Leaderboard

As for my aging (mutilation) tips. I removed the movement and dial/hands. Closed the empty case, covered the crystal and then just a quick workout in a plastic container with some nuts and bolts, followed by a more controlled beating with a large bolt for the more "focused aging". I then ran a yellow/orange felt-tip pen(texta) around the inside of the crystals and wiped it off, repeated a few times to give it that "too long in Algiers" look. I painted a water/coffee mix onto the hands and dial and dried under a halogen light, them buffed it clean to avoid water stains on the dial. Not the hands, I left them wet and you can see the discolouration on them. I gave the dial and the hands a good session under a halogen light to sun beat them. Finally I popped the bezel insert into an eggcup of bleach for a few minutes, when you see some of the black in the bleach remove, then gave it a rub which removes even more colour. I didn't remove the insert I just removed the crystal and popped the case into the bleach face first. (the eggcup was perfect size to just submerge the bezel. Done. Oh then I dropped the movement/dial/hands onto a hard floor and sheared of the second hand. Do not do this. Unless of course you too think that seconds are overrated. Rob

While the debate may rage through a thousand posts what the best replica watch is for under $150, I doubt few could argue that the funkiest movement for under a $150, or even three times that price, has to be the Franck Muller Crazy Hours. This watch, available in a variety of strap and bracelet options, dial colour layouts from sophisticated black on white to the playful Color Dreams Technicolour Rainbow is limited to a real working Jump Hour movement using a basic manual wind Asian 21J movement. What does this mean? Stay tuned...and read below for my review of this great rep that can be had for just over $100 including shipping. Franck Muller Who is Franck Muller? And what has he done with my sequential ordering of numbers? While noble Swiss watch companies like Breguet and Patek Philippe may have Royal histories dating back over 150 years of horological mastery, Franck Muller's (who was born in 1958) watch house was not established until the early 1990's. In spite of this late start, Muller through a combination of equal parts marketting and mechanical wizardry has been able to achieve tremendous respect for his innovative mechanical and stylistic innovations so much so, as to truly earn his moniker of the "Master of Complications". With a string of patents for such things as design elements like the Curvex Diamond to tourbillon movements, Muller has been able to make such creations that have earned him the title of having the "most complicated wristwatch in the world". A look at the tri-axis tourbillon of the Evolution 3-1 pictured below is an example of this. While there is no hope of ever having a Chinese rep factory make such complicated precision timepieces as the Evolution 3-1, it is surprising that something like the non-sequential jump hour movement of the Crazy Hours watches can be replicated, and at an extremely low price point. The Crazy Hours I had read about jump movements ages ago in various watch magazines as movements that create a binary type of time display by not gradually having the selected number be determined by a gradually moving arm, but an arm that "jumps" from number to number, or a displayed number that flips at a precise point (like the date flip on a Noobmariner vs. an Asian 7750 movement). Muller has taken this idea to the next level by printing his dial to display the hours non-sequentially going around the clock from "midnight" as 8-1-6-11-4-9-2-7-12-5-10-3 instead of 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12. Because of this unique order, the hour "jumps" around the clock at the turn of the hour, while the minute hand rotates gradually as normal, so the time is read by looking at the actual number the hour hand is pointing to, the position the minute hand is pointing to and not the actual number. The big question that everyone has about this replica is: Does the jump hour movement work? The answer is: YES!! The movement is a modified Asian 21J manual wind movement. I have not opened the case, so I can't tell you any more than that. It is a hoot set the time and watch the hour hand jump around the dial as the minute hand sweeps midnight. It is a favourite pastime of children who can tell time to gather around the watch and see the hourly jump. This feature alone I think, makes this watch a must have for any rep collection. When viewed from a distance, the watch will appear to tell the wrong time, but when viewed up close, it will appear to in fact tell the right time, just not in a conventional manner. Let's take a look at the watch in closer detail. The Case The watch arrived in the requested stainless steel Curvex case, measuring about 42mm high, and only 30mm wide. The sides of the casae have a nice polish to them and there were no sharp edges. The relief FM logo on the crown was nicely printed, and deep. [The Caseback] The caseback is joke. Although the 4 screw pattern matches the gen as pictured below... ...there are so many things wrong with the caseback that came supplied with this watch. - Spacing of the letters in Franck Muller at the top is inconsistent and much wider than the gen - Engraving is very shallow...so much so that the last "s" in Complications is cutoff - Missing jeweller's marks - Spelling error "COLORDRBAMS" instead of "Color Dreams" If it's possible to get the standard Crazy Hours caseback, that would be an improvement to at least get rid of the spelling error. The Dial The watch I ordered was from Silix and was a special item Jay had to find for me. It took about a week to source before he had it in the post. There are many dial options, but I chose the Color Dreams, given that if the Hours are Crazy, the colours should be Dreamy. As you can see by the angled dial pictures, there is a guilloche style concentric floral pattern which allows subtle numbers to appear all over the dial when viewed in certain light. This makes for a great look to the dial and adds an extra bit of zip and hint of quality. The dial printing is crisp and clear, and coloured numbers have a nice vibrancy to them. The crystal is supposedly sapphire according to the sticker, but I have no means of verifying this. The Color Dreams Color Dreams refers to the series of multi-coloured numbers. I picked the Color Dreams white dial: Other rep Crazy Hours options include: Color Dreams black dial: Black dial: Blue dial: White dial: The Strap The strap has the proper markings on the back, but the printing is not as deep. The gen is pictured below: The tang buckle is reasonably nice with laser etching of "Franck Muller" on the rounded top. The finish is reasonable, but lacks the quality smoothness and polish of the higher end reps. As well, the rep lacks the jeweller's marks on the bucket found on the original. Replica: Gen: The leather of the strap is real, but the printing of the crocodile grain is very poor making it scream fake from a distance. I would suggest an immediate strap replacement, even though finding a "Franck Muller" printed quality strap (outside of a gen) is likely to be difficult. SUMMARY The Crazy Hours jump movement makes this rep a very fun watch and I think a highly recommended watch for any collection because of the jump movement alone. The dial printing and design allow this watch to readily be a classy but playful dress watch. With such a bad strap, and terrible caseback, it does not rank high in the accuracy department, but these are problems that can be addressed through a caseback or strap upgrade...difficult decisions to make I think, given that the cost of this watch with shipping is less than US$150, there can be only so much quality. I hope you enjoyed this review and have found it useful.

