Interesting conversation about white gold Rolex.

[TheVTCGuy]

I had lunch today with a friend, non-WIS, and we were discussing my obsession (I would rather call it a passion ) with Rolex. He actually is very understanding, he has collections and passions that I don’t get, so coveting a certain brand or type of item makes sense to him. He brought up his grail, the actual item that he hopes to have one day. He asked about mine, and I explained it was a gold version of the sub I currently own. He shook his head yes and said how nice a solid gold watch is. Then I explained it was actually white gold. He asked: “So it will look almost exactly like the one you have now?” I answered yes, (except for the blue bezel) it looked the same, it would just be gold. He got a puzzled look on his face. He was not condescending at all, but he just didn’t understand. If you want an all-gold watch, then why would you get one that looked (almost) exactly like the (steel) one you have now? I tried to explain that it was really more of a private acknowledgement thing, ME knowing that it was all gold and I had reached my grail piece, (besides the feeling of the extra weight), but I have to admit he had an interesting point.

My grail is the 126619, and I will get it… someday. I know I am going to smile every time I look at it, that is enough reason for me, but the way he put it kind of made sense too, i.e If it looks (almost) the same, why spend the xtra money for a WHITE gold watch?

What do you guys think, especially you WG owners.

[fskywalker]

Am with you in loving white precious metals, only you need to know it’s not stainless steel !!

Love the milky color of WG on my 18239 and would love one day to buy a PT watch, such as the 118206 / 228206 DD’s




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[640ibimmerguy]

Not a WG owner...yet. This is actually my grail too, so I get it!

[BobMartian]

Yellow gold is the only gold worth the cost

[IamJacky]

I can understand it, in fact that is why I love the 126719BLRO GMT II Meteorite (and of course your grail 126619) on white gold as well. It's one fo those "if you know you know" type of deal, I'm pretty sure to non-Rolex enthusiasts they wouldn't be able to tell that it's white gold, it'll just look like a steel watch with white dial and red/blue bezel, which I personally much prefer as I don't like to draw too much attention.

It's really nice to have conversations with people who have passions in collecting, whether it's watches, arts, cigars, wines, etc., they tend to have such passion and knowledge about specific fields, I tend to learn a lot and gain new perspectives having conversation with them.

[rolexjackson]

I’m a huge fan of the rose gold

[russ86]

I own few WG pieces and absolutely love them, not only because they go under radar and its if you know you know kind of thing but also the weight of gold on your wrist, feels much nicer that regular SS.

[zion_rasta]

WG is the most expensive type of Rolex Gold

Platinum > WG > RG > YG > Rolesor > SS

[subprimero]

I have a 118239. I know what it is and other WIS know what it is. The other 95% have no idea and that's the way I like it.

[S1mplee]

Gold has a slicker feeling too on your wrist on top of the weight! Hard to explain but it’s colder when you first put it on and it has a super slick feel.

[zapokee]

WG actually looks quite different if you put it side by side with a SS piece.

I like to know it's WG. I don't like other people to know.

[Polar Bear]

In Rolex world, white gold models typically have different dials
Its one of those "If you Know, You Know" type of things IMO
A passer by who didn't know it was white gold would also not likely care

Personally, I'd love to see some of the "Racing Dial" Daytonas in SS rather than PM but i understand why they're not

Next time you see your friend, you should show him a picture of the SS, WG and Plat Daytonas and get him to guess which is more expensive

[rootbeer7]

Originally Posted by BobMartian

Yellow gold is the only gold worth the cost

In actual terms or because others know?

[rootbeer7]

Originally Posted by zapokee

WG actually looks quite different if you put it side by side with a SS piece.

I like to know it's WG. I don't like other people to know.

[kieselguhr]

Rolex White Gold is well done but has an almost indiscernible tint. My personal favorite White Gold Rolex is also a Submariner. The 116619LB.

Rolex Platinum is also very well done and the first time I saw a Platinum Daytona I couldn’t help but notice the piercing glint in bright lighting.

Between the 2, Rolex platinum more resembles a true white precious metal.

[BigAppleBill]

1) I enjoy the heft of a PM watch.
2) YG/RG don’t fit my personality/vibe.
3) I prefer under the radar luxury.
4) WG is safer on the streets/subways of NYC than YG/RG.

[Master_Grogu]

WG is for those in the know.

As luxury is more and more loud and common, wealthy people
Must find subtle signs to broadcast their wealth. WG is such a thing. It says to the laypeople: “here’s my watch” but to the people in the know it says “see how subtle yet wealthy I am, comrade?”.

[Oyster Perp]

Big Apple Bill has it right, WG is safer on the streets of most Cities and Towns. YG just screams

[7enderbender]

I get the part where you own something and it’s not to display to others but for your own satisfaction. Makes sense. Where I get lost is still the gold part (of any kind). In my opinion it’s an inferior material for a watch compared to stainless steel.

[alphadweller]

White gold is pure discretion, stealth wealth. You don't want others to know you're wearing a gold watch. How are they gonna know? They're not gonna know. But then of course, WIS do know, and so it's like you're keeping an ace up your sleeve for those you deem worth sharing your treasured possession with.

Yellow gold is warm and beautiful but very flashy, non-WIS will notice your piece. I have a TT Bluesy and boy does it attract attention, that’s almost too much, I keep that one for the weekend when I go out. This is as far as I’ll go with YG. I wouldn’t wear a full YG watch, especially a sports one. RG is just not for me, I find it dark, coppery and depressing.

