jj69

Really? Well, if the photos of WM9's now discontinued Mark XV rep (as shown in the "Wallpapers" section of his web site) are any indication of what his Mark XVI will look like, then I want no part of it whatsoever. I don't care how good his subs are, this guy has a major credibily problem. He's still selling the old $250 Chinese Nautilus rep for $549!

Is there any easy way to spot the difference between V1 and V2 versions of this model? Prices are all across the board on this one, so I want to be sure I'm getting a V2.

Thanks, but I did not ask "if" the Davidsen is acurrate to the gen. I asked what, specifically, is not acurrate about it. In other words, I'm looking for specifics. When you say, "The only issue IMO is the thickness of the cases," do you mean you personally prefer a watch with a thinner case, or do you mean the gen models, in fact, had thinner cases?

I understand. So I guess there are no "obvious" flaws. I also retract my earlier statement about the crown. I did find a photo of a gen with the same crown that is used on the Davidsen. I suppose there were several variations.

Again, does anyone know what flaws, if any, these vintage Fifty Fathoms reps have?

Just for future reference, what are the known "flaws" in this particular rep? The only thing my untrained eyes have spotted so far is the crown.

FINALLY! However, what exactly is WM9's reputation? Isn't he known for selling a lot of off-the-shelf Chinese reps (i.e. Nautilus) for double the price?

To each his own, I guess, but to my eyes, these make the new Hublot King Power almost look good.

Why not just keep the watch you have and take it to your local watchsmith? Do you have a skilled watch repair person locally who has no problem working on Chinese replicas? If so, he's not going to charge you very much to remove the movement from the case and clean the dust off the dial. In fact, it will certainly cost far less than buying a whole new watch. A good local watchsmith is a priceless resource. If you have someone nearby, it's worth your time to bring the watch in and develop a relationship with him.

None of my V1 HBBs have any dust under the crystal or any problems with the dial, crooked markers, etc. Perhaps you just have bad luck?

They don't make one yet, but the street price of the gen is barely over $2,000. I've considered just buying a gen, but I never seem to have the cash when I'm at the AD.

I can't judge the accuracy because I don't know the Platinum that well, but I can tell you that the rep in the photos uses the low-beat movement (which is a crap shoot at best). It's a nice looking watch, but don't expect it to tell time. To the OP: Keep in mind that more than one rep-maker producing HBB reps. The original "V1" maker offers both "Ultimate" and "Lite" models. Thankfully, they ALL have the good hi-beat movement. The only difference is that the Lite models lack the AR. Some dealers (like Puretime) will put single sided AR on a Lite model for you for a nominal fee ($20 I think). Those are usually the best option for the money. The V2 maker offers a wider variety of HBB models (like the Platinum Mat above, and the versions with the nice SS bracelet), but most, if not all of them, have the low beat movement. There are other makers out there as well - you just have to keep a sharp eye on the specs and ask your dealer a lot of questions before committing.

Yuck

I looked at the site. They appear to be very low quality watches. The prices are about 3x what the approved dealers here would sell them for. Personally, I would avoid this dealer and stick to the approved dealers on this board.

That's actually a very interesting looking rep. It's obviously a quartz model. It looks like it's from the same factory as the quartz models sold by WatchEden (usually for about $108 shipped). However, I have never seen a quartz HBB rep on a bracelet. The bracelet on this one appears to be totally new. It is NOT the same bracelet that comes on the new V2 7750 reps. The V2 bracelet is SUPERB quality. This one appears to be an inexpensive SS bracelet covered in PVD. I'd be very interested to know the dealer and the asking price!

None of the quartz models are truliy accurate due to the subdial locations. However, all of them are accurate outside the dial area. My favorite is the Senna model, which looks absolutely amazing. It's actually about $158, but it has a real sapphire crystal. The dial is also grey like the "All Black." It's almost impossible for someone to see the details on that dial with the watch on your wrist. Contact WatchEden and ask them for links to all of their HBB models (they don't list them on the site).

I'll believe it when I see it. However, I noticed that Andrew has already posted several new models since CNY.

