The Rolex Day-Date 36 128238 champagne diamond dial takes the standard champagne sunburst of the yellow gold Day-Date and replaces the applied batons with stones: eight round indexes around the dial and two baguettes standing in for the markers at 6 and 9. Yellow gold case, yellow gold President bracelet and a champagne ground give an unbroken warm surface from bezel to clasp, and the stones are the only element on the watch that reads cold. At 36 mm the 128238 keeps the proportions that made the Day-Date a fixture on presidential wrists for over six decades.

Key Specifications

• Reference: 128238
• Model: Rolex Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 36
• Case diameter: 36 mm
• Case material: 18k yellow gold
• Bezel: fluted, 18k yellow gold
• Dial: champagne sunburst, 8 round stone indexes, 2 baguette stones at 6 and 9
• Day display: spelled in full at 12 o’clock
• Date display: Cyclops-magnified at 3 o’clock
• Crystal: sapphire with Cyclops magnification
• Bracelet: President, three-piece semi-circular links with concealed Crownclasp
• Movement: clone Cal. 3255 automatic (super clone, $849) or Japanese automatic (A-grade, $349)
• Power reserve: 70 hours
• Water resistance: 30 m

Stone indexes on a champagne ground work differently from stone indexes on black or white. The dial is already bright, so the stones do not add contrast; they add texture, and the eye reads them as raised points rather than as light against dark.

Rolex Day-Date 36 128238 champagne diamond dial: setting and finishing

Champagne dials on yellow gold Day-Dates demand precise colour matching across three surfaces — dial, bezel and bracelet — and a mismatch between any two shows immediately. This version holds all three in the same warm spectrum, then breaks the monotone with the fluted bezel on the outside and the stone setting on the inside, which is why it never reads flat. The two baguettes are cut longer than the round indexes and sit square to the dial axis; uneven baguettes are the first giveaway on a weak stone-set dial, so check them before anything else. The movement in the super clone build is a clone Cal. 3255 with a 70-hour power reserve, and the gem-set Day-Date clone guide covers the collets, the dial printing and the calendar change in detail.

On the Wrist

At 36 mm the gold Day-Date wears closer to vintage proportions than the 40 mm models and slips in and out of a shirt cuff without catching fabric. The full warm finish reads as deliberately bold from close range but avoids the visual mass a 40 mm gold watch projects, and the stones keep the dial from being read as plain gold at arm’s length. For a contrasting approach within the same reference family, the 128238 white Roman dial breaks the gold with a white face and Roman numerals instead of stones. Both versions represent the 128238 in the Day-Date collection, but they serve different wardrobes and occasions.

Other versions of this model in stock: Rolex Day-Date 36 128238 champagne dial, Rolex Day-Date 36 128238 chocolate diamond dial and Rolex Day-Date 36 128238 green dial.

Rolex Day-Date 36 128238 champagne diamond dial Replica FAQ

Where are the baguettes placed on the 128238 champagne diamond dial?

The two baguettes sit at 6 and 9 o’clock, in place of the batons that would normally mark those hours, and the remaining eight hour positions carry round stones. The 12 o’clock position is taken by the day aperture and 3 o’clock by the date window, so ten stones cover every free hour marker on the dial.

A Grade or super clone for the 128238 champagne diamond dial?

The difference is the movement: the super clone at $849 runs a clone Cal. 3255 with a 70-hour power reserve, and the $349 A Grade runs a Japanese automatic. The case, bracelet and stone-set dial are built the same way on both options, so the price gap buys the calibre and nothing else.