

So I found a local shop that has a 114270 with box only. It was my first time seeing the 36mm in person and having it on my wrist. It's a lovely watch for sure, but they were asking 5,000 + tax. The conclusion I came to was that I just can't justify that much $ for that watch. It reaffirms my (and many many others) perspective/opinions that steel Rolex watches are extremely over priced on the second hand market right now.

 

Way too much money.

 

Sounds a bit overpriced. I would want a full set. Not sure where you are drawing the conclusion that "steel Rolex watches are extremely over priced on the second hand market right now." Compared to what?

 

I was looking at 114270 also for a while and i really do like this watch very much! However after trying it on and some thinking, i am also not 100% happy about the Rolex prices..
I did a comparison of my current collection and realised that i paid in total for all 3 watches approximately the same amount like the 36mm Explorer would cost me. Then i thought, would i trade my collection for an Explorer? very unlikely!
If money played no role at the moment i would probably get one, however its not the case, so i am just enjoying what i have!