Trying to change things up a bit. Lets see the contents of your pockets and wrists. Emptying my pockets will yield you those things. -very old Guess brown leather bifold. No cash. -Keys to home and the Nissan SE-R SpecV. Wilson-tactical lanyard for a keychain. -My phone -Ipod touch 2g/8gb (inside the black leather case) -Spyderco Tenacious model (knife). Another hobby. I have a couple nice Spydees. Unless I'm naked, assume I have one on me. -Tag, calibre6.

so now that there are a slew of nardin models, we need a subsection i think. Got the Blue Seal - its exactly what i expected = b+ looks great, dial is great. i love it, rehaut is low but i think thas supposed to be that way. there is AR. I would say its comparable to the BCE's if it had steelfish AR this thing would be an A+ problem is you can't remove and reglue the date mag. If someone figures that out to do easily, they could makes lots of money on all these new nardins

This obviously isn't the greatest pictorial, but here's a few snaps from back in '07 I took; don't think I ever posted the first few--some crappy, some not: Swiss SSD V2 & Swiss Sub (Noobmariner? which type, unsure), both from Andrew: NOTE: I did install recessed aftermarket inserts & pearls, and a light polish on the case & bands, but the lume is factory though. Enjoy.

Nice shots! The pearl on the SSD especially.. Tell me about it. Is it a replacement pearl? Looks good.

