Rolex Submariner 5513 vs 1680

The date. The 1680 has a date disc under a cyclops magnifier and a caliber that drives it; the 5513 has neither. That sounds minor, but it changes the look of the watch. The 5513 dial is symmetrical and the crystal is a plain dome. The 1680 has the cyclops bump at three and the date window interrupting the marker layout. People who like one usually do not like the other, so the choice is mostly aesthetic.

There is also a small difference in feel when setting: the 1680 crown pulls out to a date position, the 5513 does not. Neither has a quickset date; on the 1680 you cycle the hands through midnight.

Yes. The cyclops gives the 1680 away instantly, and the date window is visible even when the crystal is worn. Beyond that, the dials say different things. A 1680 dial reads Submariner in red on early examples and in white after about 1975, with the depth rating in a two-line layout. A 5513 dial reads Submariner in white with the depth rating above it, and the earliest gilt examples have gold printing on a glossy black ground.

The reference is also engraved between the lugs at twelve. Pull the bracelet end-link back and read it; this is the first thing we check on any Submariner.

• Cyclops over a date window: 1680.
• Red Submariner text: early 1680, and the most sought after.
• Gilt gloss dial with gold printing: early 5513.
• Feet-first depth rating: later 5513 or later 1680.

The 1680 had the shorter run, roughly a decade against the 5513's twenty-seven years, so there are fewer of them. The red-text 1680, the version most collectors want, was made for only about the first six years and is scarcer again. On the 5513 side, the early gilt dials and the meters-first matte dials are the rare ones, while a late feet-first 5513 is the most common vintage Submariner there is.

The condition of the dial makes the real difference. An untouched dial on either reference is rarer than the reference itself.

If you want the purest form of the vintage Submariner and the widest choice of examples, the 5513 is the sensible pick. If you want a date and you like the two-line or red-text dial, the 1680 is a more distinctive watch and a stronger collector piece.

The 5513 is usually the more affordable of the two in comparable condition, with the gap widening for red 1680s and closing for gilt 5513s. The examples below show actual sale prices from our own inventory, including a 1680 with a ghosted bezel insert that sold from our stock.

Both are core vintage Rolex references and both have long records of steady demand. Our observation is that the 1680, especially the red-text version, tends to be tighter in supply and firmer at the top end, while the 5513 has broader demand and moves with the market as a whole. A gilt 5513 is a different animal and trades closer to the top of the range.

Originality decides more than the reference. Ghosted or faded inserts, cream lume and unpolished cases all add, whichever reference you choose. Replacement dials and inserts subtract, on both.

The 5513, usually. There are more of them, the late matte-dial versions are well documented, and the price of entry is lower. It teaches you how a vintage Submariner should look and feel before you commit more money to a 1680.

If the date matters to you, look for a white-text 1680 from the late 1970s. It gives you the date and the cyclops at a price closer to the 5513 and is easier to verify than a red one, where the dial variants are numerous and the incentive to fake or swap is high.