2004 DJ 16234 Authentication

[snailheart]

Hi All, I recently acquired this DJ 16234 and wanted to get the opinion of some of the experienced folk on the site. I had a few questions about the watch and brought it into a local AD.

1) Crown doesn't screw all the way in (stops about 1/2 turn short)
2) I haven't seen an example of this particular dial (with lume-filled indices) on a 16234. I have only seen 116234s with this dial. Since the F1* serial dates it to 2004, I'm wondering if maybe it was a bit of a crossover in production with the newer model.

The AD I brought it to said it was a fake, but the reasons they cited don't add up. They told me Rolex does not print "STAINLESS STEEL" or "ORIG. ROLEX DESIGN" on the case, which seems to be a false assessment. They also said that the reference number should be printed on the rehaut at 6 o'clock, but it appears Rolex didn't start doing that until 2005. They also brought out a current model and showed me the bezel was thicker.

Another potential red flag was that it was sold without the bracelet, but otherwise it seems high quality. It's heavy, and beats smooth at 4hz.

Would an AD have incentive to tell me a watch was fake when it wasn't? Any advice and opinions would be appreciated. Thanks!