Discussion
How do these guys get away with it?
I know these watches have been discussed on here loads of times, I'm just a bit shocked at the fact you can get one nearly any model and they have a website up and running advertising the fact.
http://ewatchbay.com/patek-philippe-c-49.html
I know these watches have been discussed on here loads of times, I'm just a bit shocked at the fact you can get one nearly any model and they have a website up and running advertising the fact.
http://ewatchbay.com/patek-philippe-c-49.html
frankhovis said:
It is quite shocking how they get away with such blatant rip offs.
The people that buy them are only kidding themselves, regardless of how 'impressive' they think they look. Sad really.
But some... well, many, buy watches, cars, houses, to impress people so a fake one... or a real one on the never never is just as sad if that's the reason they bought one.The people that buy them are only kidding themselves, regardless of how 'impressive' they think they look. Sad really.
I often see the argument "oh, but these days no-one can tell it's a fake".
To the average Joe they may not be able to tell (but they never get to see it close up anyway).
Anyone who knows a bit about the watch in question will spot that it's a fake a mile off.
It's a bit like some of these Peugeot coupe/MR2 with Ferrari kits. Many members of the public wouldn't know it's a fake but to anyone who knows a thing or two about cars will spot it a mile off!
I'd much rather have a real Seiko than a fake Rolex, you're getting a genuine watch (and support/guarantee etc.) and save up and one day get a real Rolex/Omega/etc....
To the average Joe they may not be able to tell (but they never get to see it close up anyway).
Anyone who knows a bit about the watch in question will spot that it's a fake a mile off.
It's a bit like some of these Peugeot coupe/MR2 with Ferrari kits. Many members of the public wouldn't know it's a fake but to anyone who knows a thing or two about cars will spot it a mile off!
I'd much rather have a real Seiko than a fake Rolex, you're getting a genuine watch (and support/guarantee etc.) and save up and one day get a real Rolex/Omega/etc....
The GMan said:
How do these guys get away with it?
I know these watches have been discussed on here loads of times, I'm just a bit shocked at the fact you can get one nearly any model and they have a website up and running advertising the fact.
http://ewatchbay.com/patek-philippe-c-49.html
I've only got one watch that anyone would conceivably fake, so I looked at their idea of a 45.5mm PO like mine, and quite honestly, theirs is sI know these watches have been discussed on here loads of times, I'm just a bit shocked at the fact you can get one nearly any model and they have a website up and running advertising the fact.
http://ewatchbay.com/patek-philippe-c-49.html
te.The pearl in the bezel is too big. The bezel itself is wrong, as in profile, the knurled part sits flush to the case rather than having a ~2mm gap. The text on the dial is all a bit too big and too white. Either they haven't screwed down the crown properly or they fecked that up, too, because the Omega on the crown is the wrong way up. Ditto for the HEV, which is also in the wrong place.
But this is all fluff. The real evidence, the thing that should make you go "woah, that's cack" is the caseback. Crappily stamped and polished; the hippocampus is messy and too big; the background for the hippocampus is poorly finished; the words "PLANET OCEAN" are stamped rather than laser-engraved; there's no serial number, anti-faking thing or red dot; there's no catalogue number on the bracelet end-pieces. Overall, it lacks the precision and quality that you can see on a real one.
Font on the date wheel is wrong, too.
At a glance, though, it'd pass muster. Unless that glance was underwater, in which case the non-working nature of the watch might give the game away...
Fake dive watches I don't really understand. One of the reasons I bought the PO was that it was a posh watch (by my standards) that would withstand me not forgetting to take it off in the gym/shower/bath/pool.
I think I'll save myself $95 and put it towards a real PO ... I'd be embarrassed to wear the above and even more so if someone commented on it's good looks!Dracoro said:
Anyone who knows a bit about the watch in question will spot that it's a fake a mile off.
I'm not so sure - there are plenty of cheap fake Rolex sports models (especially Submariners) around which are really very good in terms of appearance. If you're not a an expert on crown guards, serifs and rehauts I'd wager you wouldn't know without opening them up.Actually, wearing a fake makes sense in the real world. You're in a bar, someone sees your Planet Ocean and goes, "Hey, nice watch." You just say, "Thanks." and carry on with whatever you were doing. The guy will just think you're not that into watches so won't bother you. I mean, he's not gonna say, "Can I have a look at it cos I wanna check it's not a fake?"
See, you fools, you coulda saved £1500.
See, you fools, you coulda saved £1500.
Stuart said:
WTD said:
yeah, they are almost indistinguishable...
LOL very sad indeed!
or
If it werent for the image text, i'd have trouble working out which is indeed which...
or
I take your point, but those are both different models that you're showing there...LOL very sad indeed!
or
If it werent for the image text, i'd have trouble working out which is indeed which...
or
There are fakes and there are super reps. Super reps will cost much more but are virtually unrecognizable when put beside the real thing - http://www.tt88time.com/
I'm not condoning any of this sort of activity but the examples shown above don't tell the whole story. If you wanted to fool someone that you had the real thing you could 99% of the time - until you meet a watch geek
I'm not condoning any of this sort of activity but the examples shown above don't tell the whole story. If you wanted to fool someone that you had the real thing you could 99% of the time - until you meet a watch geek
shunt said:
There are fakes and there are super reps. Super reps will cost much more but are virtually unrecognizable when put beside the real thing - http://www.tt88time.com/
I'm not condoning any of this sort of activity but the examples shown above don't tell the whole story. If you wanted to fool someone that you had the real thing you could 99% of the time - until you meet a watch geek
And then, even said watch geek would only be able to tell if you physically gave him the watch and let him play with it.I'm not condoning any of this sort of activity but the examples shown above don't tell the whole story. If you wanted to fool someone that you had the real thing you could 99% of the time - until you meet a watch geek
The best one I've ever seen is the 'super rep' version of the last-model Sea Dweller - the only giveaway is the laser-engraved crown at 6 (which you need a loupe to distinguish from the genuine, but you *can* tell the difference if you're close enough) and the fact that the ETA 2836-2 date quickset operates in the opposite direction to the Rolex quickset.
