Rolex Submariner 124060 Review: The No-Date Reference That Corrected the Modern Submariner

Rolex Submariner 124060 Review: The No-Date Reference That Corrected the Modern Submariner

The first thing to understand about the Rolex Submariner 124060 is that “Submariner Date 124060” is a misnomer. Reference 124060 is the modern no-date Submariner, introduced in 2020, and that absence is not a technical omission but the central point of the watch. It is the cleaner, stricter, more historically coherent version of Rolex’s dive watch: no cyclops, no date aperture, no daily complication to justify. In a catalogue increasingly shaped by incremental luxury signals, the 124060 remains unusually direct.

That directness is why the reference matters. The 124060 replaced the Submariner 114060 after roughly eight years of production and did so with a set of changes that looked conservative on paper but materially affected the watch on the wrist: a nominally larger 41 mm case, slimmer lugs, a broader 21 mm bracelet, and the calibre 3230 with a 70-hour power reserve. Rolex did not reinvent the Submariner in 2020. It corrected the proportions of the ceramic-era Submariner and gave the no-date line a movement architecture aligned with the rest of the modern professional range.

Origin and Lineage: From 5513 to 124060

The 124060 sits in the longest and arguably purest branch of the Submariner family. Its important ancestors are not the date references such as the 1680, 16800, 16610, or 126610LN, but the no-date references: the 6204 and 6205 of the early 1950s, the crown-guard 5512 and 5513 from the late 1950s and early 1960s, the sapphire-crystal 14060 introduced in 1990, the 14060M with calibre 3130 from 1999, and the ceramic-bezel 114060 launched in 2012.

The 5513 is the emotional reference; the 14060M is the practical bridge; the 114060 is the first fully modern no-date Submariner. The 124060 is best understood as an evolution of the 114060 rather than a fresh start. Both use a Cerachrom bezel insert, a sapphire crystal, a Triplock crown, Oystersteel construction, and a 300-metre water-resistance rating. The difference is that the 114060 carried the so-called “Super Case,” with broad, squared-off lugs and a visually heavy stance. The 124060 keeps the ceramic-era robustness but restores a more balanced silhouette.

Rolex introduced the 124060 in September 2020 alongside the Submariner Date 126610LN and 126610LV. That launch matters because it updated the entire Submariner family at once. For the no-date model, the change from calibre 3130 to calibre 3230 was the most consequential mechanical update since the 14060M. The 124060 is therefore not merely the current no-date Submariner; it is the first no-date Submariner of the 32xx movement generation.

Case and Proportions: 41 mm, but Not the Whole Story

Rolex lists the 124060 as 41 mm, which has encouraged lazy claims that the Submariner became meaningfully larger in 2020. In practice, the change is subtler. The case grew nominally from the 40 mm of the 114060, but the redistribution of mass matters more than the number. The lugs were narrowed, the crown guards were refined, and the bracelet widened from 20 mm to 21 mm at the case. The result is a watch that looks less blocky than its predecessor despite the larger stated diameter.

The 124060 is made from Oystersteel, Rolex’s name for its 904L-family stainless steel alloy. It has a monobloc middle case, screw-down case back, and Triplock screw-down crown. Water resistance remains 300 metres, which is historically consistent with the modern Submariner since the 16800 era. The bezel is unidirectional with a 60-minute scale, and the black Cerachrom insert uses a platinum-coated recessed numerals and graduations. This is not decorative nostalgia; it is a highly durable solution to the fading and scratching that defined many aluminium-bezel Submariners in actual use.

The dial is equally controlled. The 124060 uses the familiar black, gloss-lacquer dial with large Chromalight-filled hour markers and Mercedes hour hand. The absence of a date window preserves the symmetry that collectors tend to overstate in theory but often correctly value in practice. With no cyclops lens interrupting the sapphire crystal, the 124060 has a visual calm that the 126610LN cannot quite match. The Date model is more convenient; the 124060 is more disciplined.

The Bracelet and Clasp: Where the Modern Submariner Earns Its Case

The 21 mm Oyster bracelet is one of the quiet reasons the 124060 works. On the 114060, the 20 mm bracelet could make the case head appear wider than it was, emphasizing the Super Case lugs. On the 124060, the broader bracelet better supports the head of the watch, and the taper into the clasp gives the watch a more integrated stance. This is not vintage elegance, but it is better modern industrial design.

The clasp is the Oysterlock with Rolex’s Glidelock extension system, allowing tool-free micro-adjustment in 2 mm increments up to approximately 20 mm. For divers, it allows adjustment over a wetsuit. For almost everyone else, it solves the more common problem of wrist expansion over a day. This is where Rolex’s conservatism has an advantage: the system is mechanically simple, secure, and genuinely useful. Many prestige sports watches still get this wrong.

There is a cost to this competence. The clasp is long and physically present, particularly on smaller wrists. The 124060 is not a thin, delicate watch masquerading as a diver. It is a professional-format sports watch with a substantial bracelet and a clasp engineered for adjustment rather than visual delicacy. That trade-off is acceptable because it supports the watch’s purpose, but it should be acknowledged rather than romanticized.