One other thing -- while nobody is likely to ever "call me out," I shall share with you the perfect answer: "I dunno, I took it off a dead guy." Considering the activities and associates of my younger days, that is rather believable. Bill

Do you even WEAR your watches? Great shots, thanks for sharing!

As an interesting update, I was reading an architectural review of a house down the street from me and it reminded me of the funny lines that people draw on when things like reps or "fakes" are acceptable or not to be displayed in public. In the article, the owner of a rather stunningly designed modernist house in an extremely nice part of a moderately large cosmopolitan city (more than others, not as much as some ) had in his house replica Le Corbusier chairs that looked fantastic to the overall look of the house. We see this countless times. How many houses have Arts and Crafts furniture using the designs of Stickley and others, or Tiffany inspired lamps, or even prints and posters decorating hallways and walls and people don't think twice about looking down on them for having replicas proudly displayed and used in daily life? Lighthing fixtures found in most people's houses are often cheaper copies of well known designs (or at least heavily "homaged" designs. Have you ever seen a non-Herman Miller Aeron chair in an office anywhere? It just so happens that a lot of these products don't have brand labels emblazoned on them so are by nature "sterile", but a print is a reproduction, unless you bought the original work of art, or vintage poster or what not. It's something to consider before calling people out for being "wannabe's", posers, or whatever. Everyday life is filled with hypocries...accept it and enjoy whatever decisions you make. Don't take things too seriously...you'll give yourself a heart attack.

Just a little wear and tear. Too much? . . from this... Image courtesy of narikaa . . to this.

TJ, I apologise for patronising you. I simply don't believe that involvement in the rep world in general goes hand in hand with hatred for luxury goods. To me, it looks like you are aspiring to own a Rolex.. and if you aren't then I don't understand why you have reps in the first place? There are plenty of other watches out there that look similar. Surely searching for luxury items/replicas is how you ended up here in the first place? I think this discussion *is* complex, because you are critising other peoples actions in certain ways. I think that other's actions is causing a secondary effect that you are linking to items. I'm having trouble trying to explain this, and explain it in a diplomatic way.. My observation (and not that it means much obviously..) is that you seem so affected by others bragging/flashiness that this behaviour is leading you to dislike the items and what they they represent to your perception of that individual. You don't want to think that you are like 'that guy who wears the Gen Sub and thinks hes something special because of it'. But this is going beyond the item itself and really linking it to other individuals rather than items. I don't suppose this is really worth getting deep into, I certainly dont want to insult you at all TJ. I just find your views very unique given the subject matter of our niche.

...and besides, you gotta wear them for at least a little bit to know whether or not your first attempts at horology, mods, repairs, etc are completely botched, or if all your swearing, sweating, and squinting through a loupe and begging for help from mates at RWG were worth it, bringing beautiful things into your life for you and your loved ones, bringing your family closer together, giving you the motivation to change the world...well maybe that's gone too far. I also wear them in public as my 4 year old son likes to pick the watches I wear as part of the morning routine. This is one of his favourite storybook characters (note the number of watches he wears...he has the same on each hand...and I usually get encouraged to do the same):

