Reference:16713: Difference between revisions

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The 16713 is the two-tone Rolesor branch of the 16710 generation, produced from roughly 1989 through 2007 with steel mid-case, yellow-gold bezel ring and crown, and the GMT-Master II independent-hour movement underneath. Collectors talk about it as the Root Beer reference, and the brown-dial, brown-bezel watch is the one most buyers picture. Rolex also built the 16713 with a black dial and black bezel throughout the run, in roughly comparable numbers. Both configurations are factory standard.

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Two-tone Rolesor GMT-Master II

Core facts

detail	value
reference	16713
family	GMT-Master II
production	roughly 1989-2007
movement	caliber 3185, with late 3186 noted in the Field Manual
case	40mm steel-and-yellow-gold Rolesor Oyster case
crystal	sapphire with Cyclops
water resistance	100m
bezel	black or brown in the direct branch examples; wider color assumptions remain unresolved
main dial split	brown Root Beer and black-dial branches

Where it sits in the line

The 16713 sits in the 16710 generation, not the linked-hand GMT-Master world that produced the 16753 Root Beer. The brown colourway points back to that earlier two-tone, but the movement is full GMT-Master II with an independent hour hand. Reading the 16713 as a 16753 update is the most common mistake; it is closer to a Rolesor 16710 with a different bezel-and-dial palette.

Production outline

Production runs from roughly 1989 to 2007, parallel to the steel 16710. Within that span the reference splits cleanly into two configurations: brown dial with brown bezel insert (Root Beer) and black dial with black bezel insert.

Brown Root Beer branch

The brown branch is the most direct visual link to the earlier two-tone GMTs. Brown dial, brown aluminum bezel insert, gold-toned hour markers and gold-tipped GMT hand against the steel-and-gold Rolesor case — the palette is the same one the 16753 established.

Black branch

The black-on-black 16713 is the workhorse configuration of the reference and the version Rolex featured most often in period catalog imagery. *The Vintage Rolex Field Manual* describes the 16713 primarily as a black-bezel two-tone, while Ross Povey's GMT-Master survey in Revolution and Christina Bohn's Sotheby's Root Beer guide both treat brown and black as parallel production. Documented examples confirm both; bezel claims beyond those two colours need direct evidence.

Movement notes

Caliber 3185 powers most of the production run. *The Vintage Rolex Field Manual* lists late 3186 examples for the final years, but the changeover lands close to the end of the reference, so most surviving 16713s are 3185s. A 3186 claim deserves direct movement evidence rather than a date assumption. Both calibers drive the independent hour hand that defines the GMT-Master II, the architectural break from the linked-hand 3075 that ran in the 16753.

Dial map

Dial variation across the 16713 is narrower than on the steel 16710. The brown-versus-black split is the structural divide; within each, late watches drop the early gilt detail described below.

Brown Root Beer

Brown-dial examples carry the Root Beer name unambiguously. The dial is a warm chocolate brown with applied gold-coloured indexes — early watches still nipple, later watches flat baton, per the transitional detail covered below. The bezel insert matches in tone, slightly browner than the gold of the case.

Black dial

Black 16713s use the same dial architecture in the more conventional GMT-Master palette: gloss black with white-printed text and applied gold-coloured indexes, paired with a black aluminum bezel insert. The configuration is not a minor variant — it accounts for a substantial share of surviving watches and was sold alongside Root Beer throughout the run.

Transitional visual detail

Two early-production details place the 16713 as a transitional reference within the GMT-Master II line. *The Vintage Rolex Field Manual* identifies it as the last GMT branch to carry raised nipple indexes and the first to use a gilt coronet, both holdovers from the older two-tone vocabulary the 16753 closed out. Together those two cues make the early watches read warmer and more vintage-adjacent than the rest of the 16710-era family. Later production drops the nipples for flat applied batons and pulls the dial closer to the standard 16710 look.

Case, bezel, crystal, and crown notes

The case is the standard 40mm Oyster of the 16710 era in two-tone Rolesor: 904L-grade steel mid-case with yellow-gold bezel surround, crown, and centre bracelet links. Sapphire crystal with Cyclops lens over the date — sapphire and Cyclops are the quickest way to confirm a 16713 against an earlier two-tone GMT.

