Rolex Oyster Perpetual Deepsea Challenge RLX Titanium

Geneva, 1 November 2022. Filmmaker and explorer James Cameron unveils the Oyster Perpetual Deepsea Challenge. Inspired by the experimental watch that accompanied him on his historic 10,908-metre (35,787 feet) descent into the Mariana Trench on 26 March 2012, the Deepsea Challenge represents a new milestone in the world of Rolex divers’ watches. 

Guaranteed waterproof to a depth of 11,000 metres (36,090 feet), crafted from RLX titanium, and equipped with a helium escape valve and the Ringlock system, it is capable of accompanying divers in any environment – during freedives, submersible dives or in hyperbaric chambers. A watch designed to turn pressure into an ally in any situation, and an invitation to expand yet further the horizons of the deep.

Unveiled in 1970, the Triplock winding crown includes two sealed zones inside the crown tube and a third inside the crown itself. This triple waterproofness system provides Rolex divers’ watches with strengthened impermeability. The watches fitted with this system have three markings located under the Rolex emblem on the face of the winding crown. The creation of this winding crown, a technological masterpiece, calls on the skills of almost all of the experts specialized in case and bracelet manufacture.

The spectrum of Rolex expertise in an exceptional divers’ watch

The ultimate watch of the deep, the Deepsea Challenge is a diver with unprecedented credentials, designed to withstand extreme pressure. Years of research were required to overcome the watchmaking and manufacturing challenges that its fabrication presented.

While the experimental watch of 2012 was attached to the manipulator arm of James Cameron’s submersible, the Deepsea Challenge is designed to be worn on the wrist. From the production of the case to that of the bracelet, every element of this 50 mm watch has been crafted with everyday use in mind. A watchmaking accomplishment made possible by using a grade 5 titanium alloy selected by Rolex: RLX titanium. Thanks to this robust and particularly lightweight metal, the new watch is 30% lighter than the experimental model of 2012. 

To create a timepiece of harmonious and ergonomic proportions, modifications were made to some of the components – the crystal, for instance, was slimmed down. The Deepsea Challenge is distinctive among the Professional watches for the particularly visible grain in its satin finish and the polished edges of its lugs. The bracelet extension systems – Rolex Glidelock and the Fliplock extension link – allow the watch to be worn over a diving suit up to 7 mm thick.

Made of RLX titanium, the Oyster bracelet of the Deepsea Challenge is equipped with both the Fliplock extension link and the Rolex Glidelock system, innovative extension systems that require no tools for use. Thanks to the combination of these two extension systems, the watch can be worn comfortably over a diving suit up to 7 mm thick.

The Deepsea Challenge incorporates the full spectrum of Rolex’s expertise in divers’ watches. It includes all the major innovations developed by the brand over many years: the Ringlock system, a patented case architecture that enables the watch to withstand extreme pressure; the helium escape valve, which allows surplus gas to escape from the watch during a diver’s decompression phase in a hyperbaric chamber, reducing the pressure inside the case which could otherwise damage the watch; the Triplock crown, with three sealed zones; and the Chromalight display, whose long-lasting luminescence provides exceptional legibility.

Exclusive to Rolex and presented in 2008 for the launch of the Rolex Deepsea, the Chromalight display is characterized by its luminescent material, applied to the hands, the hour markers and the capsule on the rotatable bezel. Containing aluminium, strontium, dysprosium and europium, this substance, the result of a complex and delicate manufacturing process, emits a characteristic blue glow that is exceptionally bright and long-lasting, far outperforming watchmaking standards.

RLX Titanium: Ultralight resistance

RLX titanium is a grade 5 titanium alloy selected by Rolex for its lightness and resistance to deformation and corrosion. Although insensitive to abyssal pressure, the experimental watch that accompanied James Cameron in the Mariana Trench still posed a wearability problem due to its weight, as it was made from 904L steel. To address this issue, RLX titanium was used to create the case and bracelet of the Deepsea Challenge, considerably reducing its weight: the watch is 30% lighter than the experimental watch that inspired it. This new watch has a particularly visible grain in the satin finish on the bracelet and middle case – with the exception of the crown guard. In order to highlight the curved profile of the lugs, the top edges have been chamfered and polished.

