Rolex GMT-Master II "Batman" Oyster 126710BLNR 2021

Reference 126710BLNR on the Oyster bracelet: the “Batman”, the same watch as the Batgirl with a different bracelet and, for no very good reason, a different name.

What a GMT-Master II actually does is worth spelling out, because a lot of owners never set one up properly. The hour hand jumps in one-hour steps on its own, independently of the minutes, so when you land you move it to local time and the watch never stops running. The arrow-tipped hand carries on circling once every 24 hours and reads home time off the bezel. Rotate the bezel and you have a third zone. It was built for airline crews and it still suits anyone who has to think in two places at once.

The Oyster bracelet is the harder-edged choice. Three broad flat links, sitting flatter than a Jubilee, and against a black and blue bezel it keeps the watch firmly in sports territory instead of letting it drift towards dress.

Calibre 3285, self-winding, approximately 70 hours of power reserve, certified to minus two and plus two seconds a day after casing. Forty millimetres of Oystersteel, bidirectional 24-hour bezel with the two-colour Cerachrom insert, waterproof to 100 metres, Oysterlock safety clasp with the 5 mm Easylink extension.

Dated 2021 and listed honestly as used, offered as a full set and priced for a watch that has been worn rather than stored. Buying second hand is rather the point of this one.

Every watch is authenticated by an independent watchmaker before it changes hands, never by us. Viewing by appointment at our Collins Street boutique in Melbourne, insured delivery Australia-wide. We buy Rolex outright and source specific references on request.