Interesting topic, and discussions like this come up over and over. It's kinda part and process of the whole essence of our hobby. That beyond the items themselves, they hold a secret intruige! So, let me start by saying; we on this forum sometimes take it way too far. Because watches is our 'thing' we forget that most people simply don't notice what watch your wearing in the first place. Beyond that, I think I could ask numerous amounts of people if they knew what 'Hublot' and 'Panerai' are, to recieve no response. This is an extremely important factor, because while you're worrying about what wearing a rep is gonna do for your image and credibility, you're forgetting most people won't ever even notice. Think about it; before you had the interest in watches you do now, did you really look at other peoples wrists in public? It was my understanding that most of us at this stage in the hobby (actual replica 'collectors') quite simply love watches, and good watch design. People are buying the designs they like as if they had the choice and money wasn't 'so much' of an issue. I don't think theres any question that if we could all own gens of all the watches we wanted we would (bar the exception of the modding few that really love being part of the process). Wearing replicas is purely aspirational, people love something to aspire to after all. I had to giggle abit when I read this, and it's meant as no offense.. but are you actually suggesting 65-70% of Americans are middle class? In an ideal world this is how it would be, and actually its this type of distribution that Obama talks about constantly. 'Spreading the wealth' as it were, to get that kind of figure. As it stands however, that is highly inaccurate. TJ your input always interests me, because I feel like you feel slightly resentful towards gens and the gen industry in general. Yet I wonder why you don't purchase sterile dials if you are not guilty of the same emulation and aspiration to the branding and aspiration to the luxury goods market in general. I think you personally promote the idea of utilitarian usage and enjoyment of the products, however ownership of Replica Rolex and Louis Vuitton would go beyond this! Because after all, it is the wearing the rep of a Rolex that has contributed highly to Rolex's renowned global brand status in the first place.

I live in Australia, and we pay considerably different tax rates to wherever you are from. So lets just shut that discussion down. Big box stores pay taxes, taxes which go back into the community i would say thats a big difference between the cartels which load up the rep world

you wouldn't know, as much as you'd like to believe you would. Facts, observations, and opinions are so difficult to deal with when you're a mod aren't they habibi?

I know what you mean, it's certainly a concern of mine as well. The only thing I'm hoping, is if a gen hand can exist, it has to be possible (although that's probably a reason why the Mercedes hand is the more widely used ) Also, I couldn't remove all the material from the star, as I don't have any tools fine enough to do the work without tearing the outer ring open, but, I'm hoping that the extra material might provide a little extra purchase for the lume to anchor to Thanks for the feedback and well-wishes That's certainly giving my some ideas for forming a base substrate of some kind, maybe something like cling film could be epoxied to the underside of the hand to provide that extra support, without thickening the hand enough to make it drag on the dial... Thanks I know it's far from perfect, but for something I did with a pair of nail clippers, I'm quite happy with the results, although I might try and improve on that if I can find precise enough tools If there's someone who can relume a lollipop hand, that might save me some troubles, might you be able to share their contact details?

That's reassuring to hear, thanks for the input Thinking about it, a lollipop hand shouldn't be impossible, seeing as Snowflake hands can be lumed, which is a larger area

I'm liking the sound of that, thanks for the tip, very much appreciated

A little butchery of a Mercedes hand, and I've nearly got a lollipop hour hand The only problem now, is getting the hands re-lumed

Fantastic result, my friend Might this lead to you also building a Tudor project?

Thanks for the suggestion, but bling's really not my style If I was to get an accurate GMTIIC with the polished mid-links, I'd brush them out of the polished look before wearing the watch, as that was something I really didn't like about the gen (or my less than accurate YachtMaster ) so I don't think it would be worth me getting a really bling watch, even for going out, as it would just be totally out of character for me

Thanks for the feedback, guys 1655 it is then Thanks for the insight, as usual, you make perfect sense The ones I've tried on thus far, while nice watches for sure, really didn't do anything for me at all. Breitling is probably the one brand I could never see myself wearing I have to admit, had the result been for the not-quite GMTIIC, it wouldn't've been mangled, just kept as an out of the box alternate wearer, although I think I would have potentially found it more versatile functionally, rather than aesthetically Thanks for the teasers I think you're right that I'd get more satisfaction from vintagizing a watch as a project, than I would from just owning and keeping one 'as is' Thanks for all the advice, guys

