Rolex 2236 Movement Featuring a Syloxi Hairspring

Rolex 2236 Self-winding Mechanical Movement (photo: Rolex)

At Baselworld 2014, Rolex introduced the 2236 self-winding mechanical movement featuring a silicon Syloxi hairspring in their Pearlmaster 34 model. Manufactured by Rolex in-house, it is the first movement to feature a hairspring made of silicon, a departure from the blue Parachrom hairspring the watchmaker introduced in 2000. To date, the Syloxi hairspring has only been used in women's models, though, with the Parachrom hairspring in most of their movements for men's models. 

With a precision of -2/+2 seconds per day after casing and a power reserve of approximately 55 hours, calibre 2236 features center hour, minute and seconds hands with an instantaneous date at 3 o'clock and a rapid-setting stop-seconds that allows the wearer to set the time precisely to the second. Inside the movement case, it features high-precision regulating with two gold Microstella nuts traversing the balance bridge, Paraflex shock absorbers, 31 rubies and a balance wheel with variable inertia. 

The benefit of using silicon as the material for a hairspring is the lack of magnetism and lubrication of the lightweight material. Rolex spent several years developing the Syloxi hairspring and has five patents on the technology. For more information, check out my post on the silicon hairspring technology here. For more information on Rolex movements and technical innovations, visit the Tech section of this site. 

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