RobbieG

Hi Guys. Any members here live in LV? I have always enjoyed visiting just for rest and spas and shows really - more so than gambling. I also love the access to all the watch stores of course which never gets old. Anyway, we just bought a place on The Strip which won't be ready for a bit but I wanted to ask if there are any GTG's or anything else you can steer me to that I should check out when I am there. We are planning on being there quite a bit initially at least and maybe more if it really grows on us. Maybe 2-3 weeks at a time, every third month. Speak up if you are out there...

I hate to burst the bubble here guys but just FYI, I own the gen of the Ti version and after seeing the rep lume I'm not sure it is even worth doing as it is fine when compared to the gen. What I really mean is that the gen lume is not so great. I owned the Slevin rep for a short time and I also feel that the AR is fine out of the box. Touch to mathc the color and both the stock rep AR and anything Chief or K2222 does will be at least better and in the latter case way better. The gen AR isn't all that great when compared to say the gen PO or the gen Steelfish for example. The gen AR also has almost a royal / powder blue hue to it that isn't really all that appealing and it isn't particularly strong either when compared to the gen Ingy or BP especially. Incidentally, the best AR in my box is still the UN MMD. Just invisible and strong and nearly completely colorless. Of my sports watches the Aquatimer is the worst hands down. After seeing the rep I'm not sure AR or the lume are as important as one may think if you want to make your watch gen like. I would just mod the hands and put an ETA in it if it were me... .02 Here are a couple crummy shots that I don't usually post that show both the color and the lack of lume strength pretty well. I also never even took a lume shot when I shot it because after trying some set ups I concluded that it wasn't all that impressive. Surprising huh? Some of your aftermarket lume looks great though. I'm just saying doing the mod probably won't make your watch more gen-like... ...and here is the true color of the dial that I wish would show at any angle if the stock AR was better

Pug, I have to ask. Where is this coming from? What is boastful talk of gens? I have bought (and photographed maybe 5 or 6 so far) a lot of genuine watches lately. So what? You said yourself, if you won the lottery you would never buy another rep. Well I did win the lottery and I'm not buying any reps right now. So what, now I'm just some d*ck who isn't welcome here who is a blowhard if he refers to, talks about, mentions plans for future purchases of, or photographs genuine watches?

When have I ever held myself out as more knowledgeable than anyone about anything? It is a fact. It is important in any discussion to consider all the possibel angles in a competitive system like the rep biz and all I ever do is: a) communicate what i am hearing from a dealer an AD or whoever I am personally connected to offer words of different thought processes to consider in something that is happening a world away and we can't possibly know all the facts about I have no alterior motives here. Just trying to consider all the angles like anyone else.

I am seriously considering really trying to become the character you want me to be Jake. Like, instead of telling the truth about just being a guy who has fallen on some dumb luck and is doing a little better I should push it really hard and maybe say for instance that it is me, not my friend with a hundred piece, million dollar watch collection and that I live in a mansion on the beach. Instead of being a trader who launched a moderately successful fund, I could be like a sovereign weath fund guy with 30 Ferrari's and $30B under management who buys a house every day in a different color and I have never been to any of them. Fun stuff. No, not really... And all because once upon a time I said my Rolex AD wouldn't think I was a rep guy because I had bought 8-10 watches from him over a 10 year period totalling 100k or so just to illustrate a point. Not 100k last week mind you, but over a long period of time. Or that I said I had had some luck recently and my income had quadrupled - again as an illustration that I would not be a guy who my AD wouldn't take seriously. No "...hey, good for you man..." "Happy for your new found success..." All the things I hear from my freinds, but evil condecending comments designed to hold me out as a braggart. And now I'm being compared to Jet - something - or - other who I'm not familiar with who is I guess some guy who brags alot or something? Ok fine. I get it. Oh and one more thing. Not so long ago I was a guy who found this place because all I could afford was a CN Sub rep and I loved it. And I found a source for true watch nuts like myself and made a lot of friens and even though my life has changed and I'm fortunate enough to buy more gens, I'm still here. Because this is where the watch talk is. And so it goes that because of a few statements taken out of context I get burned at the stake basically for no other reason than I admitted to making more money in a thread and saying (and showing in pictorials) that I continue to add gen watches to my collection which I truly enjoy working on and trying to become a better artist and share with you all. I can't imagine what would posses you Jake to torch me out like you are over that and I don't think you have any idea how much its hurts man. Not trying to get mushy, but to get painted like that when it isn't who you are is just sucky man. If I'm guilty of anything it is of exactly what Pugwash has said which is that I don't think before I open my mouth. Having a little more dough is new to me so I guess I just don't realize that you have to watch what you say so people don't take it as bragging. Trust me. I'm not. In my business if I were not humble I would go broke in an afternoon which is why it is hard for me to understand why anyone would think I am arrogant. I just come off that way I guess with the way I write. And in my world I'm also the littlest and poorest guy incidentally. Anyway, sorry to muck up another thread but man I just wish you guys would ease up on me. I'm trying to make it a source of boredom boost as I sit in my office and wait for trades but it is starting to wear a little thin.