I think you're absolutely right, it would definitely be the more satisfying project, and overall, I think a more fitting watch to my other tastes This is the 1655 I've got my eye on. Far from perfect, I know, most obviously, the need for a bracelet swap, but I have one of those in my parts box, so no problem there... A few dings in the case, 10 seconds under the grill for the dial, and I think I'll have something vaguely presentable (in terms of aged appearance, not in terms of a watch to wear somewhere swanky ) It's a watch which has been on my radar for a while, but only now that one has been available at such a low price, that I've got the spare cash to actually buy, so I definitely think it's a trigger which needs pulling

At the moment, I'm having the usual Libran conundrum of being able to balance both arguments, so I need my bros to settle it for me... A bit about me... I'm very much a 'jeans and white shirt' kind of guy. I can wear a suit and look smart, but I don't often have the need to. If it's hot, I'll wear combat shorts and a wifebeater, so something which goes with that would be prefereable... I do like vintage watches. I like that they don't draw attention through polished surfaces, I like that they don't even look anything special, so don't attract any attention, and, I like that I don't have to worry about keeping them pristine... At the moment, I have one Vintage Sub in permanant use, which I really enjoy wearing, and, I have a NATO sub project on the go, which will also be in the vintage aesthetic... If I were to get a GMT II c (actually just a black bezeled GMT II, (no ceramic insert) but with green hand and lettering ) then I think it would give me a nice 'smart watch' for special occasions/going out, (when I might make the effort to at least wear a clean white shirt ) And, it would also add a 'modern watch' to my collection, even if it wouldn't actually get much regular wrist time If I were to get a 1655, it would give me the opportunity to vintagize another watch, maybe try a few new techniques, and add a really iconic watch to my collection... It would certainly make a pleasant alternative to the vintage sub, but, would not be any better for 'smart wear', so would not give a 'smart alternative', nor would it provide the functionality of a second time-zone, which, although something I don't use often, is useful to be able to use if the need arises... So, bearing in mind what I tend to wear, which do you think would be better suited for my personality? Thanks in advance

Interesting perspective, but, it does rather rely on the end buyer only buying rep goods for the associated prestige value, rather than simply an appreciation for the form aesthetically. I can certainly understand the moral point you raise as well, in the same way that I can understand why some people choose to be vegetarians or vegans, but, I don't feel strongly enough about that issue to actually abstain myself. Certainly not when so many premium products are made under less than ideal conditions anyway (sneakers, for example) Wearing a rep does not automatically mean that the person is doing so to 'pretend to be someone they're not', and I wouldn't label someone accordingly, in fact, I'd think less about the person who bought the genuine item, and thought that the ability to do so actually meant something, or made them a better person, than I would about the person who buys a rep. That said, I would look very unfavorably on someone who bought a rep and tried to pass it off as genuine, if asked politely about it. One thing's for sure, I'd take the members of this forum, over the snobs of gen forums any day

Each to their own. It is one of my reasons for not wearing them and subsequently selling them

TeeJay we meet again I agree about the moral issues, it was just an eye opener for me and something i had never really associated with the rep watch industry ( kids losing arms etc... pulled at my heart strings i guess) That is why i never wore the reps out of the house, i didnt want questions etc... I think a large portion of people with reps would pass them off and are using them as quasi status symbols or status builders. Each to their own and i still will enjoy reading the rep forums etc...

