Yes.
I have seen a few in the wild too, and agree it is a stunning piece. It is often underrated in the standard forum narrative, but it has so much going for it imo, with that beautiful 5 serial case, iconic Rolex dial, proper gmt movement and slimmer appearance due to the smaller bezel.
Unfortunately prices have caught up with it though, no quick set date and older hollow link bracelet could be considered down sides. Some people criticise the numbered bezel, but in real life they seem to recede and the profile of the bezel becomes the visual effect.
I personally think it's the most appealing modern Explorer, it still has the reduced look with modern water resistance while also having so much classic Rolex DNA in its design.
[emoji106] imho.
I love my Explorers, I couldn't decide between the black and white.
The black dial is the more casual of the two, it wears very comfortably, a little slimmer compared to a submariner and love the aesthetics of the sunburst brushed fixed bezel, lug holes and SEL which makes it appear tough. I have fond memories with mine, we got stuck in thick overgrown shrub on an offroad track that was rarely traveled and I spent a long time with the trusty Explorer II on wrist and axe in hand clearing the shrub for the convoy to get through. It handled the shock well, perhaps a little scratch in the process but no effect to it's excellent time keeping.
To answer your question regarding regrets or annoying quirks, the black dial Explorer II might be too similar to a Submariner Date 16610 or GMT Master 16710 black bezel if you have them in the collection. I call mine the ugly duckling of my small collection, the dial is not symmetrical like the Explorer or Submariner, it has the date magnifier and I wished the date window had a black background with white numbering. The polar version just seems cleaner between the two and dresses up better in a suit. Despite these the black Explorer II just looks tough, looks right with jeans and leather jacket, it simply gets a lot of wrist time during my adventures.
I wore the white version for 20 years after becoming bored with Submariners after 15 years.
Zero interest in the older stuff when the new watches feature bracelets that are light years ahead.
very nice bracelet combination.
the best looking explorer II to me.
I have black 216570, but I prefer this polar 16570
the polar 216570's black paint just too thick and look comical.
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