To test the waterproofness of each Deepsea Challenge, Rolex specially developed, in partnership with Comex (Compagnie Maritime d’Expertises), an ultra-high-pressure tank capable of reproducing a test pressure equivalent to that exerted by water at a depth of 13,750 metres (45,112 feet).

At the heart of the Oyster case is calibre 3230, a movement entirely developed and manufactured by Rolex. A consummate demonstration of technology, this self-winding movement contains several patented components: the Chronergy escapement and the Parachrom hairspring, insensitive to magnetic fields, as well as Paraflex shock absorbers. Thanks to its barrel architecture and the escapement’s superior efficiency, calibre 3230 offers a power reserve of approximately 70 hours. Like all Rolex watches, the Deepsea Challenge carries the Superlative Chronometer certification and boasts chronometric precision of the order of –2 /+2 seconds per day.

Unveiled in 2022, the Deepsea Challenge is engraved with the words “Mariana Trench” as well as the dates “23-01-1960” and “26-03-2012” on the case back, in homage to the two historic dives into the Mariana Trench in which Rolex watches took part.

A homage to explorers of the abyss

The Deepsea Challenge is engraved with the words “Mariana Trench” as well as the dates “23-01-1960” and “26-03-2012” on the case back, in tribute to two historic dives into the Mariana Trench: that of oceanographer Jacques Piccard and U.S. Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh aboard the Trieste, in 1960, and James Cameron’s solo descent in DEEPSEA CHALLENGER, in 2012. Both expeditions took experimental Rolex watches with them.

The design of the watch that accompanied James Cameron’s dive presented a sizeable challenge for the brand in a short production time. Tested to withstand a depth of 15,000 metres (49,200 feet) and 17 tonnes of pressure on the crystal, it was developed in only a few weeks, thanks to the extensive experience of the Rolex teams in the domain of deep-sea divers’ watches. Throughout the seven-hour dive, three hours of which were spent at the bottom, filming and collecting samples, this experimental watch flawlessly withstood the tremendous pressure, as the 1960 watch had also done.

Today, the Deepsea Challenge marks a new milestone in the human and technical adventure that Rolex engineers and deep-sea explorers have shared for decades.

Technical specifications

Rolex Oyster Perpetual Professional Deepsea Challenge

Reference: 126067

Case

• Material: RLX titanium
• Diameter: 50 mm
• Thickness: 23 mm
• RLX titanium, unidirectional rotatable bezel
• Glass: Domed 9.5-mm-thick scratch-resistant sapphire with anti-reflective coating
• Triplock winding crown in RLX titanium, screw-down, triple waterproofness system
• RLX titanium caseback, solid, screw-down with fine fluting
• Water-resistant to 11,000 metres (36,090 feet)

Dial and hands

• Intense black, matt, fine satin finish
• Hour markers in 18 ct white gold, highly legible Chromalight (long-lasting luminescence, blue glow)
• Hands in 18 ct white gold, highly legible Chromalight (long-lasting luminescence, blue glow)

Movement

• Calibre 3230, Manufacture Rolex
• Mechanical movement with bidirectional self-winding via Perpetual rotor
• Paramagnetic blue Parachrom hairspring • Rolex overcoil • Large balance wheel with variable inertia
• High-precision regulating via four gold Microstella nuts • Traversing balance bridge • High-performance Paraflex shock absorbers
• Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
• Number of jewels: 31
• Power reserve 70 hours

Functions/Indications

• Centre hour, minute and seconds hands
• Stop-seconds for exact time setting
• Helium valve

Strap and buckle

• Oyster RLX titanium bracelet, satin finish, ceramic inserts
• Oysterlock folding safety clasp
• Rolex Glidelock extension system (approx. 20 mm in increments of approx. 2 mm)
• Fliplock extension link (approx. 26 mm)

MSRP

• EUR 25'750
• USD 26'000

For more information, please visit Rolex website.