jfreeman420

I thought that reading from previous experiences that Canada was difficult to get reps through customs. I have also read members getting bills for import tax. Is this not true?

Welcome. I see more and more cigar smokers here. maybe a sub forum in the future. What better way to show off a watch than to have a fine cigar raised to your lips?

I agree, training is key to a successful sales person. Keep in mind 99.9% of the watch buying public are not nearly as detail oriented as any of us and this particular ad sales person was just a moron. If it was my store he would be thrown out on his ass, but then again if it was my store he would know how to use the watch. Mcdonalds and Burger King give their franchisees more training than the big watch manufacturers do.

There are plenty of these on ebay along with Rolex submariner wall clocks. I don't think they were commisioned by the brands. They are most likely fakes. Dealer displays are usually much higher quality.

I'm sure it will happen, but these watches will never be held in as high regard as Rolex or Vacheron or Audemars. Cars are one thing. Most people who buy an automobile whether it's a honda or a mercedes want to have long term reliability and good gas mileage. The exceptions are the people who buy Ferraris and Lamborghinis. They could give a [censored] about the gas mileage and are happy to take it in for service once a month. My point is, they may break into the mid level watch market and be very succesful. The $10,000 plus range is a bit more difficult due to the fact that people who buy watches for $10K, $20K, or $50K and above don't say hey my watch is quality and it will alst 50 years without service. They are saying hey look at me I am super rich and I have a Rolex. These brands have taken 100 years or more to build customer loyalty and reputation and brand recognition. The chinese may never achieve that.

Yes that would clash quite a bit. Powder coat the calipers also.

Most sales people at AD's are low paid counter people. They undergo little training and are paid an hourly was plus sometimes a small commission. This is the retail world. These are the same people at macy's and dillard's etc. There is no 6 month training course to sell watches although there should be. Because of the low pay most of these stores have a high turnover of sales people and it doesn't pay to invest in training. Plus, running a retail establishment is quite costly to begin with and they can't afford to pay someone like me $150,000/year to actually know what they are talking about.

I have been quite lucky with the asian 7750 movements. I have several runnig strong for 1 to 2 years now. I believe this HBB has an unmodified 7750 movement and the main problem was with the daytona's seconds at 6. I have 3 of these and only one crapped out right away. I still feel that the real question that should be addresed is: is the creamic bezel worth $200? No way in hell!!! The full ceramic Chanel j12 can be had for around $200 and change. Why is the previous big bang $400 and now they slap a ceramic bezel on it and it is $600? I believe strongly that the steel and rose gold versions are well worth the money. As are the SFSO and BCE. Where else can you get an automatic movement (chrono or not) sapphire crystal, 316L case and bracelet with weight and workmanship comparable to these and AR coating for around $400? The watches themselves are well worth the money no matter what is on the dial, I just don't feel the $200 upcharge is justified for that ceramic piece of crap. I would say maybe it's worth an extra $65.00 and that is being generous.

It sure is a shame living here in south florida it has become difficult to get good cuban cigars with so many fakes around. I had a Dominican Romeo y Julieta yesterday on the beach with a mojito and it just wasn't the same.

I always liked the Montoya. I thought I had read somewhere that the former head designer for AP who designed the Royal Oak was the guy who designed the Big Bang and that is why there are so many similiarities. Can someone confirm this? BTW, what is the name of the model of that Baume Mercier?

Well we do have good taste. As soon as I saw that pic I thought wow!!! That can't be too expensive. Maybe they would take Iraqi Dinars?

The hottest look right now is color matches wheeels. Get the centers matched to the car and leave the lip chrome!!!

No matter how good they are, no matter how nice the design, if they continue to copy designs and put a new name on them they will still be chinese replicas or homage watches. If they start their own unique designs they still won't live up to the reputation or have the respect of swiss watches.

Would be nice to see this in all rose gold with the ceramic bezel. How about a bracelet. I never get any good gold watches anymore.

The Pam daylight is 44mm. Try another model.

Marketing is about 50%of the price of everything we buy. Not to mention research and development and design. These companies spend millions before the first watch is even sold. It's the same thing with dvd's and video games. A blank disc is 50 cents. Why spend $50 on mortal kombat? I used to import espresso machines from Italy. My cost was $390. My price was $3,000. My marketing budget was $250,000 per month. This is a fact of life and there is no way around it I believe the gen manufacturers have every right to charge what they do for their watches. Most are super high quality pieces with fine attention to detail. I however refuse to pay those prices because the second hand market is alot cheaper

I also wish Ms. Nanuq well. Have a great weekend everyone. Mine is about to start with a Capt. and Diet coke and a nice Cohiba............Keep the good news coming!!!

What is the point to your question? Yes Zenith makes a 31 jewel chronograph movement named El Primero. Are you contemplating a purchase of a replica that has this inside? If so be very careful.............................

I have been into many AD's with rep watches on. Even if they are top notch I usually try to keep them out of direct view when up close. Most of the time a salesman will notice the watch from a distance and thus give me great service hoping for a sale. I have had the opportunity to try on $50,000 to $100,000 watches with no problem but would never ever ever tell anyone I am wearing a rep.