Bezel inserts come in brown for the Root Beer configuration and black for the standard configuration. Coke or Pepsi readings of the 16713 turn up occasionally in dealer copy and forum threads but lack documentation in the published reference literature; treat them as unconfirmed pending direct evidence.

Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes

Both Oyster and Jubilee bracelets appear on surviving 16713s, and the surviving market does not split the bracelet choice cleanly along the brown-versus-black line: Root Beer watches turn up on Oyster, black watches turn up on Jubilee, and both also appear in the opposite pairing. Bracelet codes for the period are 78363 (Jubilee) and 78753 (Oyster) in two-tone, both with 503B end links. Born-with documentation across the reference is not deep enough to publish a delivery chart; treat bracelet presentation as a per-example question.

Special branches

Root Beer branch

The brown 16713 carries the Root Beer name within the GMT-Master II generation. It is the configuration the nickname names, and the one most secondary buyers shop the reference for.

Black branch

The black 16713 outsells assumption. A buyer searching the reference number expecting Root Beer brown finds black watches as often as brown, and reading the reference as Root Beer-only misrepresents what Rolex actually built.

Historical market and auction record

Auction-house presence for the 16713 is thin compared to the steel 16710, with most documented sales coming through Sotheby's retail and the secondary dealer market rather than catalogued evening-sale lots. The retail record is consistent enough to confirm the two-configuration, two-bracelet picture above without needing major auction backing.

Sources

The Vintage Rolex Field Manual — Colin A. White, Morning Tundra
A Closer Look at the Rolex Root Beer — Christina Bohn, Sotheby's
Master Stroke — The Rolex GMT-Master: Part II — Ross Povey, Revolution
GMT-Master II 'Root Beer' (Reference 16713). A 40mm yellow gold stainless steel automatic wristwatch with date and dual time. 1991-1992 — unknown, Sotheby's
GMT-Master II (Reference 16713). A 40mm yellow gold stainless steel automatic wristwatch with date and dual time. 1991-1992 — unknown, Sotheby's
Rolex GMT Master 16713 Root Beer Dial — unknown, Bob's Watches
Rolex GMT-Master II Ref. 16713 Black Dial — unknown, Bob's Watches
WatchUSeek 16713 thread bundle — WatchUSeek community, WatchUSeek

