Reference:14060
Submariner → 14060
The 14060 is the first modern no-date Submariner and the direct successor to the 5513. It arrived around 1990 and ran until roughly 2000, when the 14060M took over with an upgraded caliber. The 5513 had stayed with acrylic crystal and 200m water resistance through its entire run; the 14060 came out of the gate with sapphire crystal, a 300m rating, and a Triplock crown.
The no-date lineage runs 5513 → 14060 → 14060M → 114060. Each step added specification while keeping the same core: no date, aluminum bezel, tool-watch intent.
Core facts
| detail | value |
|---|---|
| reference | 14060 |
| family | Submariner (no date) |
| production | approximately 1990 to 2000 (14060); 14060M from approximately 1999 to 2012 |
| movement | caliber 3000, non-COSC, 28,800 vph, flat hairspring (see movement notes for discrepancy) |
| case | 40mm, 904L steel, Oyster, drilled lug holes |
| crystal | sapphire, flat, no Cyclops |
| water resistance | 300m / 1000ft |
| crown | Triplock screw-down |
| bezel | unidirectional 60-click, aluminum insert, black |
| bracelet | Oyster ref.93150, 501B end links, stamped hollow Fliplock clasp |
| dial | 2-line (“Submariner” + depth rating), white gold applied markers |
| lume | tritium (early), Luminova (late, ~1998–1999) |
| rehaut | plain, no engraving |
| case back | solid steel, fluted |
| predecessor | 5513 |
| successor | 14060M |
No-date lineage and historical position
The 14060 is the transitional reference in the no-date Submariner lineage. Its predecessor, the 5513, ran from 1962 to approximately 1990, one of the longest production runs of any reference in the Submariner family. The 5513 never gained a sapphire crystal or a 300m rating; both arrived with the 14060.
Sapphire crystal replaced acrylic, the 300m rating (a 50% jump over the 5513’s 200m) replaced the older spec, and the Triplock crown replaced the earlier Twinlock. The no-date, non-chronometer identity carried straight through. Two lines of text, no date window, no COSC language. The same restrained dial reappears on the early 14060M 2-liner.
Collectors tracing the clean no-date line start with the 5513 and run through the 14060. The 14060M 2-liner extends it; the 114060 continues it. The 14060 is where the no-date Submariner crossed from acrylic-and-Twinlock construction into sapphire-and-Triplock construction without yet picking up COSC text or a Maxi case.
Production outline
The 14060 run is short and uniform compared to the multi-era 5513. No dial families to speak of, no variant branches, no military contracts. A 1991 example looks much the same as a 1999 example apart from the lume change covered below.
Production date discrepancy
Most independent sources place 14060 production at roughly 1990 to 2000. The Vintage Rolex Field Manual gives a wider range that overlaps the 14060M era. The 1990–2000 window is the working estimate, with the broader Field Manual range likely reflecting parts availability rather than retail sales.
Tritium period
Most of the run used tritium lume. These dials carry T < 25 near 6 o’clock and read T SWISS MADE T at the bottom. The tritium darkens with age, leaving the markers with a warm patina that the brighter Luminova compound never develops. For many collectors that aging is the main draw of the early 14060.
Luminova period
Around 1998–1999, Rolex switched the 14060 to Luminova lume. Late dials drop the tritium markings and read SWISS MADE at 6 o’clock. Luminova holds its brightness for decades and does not yellow, so a late 14060 reads visually closer to a modern Submariner than to its tritium-era siblings.
The serial bands for this changeover are collector-documented rather than Rolex-confirmed, but the observed pattern is fairly consistent. Tritium dials run from the X series through early P series (roughly 1991–1999). A short transitional run known on Rolex Forum as “Swiss Only” appears in the U to A serials (roughly 1997–1999), reading SWISS at 6 o’clock without the T prefix of tritium dials or the full SWISS MADE of settled Luminova production. Luminova dials take over from approximately the A series onward (around 1999), with SWISS MADE at 6 o’clock.
Rolex Forum members have documented 14060 dials that carry T < 25 tritium text but were factory-filled with Luminova. The tell is a bright charge: genuine tritium of this age barely glows. Rolex appears to have switched the lume compound before updating the printed dial text, leaving a short window where the dial marking does not match what is actually painted on the markers.
These are collector approximations. Rolex assembled from stock, so a P-serial example might still carry tritium and an A-serial might carry Luminova. The dial foot text is the practical tell for early versus late.
Movement notes
Sources split on the 14060 movement. The Vintage Rolex Field Manual lists caliber 3030. Most other collector sources list caliber 3000. The 3000 is the dominant reading in the published literature and the working position here, with an early 3030 branch plausible but not mapped well enough to treat as settled. On any specific watch the bridge engraving under the caseback is the only definitive answer.
