I've always had gens, still mostly do. Once I got into this hobby I realized, like others have said, that there is a level of "fun" one can have obtaining parts and building your own watch. Full blown rep, or no-name homage. Personally, I'm only interested in a rep, or Franken, of vintage watches that are unobtainium. I've always been a Rolex fan, mostly due to the heritage, more due to the timeless style of the watches. The newer models kill it for me, I would never own one, rep or gen. I would, however, do a rep of say, a Bond sub, or DRSD or something like that. It's kinda like having a Cobra or Porsche Spider replica. The current Franken I have now is a 5500 Explorer, gilt dial. Cool little watch that is primarily gen.
Where I have some difficulty with the whole rep game is with current models, whatever the brand. That's just not my thing, but to each his own. This is a very cool site that seems to lack the utter snobbery of other watch sights, where even a discussion of a simple modification of certain brands will get you tossed... Silly. When its all said and done, it's just a watch... that's it...