jdkno

So to the original question as to the AD's right to confiscate on sight. In the eyes of the law, no they can not, and if they do technicly that is theft. However as posted many times if you wear your rep into the AD, and if they do take it, are you willing to go the distance to get it back? There is a very good chance that voyage will cost you alot more than you paid for and can pay to replace the rep. To quote Bobby Fuller "I fought the law and the Law won" Even if the legal system agrees with you how much time, energy and money are you going to shell out in the process, so even if you win...you loose. As far as what Border Patrol/Customs can do. They have the ability to sieze it at the point of entry only, once it is in all bets are off. That is not to say that the Customs agents powers do not extend past the POE but once it is in your possesion, by law, they will need difinitive proof that the item in question is 100% counterfiet. They can not see it and have a hunch that it is fake, they have to know which would pretty much mean a letter from "Insert Brand Name" stating that the item was not made by them and is infact a fake. Without taking possesion of the item in question there is no way for them to get this info. The 4th keeps them from being able to take posession of the watch. They ARE able to confiscate at the POE because your rights are not being violated in the process the way they would if they tried to take it off your wrist on a hunch. Most any LEO be it city, state, or federal will admit that there is wayyyy too much paperwork and time involved to go to such lengths over 1 counterfit item.

Lani, Hell no I am not going to try and prove it haha. I was just stating what would acctually happen wayyyyy before any court rooms or litigation. I posted the same sentiment as you as far as the LEO not even wanting to hassel with the paperwork and court appearances over something as trivial as this, I know I would not want to. My personal opinion if you go into the AD and they take your watch, chalk it up as a loss,tuck your tail and leave. Even though you could get the law involved and get your watch back it really is not going to be worth the $300 or so to replace the rep.

Not knocking your side as I think everyone here, myself included, are of the "Have a bit of common sense and just don't wear your rep to an AD" frame of mind. That out of the way, your comment about the AD's being authorized to protect the various brands they sell brings up a good point. To what extent is the AD, be it the store owner, manager, sales clerk, ect., willing to go to protect that brand? On the same note, to what degree are they "authorized" to protect that brand? An XXX rep is no different than let’s say a Factory 5 Shelby Cobra rep. They are both tangible items for personal use by the owner which replicate something that they are not. One might say Rolex and the other Shelby but legally they are the same. The AD has no more "authority" to confiscate your rep than good old Carroll does to steal your car considering Shelby is just as much a brand as Rolex. We have covered the court system, legalities, and the "victim" going to varying lengths to take their property back; however there is one end we did not cover. In the US at least we have overlooked the single most important part of the process, the responding LEO(Law Enforcement Officer). That is if the situation escalates that far, which it would have to before we could ever get to court systems and legalities. The responding LEO(S) will be tasked with making a few decisions that they alone are not legally at liberty to make which just so happen to side with the customer. LEO walks in, the AD tells the LEO that you came into their store wearing a rep XXX and they seized it. At that point they just admitted to the LEO that they took your personal property without your consent, that’s Theft no matter how you look at it. Reps are not illegal to own in the US, only manufacture and sell, therefore the officer has to side with the customer. From this point, trying to avoid paperwork, the LEO would probably suggest the AD give the watch back to the customer and the customer to be on his way. If the AD refuses to give back the rep then the officer has no choice but to effect an arrest on whichever person at the AD decides to "fall on the sword" for the XXX brand protection. The rep will be taken and kept as evidence, the AD's "sacrificial lamb" will be headed to central booking, and the customer will be going home after making a statement. From here the AD or brand XXX could go to court and argue the fact that the watch is a rep blah, blah, blah and probably have the theft charges reduced/dismissed but still who at the AD wants to deal with a theft charge? So while we are doing the whole "Point" "Counter-Point" thing on the legality of reps vs. the ability of the AD to confiscate, we must realize that the initial response of the LEO will play a much more significant role than any other factor here. In the eyes of the Law one crime does not justify another baring any exigent circumstances. For example if your neighbor stole something of yours and you broke into his house to get it back, you would be no less guilty of B&E as he is of the original theft. To that end the responding officer can not interpret the law as he sees fit. He can not make the decision on the spot that one crime justifies another, thats for the courts to decide. It is his job to enforce the law as it is written, which in the case of a confiscated rep takes the side of the rep wearer not the AD.

Here is my take. I think the rep market would be more prone to hurt the sales of the under $500.00 market, i.e. Seiko, Citizen, ect..ect.. If someone is really intent on buying a gen Rolex, Omega, Sinn or whatever they will still buy it no matter how good of a rep there is of it. On the other side of the coin there is a chance that a rep could potentialy add sales to the gen market. I know I have seen atleast 10 instances of guys here that bought a gen PO after having owned a UPO. While that is a very small number here you could probably multiply that out to different brands and many other people as we are but a small drop in the rep market.

