Rolex 118238 Day-Date
Day-Date › 118238
The 118238 is the yellow-gold Day-Date 36 of the six-digit generation, documented from 2000 through about 2019. It keeps caliber 3155 and double quickset from the late 18238 period while changing the case and bracelet: broader polished lugs, solid centre links, and a concealed Crownclasp. Later examples add a Parachrom hairspring and an engraved rehaut. The 128238 replaced it with caliber 3255 in 2019.
Core facts
| detail | value |
|---|---|
| reference | 118238 |
| family | Day-Date |
| production | 2000–about 2019 |
| movement | caliber 3155, 31 jewels, 28,800 vph, ~48h power reserve, double quickset (day + date both independent) |
| case | 36mm 18k yellow gold President, fluted bezel |
| crystal | sapphire |
| crown | Twinlock screw-down |
| bracelet | President with solid centre links + concealed Crownclasp |
| sister refs | 118239 white gold, 118235 Everose, 118205 Everose Oyster smooth, 118206 platinum, 118138 / 118135 / 118139 leather (2013) |
| predecessor | 18238 |
| successor | 128238 (cal 3255, 2019) |
Where it sits in the line
The 118238 is the yellow-gold fluted member of the six-digit Day-Date generation. The 18238 carried the 36 mm Day-Date through the 1990s with the same caliber family. The 118238 adds broader polished lugs, solid centre links, and a concealed Crownclasp.
Caliber-wise the 118238 sits on the cal 3155, same number as the late-run 18238, with double quickset indexing day and date independently from the crown. Some sources read the caliber number as the dividing line between 18238 and 118238 production. In practice the 18238's late-run cal 3155 already carried double quickset, so the bracelet and case dimensions are the cleaner visual diagnostic between the two references.
The 118 generation covers the full Day-Date metal range:
- 118238: 18k yellow gold, fluted bezel, President bracelet.
- 118239: 18k white gold, fluted bezel, President bracelet.
- 118235: 18k Everose gold, fluted bezel, President bracelet; introduced with the Everose range in the mid-2000s.
- 118205: 18k Everose gold, smooth bezel, Oyster bracelet.
- 118206: 950 platinum, smooth domed bezel, President bracelet.
- 118138: 18k yellow gold, fluted bezel, leather strap; catalogued from 2013.
- 118135: 18k Everose gold, fluted bezel, leather strap; catalogued from 2013.
- 118139: 18k white gold, fluted bezel, leather strap; catalogued from 2013.
The cited catalogues do not list 118288 or 118289. Those numbers are often confused with the 18288 and 18289 Tridor-era references; an individual listing needs its case and papers checked.
The platinum 36 mm Day-Date in this generation is the 118206, with a smooth domed bezel. The 118208 is the yellow-gold smooth-bezel reference; listings that mix the two should be checked against the case and dial.
Some secondary sources stop the 118238 at 2009. That date conflicts with later catalogued examples and the 2019 transition to the 128238. Serial format is a dating clue, not proof of a reference's production end.
Production outline
2000 — Basel launch
The 118 generation appeared around 2000. The 118238, 118239, and 118206 cover yellow gold, white gold, and platinum; the Everose 118235 followed later. Compared with the 18238, the documented case and bracelet changes include broader lugs, polished flanks, and solid centre links.
2005 — Parachrom Blu hairspring rollout
Rolex introduced the blue Parachrom hairspring across the catalogue from about 2005. Later 118238 examples can carry it, but the cited sources do not establish a transition serial for this reference.
2006-2007 — engraved rehaut
The engraved rehaut appears on 118238 production around 2006–07. Sources differ on the exact introduction date; by the later 2000s it is common. Earlier watches place the serial between the lugs, while later watches show it on the inner ring.
2010 — random scrambled serial rollover
Rolex moved from letter-prefix serials to random alphanumeric serials around 2010. The 118238 spans that change, so the serial format helps date an example but does not replace caseback, rehaut, and paperwork checks.