Regarding waterproofing - yeah I agree that replica dive watches are pointless if they're not waterproof... but that 'super rep' sea dweller was tested by saturation divers and worked fine (shockingly). Obviously the replica will be 316L stainless rather than the fancy stuff Rolex use and this will eventually corrode under saturation conditions, but this isn't typical use of these watches.
Back when there were hardly any 'replicas' that would fool a watch geek, I really didn't care much about the market because the only people buying fakes wouldn't buy the genuine watches anyway, and they weren't much of a threat to the real manufactures. Then, with the advent of some reasonably decent fakes, I thought it was a good thing as it put pressure on the Swiss brands to actually innovate rather than just bung an ETA movement in a branded case and charge 1000% margin.
Now, with some of the 'super' replicas actually getting functionally *very* close to the real things... I can't ignore the threat there is to the genuine manufactures. Yes, virtually everyone will claim that fakes are for fake people and be all indignant on the internet and in the pub, but behind closed doors, in a global recession, I bet there are more than a few people who bought a 'super rep' for a laugh and then realised that they're a lot better than their reputation...
I also get a LOT of spam in my mailboxes - I've noticed since last September that the fake watch merchants have gone into spam overdrive, all saying 'global recession - save money on watches' or similar crap. There's a LOT of marketing pressure behind these things.
Being frank, there are some fakes out there (so called super reps) that are good watches in their own right. Counterfeit, yes. Illegal, yes. Supporting organised crime, yes. But still good watches. One thing that the fakes are *very* useful for is obtaining bracelets for your genuine Rolex / Breitling / Omega / etc. at sensible prices (lots of the Americans appear to do this). The Chinese rep guys seem to have the non-complicated ETA movement counterfeits damn near perfect now (2836-2 and 2824-2) but are still having trouble with the 7750 chrono movement.
Would I buy a rep? Yeah, probably, but only a 'super' one that's a decent watch even without the counterfeit branding. I already have a small-but-growing collection of genuine 'interesting' watches (breguet, jlc, sinn, omega, etc.) and now focus my attention on complications that the counterfeiters simply can't copy (or isn't worth their while to try). I used to own Rolexes but when the replicas are damn near equal quality and functionality... where's the value? The R&D of course, but Rolex have been making their signature diving watches for decades and the R&D must be amortised by now.
Basically, I'd prefer to reward the *real* manufactures who innovate. My grail watches include Richard Mille and JLC (plus a dress Breguet if I ever get enough cash...) and I can't see the counterfeiters ever making accurate copies of these watches.
As before, no doubt I'll get flamed for this, but just saying it how I see it. There have been big fights on here before regarding fakes, just as on every watch enthusiast forum. I simply don't have much sympathy for companies that simply take £100 worth of base metal, add £50 worth of mass-produced ETA movement, stamp a brand-name on the dial and then sell the watch for £1000s - if the counterfeiters eat their lunch, then that's their problem. Innovate, make your own movements, do something *exciting*. Most of the manufactures have woken up to this and are now starting to realise that in-house movements are not just what watch geeks want, but also what the 'status symbol' brigade want too.
If you're not a watch geek, but a status-symbol type, and you know damn well that your Rolex sea dweller has been replicated *perfectly* by counterfeiters and most observers may think you're wearing a fake, then where's the 'status' in your purchase any more? There isn't - so you choose something that shouts your status a little more clearly. Sadly, most of the expensive watch market consists of these people, not watch enthusiasts like us....
Flameproof suit on....
shunt said:
There are fakes and there are super reps. Super reps will cost much more but are virtually unrecognizable when put beside the real thing - http://www.tt88time.com/
I'm not condoning any of this sort of activity but the examples shown above don't tell the whole story. If you wanted to fool someone that you had the real thing you could 99% of the time - until you meet a watch geek
The 'super-rep' of the 42mm PO is pretty good, but how come they never seem to be able to replicate the pearl properly? It is oversized and doesn't look to fit flush with the outer bezel ... Again, I'd still rather have the real thing I'm not condoning any of this sort of activity but the examples shown above don't tell the whole story. If you wanted to fool someone that you had the real thing you could 99% of the time - until you meet a watch geek
Edited by Ikemi on Tuesday 31st March 19:22
Some of the reps are better than others and agreed I'd rather have the real thing too, but before buying the real thing I had a Poruguese Chrono that when put next to real thing people would guess 50 - 50 which was the real one. That's £110 versus £4k, it really was that good. However it stopped after a few months, a common problem with the seconds at 6 dial mods on the Asian movement.
Strangely the seller even replaced it under warranty!! So now I have one for washing the car too!!
http://www.tt88time.com/index.php?main_page=produc...
Strangely the seller even replaced it under warranty!! So now I have one for washing the car too!!
http://www.tt88time.com/index.php?main_page=produc...
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