Rolex Milgauss Facts – 22 Interesting Facts about the Milgauss
The Rolex Milgauss is arguably the most underrated professional watch from Rolex. It has always stood in the shade of more popular professional models and tends to be a watch that does not appeal to everyone.
But the Rolex Milgauss has a long and interesting history, launched at around the same time as several other professional models from Rolex.
However, Milgauss’s road has not been straight. In fact, the Milgauss was off production for a long time until it was finally reintroduced again.
Whilst the Milgauss is not Rolex’s most popular model, it’s still a very interesting model line with a great history and interesting details, albeit shorter than some of its other models. In this article, we are taking a closer look at 22 interesting facts about the Rolex Milgauss.
Facts about Rolex Milgauss
1. The Milgauss was first released in 1956
The Milgauss model was first conceived in 1956. This was during an era when Rolex released numerous new models specifically developed for professionals in various fields.
2. The first Milgauss reference was 6543
Some believe that the reference 6541 was the first Milgauss reference. But Rolex actually made a model before this, the reference 6543. The reason this watch is so unknown is that it was a prototype, issued to people to test ‘in the field. Since it was a prototype, the production number of this model is extremely low. It is estimated that Rolex only around 150 examples before it was replaced by the almost identical 6541.
As such, it is the single most sought-after Milgauss model.
3. The Milgauss is the only Rolex to feature tinted glass
The Milgauss with reference “GV” has a green-tinted sapphire crystal. And it is the first and only Rolex watch to feature a tinted crystal. The tinted crystal gives the watch more personality and certainly helps it stand out from the crowd, making it a distinct feature on some Milgauss watches.
4. Milgauss is French for 1000 gauss
The name derives from the French word “Mille”, one thousand in French, and “Gauss”, the unit of a magnetic field. The name is of course highly appropriate for a watch made for scientists. The watch is built to withstand 1000 gauss, and so the name reflects that.
5. The Milgauss uses a faraday cage as a magnetic shield to protect the movement
There are several different aspects of a Milgauss that are meant to improve its anti-magnetic properties. The most important, however, is the faraday case that he Milgauss uses. The faraday case is made of ferromagnetic alloys which shield and protect the movement from magnetism.
6. The Milgauss was developed in partnership with CERN
Since Rolex developed the Milgauss for scientists, what better partner to help with the development of this watch than one of the world’s most prestigious and reputable scientific laboratories.
Rolex partnered with CERN, the European particle physics laboratory to help them test the anti-magnetic properties of their watch. Rolex’s partnership with CERN remains to this very day. In developing the Milgauss, Rolex sent the watch to The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) for testing.
7. The first Milgauss is basically a Submariner
If you look at the first Rolex Milgauss, there are clear similarities with the Submariner that was in production during this time. The reason for this is that it is essentially one. It uses the same case and has primarily been reworked visually to get a distinct and unique appearance. Rolex of course improved the anti-magnetic properties of the watch with a shield and reworked the dial and bezel, but at its core, it is a Submariner.
8. Not all Milgauss watches have lightning-bolt seconds hands
By now, the lightning-bolt seconds hand has become a distinct and iconic feature of the Milgauss. But the truth is, not all Milgauss watches have had this.
The reference was 1019 introduced in the 1960s and this was the first model not to have a lightning-bolt seconds hand. It did not have a rotating bezel, either, like the first model. At its core, the 1019 is basically an Oyster Perpetual at its core, using the same case. Instead of using a lightning-bolt seconds hand, it has a straight, thin hand with a red arrow tip.
The reference 1019 is therefore the only Milgauss to not have a lightning-bolt seconds hand. It was discontinued in 1988 due to limited popularity. This could be explained by the fact that it looked basically like an Oyster Perpetual and didn’t have its own identity.
9. The Milgauss model was discontinued for almost 20 years
It’s not common for Rolex to discontinue models for a long time and then reintroduce them. But it does happen, and one such occasion is the Milgauss.
The fact is that the Milgauss model was actually discontinued and not in production at all for almost 20 years. As such, it came as quite a surprise when Rolex finally decided to reintroduce this model to its collection. Rolex discontinued the reference 1019 in 1988 and it would take until 2007 when a relaunch of the Milgauss took place. In relaunching the Milgauss line, Rolex took inspiration from both older models and current professional watches. The result was a completely new watch, but with inspiration from its past.
10. The Milgauss green glass was first released in 2007
To many, the green glass of the Milgauss is a distinct, iconic feature. But the truth is that most of the Milgauss references have not had this glass. The green glass was not introduced until 2007, 51 years after the first Milgauss was launched. The first reference to feature a green crystal was the 116400GV.
