Imagine: A SERIES of NEW “pop drink” GMt masters

Every year, just before Baselworld, the online watch world fills up with countless predictions on what the king of the castle, Rolex, will reveal. Those are often accompanied with drool-worthy renderings of potential new models. While most of the predictions fail to meet reality, the renderings make us watch nerds dream of what could be, if only Rolex decided to loosen up and maybe even get a little wild.

After Hodinkee (big fans, btw) posted this interesting concept of what a Sprite GMT might look like, we decided to roll up our sleeves, sharpen our mouse pointers, let our creative juices flow and imagine what a slew of new GMTs might look like.

We all know about the popular Pepsi and Root Beer GMT models, affectionately named after the soft drinks they resemble visually. Well, we thought, what if the GMT did not only look like these two fizzy drinks. What if, when pilots, travellers, and John Mayer look at their wrists, they see that familiar ticking machine, but in a variety of new colour schemes, drawing inspiration from other popular drinks – spanning from, say… Fanta, to grape soda, to that drink that gives you wings.

Anyway, on to the new GMTs. Keep in mind, these are only concepts that currently exist just in our imaginations, and don’t take into account the actual feasibility of production. In fact, most of the colour combinations may not even be possible to create out of a single piece of ceramic, but sometimes it’s nice to just forget about reality, close our eyes, and dream. It was a wise person who once said “Imagination feeds the spirit and frees the soul.” Actually, we just made that up, but it sounds good, doesn’t it 😉

So, without further ado, drumroll please…

The Coke

No, Mr. Escobar, it’s not that kind of coke. So please put your stacks of cash away feast your eyes on this:

We have heard rumours and seen pictures of a Rolex Coke for quite some time, but (so far), they have all been unfounded, and quite honestly, just one big tease. So we decided to come up with our own version, to start off this thought experiment. The bright, beautiful red on our version takes inspiration from the red on a Coke can (obviously), and so does the red GMT hand.

There is one additional little detail, however, and that is the red “GMT Master II” text. We think this Red Sub/Seadweller-esque element not only cements the concept of a Rolex Coke, but it also differentiates it from its lifelong rival, the Pepsi. And, to be honest, it looks damn cool!

The Sprite in Stainless Steel

While Hodinkee already did a version of a Sprite, we wanted to go in a slightly different direction.

Once again inspired by the colours of a Sprite can, we decided to use blue and green on the bezel. The blue we used is a dark, inky, midnight sort of blue, perfect for indicating the nighttime hours on the bezel. The green, on the other hand, is a fresh, almost chrome shade, making this colour combination très, très cool, both in terms of colour theory, and also in the James Dean/Paul Newman kind of sense.

Finally, just like the splash of a lemon on a Sprite can, we thought that the addition of a yellow “GMT Master II” text might be a perfect finishing touch. And you know what? It is.

The Sprite in White Gold

While designing the first Sprite watch, we had a bit of an epiphany. Rolex already makes a blue dial GMT Master II watch. What if we use that blue as the basis for another Sprite design. Well, what if?

What you see here is the outcome if this brilliant idea – a Sprite Rolex in white gold, on an oyster bracelet. The green, top part of the bezel is the same shade as on the stainless steel Sprite, however, this time it is used to indicate the night hours. And while green is not typically used to indicate nighttime, one has to admit, it does have an Aurora Borealis type of vibe.

The yellow on the bezel and GMT hand is a darker shade on what you might expect on a Sprite watch, but we think it ties quite nicely with the other two colours. In addition, when combined with the green, you get the same colour combination as in the Rolex logo, giving this timepiece extra charm points. Perhaps the small subset of watch aficionados able to afford this (it is white gold, after all) might affectionately also nickname it the Rolex LeRolex and wear it while driving their Ferrari LaFerraris.

The Red Bull / modern blueberry

If you were wondering if the world’s most popular energy drink will get its own version of a Rolex GMT Master, wonder no more. The answer is a resounding YES!

This variation varies from the pack in a couple of ways.

Firstly, the bezel is one single colour – a dark inky blue used to indicate both night and day. If there is one colour that can be designated for both periods of one Earthly rotation around its own axis, well… blue is it.

The second interesting variation is that the tip of the GMT hand is also painted red. When these two elements are combined, what you get is an homage to the rare and highly coveted Blueberry GMT from yesteryear. A nice little touch, we think.

Finally, a yellow line of text completes the Red Bull ensemble.

If we were perfectly honest, this is probably our favourite piece of the bunch.

The Grape Soda

This version of the GMT might be the only one that would be better suited on a woman’s wrist rather than a man’s. And that’s okay. It would be damn cool to go out on a date with a gal and have her show up with a Rolex Grape Soda.

But that’s not all. This gorgeous blue and purple variation also pays homage to the reference 1675. As some of you may know, certain models from this reference had the red fade to a purple/fuchsia hue, giving watch collectors yet another thing to salivate over. Having a modern-day version of this would give gals (and guys) a super cool timepiece to impress people at the next watch meetup.

While we are at it, why not make another version with a small, but refreshing detail – a green line of text, to give it that extra “wow” factor. Which version do you prefer? With or without the green text?

The Fanta

Did you think we would go through this thought experiment and skip the world’s best orange soda (sorry Orange Crush), all the while missing the opportunity to add some orange to a GMT Master model, à-la Explorer II.

This variation is one that makes almost too much sense. Combining two complimentary colours: blue and orange (thanks 9th grade art class) – check. A dark, inky shade of blue to indicate the night hours – check. A bright orange to indicate a scorching hot summer day – check. A full orange GMT hand (tip included) to emphasize the orange theme – check. A final finishing touch of a green line of text inspired by a green leaf on a freshly picked orange – CHECK AND MATE!

The “Real” Fanta

While we are on the topic of Fanta – why not go all in on the orange theme and create a version with an all orange bezel?

After all, Rolex used to make one with an all black bezel, and another one with an all blue bezel. Yet none of those could be spotted on one’s wrist from a mile away. That is, until now. Or more realistically – never. As in, while we can imagine Rolex actually producing one or two of the other variations, they will most likely never create something like this. That doesn’t mean we can’t imagine what a “real” Rolex GMT Fanta might look like.

The Dr Pepper

Did you know that the introduction of Dr. Pepper preceded the introduction of Coca-Cola by one year? Neither did we. But now we all do. Thanks Wikipedia.

Anyway, on to the watch. For the final variation in this series (for now), we gave the entire bezel a burgundy colour that we think will look incredible in ceramic. The GMT hand gets the same treatment, including the tip. And while this version lacks the colour variations of the others, we think it stays true to the Dr. Pepper colour scheme (after all, that was the whole point of this exercise).

As an added bonus, it pays tribute to the Black Bay Burgundy from little brother Tudor. How about that, huh? A Rolex watch as an homage to a Tudor? We guess imagination has no boundaries after all 😉