Small but Mighty: The Audemars Piquet Royal Oak ref. 56175

A blue-dial, stainless steel sports watch without the hype.

Everyone and their mother knows about the steel integrated blue dial sports watch craze that’s only been trending up in the past few years. Covid definitely didn’t help the situation, as “hype” was and still is being valued more than craftsmanship and quality. Don’t get me wrong, I’d wear a Nautilus or Royal Oak in a second (and I wouldn’t mind being gifted one!) but there are so many other watches that are far more interesting and worth people’s attention. 

Personally, I’m a collector of all designs and I’ve always admired almost all Genta-designed watches. It’s easy to succumb to hype, what everyone else is buying and wearing, but at the end of the day, you have to make sure you’re enjoying YOUR watch. 

I never thought I would own a Royal Oak, at least not at this stage in my life for obvious reasons: it’s basically a whole yearly salary! I never intended to buy one, but I had a client ask me to source him a “cheaper” Royal Oak (whatever that means). Relative to current market prices, twenty thousand dollars or less for one is actually great! A friend offers me his Royal Oak 56175 with its box and service receipt. I fell in love with it in person. Luckily, the client opted out as he thought the 56175 was too small for him. 

Of course, I had to have it myself because I get high off my own supply. Here’s the thing: it's 33mm and it's a QUARTZ. It's ironic that my most expensive watch is quartz and I paid strictly for the design and nothing more. The only pieces I would ever consider wearing in quartz are the AP Royal Oak and Cartier tank just because of their designs. You can get iterations with alternative materials, highly decorative movements etc, but at the end of the day you’re wearing a piece of art, an icon if you will more than anything. 

These quartz Royal Oaks from the 80s and 90s really are just for design and nothing more, but the owner has to be aware of that. If you can look past its size and mechanics, it's such a fun piece to wear, especially for people with smaller wrists. I opted for this specific 56175 because of the blue textured dial. I love the thinness and proportion of the case — even if maybe I wish it was a tiny bit bigger. I never believed a Royal Oak could be worn with a suit, but I catch myself only wearing the AP because of its thin profile and overall sleek look under the cuff. 

I do get the usual remarks about the watch being “feminine,” “for girls,” “cheap,” and so on. Yes, the watch doesn’t have as much lustre as its modern counterparts, but it's a 20+ year old watch. For the owner, it's about having the chance to own one of the most coveted sports models in the world, or at least a piece of the action. Now is my chance to wear and enjoy something Genta created without breaking the bank. 

These smaller quartz APs were available only a few years ago for around five to six thousand dollars. Now, they are more than double and are only climbing in value. The same reason this is happening to entry level vintage Rolex and Cartier — current production models are either too expensive or are not available in boutiques for retail customers and collectors to buy. So the market will naturally adjust and move on to preowned/ vintage. 

For around the fifteen thousand dollar mark, quartz AP Royal Oaks are relatively affordable (still expensive!) with all the craziness in the secondary watch market. Who knows how long the sports watch trend will last, all we know is that it continues.

Daniel Matatov is, of course, “Danny” of Danny’s Vintage Watches. If you have a pitch for us, reach out through our Contact form or send it to @iamjoshcameron on Instagram.