@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 <small>[[Reference:gmt-master|GMT-Master]] -> '''16713'''</small>
-The [[Reference:16713|16713]] is the two-tone GMT-Master II branch inside the long [[Reference:16710|16710]] era. It carries GMT-Master II movement logic into a steel-and-yellow-gold Rolesor case, but it inherits enough of the older Root Beer visual vocabulary that collectors routinely misread it as just another nickname watch. The black branch is real. The brown branch is real. Both belong to the reference in equal measure, and the article has to carry both.
+The [[Reference:16713|16713]] is the two-tone Rolesor branch of the [[Reference:16710|16710]] generation, produced from roughly 1989 through 2007 with steel mid-case, yellow-gold bezel ring and crown, and the GMT-Master II independent-hour movement underneath. Collectors talk about it as the Root Beer reference, and the brown-dial, brown-bezel watch is the one most buyers picture. Rolex also built the 16713 with a black dial and black bezel throughout the run, in roughly comparable numbers. Both configurations are factory standard.
 <span id="core-facts"></span>
@@ Line 59: / Line 59: @@
 == Where it sits in the line ==
-The 16713 belongs inside the [[Reference:16710|16710]] generation, not the older linked-hand GMT-Master world. The colors look back to Root Beer, but the movement logic is already fully GMT-Master II.
+The 16713 sits in the [[Reference:16710|16710]] generation, not the linked-hand GMT-Master world that produced the [[Reference:16753|16753]] Root Beer. The brown colourway points back to that earlier two-tone, but the movement is full GMT-Master II with an independent hour hand. Reading the 16713 as a 16753 update is the most common mistake; it is closer to a Rolesor 16710 with a different bezel-and-dial palette.
 <span id="production-outline"></span>
 == Production outline ==
-The broad production window runs from roughly 1989 to 2007. Inside that window the watch reads cleanest as two branches, brown Root Beer and black, rather than a single run with colour variants.
+Production runs from roughly 1989 to 2007, parallel to the steel 16710. Within that span the reference splits cleanly into two configurations: brown dial with brown bezel insert (Root Beer) and black dial with black bezel insert.
 <span id="brown-root-beer-branch"></span>
 === Brown Root Beer branch ===
-The brown branch keeps the strongest visual continuity with the earlier two-tone GMTs. A brown dial paired with a brown bezel insert carries the warm Root Beer look straight through into the GMT-Master II era.
+The brown branch is the most direct visual link to the earlier two-tone GMTs. Brown dial, brown aluminum bezel insert, gold-toned hour markers and gold-tipped GMT hand against the steel-and-gold Rolesor case — the palette is the same one the [[Reference:16753|16753]] established.
 <span id="black-branch"></span>
 === Black branch ===
-The black 16713 is not a curiosity. It is the workhorse side of the reference and the configuration Rolex itself pushed hardest in period imagery.
+The black-on-black 16713 is the workhorse configuration of the reference and the version Rolex featured most often in period catalog imagery. *The Vintage Rolex Field Manual* describes the 16713 primarily as a black-bezel two-tone, while Ross Povey's GMT-Master survey in Revolution and Christina Bohn's Sotheby's Root Beer guide both treat brown and black as parallel production. Documented examples confirm both; bezel claims beyond those two colours need direct evidence.
-The branch map is not fully clean. The Field Manual table treats the reference more like a black-bezel LN, while the wider family literature tries to broaden the colour story. Revolution's GMT-Master II survey leaves room for brown-bezel and black-bezel production, and the Sotheby's Root Beer guide backs that. Direct examples on record support black and brown, and that is the safer line for the article.
 <span id="movement-notes"></span>
 == Movement notes ==
-The reference uses GMT-Master II movement logic, which is the main thing separating it from the older two-tone GMT-Master references. Caliber 3185 powers most of the run, and the Field Manual lists late 3186 examples for the final years. Both calibers drive the independent hour hand that defines the GMT-Master II, rather than the older linked-hand system carried by the [[Reference:16753|16753]].
+Caliber 3185 powers most of the production run. *The Vintage Rolex Field Manual* lists late 3186 examples for the final years, but the changeover lands close to the end of the reference, so most surviving 16713s are 3185s. A 3186 claim deserves direct movement evidence rather than a date assumption. Both calibers drive the independent hour hand that defines the GMT-Master II, the architectural break from the linked-hand 3075 that ran in the [[Reference:16753|16753]].
-Within this reference, the 3185 to 3186 changeover lands late. Most surviving watches are still 3185 examples, so a claimed 3186 should be backed up clearly.
 <span id="dial-map"></span>
@@ Line 89: / Line 85: @@
 [[File:Ref 16713 black-branch.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=Black-dial 16713|Black-dial 16713]]
-The dial story is simpler than on the steel 16710, but the branch split still matters.
+Dial variation across the 16713 is narrower than on the steel 16710. The brown-versus-black split is the structural divide; within each, late watches drop the early gilt detail described below.
 <span id="brown-root-beer"></span>
 === Brown Root Beer ===
-The brown example in Sotheby's retail inventory is the cleanest branch anchor, and a parallel Bob's Watches Root Beer listing reinforces it with heavier image coverage and a full Oyster presentation.
+Brown-dial examples carry the Root Beer name unambiguously. The dial is a warm chocolate brown with applied gold-coloured indexes — early watches still nipple, later watches flat baton, per the transitional detail covered below. The bezel insert matches in tone, slightly browner than the gold of the case.
