Rolex 16808 Submariner
Submariner -> 16808
The 16808 is the full 18k yellow gold Submariner Date, with case, bezel, bracelet, crown, and crown tube all in gold, caliber 3035 inside, and a sapphire crystal over the top. It is the gold apex of a three-reference generation that also ran the steel 16800 and the two-tone 16803, and the scarcest of the three by some margin. Colin A. White's The Vintage Rolex Field Manual (Morning Tundra) singles out its gilt nipple dial as the most desirable configuration the reference produced.
The gold Submariner lineage runs from 1969 to the present (1680/8 → 16808 → 16618 → 126618), and the 16808 bridges the vintage gold Submariner and the modern one. It carried the advances the 16800 brought to the steel line (sapphire crystal, 300m rating, quick-set date) into a full-gold case.
Launch date discrepancy
Sources differ on when the 16808 entered production. White's running text gives 1977, while the reference table in the same book gives 1979 to 1987. Monochrome places the run at roughly 1984 to 1988. The spread is wide enough that the three dates are probably measuring different things. 1977 fits internal planning or a small first run, 1979 the Field Manual's own estimate of retail availability, 1984 the point at which production reached real market volume. Rolex has published nothing from its archives and no serial band has been confirmed, so the question stays open. For retail availability, 1979 is the date to work from.
End of production is generally placed at 1987 to 1988, when the 16618 replaced the reference with caliber 3135.
Core facts
| detail | value |
|---|---|
| reference | 16808 |
| family | Submariner Date |
| production | DISPUTED: c.1977 (FM text), 1979–1987 (FM table), ~1984–1988 (other sources) — see launch date note |
| movement | caliber 3035 (date, quick-set, 28800 bph) |
| case | 40mm, full 18k yellow gold |
| crystal | sapphire with Cyclops |
| water resistance | 300m |
| bezel | 18k gold with aluminum insert (blue or black) |
| lume | tritium |
| bracelet | Oyster ref.93158 (full gold), hollow end links |
| successor | 16618 |
Where it sits in the gold Submariner lineage
Rolex has built a gold Submariner in every generation since 1969, which makes it one of the few unbroken threads running the length of the family. The 1680/8 opened the line in 1969 with an acrylic crystal and caliber 1570/1575. The 16808 brought the sapphire crystal, the 300m rating, caliber 3035, and the nipple dial. The 16618 (~1988–2009) followed with caliber 3135, Microstella regulation, and the SEL bracelet transition, and the 126618 (2020–present) carries the line at 41mm with caliber 3235 and a ceramic bezel. Across all four the brief held steady, a working dive watch built in precious metal.
Within its own generation, the 16800 in steel had the widest market and the most production, the 16803 split the difference in two-tone Rolesor with gold in the visible positions over a steel case, and the 16808 went full 18k yellow gold.
Production outline
Taking 1979 for retail availability and 1987–1988 for the changeover to the 16618, the run lands at roughly eight to nine years, close to the steel 16800 that ran alongside it.
Forum collectors point to 1981–1982 as a transitional window inside the run, with dial finishing and bracelet components both reported to have shifted. The timing fits the wider churn across the Submariner line in the early 1980s, when Rolex was revising specifications on the steel 16800 at the same time. Early and late 16808 examples divide along that seam.
Production numbers were low, as they were for every full-gold sport Rolex, though no confirmed serial-band data exists to put a figure on it. Beyond dial color and the nipple dial distinction, the reference does not split into meaningful sub-families.
Movement notes
The 16808 uses caliber 3035, the same quick-set date movement that powered the 16800 and 16803, running at 28,800 vph. When the 16618 replaced the 16808, the movement upgraded to caliber 3135 with Microstella regulation.
Dial map
All dials carry tritium for the full run. No lume transition applies to this reference.
Gilt nipple dial — the collector configuration
Nipple dials carry a small raised dot, or boss, at the center of each applied gold hour marker, which gives the marker set a three-dimensional texture that flat markers do not have. Paired with a gilt finish, that is the configuration the Field Manual rates highest on this reference.
The nipple marker appears across the gold-involved Submariners of the 1980s (the 1680/8, the 16803, and the 16808). The 16808 pushes it furthest, a full gold case and bracelet under a gilt nipple dial.