Indeed, it's a small forum Do you have a link to an article about that (kids losing arms etc), I'd certainly be interested to read it As above, I can understand the moral aspect, but, I know that many legitimate prestige products are equally made under such conditions, and will continue to be, so avoiding rep goods really wouldn't make much of an impact, as the other goods would still be being produced, it's like I said about vegetarianism. I totally understand why someone would choose not to eat meat on moral grounds, I just don't share that belief. Out of curiosity, what was it about the questions which you didn't want? Was it a case of not wanting to 'get called out' wearing a rep, or just not wanting to discuss a watch at all? I only ask as personally, I'd be happy to tell anyone about what I was wearing, without being embarrassed about wearing counterfeit merch, if they're genuinely interested and asking out of a genuine interest. Heck, even if it was someone trying to 'call me out', I can still point out that, regardless of the watch being a replica, or even its accuracy to any said mode, I personally built it, and with the few friends who have been interested in the project, that has been their focus of interest, rather than the brand on the dial, or the origin of the parts (which they're all fully aware of). Of course, all that being said, I'd rather just not attract the attention in the first place, which is why I went for the vintage aesthetic, rather than a modern watch... You may well be correct about a large percentage of rep owners passing them off as genuine and status symbols, I certainly know one person who is like that, who wears a rep Explorer II (obvious to anyone who knows Rolex, as it has the coronet and Rolex etched into the endlinks of the bracelet...) who seems to think he's a member of (to use his phrase) "the Rolex Club", yet who when we were discussing my project sub, didn't know why the bezel rotated, and upon being told that it was a diver's watch, said he'd be scared to take a Rolex underwater... If he's indicative of the majority of rep owners, then I would certainly agree with you. That said, I don't think it is at all indicative of the majority of the members of the forum As you say, to each his own

Now to answer the OP's post. I wear reps for very good reason. After buying dozens of gen watches over the past 10 years, I got disgusted by the fact that MOST of them are nothing more than polished ETA movements inside and under well-designed cases and dials. Most of the reps I buy are indistinguishable from the gen. Especially when I'm in the company of 99.9% of the real world who don't know the first thing about watches- gen or rep. Most importantly, they fool ME. Maybe I'm lying to myself, but I take great satisfaction in wearing a good looking, well made, well finished wristwatch. I frankly don't care if it's a rep or not I'm happy knowing that I'm paying what I think is a fair price for a good watch. Granted that reps aren't breaking any new ground but it's only a matter of time before the companies making reps start making their own brands and bring us better watches than ever. Furthermore, there's service. I have a gen sea-dweller and I've had it for 8 years or so. Recently, the 12 o'clock marker fell off. That's right- fell off- for no good reason. Guess what? I have to send it to Rolex to get fixed. Guess what? It's not covered by warranty. Guess what? They'll insist on doing a complete service on it- replace gaskets, stem, crown, tube and pressure test it. Guess what else? It's going to cost 3 times as much as the best available sea-dweller rep today. Is it worth it? Maybe. Many of the people who know me well know that I'm big on reps. When I show them a watch they haven't seen before, their first question is usually, "is it real?". They're not asking me if I'm a fake or not. They know my gen collection is extensive. They're asking me because they're AMAZED that they can't tell the difference. They're AMAZED at the quality of reps available. They also know gd well that I'm not trying to impress anyone with my wealth- I'm only interested in sharing my interest in quality timepieces. Modern reps (super reps) are truly remarkable works of engineering. They warrant interest and attention based on that fact alone. In my opinion, if you're going to walk around suggesting to people that your reps are anything but reps, you're a real loser in the purest sense of the word. I suspect that most of the people on this and other rep forums are doing anything but that. My other issue was that I was buying gens that I "had to have" and wearing them for a few hours once a month. I'm not made of money and can't afford to be doing that while having all the watches I want. I admit there's something wrong with me. I see someone wearing X watch and I want one. I see X watch in a movie and I want one. I see X watch in an ad and I want one. With reps, I can keep those watches on hand and afford to do so. Some of you have seen much of my collection. It's ridiculous. Most of the watches sit idle until one of the aforementioned scenarios occurs and I take it out of the case and wear it before putting it back for an indefinite period. All that said, 90% of the time when I go out in public, I wear a gen. I have about 20 that are in regular circulation and I think that's an excessive number of watches for anyone to wear. I wear them instead of reps because of three main reasons: 1. They have a movement or complication which isn't being repped with the expectation that if someone DOES happen to show an interest in my watch, I can show them something special or something they haven't seen before. 2. The case is made of a precious metal (if you think white gold is the same as SS, try wearing it. Even in a dark room, you'd NEVER confuse the two). 3. It's actually purpose built and has been tested by a reliable manufacturer to do what it has been advertised to do. (I'll wear a rep dive watch swimming but I wouldn't wear one diving). Furthermore, I limit myself to gens in public because I think anyone who owns a lot of watches is demonstrating only one personality trait- they like to spend money- period. Admittedly, I like to spend money. However, I'm not too proud of this fact. I don't know if any of you watch Mythbusters but if you do, you've probably noticed Adam's extensive watch collection. You've probably also noticed that Jamie wears the same watch over and over (some cheap black plastic POS). You've probably ALSO notice that Adam is an idiot and that Jamie is the brains of the operation. Think of that before you ram around wearing a different watch like most people wear a different channel on cable. I've typed too much. Flame away.

