The Rolex Day-Date 36 128239 black diamond dial is the highest-contrast face in the white gold President row: a deep black ground, eight round stone-set markers and baguette markers at 6 and 9, all inside a 36 mm 18k white gold case with a fluted white gold bezel. Black against a white metal reads sharper than black against yellow gold, because nothing warms the dial edge and the stones stay the only bright points on the watch. Rolex’s own 128239 catalogue runs to lighter dials, so treat this black stone-set configuration as a factory variant rather than a page from the brochure.

Build Details

• Reference: 128239 (factory variant dial)
• Case: 36 mm, 18k white gold
• Bezel: fluted, 18k white gold
• Dial: black with eight round stone-set markers and baguettes at 6 and 9
• Day display: spelled out in full at 12 o’clock
• Date: Cyclops-magnified window at 3 o’clock
• Crystal: sapphire with anti-reflective coating
• Bracelet: President, concealed Crownclasp
• Water resistance: 30 m
• Movement: clone Cal. 3255 automatic (super clone) or Japanese automatic (A Grade)
• Power reserve: 70 hours (clone Cal. 3255)

Black lacquer is unforgiving at the apertures. Every speck of dust, every ragged cut around the day window at 12 and the date window at 3 shows against the dark ground, and the printing has to be dense enough to stay white rather than grey. A clean black dial is the simplest evidence that a factory controls its lacquer and its cutting.

Where the Rolex Day-Date 36 128239 black diamond dial sits

Inside our 36 mm row this is the only black stone-set dial, and the white gold case is what keeps it from reading as a Datejust in a photograph: the fluted bezel is the giveaway, together with the day name spelled out across the top of the dial. The super clone runs a clone Cal. 3255 with a 70-hour power reserve; for how the white gold and gold builds differ in finishing, see our Day-Date 36 white gold build notes. The remaining dial colours on this case are listed in our Day-Date collection.

Other versions of this model in stock: Rolex Day-Date 36 128238-0076 Roman numerals yellow gold, Rolex Day-Date 36 128239 blue ombre dial and Rolex Day-Date 36 128239 mother of pearl dial.

Rolex Day-Date 36 128239 black diamond dial Replica FAQ

Is the 128239 black diamond dial white gold or platinum?

White gold: 128239 is the 18k white gold reference at 36 mm, while the platinum 36 mm Day-Date is 128206 and leaves the catalogue with an ice blue dial. The two metals look close in a photograph, which is why the reference number, not the colour, is what identifies the case.

Rolex Day-Date 128239 black diamond dial: real vs fake, how close is the clone?

Case shape, fluted bezel profile, dial layout and the instantaneous day-date jump all follow the genuine 128239; the stones are factory-set rather than certified by Rolex, and the caseback engraving and serial are where a jeweller looks first. The super clone is $849 with the clone Cal. 3255 and its 70-hour reserve, the A Grade $349 on a Japanese automatic.