Watch Paparazzi

Watchmaker Roger W. Smith spotted wearing Rolex

Inside his Isle of Man atelier, Roger W. Smith — one of the most celebrated independent watchmakers alive — wears a Rolex Explorer 1 reference 114270 on his wrist while hand-finishing components most manufacturers delegate to machines. The image is quietly eloquent: a man who can build a watch entirely from scratch choosing to wear one of the most reliable production watches ever made.

The Rolex Explorer 1 ref. 114270 was produced from 1998 to 2010 and represents one of the cleaner chapters in the Explorer lineage. It runs on the calibre 3130, a self-winding movement with a bidirectional rotor, Parachrom hairspring for improved shock and magnetic resistance, and a 48-hour power reserve. The 36mm stainless steel Oyster case, rated to 100 metres, wears the classic 3-6-9 dial in matte black with Mercedes hands and applied hour markers — a design directly descended from the original 1953 Explorer worn on Edmund Hillary's wrist at the summit of Everest.

The 114270 occupies a specific sweet spot among collectors. It is the last 36mm Explorer before Rolex upsized to 39mm with the ref. 214270 in 2010, making it the final expression of the traditional tool-watch proportions that defined the model for half a century. Purists value it precisely for that restraint. No date complication, no superfluous detail — just a legible, accurate, near-indestructible watch.

For Smith, the choice carries its own logic. A watchmaker who dedicates months to a single movement, hand-cutting every wheel and finishing every surface to museum standard, has no need to signal expertise through what he wears. The Explorer 1 is, above all, a professional's watch — built for function first. Smith trained under George Daniels on the Isle of Man and inherited both his mentor's workshop and his uncompromising philosophy. That he reaches for a Rolex rather than one of his own pieces for daily atelier wear speaks to pragmatism over vanity.

On the grey market, the ref. 114270 has appreciated steadily as the 36mm format enjoys renewed collector interest. Clean examples with original dials trade well above their original retail price, benefiting from the broader trend toward smaller, uncluttered sport watches. It remains one of the most accessible entry points into vintage-adjacent Rolex collecting.