NIce collection of stogies there. I currently have 2 of the Opus X one of the best cigars on the market IMO and they are dominican, half box of Arturo Fuente 858, several cohibas and Montecristo Habana. I like those Partagas as well. Very nice with the maduro wrapper. Funny thing happened on sunday. I was at Ft lauderdale beach having lunch with my girl and a friend. this old cuban guy comes to the table ans offers cuban cigars. I ask for Romeo y Julieta Churchills and he pulls a few from the bag. 3 for $20.00 he says. Well, I know this is a $15 to $20 cigar and look at them closely. The wrappers were very inconsistent and the band was a light brown not the shiny gold leaf it should be. I tell him they are fake and he pulls out a sealed box and says oh yeah well does this look fake? Then he pulls out a box of Cohiba esplendidos with a glass top and says what about this? I remembered an article I read in Cigar Afficianado that simply said Cohiba never made a box with a glass top. 100% fake. Although I was wearing my rep pam 251, I don't think I would get equal enjoyment from a fake cigar.

I don't think that anyone here realizes that option #2 will have no affect on the dealers business since they don't post in their sections anyway. It will also not stop members from reccomenditn these dealers. Ironically enough it is pretty bad marketing to neglect posting new watches on the board.

I have some good news that may change my life. The last 3 weeks have caused me to have somewhat of an epiphany. I have always dated young beautiful women with great bodies. Nothing less than a 7 but never a 10. I have always had relationships that ended badly. Most of the women or "girls" I go for are in their 20's. Great when I was too but I am now 31. All of these girls have had menial jobs (if any job at all) and no real path for a future. Strippers, waitresses, secretaries (yes a few were employed by me) or living at home with mommie and daddy. These type of women are waiting for prince buy me that to come along and take care fo them which I happily do. I even bought one a car. The down side is these type of women are extremely codependant and are never happy. It always ends in turmoil. Now for the epiphany. About 3 weeks ago I am sitting at my local hole in the wall having a Captain Morgan and diet coke when in walk a man and a woman. They sit around the corner from me and I don't pay any attention because I go to this particular place to be left alone. I get up and go to the jukebox and play some Lynyrd Skynyrd, Kid Rock and Billy Joel. Somehow they start talking about music and I get involved in the conversation. The woman makes it quite clear that they are not together and she is single. They switch seats and we continue to talk. I tell the bartender to call me a cab and she says "I'll take you home". I guess they came in separate cars because she took me home. No sex on the first date she leaves later that night. We exchanged phone numbers and wshe starts caling and texting me 2 or 3 times a day. I remembered she had a cute face, quick wit and my exact brand of dry humor and sarcasm. I also remember she was a bit overweight so I don't answer her calls. After 4 days of ignoring her she sends me the "this is my final attempt" message and I think thank god........... So the next time she calls I decide to answer (yes she lied about the final attempt.) We go out for dinner and surprisingly she didn't eat that much. Turns out she had surgery and is on medication that slows her metabolism. Long story longer, we become inseperable. She is the sweetest, most intelligent woman I have ever met. She is independant, has a wonderful 6 figure carreer and is studying for her masters degree. She is my age and fun to be around. We always have a good time. We can have an intelligent conversation or watch cartoons. She even picks up the tab sometimes when we go out. The moral of the story is this...............Even if it doesn't work out between us, this woman has opened my eyes to a totally different kind of mate. Someone who doesn't need me and doesn't care how much money I make. An equal, and more importantly she doesn't have to wear a size 2. This has definatley changed my outlook on life. Good news? I think so... BTW, she just bought herself a genuine Raymond Weil. Nice watch.

That is pretty harsh. Capitalist yes, republican no, this is hardly an establishment to be apologetic for. We're not talking about watergate here. Just trying to keep everything in perspective.

You really don't have a clue do you? The replica market is waaaaaay bigger than these forums. It is a multi billion dollar internatinal industry and if you think that 4 small time dealers are going to corner the market and become the only suppliers in the world you need to get out a little more. The prices they have on their watches although the same amongst all four dealers are fair. The US dollar is very weak right now so purchases outside the US seem more expensive than they were a few years ago. A few years ago however we were ecstatic to pay $400 for a sub with a crappy bezel insert terrible crown guards and an ETA movement. These reps today are far more accurate and priced better than anything we had 3 or 4 years ago. Very well said Chief. I don't think any of these people have been around since RWCC or the early days of TRC. There were a lot more pressing situations back then like the Natalie A++++++ super duper we can't afford t [censored]. I guess none of you have heard of watchloverdavid either? I am by no means taking the side of any dealer but I think this whole situation is being blown out of proportion.

Of course I am aware they teamed up and figure it was a way to make more money. What is wrong with that? Long gone are the days where a few collectors would get watches for their buddies and make a couple of bucks. This is a real business. A real lucrative business and they have every right to take whatever strategy they see fit to make as much money as they possibly can. This whole fiasco reminds me of a small town complaining about super Wal-mart moving in and putting the mom and pops out of business. Wah, wah, wah. Business in not personal, only business. They merged, just like AT &T and Bellsouth. So what? They lied about some products and got caught. If they want to retain customers they won't do it anymore. Everyone on the forum knows what has been going on. People have a choice of who to buy from. They are not the only game in town. I have had two transactions with Trusty and none with josh. I may or may not deal with either in the future. Everyone knows about the lies, and yet the dealers still get plenty of business. Caveat Emptor. They will not exploit me and I am not ignorant. If I choose to buy something that's my choice. I rarely buy anything from andrew and never from Josh. It just amazes me how when someone makes a good business decision that makes them more profit the consumer feels like they are getting screwed. This is a free enterprise and people are free to make their own decisions. As long as they keep the descriptions somewhat acurate there is no problem in my book. There are plenty of other dealers to buy watches from. This little hobby of ours is not what makes the world go round. We have spent way to much bandwith on this subject as I believe arguing it is futile.