2013 — leather-strap subset
The 2013 range added 118138, 118135, and 118139 Day-Date 36 references on leather straps with deployant clasps. Catalogues show several strap and dial combinations; the cited catalogues do not establish how common the subset was.
2019 — discontinuation
The 128238 replaced the 118238 around 2019 with caliber 3255, a longer stated power reserve, and the Superlative Chronometer specification. The exact final delivery date for an individual 118238 should be checked against its papers and serial evidence.
Movement notes
Caliber 3155, same number as the late-run 18238 with double quickset.
Specifications:
- 28.5mm × 6.0mm
- 31 jewels
- 28,800 vph / 4 Hz
- Approximately 48-hour power reserve
- Double quickset (day and date both advance independently via the crown)
- Hacking seconds
- Free-sprung Microstella balance
- KIF Elastor shock absorbers
- Nivarox hairspring on early production; Parachrom Blu hairspring on late production (rolled out from 2005)
- COSC chronometer certified on earlier examples; later examples may carry Rolex's tighter Superlative Chronometer specification
Rolex introduced the tighter ±2 seconds-per-day Superlative Chronometer standard in the mid-2010s. It is a production-period and certification question, not a guarantee for every serviced 3155; check the watch's certificate and movement history.
Case, bezel, crystal, and crown notes
36mm three-piece Oyster construction. The visible case-and-bracelet changes from the 18238 are subtle but consistent: broader fully-polished lugs (the 18238's lugs were narrower with brushed sides), more visual weight to the watch on wrist despite the same nominal dimensions, and solid bracelet centre links accounting for most of the additional gram weight.
Inner caseback stamped with the reference and quarter-year Roman-numeral lot codes. Outer caseback engraved with the Rolex crown.
The fluted bezel is carved from solid 18k yellow gold. The 118239 carries white-gold fluted, 118235 Everose fluted, 118205 Everose smooth-domed paired with Oyster bracelet, and 118206 platinum smooth-domed.
The documented 118238 uses a Twinlock screw-down crown; a replacement crown should be checked against the individual case and service record.
The crystal is sapphire, continuing from the 18038 generation. The 118238 generation is the first to wear the engraved rehaut, which arrives from approximately 2006 or 2007 and is universal by 2008. The ring reads "ROLEX ROLEX ROLEX" repeated around the inner edge plus the serial number, with pre-2010 production carrying letter-prefix serials and post-2010 production carrying random scrambled alphanumeric strings.
Bracelet, end-links, clasp
President bracelet with solid centre links, the visible 18238-to-118238 bracelet upgrade. The President's three-piece semicircular construction continues from the 1803 generation; the centre link goes from hollow on the 18238 to solid on the 118238, and the bracelet weight increases proportionally. The clasp moves from the visible folding configuration of the late-1990s 18238 to the concealed Crownclasp, which hides the entire folding mechanism under the centre link. The Rolex coronet appears on the closed clasp cover.
The 118238 bracelet belongs to the Rolex production period of the reference. Clasp date codes date the bracelet component, not the watch head; a service or replacement bracelet can carry a later code.
Dial variants
Documented dials include stick or Roman-numeral indices on champagne, silver, white, and black grounds, along with mother-of-pearl, diamond-set, and selected stone dials. The surviving catalogues do not establish a complete production sequence. Examples include:
- Silver luminescent stick, documented standard modern dial.
- White "anniversary" Roman, 50th-anniversary Day-Date-line dial introduced approximately 2006.
- Champagne stick and champagne Roman, both documented standard layouts.
- Mother-of-pearl, with and without diamond hour markers.
- Decorated mother-of-pearl, with guilloché or floral patterns on the MOP ground.
- Diamond-paved dial, factory pavé Day-Date dial, occasional production-period examples.
- Stone dials, documented case by case.
- Black dials with age-related color change, which should be separated from an original factory dial.
Tritium is not expected on this post-1998 reference. Later dials use Super-LumiNova or Chromalight markings, but the lume material and service history should be checked on the individual dial.
