Editorial
The Explorer II 226570 is a 42mm steel tool watch built around a fixed 24-hour bezel and a GMT hand, designed for environments where AM/PM ambiguity is a genuine problem. Available in white or black dial, it is the current-production successor to the 216570 and runs the same-generation movement as the modern Datejust and Submariner families.
The 226570 launched in 2021, replacing the 216570 which had run from 2011 with the caliber 3187. The new reference brought the caliber 3285, adding the Chronergy escapement, improved power reserve (70 hours), and better magnetic resistance. Dial options are white (polar) or black, continuing the split that has defined the Explorer II since the 1980s.
The 42mm case size, introduced on the 216570, carries over unchanged from its predecessor.
Check the bracelet end links for play and the clasp for wear, as pre-owned examples accumulate wrist wear quickly and a stretched bracelet is the most common deduction. Confirm the dial is original to the case: white dials should show clean printing with no yellowing or shadow text. The fixed 24-hour bezel should rotate freely for chapter-ring verification but is non-functional as a timer, so bezel condition matters only cosmetically.
Prefer examples with original crown tube intact, as 42mm cases with deep scratches at the crown-side lug are hard to restore without professional polishing that rounds the edges.