 <span id="black-dial"></span>
 === Black dial ===
-The black branch holds up on the same pair. A Sotheby's retail example and an image-richer Bob's Watches listing together keep the black 16713 from being buried as a minor variant of the Root Beer.
+Black 16713s use the same dial architecture in the more conventional GMT-Master palette: gloss black with white-printed text and applied gold-coloured indexes, paired with a black aluminum bezel insert. The configuration is not a minor variant — it accounts for a substantial share of surviving watches and was sold alongside Root Beer throughout the run.
 <span id="transitional-visual-detail"></span>
 === Transitional visual detail ===
-The 16713 is the last GMT branch with nipple indexes and the first with a gilt coronet, per the Field Manual. The combination makes the watch feel transitional in its own way, even without the extreme dial taxonomy of the [[Reference:1675|1675]].
+Two early-production details place the 16713 as a transitional reference within the GMT-Master II line. *The Vintage Rolex Field Manual* identifies it as the last GMT branch to carry raised nipple indexes and the first to use a gilt coronet, both holdovers from the older two-tone vocabulary the 16753 closed out. Together those two cues make the early watches read warmer and more vintage-adjacent than the rest of the 16710-era family. Later production drops the nipples for flat applied batons and pulls the dial closer to the standard 16710 look.
-For spotters, the early 16713 bridge look comes from two things together: nipple markers and a warmer gilt coronet. That is what ties the first watches back to the 16753 Root Beer vocabulary. Later examples lose that look and move to the flatter applied-baton dial.
 <span id="case-bezel-crystal-and-crown-notes"></span>
 == Case, bezel, crystal, and crown notes ==
-The case is the expected two-tone Oyster shape of the 16710 era, with a steel mid-case and yellow-gold bezel ring and crown. Sapphire with a Cyclops lens over the date is part of the package and one of the simplest ways to keep the reference on the GMT-Master II side of the family line.
+The case is the standard 40mm Oyster of the 16710 era in two-tone Rolesor: 904L-grade steel mid-case with yellow-gold bezel surround, crown, and centre bracelet links. Sapphire crystal with Cyclops lens over the date — sapphire and Cyclops are the quickest way to confirm a 16713 against an earlier two-tone GMT.
-The bezel story still needs discipline. Brown Root Beer and black are directly supported. Wider colour claims, especially Coke or Pepsi two-tone readings, still need stronger proof and should be treated cautiously.
+Bezel inserts come in brown for the Root Beer configuration and black for the standard configuration. Coke or Pepsi readings of the 16713 turn up occasionally in dealer copy and forum threads but lack documentation in the published reference literature; treat them as unconfirmed pending direct evidence.
 <span id="bracelets-end-links-clasps-and-packaging-notes"></span>
@@ Line 119: / Line 113: @@
 [[File:Ref 16713 black-jubilee.webp|thumb|right|280px|alt=Black 16713 on Jubilee|Black 16713 on Jubilee]]
-The surviving market shows more than one useful bracelet presentation. Brown-branch watches turn up on Oyster; black-branch watches turn up on Jubilee. The Sotheby's retail pages for both branches include box context, so the pairing is not a dealer-only reading. The package is not deep enough yet to support a full born-with delivery chart, but bracelet presentation clearly varies within the reference.
+Both Oyster and Jubilee bracelets appear on surviving 16713s, and the surviving market does not split the bracelet choice cleanly along the brown-versus-black line: Root Beer watches turn up on Oyster, black watches turn up on Jubilee, and both also appear in the opposite pairing. Bracelet codes for the period are 78363 (Jubilee) and 78753 (Oyster) in two-tone, both with 503B end links. Born-with documentation across the reference is not deep enough to publish a delivery chart; treat bracelet presentation as a per-example question.
 <span id="special-branches"></span>
@@ Line 128: / Line 122: @@
 === Root Beer branch ===
-The brown 16713 is the most obvious continuation of the earlier two-tone GMT identity into the GMT-Master II era. It is the branch the Root Beer nickname actually points at, and the one most buyers picture first when they hear the reference number.
+The brown 16713 carries the Root Beer name within the GMT-Master II generation. It is the configuration the nickname names, and the one most secondary buyers shop the reference for.
 <span id="black-branch-1"></span>
 === Black branch ===
-The black branch is the correction to the nickname trap. It is what a buyer expecting Root Beer brown often finds when they shop the reference by number, and the reason the article has to treat the black watch as a first-class configuration rather than an outlier.
+The black 16713 outsells assumption. A buyer searching the reference number expecting Root Beer brown finds black watches as often as brown, and reading the reference as Root Beer-only misrepresents what Rolex actually built.
 <span id="historical-market-and-auction-record"></span>
 == Historical market and auction record ==
-The auction record for the 16713 is still thin, but the retail side is enough to make the basic point: the watch is not one-colour and not one-bracelet.
+Auction-house presence for the 16713 is thin compared to the steel 16710, with most documented sales coming through Sotheby's retail and the secondary dealer market rather than catalogued evening-sale lots. The retail record is consistent enough to confirm the two-configuration, two-bracelet picture above without needing major auction backing.
 == Sources ==