Serial-year correlation
The 118238 production straddles Rolex's 2010 serial-system rollover. Pre-2010 letter-prefix serials follow the catalogue-wide chart:
- prefix K: 2001
- prefix Y: 2002
- prefix F: 2003–04
- prefix D: 2005–06
- prefix Z: 2006–07
- prefix M: 2007–08
- prefix V: 2008–09
- prefix G: around 2010 (final letter prefix)
- random scrambled: late 2010 onward
Later 118238 examples use random rehaut-engraved serials. The serial format helps narrow a date, but the transition was not a single reference-specific cutoff and should be cross-checked with the case, rehaut, and documents.
Auction record
The lots below provide dial, bracelet and provenance details. Their prices belong to those individual watches and do not define a general market range.
| date | house and lot | documented configuration | result |
|---|---|---|---|
| circa 2004 | Bonhams, lot 152 | Silvered sunburst dial with diamond hour markers and diamond bezel; 83208 President bracelet | £16,575 including premium |
| circa 2009 | Bonhams Hong Kong, lot 1331 | Champagne Jubilee dial with round and baguette diamond indexes | HK$153,600 (estimate HK$110,000–200,000) |
The case prefixes in these two catalogues are F and V. They are consistent with the catalogued dates, but serial prefixes date the case approximately and do not prove original dial or bracelet fitment.
Special branches
Tiffany & Co. double-signed
Double-signed Tiffany examples are reported in the 118238 era, especially in late-2000s material. The signature should be checked against the dial, case, papers, and the documented retailer history; the article does not infer a general price multiple.
Diplomatic / royal-gift commissions
Modern Day-Date 36s also appear in diplomatic and regional-market records, including Oman and Gulf-market commissions. Those inscriptions are provenance claims that require watch-specific documentation.
Related references
- Day-Date 118208: 2000–2019
- Day-Date 218206: 2008–2015
- Day-Date 218238: 2008–2015
- Day-Date 118235: 2005–2019
- Day-Date 118138: 2013–2019
- Day-Date 18208: 1988–2000
See also the Day-Date family index, movement reference, bracelet & clasp guide, and serial numbers by year.
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118238 yellow-gold Day-Date 36 -
Champagne dial with diamond markers
Sources
Primary and specialist
- The Vintage Rolex Field Manual — Colin A. White, Morning Tundra
- Rolex Day-Date Volume (Mondani Editore) — Mondani Family, Guido Mondani Editore
- Sotheby's editorial, "The Rolex Day-Date: A Complete Collector's Guide", Sotheby's
- Day-Date — The Presidential Rolex — Pucci Papaleo Editore, Spin Edizioni, 2015-05
- Bonhams auction lot, "Rolex, an 18k gold diamond-set automatic calendar bracelet watch, Day-Date, ref. 118238, circa 2004", Bonhams
- Bonhams Hong Kong auction lot, "Rolex, or, Day-Date, ref. 118238, a yellow gold bracelet watch with Jubilee dial, diamond-set indexes, day and date, circa 2009", Bonhams
- Bonhams auction lot, "Rolex, an 18k gold automatic calendar bracelet watch, Day-Date, ref. 118238, circa 2007", Bonhams
Editorial and market
- Italian Watch Spotter editorial, "The History of the Rolex Day-Date", Italian Watch Spotter
- Bob's Watches editorial, "Quickset Vintage Day-Date Models", Bob's Watches
- Watchbase, "Rolex Caliber 3155 — Watchbase", Watchbase
- Bob's Watches editorial, "History of Rolex Tiffany Dials", Bob's Watches
- Italian Watch Spotter editorial, "Watch Guide: Rolex Stone Dials", Italian Watch Spotter
- Revolution Watches editorial, "The Stella Revolution", Revolution Watches
- A Collected Man editorial, "The Colourful World of Rolex Stella Dials", A Collected Man
- Rolex Forums community, "Rolex Forums — 1803 Owners and Enablers Thread", Rolex Forums