Question on my own piece

[le_baron]

Hello all! This is my first post here, and I hope that you all can quell my concerns about my own watch so that I may have my anxiety alleviated, and get on to really enjoying the forum.

I have a datejust that my father bought online about ten years ago. He recently gave it to me, but I hadn't noticed until recently that the magnification looks off to me. I think (although I could be wrong) that it should be bigger, so now I'm nervous that the watch is not authentic. I've attached pictures of the watch from what I think are all angles.

I couldn't capture good images between the lugs, but I took note that:

between the 12:00 lugs it said: Orig Rolex Design 16233
between the 6:00 lugs it said: Stainless Steel W404633

Lastly, is there a way to tell if the diamonds are factory or after-market?

[Nareco]

Fake,the date window is way too small

[MonBK]

The W indicates a 1995 watch and it looks good to me.

[geneinnc]

Appears to be etching, bracelet is wrong. Not good.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

[Presa canary]

Looks ok to me, but I'm far from a expert. They'll be around shortly... And welcome!

[AbsolutelyROLEX!]

Shes good, dial seems to be redone

[nickb732]

Hmm, magnification appears to be slightly off, doubt the diamonds are factory

[le_baron]

Ok so 3 people say it's good, 3 people say it's not. Who are the "experts" on this forum with the most knowledge?

Also:

Originally Posted by geneinnc

Appears to be etching, bracelet is wrong. Not good.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

what's wrong with the bracelet?

[AbsolutelyROLEX!]

No shes good for sure, monbk and myself are veterans.
still highly doubt the diamonds or dial are original

[MrNemo]

Here's my guess, looking at the one on my wrist: (EDIT which doesn't lug holes so isn't a direct match to your 1995 but pretty close, probably a 1994)

*Printing on dial just looks off to me (look at the O, it looks off). Could be the pic. Would like to see the full ROLEX logo without the minute hand there.

* T SWISS T at the bottom looks off. Mines says T SWISS MADE T.

* Fluted bezel looks real. These are notoriously bad on replicas. Yours looks slim and correct to me for 18k bezel.

* Case looks real. Engravings, from the pic, looks centered but I can't really tell for sure on the font. If you took a pic of the other side with the case and camera still, I could tell you.

* Case back looks just like mine.

* Crown looks real.

* EDIT endlinks are different than my 1994 but looks like they changed engraving for your 1995 model so bracelet looks real.

* Non-OEM crystal, pretty common. Has nothing to do with whether the watch itself is "real" or "fake".

* Date wheel justification seems off and your 13 looks different than mine, but in all honesty, my 13 justification looks slightly off too (white space on the right).

Obviously, some duck tape rolled into a sticky ball and 30 seconds of your time unscrewing the case-back will tell you whether you have a 3135, ETA, or a Chinese 21j movement in there.

Regardless, things are looking up. Looks like a refinished dial with gen case/bezel/endlinks/bracelet, and it's a toss-up at this point depending on what is under the hood.

[Britexpat76]

Far from an 'Expert' but would back up anderl712000 and monbk. Clasp looks good in my eyes as does the rear of case but the magnification does look strange

[crowncollection]

The case is real, the dial is definitely resprayed and aftermarket diamonds, band looks ok but I would like to see the markings on the inside of the clasp. The crystal looks aftermarket.

[Chewbacca]

i'll have a go based on the images...

case looks good. crown looks ok but not 100% sure without it open and side shot. bracelet looks aftermarket. buckle looks original. face looks refinished w/ after market crystal and diamonds.

take it to a rolex tech to be sure.

[le_baron]

Thanks again to everyone who has taken the time to respond and look at the pictures. I'm feeling more confident that the watch is real, albeit with an aftermarket crystal. I've added pictures from the angles requested to show the crown, the dial, the back of the bracelet, and I tried to get better pictures between the lugs. If anyone can't read it, the bracelet endlinks read "455 B"

I look forward to any new affirmations or changes of opinion

[Nareco]

The only thing wrong with it is the date magnification

[cajunron]

I agree with my friend, David 'crowncollection'. Aftermarket dial and crystal. Watch appears to be authentic.

[Lgear080]

I agree ... I've seen oe dials with very similar looks even.

Maybe the crystal was replaced with an aftermarket at some point.

[MrNemo]

Main concern here is if somebody popped an el-cheapo crystal on there with that questionable dial, it could have a different movement. It is not terribly difficult to swap movements for somebody with some basic skills and creativity.

Go to any reputable independent watch repair store and they will usually pop off the back for you for free and you could snap a pic of the movement. Or get one of those sticky balls from eBay for $2 and you can do it.

The movement holds the majority of the value of that watch so a free trip to an indie watchmaker will guarantee its value.

[bayerische]

Dial and crystal are wrong. How's the date change? Instant? Or slow over time?

[GradyPhilpott]

Which way do the hands move when you turn the crown clockwise?

[le_baron]

Originally Posted by bayerische

How's the date change? Instant? Or slow over time?

The date change is instant

[le_baron]

Originally Posted by GradyPhilpott

Which way do the hands move when you turn the crown clockwise?

The hands move forward/clockwise with the crown