Rolex Movements & Year Span.

Alright Swiss Monsters, remember this list should be used as a reference point. Please remember that with most things "Rolex" nothing is certain and many "sure" facts are constantly amended.

This list was borrowed from TRF, which was borrowed from a NAWCC member. The NAWCC is a wonderful organization---and is in my opinion, a must join for enthusiast

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For what it's worth, the rotor bridges, which bear the model numbers on all "15 series" movements, are all interchangeable. It's entirely possible to see a 1530 with a 1570 rotor bridge, or a 1520 with a 1555 rotor bridge, or any other strange combination. In this instance, the movement is actually a 1575 (for which the 1570 rotor bridge is correct), and I suspect it's there because something unfortunate happened to the original (probably rust).

The "D" prefix in serial numbers of "15 series" movements, indicates that the movement in question was equipped with a date mechanism (the 1575 is the "date" version of the 1570). "President" models (1555, etc.), have movements with serial numbers that begin with "DD," which obviously means "day-date." Movements intended for standard Oyster Perpetuals, etc., which didn't have dates, have serial numbers with no letter prefixes.

The various "15 series" movements were produced as follows:

1520 -- 1963-1980
1525 -- 1965-1980
1530 -- 1957-1964
1535 -- 1957-1967
1555 -- 1959-1967
1556 -- 1965-1978
1560 -- 1965-1967
1565 -- 1959-1967
1565GMT -- 1962-1967
1570 -- 1965-1979
1575 -- 1965-1979
1575GMT -- 1965-1979
1580 -- 1963-1979

Hope this helps!

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Steve Maddox
President, NAWCC Chapter #62
North Little Rock, Arkansas