Rolex Bluesy (Two-Tone Submariner): Refs, History & Super Clone

The Rolex Bluesy is the yellow Rolesor Submariner Date — the steel-and-18ct-yellow-gold model with a blue dial and matching blue bezel. The nickname covers four generations of references, from the 16803 of the mid-1980s through the 16613 (1988–2009) and 116613LB (2009–2020) to the current 41mm 126613LB, launched in 2020 and still in production.

Why is it called the Bluesy?

Unlike the Hulk or the Smurf, the Bluesy owes nothing to a cartoon. It is plain trade shorthand — an affectionate contraction of “blue” that dealers and early forum users attached to the blue-dial two-tone Submariner, in circulation since long before social media made watch nicknames a sport. The name follows the colour scheme rather than any single reference: whichever steel-and-gold Submariner wears the blue dial and bezel in the current catalogue is “the Bluesy”. Rolex’s own term for the metal pairing is yellow Rolesor, a trademark the brand has held since 1933.

References

Four references carry the nickname, spanning aluminium and ceramic bezel eras.

Reference Years Key spec Status
16803 c. 1984–1988 First blue Rolesor Submariner Date, cal. 3035 Discontinued
16613 1988–2009 Blue aluminium bezel insert, cal. 3135 Discontinued
116613LB 2009–2020 Blue Cerachrom ceramic bezel, sunburst blue dial, 40mm Discontinued
126613LB 2020–present 41mm case, cal. 3235, 70-hour power reserve In production

The blue Rolesor Submariner has now run for around four decades without a break — four reference generations of the same colour scheme, making the Bluesy one of the longest-lived recipes in the Submariner catalogue.

Super clone availability

GrandWatch Club stocks 4 versions of the Bluesy, priced from £434 to £904, covering both the ceramic-bezel 116613LB and the current 126613LB. The £434 tier uses a Japanese automatic movement, while the £904 Swiss SuperClone tier fits a Swiss movement with closer replication of the sunburst blue dial, the two-tone Oyster bracelet and the gold-tone centre links. Between the two references you can choose either the discontinued 40mm look or the current 41mm proportions.