Rolex signified its more economical timepieces with the text "Precision" printed on the dial. These watches carried in-house movements that were well-made but manually wound. This was until the Air-King was introduced to the world in 1957 and became the premier model of Rolex’s more affordable Precision model range. These watches still featured the "Precision" text, but the Air-King housed a fully automatic movement. Although the rest of the Precision model line eventually fizzled out, the modest Air-King has been updated and evolved over the years and remains a fixture within the Rolex lineup today.

Being that the Air-King was introduced as a high-quality, yet economical offering from Rolex, it may come as a surprise that this model was also produced in precious metals as well, albeit, in extremely limited numbers. Within the 5500 reference range, the Air-King model with the longest production period, there was an extremely limited production of pieces produced in 14K yellow gold. The example presented here is beautifully preserved and retains an extremely uncommon JB Champion 14K yellow gold-brick bracelet. 

CASE & BRACELET

The thick and crisp 14K yellow gold case exhibits full and symmetrical dimensions throughout with minimal signs of previous polishing or wear present. The smooth 14K yellow gold bezel displays nominal signs of use and remains in excellent condition overall. The watch comes supplied on a rarely seen Rolex "Made in USA" 14K yellow gold brick-link bracelet manufactured by JB Champion, which also features a Florintine-style crosshatched finishing throughout. The bracelet itself is in impressive condition with very light stretch present and will fit between a 7 3/4-inch wrist and a  6 3/4-inch wrist depending on how it is sized within the clasp.

DIAL & HANDS

The original glossy black dial with gold printing is in exceptional, near-perfect condition with no damage or notable signs of age present. The tritium lume plots have achieved a charming golden-yellow patina, under UV light inspection the 2 o'clock lume plot is missing, however, the rest of the lum plots remain fully intact with no degradation. The original yellow gold hands match the dial perfectly and show no degradation when inspected under UV light.

ACCESSORIES 

None. The watch is keeping time perfectly, backed by a 1-year warranty on accurate timekeeping.