Alright, look, now you guys are starting to turn this into pissing contest and putting me at the center of somehow communicating false info. What gives? And how could YOU possibly know what is really going on over there? We are all just meshing ideas dude. Like I said, I'm asking the source about these things and I didn't give them a fu*ck&ing polygraph. I'm sorry my fact finding mission is falling this way. Just trying to help undedrstand what is happening with all this stuff. Here is where I got the info - from emails today where I was provided simple answers to simple questions: Hi, The GMT is bought by the maker.. Not me.. I contributed other watches.. The skyland, Posche 6, Steelfish Heritage and a few more upcoming .. joshua ...and from Andrew: The others that we bought was the Skyland Avenger and the Super Ocean Heriatge... but Skyland was in the end clashed with the maker of HBB.. =P

Nice to see you LOS. Do you have something to add or would the WE-KNOW-CAL family like to continue to discuss my personal business somemore? How about my income again? Now that was a fun topic... I did licence this photo recently actually, funny you should mention it... ...and I am going to try to put together a watch pictorial gallery show just for fun here in Florida soon as well. In fact, others here will be asked to contribute some of their great images including Pugwash and ByTor by the way. You are welcome to as well if you have anything. It won't be until fall though...

Yeah, it is my understanding it takes 10 months or so to turn one out - and I'm not saying it does "make it so", but I thought maybe it was valuable to communicate what I am hearing from those guys. If the group would rather not hear what I am hearing, say the word...

Beats me. I don't own the watch or know anything about two different editions. Just repeating what I was told by J&A. Which brings us to another point. I'm sure many factories catch wind of what another may be doing and then they each will race to build the best 1:1 and release it first? I'm sure that crossover is likely to keep happening. Is that what happened with the Skyland? The factory who has a 1:1 first can play the exclusivity game and will make the most money of course. This stuff is much more complicated than I think we all would like to imagine and maybe all the dealers are more intertwined as one big sales pool for the factories to draw on? To that end we may be just spinning our wheels in thinking that J&A even act on their own or just at the behest of the makers. And not just them - EVERY delaer. Why would a mafioso society have any real compettion amongst its members? I mean even the Italians have territories and everyone operates independently, but never at the expense of the organization as a whole. If a crew wants to operate they stay in line, do what the bosses say and always kick cash upstairs or they get got. Maybe thinking of all these dealers as independent is the biggest joke ever played on all of us. Angus and Josh and Andrew and King and Silix are all probably sitting at a big conference table in one of the factories, with the "Don" sitting at the headof the table, drinking and laughing their asses off that we are all sitting here treating them as individuals when in fact they are all just non-rival memebers of the same crew. Imagine if the infighting was really just a leak of someone getting kicked out of the crew for not following orders or something? Like I keep saying, none of us have any idea what is REALLY going on over there. I'm just presenting some alternative scenarios but yet there are others who seem so sure of exactly what is happening over there. There is just no way that someone outside their "Family" is ever going to be privy to the real truth, myself included...

Yup, I don't. Don't listen to me. I type faster than I think which I'm not going to apologise too much for. After all it is just a discussion forum. For that matter I guess it really is silly that we all sit here and exchange ideas anyway, being that it never changes the opinions of any individual which of couse is what we all are. So to that end, I'll shut up now Oh one more thing...Robbie Columbo...lol. I just asked Josh to confirm and he said the factory bought the GMT after all and they just had the initial exclusive roll out. He claims to have bought the Skyland (which then died due to the clash with the HBB factory), Porsche 6, Heritage, Fish, and there are two others at least in the pipe which he has bought and contributed which he has asked me not to reveal so I won't. Cool watches though. Again, don't take my word for it. Write Josh and ask him if you guys feel like it...