Just FYI, WatchEden sells the bracelet separate in their Accessories section. I got one a while back. I noticed the clasp didn't close quite right on mine too - as you say, it never failed, but it was noticeable. I think there are two factories producing Carrera bracelets - or at least the endlinks. The endlinks on the one I got from WatchEden didn't fit the case quite perfectly. There was a little play in the endlink fit, and it was noticeable visually. My endlinks have numerical markings on the underside (the correct ones, but in teh wrong positions). I have seen other rep endlinks with no markings on the underside, and from the photos, they seem to fit the case better. Lastly, I just got a gen Carrera bracelet (stumbled upon it and bought it for a song). The rep bracelet is almost indistinguishable from the gen, except for the endlinks. The gen endlinks fit the rep case flawlessly, and of course, the clasp closes with no problems. If you get the rep bracelet and the endlink fit bothers you, a pair of gen endlinks might just be the perfect solution.

I know this thread is probably pointless, but it really is staggering. I bet the Ultimate HBB maker could close the case 1:1, then put a Seagull ST-18 in there and sell it for $200 with good double AR. Every single rep colletor would purchase one in the blink of an eye. In fact, they should clone the older Mark XV at the same time - the reps of that one are a disaster anyway.

Of course, it's too good to be true. That photo, like all of the photos shown on their scam wesite, is a photo of the gen.

Just got my MBK 5165 from Reg last week. Absolutely beautiful watch. With the current exchange rate, the prices have dropped a bit and you can now pick one up for a more reasonable $400 US or so. I should point out two fairly obvious flaws in the rep that I don't think have been mentioned yet: (1) The shape of the tail end of the seconds hand is completely wrong. This can be seen in Corgi's rep vs. gen comparison shots in the OP. The rep hand is flat on the end, while the gen hand comes to a triangular point at the end. (2) The font size used on the dial for the "PATEK PHILIPPE GENEVE" logo is too large on the rep. Look carefully at Corgi's comparison photos. For example, you can see that the "P" in "PATEK" begins under the first "1" in "11" on the rep, but it actually begins under the second "1" on the gen. Small points, but important ones, I think. It's a real shame that they put so much work into this rep, yet they still got those two seemingly simple points wrong. I am also utterly perplexed as to why anyone would rep the 5155 in the first place. Given the current craze for large watches, why not just rep the 5167 Jumbo? Even the Jumbo is small by today's standards. Bizarre thinking, IMO.

Quck question for the quartz experts out there. I have a rep with a Miyota OS20 quartz chrono movement. It mysteriously lost about 9 minutes of time over about a 3-4 day period when I left it on my bureau. In my experience, OS20 movements are normally very accurate. I also remember that about a week ago, I was running the chrono and when I reset it, the chrono had would only reset to the 20 second mark, rather tan zero. It was really weird. I had to use the manual resest procedure to advance the chrono hand back to the correct 0 position. I have limited experience with quartz models. Just wondering if this indicates a serious problem with the movement, or does it just need a new battery? In general, do quartz watches just stop dead as soon as the battery is low, or will they continue to run erratically with a low battery? Just curious.

Note that the version Prestige is selling has the low beat 7750, and not the high beat version other dealers are offering. Major difference in my book. I realize it's just personal opinion, but I always found the King version utterly hideous. What is with the fake H-scews on the bezel? It looks like it was designed by Invicta.

I own 5 HBB reps, and I completely agree with detahoe's suggestion of dealer, as well as the exact two models he points out. It is generally accepted that Angus is the best dealer for an HBB. The two models linked both have the HIGH BEAT 7750 (don't even THINK about getting an HBB with the low beat 7750 if you expect it to tell time), both have ceramic bezels, and you can get AR added for another 20 bucks (worth every penny). I would also consider Hont as a dealer. He can get just about anything out there for the best price, but I'm not sure if he can add single AR to a Lite HBB for 20 bucks like Angus can. One final option is WatchEden. If you're willing to live with an HBB with a quartz movement, WatchEden has very, very nice looking reps starting at just $108 SHIPPED. You can't go wrong with an HBB. It's a truly amazing rep.

UPDATE: It looks like Watchmark just updated his HBB section. He now lists an SS HBB with ceramic bezel and matching bracelet for $338 (HB7184). Unfortunately, the bracelet is described as: "RUBBER AND STEEL BAND WITH Deploy Folding Buckle."