Date34 or DJ36

[Laurie]

I would like to surprise my mother on her 75th birthday with either a SS Date 34 or SS DJ 36 in blue or silver. I prefer the 36 because of the Jubilee bracelet which is not available on the Date 34. She will be blown away regardless but I do wonder if the 36 could be too big. I guess her wrist has an average ladies size. Please share your pictures and experiences. Thank you!

[doramas]

Solution: Datejust 31mm

[t65tampa]

I agree with the 31 mm. Great choice. Get an easily legible dial color.

Then again, there are a bunch of 36 mm watches out there that you can get for a deal being pre-owned. I'm just thinking 36 mm might be a bit too big for your mom.

[Laurie]

Thanks for the suggestions. I will have a look at the 31‘s. I do think it could be on the small side though. Her eyes won‘t get any better with age.

[doramas]

Do not buy the silver, it's not very readable

[Strummer25]

My 2c. For a lady that age 31 should work 34 perfect

[Laurie]

Any idea why the 34 is called Date and all the other sizes Datejust?

[MJ8]

I'd go 31, maximum 34

[Brew]

What a lovely gift. For some perspective, I am not nearly 75, well over 200 lbs, and have a 7" wrist. I wear a DJ36 frequently. Although others might call the watch "dainty" by todays bigger-is-better standards, I think the watch fits my wrist nearly perfectly.

[Sebastian5]

Originally Posted by Laurie

Any idea why the 34 is called Date and all the other sizes Datejust?

I wonder that as well

I know it used to be the date version of the older Oyster Perpetual series (34mm), while the Datejust was 36mm. The new Oyster Perpetual all are smooth bezel and no date. Because of the date complication they probably grouped it in the Datejust series but kept the original name, Date, maybe for historical reasons.

[Jmbarrack]

My own mother went through a similar decision recently. She is around 70 and previously had a 26mm Rolex datejust. She tried on a 31mm DJ, a 34MM OP Date and a 36mm Datejust.

She settled on the 34mm OP date with blue dial. Her reasoning was as follows:
- 36mm looked a little too big on her wrist and looked more masculine
- The 31mm was a little too small, her eyesight isn't was it used to be
- The 34mm was just right. Dial was large and legible enough to read. The size didn't look overpowering on the wrist. It was just more elegant.

The 34mm was definitely the right choice. That being said, I don't think you could go wrong with either choice. But the 34mm seems to be the best middle ground based on my experience.

[Laurie]

Now on my way to an AD to compare some different models. Will report back. Easiest would be to bring her with me but she would not allow me to buy it for her. She would walk straight out:)

[123Blueface]

36mm can be easily worn by many women, in fact, my wife wears a couple of them.
That said, in my opinion, as well as her personal preference, 28-31mm wears way nicer, classier on a woman. She also wears a 26mm regularly as well.
At 75, I bet your mother would love that size range but you would know best based on what she currently wears.
Good luck, she’ll love what you get her.

[Calatrava r]

Originally Posted by Laurie

Any idea why the 34 is called Date and all the other sizes Datejust?

Rolex lexicon. The main difference besides the size and oyster only bracelet is the Date dial does not have the railroad track but lines. I had suspected the Date would be retired with the OP 34 but it is still out there.

[schoolboy]

Originally Posted by Laurie

Now on my way to an AD to compare some different models. Will report back. Easiest would be to bring her with me but she would not allow me to buy it for her. She would walk straight out:)

Awesome :)


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[BakerView]

For sure consider the eyesight only gets worse with age. Try to have the hands contrast against the dial for ease of reading and go big enough she can see it easily. I think it would be a great date with your mom to take her with you and let her have some input. She'll like the watch even more and you'll have a great experience selecting it together to remember for years to come. Very thoughtful of you....

[Laurie]

Had a pleasant visit at the AD. The salesperson was very helpful and we had some nice discussions in order to pick the perfect watch. Although they didn't have any Date 34's they did have DJ's in 31 and 36 and a few OP's in 34. Just enough to make a good comparison.

We started off with deciding on what would be the best size. The DJ in 31mm was eliminated quickly, very elegant but too small. When the lady held the 34 and 36 in front of me I could hardly see any difference. This changed the moment she put both of them on her wrist. Quite a difference! I was soon convinced about the 34mm. No possibility for a jubilee bracelet but as my mother is still quite sporty the oyster bracelet with the polished center links will surely look good on her.

After I decided on the 34 we had a look at colors for the dial. From what I had seen online I was pretty set on the blue sunburst dial, I thought the silver would be a bit boring and less legible. However, seeing them in the flesh it was quite the opposite. That silver dial is amazing!

A few days later I went back with my wife to have her opinion and she agreed completely on the chosen watch. The only thing she thought is a "must" is the fluted bezel.

So, decided on the SS Date 34 with fluted bezel and silver dial. Very excited about the moment my mother will unpack her present.

Bit of a watchgeek detail; the watch will probably arrive two months prior to my mothers birthday. I agreed with the AD that once arrived they will keep the watch as I thought it would be a cool detail if the date of our daughters birthday will be on the warranty card. Our daughter turns 1 year old two weeks before my mothers 75th.

At the end of the visit we spoke about availability and demand of rolex watches. Although not looking for a watch for myself at the moment I asked if the waitinglist for the BLRO might be open again. Her reply? "When would you like to have one?". I was very surprised to say the least. I told her I will turn 40 in 1,5 years and it would be a nice present for myself. She said: "done". Nice...