Introduced in 1956, the Day-Date replaced more complicated pieces like the 1949 Triple Calendar Moonphase (ref. 8171, a.k.a. Padellone) and that same watch in an Oyster case in 1950 (ref. 6062, a.k.a. Stelline). Neither model found great success (at least, back in the days, as we’re now talking about highly collectable pieces), and both were discontinued in 1953, never to be seen again in the UK perfect replica Rolex portfolio.
When presented in 1956, this made the less complex Day-Date the “complicated one” in the range. The cheap super clone Rolex Day-Date watches were the first wristwatch with a day of the week written out in full, which sat in an arched window at 12 o’clock with a separate date at 3 o’clock – a display that we now associate with most day-date best fake watches on the market, whatever the maker. The mechanism was described in Swiss patent CH322341A of 1955, as invented by Rolex engineer Marc Huguenin.
The UK high quality copy Rolex Day-Date watches were the hero watch from the beginning, available in yellow, pink and white gold with a smooth bezel (ref. 6510) or fluted (ref. 6511). These early 1956 models came with a Jubilee bracelet, but an entirely new President bracelet would soon become standard.
The Swiss replica Rolex with Oyster case was 36mm in diameter and had a twin-lock crown with two o-rings, allowing for water resistance of 100 metres – surprisingly good for a watch of this category. This crown system was first seen in 1953 on the Submariner. The dial had gold applied indices and Dauphine-style hands over a champagne or black dial (the latter being less common), and the date window had a cyclops lens like the prior Datejust. These first two shop replica watches reference were only produced for one year. Why? The early calibre had technical issues with advancing the date, so ref. 6611 debuted in 1957 to address the shortcoming.
