Air King queries

[Paikia44]

Hey all...

Found 2 rolex as attached in the folders retailing at S$1950. Wonder if they are worth the investment. The plain Air King is labelled as 'vintage' whereas the other is labelled as 'used'. Condition for both are good and clean. Anything in particular to take note of in getting vintage pieces?

[keltzar]

Prob not. Air King are usually entry-level models, unless you have the very early ones from the 1950s.

There isn't a lot to suggest for <$3k.

Maybe go find a more recent Explorer I , 114270 for about $3.5k ?

Or else ironically, look for an OysterQuartz.

[louisoh]

yep...Air kings are the entry Rolexes... not really an investment...

Excellent suggestion by Keltzar... explorer I is much better... lemme noe if you can find 1 at 3.5k... i'm interested too..

[Paikia44]

Thanks guys... The vintage Air King is supposingly from 1970's. Yet to get more details. And they have a black face Explorer I which is retailing for $4900.

Another model which caught my eyes is 2 explorer II. One white and the other naturally is black at $4850 and $5850 respectively.

[keltzar]

Koh watches (see forum with links) sells theirs in the $3.5-3.8k range... maybe can bargain.

Look around... some of the earlier 114270 models from the 90s should be under $4k. Those 2000- might be closer to $4++k.

Another one which may be a better investment for that price, is the non-date Submariner 14060M. Also, as it is recently discontinued... it may rise in price.

I usually see them about $4.5k from Passions.. but that means that with a little searching, older pieces are probably about $4k or less.

Further, if you buy an old air king which is handwound (6694? marked as "precision") ... remember that oyster cases have to be unscrewed before you can wind. This means wear on the crowns... so their crowns need more replacement. And from what I hear... the crowns are getting harder to find.