Calibre 3230: The Real Update Below the Dial

The calibre 3230 is the defining technical change between the 114060 and the 124060. It replaced the calibre 3130, a movement with a deserved reputation for durability, and brought the no-date Submariner into Rolex’s newer movement architecture. The 3230 is an automatic, no-date calibre with Rolex’s Chronergy escapement, a blue Parachrom hairspring, Paraflex shock absorbers, and a power reserve of approximately 70 hours. It beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour and is certified as a Superlative Chronometer, meaning Rolex regulates the cased watch to a stated tolerance of -2/+2 seconds per day after COSC certification.

The 70-hour reserve is not a brochure improvement. It changes ownership. A 124060 can be taken off on Friday evening and still be running on Monday morning. The older calibre 3130’s approximately 48-hour reserve was entirely serviceable, but the 3230 better fits contemporary rotation habits, especially for collectors who wear several watches.

Finishing is functional rather than theatrical. There is no display back, and Rolex does not compete in the hand-finishing language of haute horlogerie. The 3230 is built for stability, serviceability, and volume-controlled precision, not for visual seduction under a loupe. The bridges are cleanly machined, the rotor is efficient, and the escapement technology is purposeful. That is the correct standard by which to judge it. A Submariner movement should be robust, accurate, and recoverable through the service network. The 3230 is designed around those priorities.

One caution belongs in any serious discussion of modern Rolex ownership: the broader 32xx movement family has generated documented owner and watchmaker discussion about low-amplitude performance in some examples over time. It would be irresponsible to present that as a universal flaw, and equally irresponsible to pretend the discussion does not exist. The practical position is measured: the 3230 gives the 124060 a meaningful technical advantage over the 3130, while Rolex’s five-year warranty and service infrastructure are part of the ownership proposition.

How the 124060 Wears

On the wrist, the 124060 is more refined than its specification sheet suggests. The nominal 41 mm size is moderated by a lug-to-lug span that remains wearable for a wide range of wrists, and the case thickness stays within the practical sports-watch zone rather than becoming a desk-diver caricature. The broad bracelet distributes weight well, and the flat case back helps the watch sit securely.

Compared with the 114060, the current watch feels less abruptly squared at the corners. Compared with the older 14060M, it is more substantial, more polished, and less tool-like. That is the central tension of the 124060: it is historically descended from utilitarian dive watches, but it is now manufactured and perceived as a luxury object. The ceramic bezel, glossy dial, solid-link bracelet, and polished case flanks make that unavoidable.

Still, the 124060 is one of the few modern luxury sports watches that does not require much adjustment in daily wear. It works with casual clothing, under a cuff, in travel, and in water. Its restraint helps. There is no green bezel, no two-tone case, no precious metal, no anniversary colour. Just black dial, black bezel, steel case, and the minimum complication set. That is not boring. It is editorial discipline expressed as product design.

Market Position and Collector Logic

The 124060 occupies a peculiar position in the market because it is both mass-recognized and difficult to buy at retail in many regions. Rolex authorized dealers allocate steel Submariners carefully, and the no-date model is often treated as only marginally less in demand than the Submariner Date 126610LN. Its retail price has moved upward since launch, and in the secondary market it has generally traded above list, though the premiums of 2021 and early 2022 have moderated substantially.

For collectors, the argument for the 124060 is sharper than the argument for many modern Rolex references. It is the first no-date Submariner with the calibre 3230, the corrected-proportion successor to the 114060, and the current expression of the non-date line that runs through the 5513 and 14060M. It is not rare in the traditional sense, and nobody should buy it on the fantasy that Rolex will suddenly stop producing steel Submariners in meaningful numbers. Its appeal is not scarcity. Its appeal is that it is the right version of a watch Rolex has been refining for more than seventy years.

Against the 126610LN, the choice is philosophical as much as practical. The Date offers everyday convenience and the instantly recognizable cyclops profile. The 124060 offers dial symmetry and a clearer link to the original Submariner concept. If the watch will be the owner’s only mechanical watch, the Date may be more useful. If the watch is being chosen as the distilled Submariner, the 124060 is the stronger reference.

Why It Endures

The Rolex Submariner 124060 endures because it does not depend on novelty. Its case architecture, bezel action, bracelet adjustment, water resistance, and movement performance are all modern, but the watch resists the impulse to advertise its modernity too loudly. That is unusual in the current luxury sports-watch market, where small changes are often presented as revolutions and colour variants are asked to carry entire product cycles.

The 124060 is not the most historically romantic Submariner; a matte-dial 5513 has more period character. It is not the slimmest or most understated; a 14060M wears with more old-world lightness. It is not the most functionally convenient; the 126610LN has the date. But as a current-production mechanical dive watch that balances lineage, build quality, movement autonomy, and daily wearability, the 124060 is the most convincing modern no-date Submariner Rolex has made.

That judgement rests on specifics, not mythology: reference 124060, introduced in 2020; 41 mm Oystersteel case; 300-metre rating; black Cerachrom bezel; 21 mm Oyster bracelet with Glidelock; calibre 3230 with 70 hours of reserve and Superlative Chronometer regulation. It is a conservative watch, but not a lazy one. Rolex changed what needed changing after the 114060 and left the core intact. In an industry that often confuses variation with progress, that restraint is exactly why the 124060 remains the modern Submariner to understand first.

Photography: © Rolex. The editorial video is assembled from these credited product photographs.