crystalcranium

Just got mine yesterday. Rose gold and asian decorated movement. First impressions: I'm glad I went with the gold because of the gold hands and dial numbers avioding any of the 'blue hand chipping" problems associated with the stainless models but I am worried about the plating. I intend to wear the watch once a week so I'll probably get a few years out of it but I have already talked to artisanplating.com about replating and maintainance. They told me a paste of "Barkeepers Friend" gently wiped on every now and then will do wonders to recharge the gold tone. Something to do with the interaction of the copper in the RG with the acid in the product. Plating to 5mls would run about $125. Plating to a thick 20 mls would run about $300. The asian decorated movement gained 3 seconds in the first 24h so I'm happy with the accuracy out of the box. It is a little cheap sounding when wound but, who's gonna know? The croc grained strap is low quality. Overall, about a 7.5 out of 10 with the decoration of the movement accounting for most of that high rating. Accuracy to the original is pretty good, especially on the movement decoration but any one familiar with the genuine movement will question the replica.

Wow! Beautiful and a full $100+ lower than ofrei.

I'm working my program hard to make room in my heart for all slow idiots and fast driving maniacs!!!

Hey, could I get some more recommendations? I checked out the hirsch straps and they have a beautiful croc one for about $200 but this is a little rich. I think my FA Jones is 24mm

Where are you getting these swiss 7750's, ofrei.com?????

Hey, my friend, don't leave yet!!!! There's a pretty tough initiation here. The collectors on this site take watches, not just replicas, seriously. I suppose being reduced down to the level of results of your Google search is a little bit too much for some ego's to take. Don't let the attitude of some prevent you from continuing to support your replica passion and the forum. Some animals eat their young. Perhaps swimming in the newcomer's forum for a little bit might make some of your questions a little more palitable. I agree with you, there is an intolerance here for 'stupid questions" and the rationalization is that we are too busy in what we do here for "stupid questions" and yada yada yada..is sometimes way too mean spirited. Thanks for your thanks and contribution.

Agreed, I hate pointing the Noob finger but.... I think some people show up here and think this is a schoolyard full of runny noses where we all laugh at and make fun of the guy who happens to be the day's shark food. Paul may be a dealer who has a history and has aroused strong opinion in those who have been around for a while but for a newcomer to show up and think and yelling "Paul's a stupid ass" is going to endear him or her to this community.....not too bright an idea.

My response is whatever sinks your boat... For me, date alignment problems are a nit pick but we all have our obsessive, laser beam focus flaws that are all we can see when we pick up a replica. I have not seen this new SMP Chrono yet but it is the next one on my list. I have a genuine and intend to put it to the toughest side by side I can. I want as exact a copy as I can get my hands on so I can retire my genuine to the garage where it's resale value will stay put.

I hope that's a child's wrist!!! Wear it well.

Sometimes it takes a week to 10 days just to source the item. This isn't Wallmart you know, it's Wo-Mart! It's not like something that's out of stock gets replaced when the next truck pulls up every Friday. Even in stock items sometimes have to wait for shipping opportunities to be optimal. There have been many times on this board where dealers have had to post about export crackdowns that have forced them to be very creative with shipping. Two weeks is really nothing and well within the normal curve. I am asuming "patiently and politely" means you have made no attempt to contact him to learn the status of your order? I have had many email exchanges with Paul and he has always explained truthfully the status of my order. It took him 10 days to get me an IWC GST Chrono and when he did, he DHL'd it to me in 2 days!

I don't know what qualifies as the "Noob", perhaps its a kick ass replica with a 21J engine but my sub from Paul for less than $120 is in very rarified replica air. It has the best lume,pearl and mag I've seen in any Submariner rep. ETA 2836, excellent CGs, real hologram, hollow links, new diver's extension...Runs strong and accurate. You can pay LOTS more for not as good. If I could find and upgrade it with an affordable and justifiable genuine oyster bracelet, I'd consider it perfect.

Cheapest and best....No Contest, my $109 SS Sub from Paul. 2.5X mag, deep rehaut, hollow links, ETA 2836, excellent pearl and CGs, great out of the box lume... It is the equal of any $190 + Sub I've seen. Best Value, no contest, Tag Link Chrono. No Flaws, could (and has) passed as the real thing. No better value than getting a $1500 watch for $250.

Me too. Custom seizure sucks. It's not like they are doing anything to stop a meaningful illegal trade. I'd like to check the jewelry boxes of every freekin' customs agent. You want to influence a meaningful illegal copyright infringement? Start seizing counterfeit versions of Microsoft windows everything....

I think if you read the description in "10 reasons" you will see that Neil is not a dealer. He is a procurer. Your watch will be screened and selected in a way that few others will do for you. I'll tell you, it never ceases to amaze me the spread of panic that follows one unreturned email. I guess the fact that this is an illegal activity breeds panic among us consumers similar to "I gave the kid $100 bucks to get me some coke and I think he took off with it!!!!" Part of the reassurance afforded you here at RWG is a watchdog community of fellow theives.

The June 2006 issue of Watch Time reviewed the genuine and inluded some very high resolution photos for comparison. Yes, the date wheel appears to be deeper in the replica, but this is a pretty awsome reproduction. Subdials might be a tiny bit shallow and the print font on "Naut Stat" on the slide rule is a bit off but these are not glaring errors. What impresses me the most is the level of decoration on the movement and the spacer ring. They make a nice effort on reproducing the cloud pattern and the rotor is very close to the genuine. If the asian 7750 had the regulator adjustment scale and arm, a watcmaker would have to take a second and third look at this one to be sure.