Yup, all interconnected and that is supposedly theirs too. This is why we can't make sense of it. Maybe sometimes Josh takes a piece of the factory action even if he doesn't release it first? Who knows what they are all doing over there which has been what I keep saying. We have no idea. Actually I just heard that the Skyland was theirs too after all but then something happened with the HBB guys which he didn't go into. Others were the Porsche 6 and The Fish as well. Sometimes the factory does a watch and CHOOSES the best dealer to run it out to for those exclusivity price reasons I keep alluding too. Makes sense no? I know of two more MAJOR cool projects in the pipeline right now that they are doing as well. How, when and by what method the release will be is something I have no idea of. I'm not trying to be a conduit to Josh here though guys. I'm just repeating what I am being told without revealing anything they ask me not to. You all have their email addy's. Don't take my word for it. Drop them a line and ask. All I know is that 1:1 project watches is something that J&A have done in the past and continue to be very interested in.

Yeah, I wish I didn't say that line about ALL the best reps...sorry...I should have said SOME, but importnat ones nonetheless...I also said nothing of the Skyland so I'm not sure where that is coming from. The GMTIIc and the Heritage come to mind as examples of J&A projects. I am trying to illustrate the process by which pricing is inflated guys as that is just standard business stuff and it applies here just as anywhere else. Exclusivity works at inflating prices in a number of ways. Like consider if you happen to like the Glacier Blue Rolex dial on a Day-Date. Rolex says if you want this dial you have to buy the platinum watch only and the price is 48K, while the WG version with every other dial is half that. Factory exclusivity play...You are forced to buy an overpriced watch (I mean platinum is platinum, but 48K for a 36MM watch?) just to get a certain color dial. And people do if they can afford it. They forget why eventually and now it is a status symbol they just have to have and the dial shows that it has to be that. If they didn't do that marriage with the dial I bet hardly anyone would buy the 950 version of that watch over WG at that price with any other dial. The illusion has become real. So regarding the J&A projects they use exclusivity in a different way. The factory pretends to be neutral but they aren't. The price of the CHS GMT was set by them at a higher point as they claimed supply was limited. That was of course just bull. They further puctuated it by giving J&A and exclusive initially because they had a stake in the project. It was mayhem when it came out and all the highest dollar sales went to them which they wacked up with the factory. And now that the frenzy has died down ity is just another watch. If every dealer had it at the outset the price compettion would have kept the price lower and the watch wouldn't have been such a big deal. The CHS move was the equivalent of my Galcier Blue dial example above. Just a little something to make it "special" and not available anywhere else for a time. Genius. And as it should be. I'll never be critical of a team that are smart marketers. Look, exclusive project watches is something that the factories will continue to do and if a large dealer participates financially it will grant them exclusivity rights which are more and more pervasive as time goes on. Why? Because exclusivity is the best way for a FACTORY to command the highest prices. That is what this is all about really. What Andrew allegedly did has more to do with the factory than him - trust me. The big picture that I am trying to present here guys is that ALL the competent factories want to jack you and they will continue to use their henchmen which are the dealers as a front to do it.

That cream dial Deville Chronoscope is the nuts. I think I just added another Omega on the gens to buy list. Is it a new piece for 08'? I know the rattrapante was similar but this is even nicer. What does that cost? Anyone?

Me too. No other Omega watches on my gen list at the moment. This one is it for me from them and that is a good thing. My story on this watch may be a broken record, but where I live everyone (including me) seemed to wear a gen black bezel Sub. I wanted something different so this filled the black bezel dive watch spot in my box. I just couldn't be happier. I think it is just so much more substantial and interesting than the Sub and for half the price. I still have the Sub but it never gets on the wrist much. The PO however is firmly planted in my Starting Five as I like to call them. Gotta love em'...