For my first PM piece, I recently picked a white gold dress watch, it's perfect. Can be worn every day. There is no steel equivalent, so I wonder if I would have chosen steel over WG had it been available? Probably not, I wanted a PM dress piece and I find WG more wearable than YG.

So yes, I totally get WG, you wear it for yourself. You don’t want others to know you have a gold watch on your wrist. It shows restrain, self-confidence and good taste. There, I’ve said it. Flame suit on .

[WILLIWALKER]

I quite agree with the previous comments.

I would like to qualify with the fact that Rolex models are quite recognizable and whether they are in steel, yellow, pink or white gold ... in the end, it does not change much on the perception that we might have.

There remains everyone's pleasure in having a particular color of metal, an exclusive dial, the density of the material and its conductivity. This argument is often read here and it makes sense; with all the Marc Jacobs, DWs, ect which are in flashy yellow, pink or other, finally a Rolex in yellow gold would go more unnoticed than a steel!

I really enjoy wearing my 126613 like the rose gold of my moonphase. It remains to discover the pleasure of wearing a solid gold piece like a DD40 or other and it will probably be in yellow gold! Because gold in nature is yellow! We're going to feel a bit like a pharaoh or rather an Aztec. All in complete discretion under the sleeve

[Harry-57]

I've only seen one Sub Date in the window of my AD in years. It was the 116619. To my old eyes, through the glass, at a distance, it didn't look like my 116610LV or 116613LB apart from it obviously being a Sub Date. The WG has a texture, depth and lustre all of its own. It looked so good.

Even if your friend did not know it was made of WG, it is possible that the WG would strike him as different somehow. For me it would be the same as you - a personal thing for my enjoyment. The less people who know exactly what it is the better.

[Driver8]

To me, WG (and Platinum) are the ultimate expression of buying watches for you and you alone. Sure they tend to have distinctive dials and/or bezels that aren't available on SS models, but unless you know your watches, then it's not obvious.

For many years I wasn't a fan of WG as I saw it as having all the look of SS, with none of the practicality - i.e. less scratch resistance and more cost - but over time I've come to appreciate the subtlety of it. So much so that my ultimate PM Rolex would be a 116619LB. (I'm still struggling to justify the current price for a single piece though!)

Plus WG does have a lustre all of it's own. Holding a 116719BLRO next to my 116710BLNR really highlighted the subtle difference in tone, which I think worked incredibly well with the subdued BLRO bezel. Better than on the SS BLRO IMO.

[rmlovett1]

I see his point, and he’s right.
I see your point, and you’re right.
I’ve said it many times here on TRF…..wearing WG or PT, is for the enjoyment and pride of ownership of the owner/wearer.
If you want your rolex to be noticed by the general public….Get one in YG or RG.

[1William]

WG is nice and I have had a few models over the years and enjoyed them. The whole PM discussion is about what you value and what you want. I value a YG watch now and have a DD II. I have sold my platinum DD II and YG Submariner. No issues and if I want one back I will buy one.

[steve099]

Firstly the 116619LB is just a truly beautiful watch, its just magic and marked a new era of Rolex sports models with all its first' ( first super case, first ceramic bezel, first glide lock etc..).

The WG though apart from being very sneaky and elegant, actually changes colour in certain lighting. Sometimes you can see a low yellow hue to it, very subtle, other times it just looks like steel. That's WG's trick and not many people pick up on it unless they own a piece that is true grey gold (WG).

I love my 116619 and will never part with it, It will go to my nephew one day. In the mean time I will enjoy it as much as I am able, I generally wear it as my daily because I simply love it. I love the look, love the heft, love the dial, love the watch. It was my grail for a decade and now that I have one, its still my grail.

One of these days I will add the GMT in WG as well, its on the to do list. Blue dial of course as I have a thing for blue.

[DonRickles]

My favorite, hands down!

I've been a fan of WG since my teens. Even my high school ring is made of White gold.

The very first Rolex I tried on was White Gold, which lead to the 116509-072 purchase!

My skin tone does work well with yellow gold, and I do own a YG vintage Seiko. But to repeat above posts, it's a bling thing, and I'm not into attracting unwanted attention these days.

However, with the experience I went through with the pusher falling off the first on, I haven't worn it's replacement yet......several months, still in its box.....unworn.

[brandrea]

I get where you’re coming from Paul, and agree the stealthiness is a major attractor to me as well

SS professional references what really sing to me, but a platinum or WG Day Date is something I’ve always wanted. All they need to do is come up with an adjustable clasp

[DavB]

Funny thing is your "Grail watch" is your passion some may not understand but those who know, knows. Personally I haven't seen the WG in flesh but know it's worth the ALL.

[bp1000]

I've had similar experiences and I admit that when I first started collecting I looked at a few WG Daytonas, the one with the black sub dials and the previous blue dial version with the arabic numerals. The price was about 25k GBP back then and I just couldn't commit to buying because I thought it looked like steel.

However, as the years went on that was exactly the attraction. If you know you know. The hue of the metal and the weight makes it feel special every time you wear it.

Only you know and maybe a few others who know watches. As its a Daytona it doesn't have the date mag so it really stays under the radar and that's a big part of the appeal, yet it feels special to me.

These two really work for me