The succession is cleaner. The 14060M moved to caliber 3130 and later added the four-line COSC dial. The 14060 kept the non-COSC two-line format throughout.
Dial map
The 14060 dial is glossy black with applied white gold surround markers and Mercedes hands with luminous fill. Depth rating reads 300m / 1000ft.
No major dial families or variant branches exist; the single meaningful split is lume. Tritium dials carry T < 25 markings and read T SWISS MADE T at 6 o’clock; they cover the majority of the run, with some late examples factory-filled with Luminova behind tritium printing. The “Swiss Only” transitional dials drop the T prefix and read plain SWISS at 6 o’clock, sitting in the U and A serial range from roughly 1997 to 1999. Luminova dials read SWISS MADE at 6 o’clock with no tritium marking and cover late production from approximately 1999 onward.
The layout is two lines: SUBMARINER above the depth rating, OYSTER PERPETUAL below the coronet. No SUPERLATIVE CHRONOMETER text, because the watch is not COSC-certified. The 14060M 4-liner added that chronometer text from mid-2007, which is the cleanest visual cut between the two references and the reason the 14060 still reads as a continuation of the uncluttered 5513 face.
Case, bezel, crystal, and crown
The case is 40mm 904L stainless steel in the classic Oyster architecture with crown guards. This is the final pre-Super Case design, slender and sweeping enough to read closer to the vintage five-digit references than to anything that followed. Drilled lug holes run through the entire 14060 production, making this the last Submariner to carry them; the detail allows strap changes with a simple pin pusher, where the 114060 requires specialized tools. The case back is solid steel with fluted edges.
The bezel is unidirectional with 60 clicks and a black aluminum insert, the same insert family used across the 5513, 16800, and 16610. Aluminum scratches, fades, and takes on patina from seawater and UV in a way the later Cerachrom bezels cannot, and many collectors read that wear as an honest marker of use.
The crystal is flat sapphire with no Cyclops, and the sapphire itself is the defining upgrade over the 5513, which kept acrylic through its entire run. With no date window, there is no Cyclops lens to break up the face.
The crown is Triplock screw-down with three sealed zones, rated for the 300m depth. The crown face carries the coronet over three dots, distinguishing it from the Twinlock (coronet over a single bar or two dots) used on late 5513 production.
The rehaut is plain and unengraved, consistent with all Rolex sport models before the mid-2000s engraved-rehaut rollout.
Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes
The 14060 ships on bracelet ref.93150, an Oyster with 501B end links and a stamped hollow Fliplock clasp with diver extension. The 93150 uses hollow center links and hollow end links throughout the 14060 production run, distinguishing it from the later 93250 with solid center links and solid end links (SEL) that appeared on the 14060M.
This is the same bracelet reference used on late 5513 examples and on the 16610 of the same era. The hollow construction makes it lighter and slightly rattly next to the later solid-link bracelets; that rattle is part of the five-digit era identity and expected on honest examples. A quiet, tight-feeling 93150 is a warning sign of a replaced bracelet.
Exact clasp code variations across the 14060 run have not been mapped in the published collector literature. The standard caveat holds: a clasp stamp dates the clasp, not the watch head.
Special branches
No special branches exist for the 14060. The reference shipped as a straightforward commercial Submariner with no military contract and no retailer-specific variants, so collector interest runs on condition, lume type, and completeness rather than variant hunting.
Historical market and auction record
The 14060 sits in an accessible part of the Submariner market, too recent for strong vintage premiums and too old for the ceramic-bezel appeal of current production. Its draw is the clean two-line dial and the direct-succession line from the 5513.
Tritium examples tend to carry a modest premium over Luminova examples thanks to the warmer lume patina and the line back through the 5513 and 16800 tritium eras. Complete sets with original bracelet and papers are preferred; the 14060 is recent enough that full box-and-papers originality is a reasonable expectation rather than a rarity.
Strong lot-level auction evidence for the 14060 is still thin.
Sources
- History of the Rolex Submariner - Part 2, The 55XX References and 1680 Date — Tom Mulraney, Monochrome
- The Rolex Submariner: A Complete Collector's Guide — Stephen Pulvirent, Sotheby's
- Rolex Submariner 14060 Guide — unknown, Millenary Watches
- Rolex Submariner 14060 Listing — Bob's Watches editorial staff, Bob's Watches
- Rolex Submariner Reference Guide — Professional Watches editorial, Professional Watches
- Rolex Submariner 14060M Review — Fratello Watches editorial, Fratello Watches
- The Vintage Rolex Field Manual — Colin A. White, Morning Tundra