Today we're going to look at one of my grail
watches that I honestly never thought I'd be able to own and I must admit when I started out
watch collecting I wasn't sure I wanted to own a Rolex. This comes as no surprise to regular viewers
of the live stream because I've been wearing this the last couple of weeks but I did buy a Rolex
Datejust so why did I buy a Datejust? For me the Datejust is Iconic and this configuration with
the Jubilee, smooth bezel, those straight hands is just about the best-looking Rolex I think they
make. Before we start I'll review a couple of the common questions that I'm sure you're wondering
about this Rolex purchase. How did I get the watch? Where did I get it from? How much did I pay? Did
I buy on the grey market and how long did I wait for it? I'm gonna tell you how much I paid for
the watch towards the end of the video, when I talk about whether I think it was good value or not
and whether I made a wise purchase but starting with the where did I get it from? I I did buy it
from a Rolex A.D in particular the Rolex boutique in Orlando Florida, this is a dedicated Rolex
boutique run by Mayors. I know you hear a lot of things online about Rolex boutiques but the team
at the Rolex boutique in Orlando were honestly fantastic. When I went in to collect this watch
they treated me like royalty and that really added to the overall buying experience and takes the
little sting out of handing over your payment at the end. The photos that you seeing here, of me
looking so happy, were taken by Junnié, who is one of the sales associates at the boutique who had dealt
with the whole time. Not only were they great with me in store but Junnié also regularly kept me
up to date on email and I'm sure they're getting inundated with emails from customers particularly
at that time when all Rolexes were very hard to get hold of. In fact I've had good experiences in
a number of Rolex boutiques, the only one that I've ever had... not a negative experience with. But was not
wasn't allowed in the store, was the one on Bond Street in London. Where you actually had to have an
appointment to go in, they weren't nasty about it and I've never really had a negative experience
in a Rolex store. I think if you go in knowing what you're looking for and you know a little bit
about the watches and also are realistic about how to get hold of the watches. I think you're all
right. I wouldn't have any problems about going in any Rolex boutique anywhere in the world. Well
I touched on the wait list there so how long did I wait well this watch was released at watches
and wonders this year 2022 if you're watching this one I post it. This particular version was a
brand new version of the Datejust, the green dial was new for this year. It had never been done in
a 41mm configuration before and they'd release several other dials as well in that range.
I'd been procrastinating about buying a Datejust for probably 12 months prior but as soon as I saw
that green dial released that really sealed the deal for me. "Shut Up And Take My Money". The day
after the announcement, I went into the boutique and put my name down I used a tip that was given
to me by a friend Justin who actually used to work at that Rolex A.D. He now manages a Tudor Boutique
in that same Mall which is also a great store if you're in the area, highly encourage you to go in
they've got a great showroom and it's literally just below the Rolex boutique and Justin's been
on the show a couple of times as well and the live stream. Now his tip was to a be realistic about the
watches that might be available and always have at least three choices and that's what I did I went
in with three choices and it was three Datejust that I chose but just different configurations
and thankfully this green, this mint green dial was the top of my list with the Jubilee and the
smooth bezel so I actually managed to get exactly the configuration I wanted. I gravitated towards
the design of the Datejust because to me it is quintessentially Rolex after first being
released in 1945 to celebrate the company's 40th anniversary the datejust was the first
self-winding chronometer wristwatch to have the date and I love the date on watches, getting to
one of the other points about the Datejust and I'm not sure why so many people do dislike the Cyclops
not only is it functional to magnify the date but you can also easily tell a fake Datejust because
almost always the date window on the fakes doesn't magnify all the magnification is negligible.
I will say if they offered the choice to have the Cyclops or not, I would probably go for it without
the Cyclops but they don't offer that and it is Iconic to the Datejust and the other Rolex models
as well so I'm happy that it's there. The design like most Rolexes is classic yet timeless although
I do think this 41mm version definitely is more contemporary looking and more versatile.
