Tutorial on Deploying the Rolex Dive Suit Extension Link
By: John B. Holbrook, II
September 12th, 2004

Here's a dirty little secret that many Rolex salespeople and owners alike won't tell you - they haven't the foggiest idea on how to deploy or release the dive suit extension in the Rolex Oyster bracelet. Instructions aren't well documented in the Rolex watch manual, and it's just not an intuitive design (like on the Omega Seamaster bracelet). Unless you've done it before, you're not likely to figure it out on your own. It took me a while to figure it out too (I saw it explained on a discussion forum). So, I decided to put together this little tutorial which will hopefully shed some light on the dive suit extension link.

If you remove your Rolex watch, and peer into the inside of the clasp, you should see a series of bracelet links. NOTE: Only Rolex dive watches like the Submariner and the Sea-Dweller will have a dive suit extension link built into the clasp. The other sport models to not. Now, most people assume that if they pull on these bracelet links , the dive suit extension will simply pop out - that assumption is incorrect. If you look at the links on the inside of the clasp, one will have a small circle printed on it. Press on this circle with your thumb - if done properly you'll hear an audible "pop" and you'll feel the links slip upward. Here's a photo that should help:

Lightly pull on the three links, and you'll find they are no longer fixed to the inside of the clasp. If you've done the above step properly, the bracelet should now look like this:

If you now grasp the links that are now opened and away from the clasp, and firmly pull away from the clasp, you should hear and feel a second "pop" as the flat portion of the dive suit extension is freed from its fixed position inside the clasp. If done properly, the bracelet and clasp should appear like this:

You can now put the watch back on, fastening the clasp as you normally would, and you'll see that the diameter of the bracelet has increased significantly. This is to allow the watch to fit comfortably on your wrist when diving by accommodating the added girth normally accompanying a dive suit.

You can easily return the clasp back to it's original configuration by folding the dive suit extension back toward the clasp, and firmly pressing at both ends of the extension, so that top and bottom "pop" back into their fixed positions.

I hope you've found this tutorial useful - feel free to E-Mail me at John@rolexreferencepage.com if you have any additional questions.