Yes, I am very familiar with her. In fact I just saw another documentary about her on Netflix instant view not too long ago. She was straight up stone brutal for sure. Maybe the most brutal broad that ever lived - although I wouldn't use that term to her face. Gulp...

Wow...

Not familiar... Link or condensed summary?

Griselda Blanco...love it....HK you are killing me...too funny... I don't know why but it is reminding me of that movie from the 80's called The Princess Bride: "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."

Hey thanks man. I'm working on it more and more. I really enjoy it and I'm learning more everyday. I really like natural light so I'm trying to accomplish it all without a light box. Not an easy task! I'm going to try and shoot more gen pieces as I find the time. There are several pictorials here and on TZ that were done relatively recently if you are interested. I'm going to do my UN 42MM Dual Time GMT next...

I'm 100% sure that my garbage collector is not a legitimate organization and the FBI thinks so too, but I'm also not doing my community a disservice if I choose to ignore that which doesn't concern me and continue to pay him to collect my trash. His dealings with his competition is no concern of mine. He picks up, I pay. I also just bought a unit in a rather famous construction project in LV which surely has been bid rigged and yet that didn't influence my decision to purchase. But shouldn't it? I mean shouldn't everyone boycott the project entirely even if such things are alleged by third parties only? What if you knew someone was killed (just an illustration - not saying I do) as a result of the bid rigging in say, one of Trumps office buildings in NYC? If you were to lease there aren't you basically just condoning and contributing to organized crime? Everyone should move out immediately or be labeled as doing wrong to their fellow man? Exxon never paid in full for the spill, so if I continue to buy gas from them am I doing the environment a disservice? I think you see my point. If we stand tall on every issue nothing in the world ever gets done. Where do you draw the line? That is all I'm trying to say. I'm trying to say the issues here are not important in some way. The point is you can't figure it all and it's 100% arbitrary and that is the only 100% truth in any of these posts from any of us, and yet so quick some of us are to judge others for that which concerns third parties and as such they could not possibly understand...

Fair enough and agreed. I'm just not sure how much any action is really going to impact any of our bottom line's. But if that is the point of taking a shot at it now harm done. As Sean said, J&A are fine and have their own biz and maybe on the other side it goes a long way in making members feel the board is looking out for them. More power to everyone as far as I'm concerned. It is quite a spectator sport though. Pretty heavy duty...

Sorry. Point taken. I did take an English class or two. Forgot my manners...

Well I hear what you are saying but that may be a whole other dicussion even. The definition of a scammer is generally someone like Ideal Watches that sells Noob Subs with "27 jewel Grade 1 Swiss" movements for a grand. What is wrong with that I wonder as long as they ship the watch they advertise? They are guilty of making too much profit? Good for them I say. I gave a so called "scammer" eight hundred for my first Sub and to this day I don't feel scammed. The best cyclops and datewheel I have ever seen and when compared to the genuine watch, worth every penny IMO. I can't just refute that because I find out I can get it later for two hundred. It is still the same watch and it is a good one. Who is to say if it is worth a grand or two hundred. "Worth" is a relative term. My friend buys Coke at a wholesale outlet and gets two litres for .59. I pay .99. Is that a scam? People say it isn't about price but it is. If I came on this board and met the requisite and said I had the same watches for similar prices - presto - I'm a "trusted" dealer in time. Moreover, all I should have to do to keep that status is service as I say I will and make sure cutomers get their watches. That's it. Even if I raise my prices they will be published so if I am out of line my customers will let me know they don't want to pay my price becuase XYZ has it for cheaper. Maybe I'm washed up but TRUST as a term related to our dealers has always been to provide the best products for a fair price and provide service when they go bad and to offer customs protection. That's it. I think asking more of any dealer is unrealistic. I mean how much do they need to do to earn the business. It is about delivering a product in exchange for money. Nothing more. Now the lies about movements is something also because now you are talking about not selling what you advertised, and yes, that is cause for trouble, but the actions of a dealer against another in a foreign country we know nothing about and in a Mafioso based caste system? Seems to me that has nothing to do with the dealer/cutomer relationships which are individual ones. That is, if you hear the story about Andrew and you don't like it - easy - boycott him and buy from Angus or whoever - problem solved. All this is just placing the dealer "bar" too high IMO. This is about a watch in exchange for cash and you said yourself that is all they are doing here...