Big box store selling chinese products i get that. So when a big box store e.g. walmart, kmart etc.... they pay taxes, which in turn benefit the community in which they are sold, so the money is flowing in a positive direction. Unlike the counterfeit market which has 70 to 80 percent flowing into cartels which operate in people smuggling, black mail, sweat shops, drug trafficking etc.... Drawing parallels to an illegal sweat shop and say a vietnamese nike production facility of today is well i guess pulling the long bow yet again.

O and if you don't care about the brand and just like the design. here is a great new submariner http://cgi.ebay.com.au/SUBMARINER-STEEL-AUTOMATIC-MEN-WATCH-GERMAN_W0QQitemZ230369304165QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAU_Watches?hash=item35a3149e65&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

+1 Toad, well said

It's pretty funny when you think about it, isn't it True, sadly, to the untrained observer, such a piece may come across as over-compensation for other shortcomings Sadly, you're absolutely spot on correct quite right there

You're absolutely correct, I think the problem, is the R-Word. It's success is also it's undoing. The name is almost universally recognized, but, it is also universally linked to replication, so to the uninitiated, Rolex either = Super Rich, or, it = Fake, with no middle-ground, due to the misconception that Rolex watches are 'the best of the best' in terms of 'expensive watches' (which is of course totally false, but, it is the public perception of the brand... Another aspect which I think people forget, is how long an item can potentially last. For example, a pair of designer frames for eye-glasses can cost a lot of money, but, given the average 12 month lifespan of a pair (after that, it really is worth having the prescription checked, and possibly altered) when the cost is broken down to how much it costs on a daily basis, it is probably still cheaper than buying daily disposable contact lenses, and much less than people might spend on other vices like cigarettes, coffee or alcohol on a daily/weekly basis. Given that there are vintage Subs still in existence from the 50s, it's reasonable to expect a modern Sub to be equally functional in 50 years time, and, if a young man was to buy a Sub in his early twenties (such as a friend of mine who is a Royal Navy submariner) in theory, he need never buy another watch in his lifetime. When viewed from that perspective, the cost of the watch breaks down very reasonably. Of course, without corporate greed, that retail price could still be considerably cheaper (and that's where Reps come in

Hey, Interesting topic and i will have a go at replying quickly... I never wear my reps in public only have them to look at and play with, now i am selling out of reps all together and sticking with my gen rollies. Why you might ask? well my views on this have changed recently after reading a few articles and becoming a bit more informed. I also recently read about cartel involvement in the manufacture of replica handbags, shoes and watches and the human rights issues that go along with them. Children forced to work, mothers, daughters and older people forced to work for little pay and punishment. The rep industry supports some of the most violent and ruthless criminals in the world and all for what? so we can feel a bit better about ourselves wearing a "faux" rolex or whatever the brand? It is plain selfish and a movement i do not want to be part of anymore. So if you can't afford a 10 or 20 grand watch buy what you can afford and don't pretend to be someone your not, you are only selling out yourself. On a second note, i have a leased cls63 amg, doesn't mean i can't afford it but for tax purposes it works out better Idiots buy cars outright (unless its a collector e.g. rolls royce).... Most heavily depreciating items known to man.