Is this the one you are talking about?? http://www.jpc8118.com/000000000unmd4510002-maxi-marine-diver-ssru-black-surf-asia-p-7385.html

Somewhere around $30K

How iss the strap on the LV rep?

Is there any way to tell by looking at the movement if it is a high beat 7750 or a low beat 7750?

See what Kanye has to say about RWG Clicky!!!

Probably the best thing to do with a gen would be wait till you damage the rubber, then send the bezel out to be blasted and DLC coated. On the other hand the rubber could be very tough. THink about all of the rubber on a G Shock, never really seen any of thoes tearing.

Yeah it looks a bit rougher than the $178 version. Also if you look at the date on the dimple dials it looks like the 2 1's in 11 are angled towards each other at the top like a pyramid.

New bracelet will set you back about $500.00

I have this gen Waterman http://www.goldspot.com/Waterman_pens/Expert/20021W.html Not bad at $125 and will last a lifetime. Mine looks like it has been around, and thrown down, the block more than a few times but functions just like new. Anyone know if I can use a cape cod or something on the gold parts, or how to make get fine scratches out of the tube?

Its a gen, doubt you are going to get a new bracelet for

I noticed you said pins need to be removed from the clasp. I get the idea as to how this strap sizes but what are all of the pin looking things already in the sections that are made to be cut? Are they just there to keep from having a hole in the rubber? IOW you have to remove the pin thats there and replace it with the pin that comes with the clasp?

46mm wide x 18mm thick, 5.5mm sapphire crystal and 146g on rubber. Hey Pug quick questions how is the lume on that thing? Specs show SL but who really knows these days. How does it compare to the Seiko Monster? Lastly is there any form of AR on the crystal?

You mean like this?

Other than keys and iPhone this is all that I have on me today.

Thats why I said I have seen other members photos of the rep and none have the contrast on the dial that the gen does...let me re-phrase, no one has yet to capture the contrast if it is in fact there. Believe me I would love nothing more than to be proved wrong on this.

Look at wave design in the pic above from 1:00 to about 4:00 and from 6:00 to 9:00 there is a decent amount of contrast there. It is more or less dependant on lighting for example as the gen moves on your wrist these details will stand out more or less. I think on a whole that aspect, the color shift, is a big part of the draw to this watch, for me at least. Maybe we have just not seen good enough pictures of the rep yet. Maybe one of the guys who recieved theirs could play with the lighting while shooting pictures to see if they can replicate the contrast.

I think the biggest issue on the Blue Surf is the contrast between the wave pattern and the dial on the gen. On the rep everything belnds together where on the gen the wave pattern tops are brushed giving it a different appearance.

Buy the gen crown/tube and have it installed. Ofrei P/N Omega Stainless Steel Crown 42184 8100/3905W $36.00 Omega Case Tube 090ST1232 OME-090ST1232 $6.60 The rep case tube will have to be removed which if I am not mistaken will leave a bigger hole in the case than the gen tube needs so you will have to use marine epoxy or something similar to hold it in. If I am not mistaken the difference is very small but big enough that the gen tube will not be able to have a press fit.I have also heard where people were able to drill out the rep tube allowing for a press fit of the gen tube. I am pretty sure that is your only option, sourcing a rep tube or crown will be next to impossible unless there is someone who has done the swap to gen parts and managed to get their rep parts out in one piece.

I have a Tag Link Chrono that I bought around the end of 06 or begining of 07 that I purchased from Josh. I just went and checked and the specs on his site say it has the high beat 7750. My question is since mine is so old would mine have the high beat as well or is it possible mine is the low beat and only the newer ones have the high beat? I am thinking about replacing the movement as the rotor is very loud and the power reserve is not that great. Since there are some compatability issues as far as hand size I really need to figure out what I have in order to figure out what movement to buy Asian or Swiss.

Not to get too far off the original topic but the 65%-70% figure is pretty accurate. While at face value the percentages are off, if you take into account the subsidised rent, utilities,food,child care and free health care a person making $20K with govt. help probably has the same disposable income as someone making $40K. Obama's "Spread the Wealth" is more like get rewarded for doing less. Back to the topic at hand, I am with Lani prudent planning and wise selection are the best bet here. 90% of people you come into contact with daily will never even pay attention to your watch, of the 10% that do the chances of them calling you out are pretty slim. I would not however buy a rep of a gen that I could not afford. For an extreme example if you work at starbucks don't buy a rep of a watch that cost more than you make in a year. If you are going to meet with someone you work for don't wear something that will make them think you are over charging.