Given my love of the modern "pressure gauge on a strap" 45mm+ size watch (NOT!!!), how long before we see this Jaeger on a croc strap?

Reporting sellers with counterfeit goods gets little of no action from the Bay. I've done it many times. They are only concerned with the money earned from an auction sale and they let the buyers and sellers and the feedback forum police the auctionplace.

I emailed the seller asking him about the item and he said it was absolutely genuine. I then told him I'd take action if he continued to post the sale. Item gone!!!

Well, there was a time several years ago when wanting an affordable chronograph replica that had functional chronos was as much of an esoteric pipe dream. Now, thanks to the asian 7750, I can buy one for $199. There was a time when expecting a decent replica in a brand other than Rolex, was also considered asking too much of the underground "we could care less about what the consumer wants" replica producers. Now we have dozens of remarkable reproductions of many high horology brands. I'm not suggesting that all we have to do is ask for the ultimate replica and it will roll off the assembly line tomorrow. The process will inch along. But I'm willing to bet 5 years from now we'll be talking about how we ever brought ourselves to buy reps without Super Luminova, or without an accurate brand name display box, or without decent AR coating etc.....

Well, what I am hoping for, and what I see is maybe starting to happen, is that the masses be damned, they are producing small runs of high quality replicas for the discerning collector. Yes I agree, the majority of what is produced is junk and will remain junk as long as lots of people continue to buy junk. What I'm talking about here is the state of the art in replica production. The stuff that get's produced in small, high quality lots. Am I wrong? Is my Tag Link Chrono a small rare production run or is it hanging from hooks on every vendor cart on Canal Street? Maybe it's not the special watch I think it is. I hope what I'm sensing here is an ever growing niche market for high quality replica watches, not the mass produced kind, but ones produced to a higher standard of mechanical quality and replication fidelity. How many off the street Asian Submariner buyers would be willing to shell out $500 for a Swiss movement, serviced and adjusted, water resistant treated and tested Sub? Not many. This is not the market I'm talking about. I know of quite a few nut jobs here, myself included, who HAVE done it and have an appetite for even higher quality and fidelity and are willing to pay for it. As long as the replica state of the art remains at or below 1/10 the price of a genuine, I'm still going to be interested in buying. So what I'm hoping for is a better communication conduit between us and the dealers and their suppliers for what we want and what we are willing to pay. I would love someone to produce an out of this world, accurate with attention to all of the feedback that has been given here, 1-1, OEM interchangeable Submariner. I would pay a very high premium price for one if it had these qualities. And I'm sure there are thousands here on these boards who would do the same.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...p;rd=1&rd=1 Looks Good.....NOT

Yes, putting accurate lume on the hands and dial markers on replicas across the board would be a major step up in quality. And, as I said, in this community of replica lovers, who wouldn't pay an extra $25 for replicas that have accurate bright lume on the hands and dial.

Hey, don't take it personally. A "Nooblashing" is just par for the course around here. Stick around. Just remember the collectors here are pretty serious. I consider these watches remarkable pieces of watch art in their own right in addition to being great, and in some cases mind blowing, recreations of the real thing. Sometimes I have to pinch myself about what I think is a major "get over" when one of these is delivered. The afore mentioned Tag Link Chrono is virtually indistinguishable from a genuine in a side by side. I have done it with my jeweler and she was simply blown away. This is a pretty tough lady to impress by the way. As I said, she virtually said to her staff "We need to be aware of this watch and I don't want anyone buying or trading for one without talking to me first". What that filled me with was tremendous satisfaction that I had, for about $300, bought a watch that rivaled the $1500 genuine for appearance and feel, the latter being a tough quality to reproduce. Call me crazy, but I feel on some level like I actually own a Tag Link Chrono. I recently bought a white dial IWC GST Chrono and it is in the same class of replica. I look at it and I see a gorgeous watch first and a replica of a high end brand second. I guess what I'm saying is that the passion for me lies not only in the reproduction, but in the quality and craftsmanship in these high end watches in and of themselves. I think this is the fuel for most of the passion here. I also think that's why the "Hey, fooled 'em. Isn't that cool" doesn't go over well.

Very rare Submariner with red printing on the dial.

I've had the fortunate experience of being a replica watch buyer for over 20 years and a serious collector for almost five years. In that time frame, replica quality has made remarkable strides and I've seen the development of this neat community of high end dealers and customers who collect the very best. This very best has evolved significantly in the last few years. From faux chronos to working chronos, from ticking quartz submariners to cheap asian movements to swiss mechanicals, from pretty close to very close to indistinguishable. Recently the state of the art seems to be 1-1 copies. The Tag Link Chrono, the IWC's, the VC Overseas, and now, the Omega SMP Chrono Diver and the soon to come out B&R, are examples of this trend. I'd like to think we are a small community of crazy enthusiasts and that if there are 10,000 or so of us who are willing to pay $300-$1000 for a replica watch, there are suppliers out there willing to feed us. I don't know how much direct feedback from us through the dealers to the manufacturers has driven what we have seen so far but I like what I am hearing from Josh and others about the flow of communication between us and our suppliers recently and we are seeing some remarkable copies because of it. I want to know what you think will be the next step in replica quality? Will it be 1-1 interchangeability of original parts? Will it be accurately decorated movements? What would you like to see and what do you think we can expect to see given the realities of the market?