It looks less like those company Executives that wore Rolexes that were smaller, this does have a
more contemporary larger size to it and it fits my 7.2 inch wrist perfectly. The dial is mint green
as Rolex call it, the green is visually stunning changing from Silver to several different shades
of green based on the light. It also features a subtle sunburst, the pictures online really don't
do it justice and I can't imagine that this video is doing it much justice either no matter how much
I play around with it in post. The green was further enhanced when I paired this watch with
a custom fitted Rubber B green strap, this also gave it a really nice sporty look and I like
the fact that it can go from dressy to sporty just by changing the strap. The lume is stunning,
it's generously applied to the indices and half of the hands. The hands are straight but feature a
central bevel down the middle, this really captures the light. Now I do have a confession,
I've never been a massive fan of the Mercedes Rolex hands that you see on the submariners and so
many of the other models so these straight hands really appeal to me and that's what drew me to the
Datejust line to start with the case is just so well finished there's just something about the
way that Rolex designed their cases that make them so wearable the case is made of oyster steel
Rolex's version of 9041L Steel, this is an alloy most commonly used in the technology, Aerospace and
chemical Industries and that's because it's highly resistant to corrosion. Rolex can also highly
polish this alloy and it really does look like it's a precious metal. Even though the watch itself
only has the date complication on it it does house a very technically advanced movement. This model is
equipped with a new generation movement called the caliber 3235 entirely developed and manufactured
by Rolex certified as a Swiss chronometer by COSC when the movement was released in 2015 over 90%
of the parts were new and Rolex protected these by adding an additional 14 patents around
the design of the movement. It's a 70-hour power reserve and is anti-magnetic, anti-magnetism
was high on my list of wants in a watch. The 3235 achieves this by having a hairspring made
in an alloy of niobium and zirconium, not only is it anti-magnetic using those materials but it's
also highly resistant to temperature fluctuations which is something else that can affect mechanical
watches. The anti-magnetism was very important to me because I have certainly been guilty
of accidentally magnetizing watches before. I wanted to go a little bit more into the movement
because it is, unfortunately, hidden behind a solid case back. Which is of course a Rolex thing. They've
only ever released a handful of watch models that had clear case backs but even though it is
a simple threehand watch it does house a very powerful movement inside. One of my must-haves
with this watch (when I ordered it) was to have the Jubilee bracelet. I've never been a massive fan
of the Oyster Bracelet, although I could have lived with it because Rolex, the way they make their
bracelets is like no other watch that I've ever reviewed. Very comfortable, very light, very well
made. This Jubilee bracelet feels solid yet light very comfortable and has a great polishing down
the center, the clasp is also very well machined it doesn't have that secondary lock like you would
see on a Submariner but it does have a layer of micro adjustment as well, which does add about
another five mm to the bracelet which means that on a hot day, you can expand the bracelet a little
bit.We've talked about all of the things I like about the Datejust but is there any cons? Honestly
for me, not many but if I was pushed I think the crown could be slightly bigger, more in proportion
with the case but it is highly functional, it's iconic to Rolex. It has a nice grip to it,
so I can certainly live with that. Another thing I noticed is that because the Jubilee bracelet is
so well made and it fits the case with exacting tolerances, as you saw during the video I've
had it on this Rubber B strap, even though I bought the right tweezer tool from Bergeron it's
still a nightmare to get off, there's no way that I could see of doing this without a lot of masking
tape and the acceptance that I was gonna at least scratch the back of the bracelet, so I wish
the bracelet was a bit easier to get off. For the majority of people that buy a Datejust they're
probably never going to remove it from the bracelet so the big question here was it worth it and how
much did I pay? For me it definitely was worth it it was everything that I thought it was going
to be and a little bit more. I've handled many Rolexes, as you've seen on the channel but there's
something entirely different about owning one and knowing that it's yours. I paid $8,150 US dollars
plus Florida sales tax. This was exactly the retail price. This was a lot of money for me, I'd
save for well over 12 months, sold a lot of the other watches in my collection. It was slow going
to get the money but I'm glad I did it that way, instead of financing the watch or borrowing
the money some other way because it really tied me to the watch and it really made me appreciate the
value and the effort that it took to own a Rolex I'll never sell this watch but knowing that this
watch is worth at least $12,000 on the current market, really adds to it for me the
money side of it is something that I think about when I'm collecting watches and knowing I've got a
watch that can act as an investment as well. I know there's an argument where the Rolex is
an investment or not but it's certainly an asset that is going to appreciate in price and that I
can enjoy and wear every day. More importantly let me know what you think in the comments section
down below. I'm really interested to know what you think of this watch? Have I changed your
mind about the Datejust if it wasn't a model that you looked at before appreciate you watching
I'll see you next time on Casual Watch Reviews
