valerian

Am I allowed to say this? I thinks it's freightening. They should have a permission to sell war material for this. Yours kindly Valerian

Mmmmm... Railmaster... Yummmmm... Will you show it? Show it, show it! Welcome, by the way. Yours kindly Valerian

I agree. I know some folks who work in the Swiss watch industry and they are not too happy with business these days. Economy has gotten worrying for them as well, even the big names. Its worst for the small indy brands which is a shame, because it's there that the really cool watches are manufactured... And don't make the mistake to think everyone who helps producing a piece of horological luxury worth 20 k could afford that kind of luxury himself. But these hard times are in no way caused by the copying of their products (the small brands wont get copied at all of course) whereas the music biz is falling apart because of it. Yours kindly Valerian

Yours kindly Valerian

Hi there. Buyers remorse? Why that? It's a beautiful watch, man! You will find a flaw on any rep if you only look for it close enough. Actually, if you think about it, you are way better of with this lovely fiddy than with hundreds of expensive but extremely ugly gens! I wish I could wear that PAM. It's simply too big for my arm. Yours kindly Valerian

That is one lovely watch, Lani! Thanks for showing. I find it beautiful, no matter what the flaws are. Is it 42 or 45 mm? Yours kindly Valerian

Hi and welcome to this great place! You have struck on a goldmine of information. My advice would be to read quite a lot before asking questions. I was shy enough to lurk for a few weeks during which prevented me luckily from asking the all too simple questions. Yours kindly Valerian

BK, I totally agree in general. But in this special case I think it's different: If Hublot attached one of those smart cards to their bezel or dial design it would actually be a visual improvement. Sorry maxman, I know it's a matter of taste. Yours kindly Valerian

Have a look at the Baselworld Rolex models! One would have to pay me to wear one let alone buy a rep.

Weeeeeell, Agrippa, not only have you received a warm and fuzzy Welcome by warm and fuzzy maxman (Wal-Mart must be waaaaaaaaay better than the average Swiss supermarket I am forced to go to) but you got first class or AAA-information from seasoned members which not every noob will get! If you get hooked (which wouldn't surprise anybody around here) please consider getting that lovely orange member banner below your avatar. And if not pls. at least quickly return and post a wrist shot of that newly acquired watch! Yours kindly Valerian

Mike, you're way of welcoming new folks and reacting to those typical noob-questions is really heart warming. Thank you for that. I fully understand that the old time cracks here are sort of fed up with answering those posts again and again. Maybe it takes us semi-noobs to friendly guide the really noob noobs towards the desired information treasures. Yours kindly Valerian

I quite agree with what you say: What we see at the moment in world economy could end up as a new balance in wealth and power between West and East (and not so much North and South, which is due as well). But on short terms I think that Chinese government feels quite some pressure from their "citizens" (I doubt the adequacy of this term given the civil rights of the Chinese people) as they suffer a radical decline in material comfort for the first time in modern chinese history. This could (I admit it doesn't have to) force Official China to collaborate more with Western economies which is (from a very re-focused point of view) probably bad news for our community. The flipside could be a process towards more democratic structures which I would readily prefer to buying our beloved reps. Forgive me if I'm being unclear English not being my daily language. Yours kindly Valerian

That's a real Baselworld premiere if I'm informed correctly: Usually our top brands will pretend that the number of replica watches sold worldwide corresponds to the number not sold by the Gen industry. Which is obviously utter BS!

You're right of course. Actually I start to wonder if this isn't foremost a marketing gag... Yours kindly Valerian

Man. I like my GMTIIc and my SSD. And I was aware that Rolex also caters to those people with loads of cash and zero taste. But there are some clunkers here that must have been designed in Mr. Hydes laboratory. Forgive my frankness. Yours kindly Valerian

As Baselworld is about to open top brands obviously start a media campagn against watch counterfeiting. Hublot states it will protect its nwe models with a smart card! See here: Hublot press release "By leveraging this technology, online shopping and auction Websites have the ability to provide its users a safe, secure transaction, by controlling counterfeited goods in its product range." Hmmm. Interesting. Thank god I don't like hublot watches! How long will it take our Chinese cracks to replicate those smart cards? Yours kindly Valerian

Thanks for your thoughts, Ken. The Baselworld speaker actually states that there is not much the gen brands can do about the rep market. He calls upon the Chinese government to do their duty. He admits that there are extremely professional watchmakers in China, also swiss manufactured machinery. Another thought: Will the world economic crisis force the Chinese officials to collaborate more with western states in terms of copyright enforcement? Until now the Chinese could pretty much act as they wanted having the growth rate they had. That's obviously about to change, Chinese middle class is for the first time confronted with an actual decline in living standards. Your comments are appreciated. Yours kindly Valerian

Wish you all the best! Get well soon. Drunk driving is extremely stupid and most of very selfish! Hope the pain is not too bad anymore... Yours kindly Valerian

Hi guys It's spring in Switzerland (at least calendar-wise, it's freezing cold still) and where I live everyone gets watch crazy. Basel is trying to outshine itself and you gotta take care not to get trampled down by hordes of eagerly chattering watch professionals from all over the world. BaselWorld2009 Needless to say media is quite focused on the watch market which brings all sorts of interesting announcements and statements... Today Baselworld officially released a Press communique about falsifications. Their speaker is cited that it's not as it used to be (hear, hear!): replicas have become so good it's "crazy". And whereas a few years ago there where only a few brands repped today you will find at least twenty (20!) different brands on rep market! For german-savvy members: NZZ-Article Probably they know a lot better (Swiss watch manufacturers receiving replicas to check authenticity from Swiss customs quite regularly) but won't talk about how bad it is really... Yours kindly Valerian

Hmmm. Very interesting topic. I asked for a raise today... How about: I don't have a moral? Yours kindly Valerian

Oooooh that's a hard one. How to pick? I'd go for: 1. Shichinin no samurai (Seven Samurai) by Kurosawa 2. Roman Holiday (see my avatar) by Idunnowhom 3. Reservoir dogs by Tarantino Yours kindly Valerian

Hi Terry Welcome to this great place. I see you have received great advice and I have nothing to add about where to get the best Rolex. I have also purchased some of those and I sure do love them. But reading your story my advice would be the following: If you are surrounded by people wearing Submariners and Sea Dwellers, go get yourself a great IWC or a stunning Panerai! Just my 2 cents. Yours kindly Valerian

Hi Asci Most people here get those watches for the sake of their beauty, not to show off really. To tell the time you can use your mobile phone, nobody really NEEDS a mechanic timepiece. We don't need, we crave. That aside you will meet wonderful and highly competent people here. Welcome to this very special place. Yours kindly Valerian

Oh man! Harley! Just when I thought there was ONE cult watch here that I don't need you come up with this PO on a leather strap! Kssshhhkssshhhh! Shoooo! Go away! I never liked the PO. But this is seriously beautiful! Yours kindly Valerian

I just love those happy endings! Welcome back, Milwaukee. Lani, you're just fantastic! Yours kindly Valerian