5 Affordable Tool Watches with Rolex Explorer II Vibes

If Rolex makes a steel sports watch, said watch will be highly sought after, if not downright iconic. The Explorer II is both.

Designed for cave explorers in 1971, the sequel to the mountaineering Explorer had unique features that set it apart — most notably, a fixed 24-hour bezel and a luminous 24-hour hand that allowed its wearers to keep tabs on daytime and nighttime hours while exploring areas devoid of sunlight.

That original version, now colloquially called the “Steve McQueen” despite a lack of evidence that the late actor ever wore one, was retired in 1985 and gave way to the general design language that’s still present in the Explorer II of today in both its original black and popular white “Polar” dial guises.

As an iconic Rolex steel sports watch, the Explorer II is understandably pricey at $9,650. Also, as an iconic Rolex steel sports watch, you’re very unlikely to get one at retail price without spending time on a lengthy waiting list, as the current market rate for the watch is about $1,500 above SRP.

But all is not lost if you’re looking to get a watch with Explorer II vibes without spending a fortune. Below, we’ve selected five alternative watches to the Rolex Explorer II that offer similar styling and functionality. Let’s go exploring.

Unsurprisingly, Rolex’s sister brand Tudor makes one of the best Explorer II alternatives.Photo by Zen Love

To learn more about our testing methodology and how we evaluate products, head here.

Best Overall Rolex Explorer II Alternative: Christopher Ward Sealander GMT

Christopher Ward

What makes the CW our top pick? It’s bulletproof mix of style, functionality and affordability. The design is obviously inspired by the Explorer II — the brand admits as much — but it’s a bit more refined with its applied indices, “Light-catcher” case and smaller case sizes.

It’s highly functional thanks to a Swiss-made GMT movement from Sellita, killer Super-LumiNova lume and 150m of water resistance. And best of all, the price almost looks like a misprint, coming in well under $1,500 on a bracelet. It also comes in some additional colors beyond the requisite black and white, with the Dragonfly Blue variant being especially fetching.

Seiko 5 Sports Field GMT

Seiko

For the absolute bargain pick, as is often the case, we’re going with Seiko. The field watch version of Seiko’s game-changing “5KX” GMT, the 5 Sports Field GMT is powered by the same Cal. 4R34 automatic movement but is smaller at 39mm and features more rugged styling. It’s a bit busy compared to the Explorer II, but its overall vibe and toughness are certainly in the same ballpark.

Ball Engineer III Outlier

Ball

Ball makes some of the toughest watches in the world, full-stop. A newer model for the brand, the Engineer III Outlier is powered by an in-house movement featuring a traveler’s GMT function with an independently adjustable hour hand — just like you’ll find on the Rolex. It’s also crafted from ultra-hard 904L stainless steel … again, like on the Rolex.

You know what isn’t like the Rolex, though? It’s 200m water resistance and 1,000 gauss magnetic field resistance — both of which are higher than what you’ll get with the Explorer II. Then there’s Ball’s trademark tritium gas tube lume, which is always on, requires no charging and lasts up to 25 years. Now, just point us to the nearest cave.

Grand Seiko SBGN003

Grand Seiko

Seiko recently discontinued this watch in favor of a newer generation of quartz GMT sports models that aren’t quite as Rolex-y in their design language. But we think the SBGN003 still deserves a spot in this guide as it’s long been popular with enthusiasts and remains available for purchase at many retailers.

The watch is certainly dressier than the Rolex thanks to Grand Seiko’s trademark Zaratsu polishing, but it still pulls off an Explorer II-like vibe with its 24-hour steel bezel and orange GMT hand contrasting against its black lacquer dial. The 9F86 quartz movement inside might just change your mind about quartz, too, as it’s accurate to an astounding 10 seconds per year and features a local hour hand that can be independently adjusted without interrupting that crazy precision.

Tudor Black Bay Pro

Tudor

Tudor made some big waves when it unveiled this GMT watch at Watches & Wonders 2022, as it came in at a 39mm size that enthusiasts had been hoping for ever since Tudor released the original 41mm Black Bay GMT in 2018. But what took everyone by surprise was the BB Pro’s styling, as it eschewed the Black Bay GMT’s Pepsi look and was a dead ringer for the classic “Steve McQueen” Explorer II that hadn’t been seen in Rolex’s catalog since the ’80s.

If it’s that vintage Explorer II vibe you’re after, the Black Bay Pro is the best watch you can get. So why isn’t it our top overall pick? Well, at over four grand, it’s stretching the idea of “affordable” for most people. (It’s still less than half the cost of an Explorer II, though.)

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