11. The Milgauss was originally designed for scientists
Rolex has a number of different “professional” watches in its collection. All of the watches within the professional line are, as the name suggests, developed for professionals in different fields. During the 1950s, Rolex looked at how they could develop practical tools that professionals in various fields could find beneficial.
As such, the Milgauss was originally designed for scientists who often and regularly found themselves around magnetic fields. And as you know, magnetism is a big issue for mechanical watches as it can greatly affect the accuracy of a watch. Therefore, Rolex set out to resolve this issue, and they did so by releasing the Milgauss, able to withstand up to 1000 gauss.
12. The “GV” in 116400GV stands for “Glace Vert”
All of the Milgauss watches that have green glass are designated “GV” at the end of the reference number. GV stands for “Glace vert” and is French for “Green glass”.
13. Rolex did not get a patent for the green glass because it is so difficult to make
When Rolex first released the green glass for the Milgauss with the reference 116500GV, they announces that they had not bothered to apply for a patent due to the extreme difficulty in making the glass. In other words, they were so confident that no one else would attempt to make it due to the complexity.
14. Rolex improved the watch’s anti-magnetic properties with a blue Parachrom hairspring
Whilst the key feature of a Milgauss to make it resistant against magnetism is its Faraday cage in ferromagnetic alloys, Rolex upgraded the movement of its watch to further improve its anti-magnetic properties. With the launch of the 116400, Rolex introduced the new caliber 3131 which features a blue Parahcrom hairspring. The hairspring is usually the most sensitive to magnetic fields and if this part becomes magnetized, it can greatly affect the watch’s accuracy and performance. As such, the blue Parahcrom hairspring is insensitive to magnetic fields and is a great addition to an anti-magnetic watch.
15. The Milgauss has exclusively been made in stainless steel
It makes sense to make professional watches exclusively in stainless steel. It’s robust, it’s long-lasting, it’s cheap, and it’s durable. But as we have seen for many other professional models like the Daytona and the Submariner, Rolex has released numerous iterations of them in precious metals. But not for the Milgauss.
The Milgauss has exclusively been made in stainless steel.
16. The Milgauss has white gold hands and hour markers
A small detail that not a lot of people are aware of is that both the hands and the hour markers are actually made in white gold. Rolex started to introduce white gold hands and hour markers as a way to combat tarnishing which they saw happen to some of its older watches. As such, the older Milgauss watches still have stainless steel hour markers and hands.
17. The Milgauss can withstand more than 1000 gauss
Whilst the name clearly suggests it is resistant to 1000 gauss, that is actually not the case anymore. Whilst it was true when the Milgauss was released, Rolex has improved the anti-magnetic properties of its older watches. But they cannot just change an iconic and well-known name just like that. So rather than giving it a new name, they keep it instead.
The technology behind the anti-magnetism of the Milgauss has been improved over the years, and the most important upgrade was the blue Parachrom hairspring. With these upgrades, the Milgauss is resistant to more than 1,000 gauss, but the iconic name still remains.
18. The first Milgauss models were powered by the caliber 10
The first Rolex models were powered by the Rolex caliber 1080. This is an anti-magnetic version of the caliber 1030. Rolex would later come to change this movement for the caliber 1580 as they released a new model. The latter also brought the hacking seconds function to the model
19. The re-introduction of the Milgauss coincided with the completion of CERN’s Large Hadron Collider
When Rolex reintroduced the Milgauss in 1007, it coincided with the completion of CERN’s large hadron collider. And this is hardly a coincidence. Due to the close connection between Rolex and CERN for this model, it made sense that they would time the reintroduction of such an important event with the reintroduction of a timepiece having a close relationship with it.
20. Rolex released a Milgauss model without lume at the request of scientists at CERN
By special request from the scientists at CERN, Rolex released a version of the Milgauss with no lume on hour indexes or hands. The Tritium luminescent material the brand was using at the time, although significantly safer than the former Radium, was still radioactive enough to disrupt the sensitive equipment being used in laboratories. Known as the CERN dial models, these extremely rare versions of the Milgauss now make up some of the most desirable examples of the watch.
21. The ferromagnetic shield has a “B” engraved on it
Technically, the Milgauss has two different shields on the case back. First, we have the regular case back, and then, we have the Faraday shield. This shield is engraved with a “B” with an arrow above it. This is the symbol for magnetic flux density.
22. The first Milgauss models can be traced back to 1954
Whilst we stated that the Milgauss was first released in 1956, the fact is that there are early examples that can be traced back to 1954. As a matter of fact, even Rolex promotes the Milgauss as having been born in 1956.
How is this possible?
Well, this can be explained by the fact that these very early Milgauss watches were mere prototypes