Blue dial
The blue dial is a sunburst finish with gold applied markers, gold hands, and gold printed text. It is the configuration that turns up most often.
Black dial
The black dial carries the same gold applied markers against a black base and turns up less often than the blue. Whether that reflects lower production or lower survival is not documented.
Violet dial variant
Forum collectors identify a violet dial as a variant in its own right, separate from the standard blue and black. It reads as a deep purple-blue, and the collectors who track it distinguish it both from the standard blue sunburst and from blue dials that have simply shifted with age. Whether the color left the factory that way or arrives early in the aging process is unsettled. Either way it has a name and a following.
Nipple dial color change phenomenon
Forum collectors have documented an aging pattern particular to nipple dials. The raised gold bosses shift tone over time, warming or darkening against the applied markers around them, so the marker set ends up two-tone within itself. The change is oxidation, and a refinished dial cannot easily be made to fake it, which is why a well-aged example showing it reads as honest.
Case, bezel, crystal, and crown
Body, bezel, crown, and crown tube are all 18k yellow gold, with crown guards in the standard Submariner shape. The Triplock crown seals the watch to 300m. The Field Manual is blunt about the trade-off: a gold case this size is heavy, and it scratches.
The crystal is sapphire with Cyclops over the date window. The bezel insert is aluminum in blue or black, set into the gold bezel surround. Aluminum inserts fade and scratch over time.
The rehaut is plain. Solid 18k gold Rolex cases carry the Helvetia bust with G, the Geneva assay mark, struck on the mid-case under the lugs. Rolex moved to the St. Bernard dog Barry mark for all precious metals after 1995, well past the end of 16808 production.
Bracelets, end links, clasps, and packaging notes
The standard bracelet is the 93158, a full 18k yellow gold Oyster with Fliplock clasp. Forum collectors also cite 92908 for the reference. Nothing published settles whether 92908 is an alternate production bracelet, an earlier variant, or a misidentification, so both numbers stay in circulation.
End links are hollow. Gold is softer than steel, and a heavy gold case worn daily works the links loose, so almost every well-used 16808 shows visible play in the bracelet. Stretch is the first thing to check on a candidate. The weight difference against a steel 16800 registers the moment the watch goes on.
The 93158 stayed on the 16808 for the full run. No solid-end-link transition happened here; that came with the 16618 and the 93258.
Clasp date codes for this era follow the standard Rolex scheme, running A for 1976 through M for 1988. The clasp code dates the bracelet, not the watch head.
Historical market and auction record
The 16808 is scarce at auction, since low production over a short run means few examples circulate. When one does appear, the full gold construction puts it at the top of the 3035-era Submariner range, above the two-tone 16803 and the steel 16800.
No hammer figures are documented for the reference. Full gold Submariners of this era hold steady collector interest, though the 16808 falls into an awkward gap, too modern to draw the vintage premium the 1680/8 commands and too old to ride the 16618's long production story. A genuine gilt nipple dial in strong condition takes the top of whatever range the reference makes.
Related references
- Submariner 1680 — First Date Sub, 'Red Sub' (1969–1979)
- Submariner 3666
- Submariner 5508 — 1957–1961
- Submariner 5510 — Big Crown, Cal 1530 (1957–1958)
- Submariner 5512 — First Crown-Guard (1959–1978)
- Submariner 5513 — Non-Date Classic (1962–1989)
See also the Submariner family index, movement reference, bracelet & clasp guide, and serial numbers by year.
Sources
- History of the Rolex Submariner - Part 2, The 55XX References and 1680 Date — Tom Mulraney, Monochrome
- Bob's Watches two-tone Submariner history — Bob's Watches editorial staff, Bob's Watches
- The Rolex Submariner: A Complete Collector's Guide — Stephen Pulvirent, Sotheby's
- Gray & Sons Submariner Date history — Gray & Sons editorial, Gray & Sons
- Rolex Submariner Reference Guide — Professional Watches editorial, Professional Watches
- The Vintage Rolex Field Manual — Colin A. White, Morning Tundra
- RolexForums 16808 thread bundle — RolexForums community, RolexForums