TeeJay

I know exactly what you mean there, I'll never forget seeing a TT Sub when Emily and I were on a train heading out of London during the rushhour. The guy wearing it was the other side of middle-aged, and obviously worked in the city, all good signs that he would be in a position to afford the gen But, his suit and shoes looked like they had come from a charity shop. Not 'good old', where a pair of shoes gets nicely broken in, but 'bad old' where they look in need of replacing, and the suit hung like dishrags off him. To me, that suggested that the watch was more likely to be a rep than a gen... Another time, I was in a DVD store, when a guy was standing next to me and happened to be wearing one... He was only wearing jeans, polo-shirt and loafers, but despite being 'casual', those clothes looked good, so I was more inclined to believe that the watch was genuine... I'm not a big fan of gold (and can't wear it) but I do like how the blue TT sub looks I think you summed it up best yourself here: +1

Whenever I see collections like that, I just think 'why'? I can understand someone having a wardrobe full of identical jeans and white t-shirts... New one every day, that's just good hygiene, but chosing between several identical watches? That's just a bit

Well, just to make sure it works

Are we going to have to hook up the car battery...

+1

As Ronin said here: 500 will get you a very nice watch though

He's been banned from here too, TT posted the announcement yesterday... Really sorry to hear that things haven't been resolved...

Congratulations indeed

I have to admit, when I first got my EuroFakes Sub, I was never fully comfortable wearing it, and I think that was down to the name, as I never felt uncomfortable wearing a new modern Omega. The one thing I found counters that feeling, is vintage Rolex. I've found that a vintage watch gets much less attention than modern ones But are they definitely gens? I know people who could easily afford to be wearing gens, but they wear reps... Might you be assuming that they're all gens just because of the status of the owners? As before, I'm curious as to what repercussions there might actually be if someone was discovered wearing a rep in the circles you describe. I mean, at work, people know who you are, what you do, and to a degree, what you earn, so would it really be so bad? And at a neighbourhood barbeque, it's not like someone is going to accuse you of being too poor to buy the real thing when they live right next door

+1

I'd have to disagree about a replica being unable to fly under the radar. While the members of this community know a lot (to put it mildly ) about watches, it's such a small percentage of the overall general public, it's something like less than 1%. To the everyday folks, they just don't care what watches people are wearing. The only brand name they really recognize is Rolex, and, because of the history of replicas, in the minds of many (if not most) Rolex = Fake. As with FakeMaster's sig, people are more likely to think a gen is a rep, than to believe a rep is a gen. What I was referring to, is for a watch, such as a simple DateJust, to not attract attention or scrutiny. For example, if I saw someone wearing a highly polished DJ, I would be more likely to think it was a rep, than if I was to see someone wearing a DJ which had a few scuffs and dings. Obviously, a Polex Submarnor is not going to pass scrutiny, (assuming of course, that it even gets noticed out in the wild) but that was not what I was meaning, I was meaning reps which are either of a reasonable standard of build and construction, to start off with, or have been modified in some way (ie aging) but which are not ostentatious or overly showy. Those are the kind of watches which I was meaning can fly under the radar For example, I have very rarely had anyone make conversation specifically about the watch I'm wearing... One instance was my best friend, the second was someone trying to make polite conversation (both females refering to my 029a) and the other, was a fellow artist who asked if the watch I was wearing was the one I'd built myself (as he'd known about my projects) Other than that, people just don't comment on my wrist wear (if they even notice). However. If I was to wear a DSSD out, while I still wouldn't expect anyone to actually notice or comment on it, I would expect the DSSD to attract more attention than say my 6200 project, simply because of the differences in dimensions and finishes, even if it didn't illicit a comment. That's not to say that I would wear a DSSD to attract comments, I'm just illustrating that as watches go, it would be more noticeable than another watch of similar design and appearance As for the second point, yes, presenting the illusion of gen is one thing, but actually claiming that a rep is a gen if the subject comes up (and the person is genuinely interested, and not just some douche trying to look big) is a very different kettle of fish... [Edit to add] To touch on the issue of a clone watch, such as an Alpha or Invicta, I doubt such a watch would attract any more (or any less) attention than a Sub or Planet Ocean, and while replicas are indeed forgeries, they at least (within reason) resemble the original article they are meant to be imitations of. Clone watches, on the other hand, come across as the offerings of companies so uncreative, they can only rip off a design, change enough details to not get sued, and then slap their own logo on the dial... Personally speaking, I think I would rather wear a sterile homage watch than a clone, but that's just me [Edit to add] You mention that being called out in your circles could have serious repercussions... I wonder, what kind of repercussions might be expected, and how likely is someone in one of your circles to actually comment on the watch someone else was wearing? Would they be commenting out of genuine interest in the subject, or just passive/aggressive attempts to get into a pissing contest? Would a 'newcomer' to the circle actually be questioned about their wrist wear, and, if it was openly admitted that they were wearing a rep/franken/whatever (rather than being actually called out) what might be the result of such a revelation? That's not meant as hostile at all, just a genuine curiosity as to what might happen, simply because no one in my circles ever pays attention to wrist wear (other than the aforementioned instances)

I might be wrong, but I've always felt that the people with the unrealistic expectations aren't so much 'True Watch Fans', but people who want to be able to flash a Rolex in the club, without paying the gen price, and because they're so paranoid about getting called out, they're desperate for the details to be perfect, which leads to the requirement for perfectionin a rep, which an 'entry level' rep simply will not have. Of course, that is a very different mindset to someone who wants to build a perfect watch because of a love of The Watch, and the challenge of obtaining all the parts. I remember someone on a gen forum complaining that the hands on their Rolex didn't line up perfectly with the minute markers, and people pointed out that they were acting like it was the first expensive thing they'd owned, but ultimately, I think it was just another example of unrealistic expectations... Just to give another element to the discussion, I know people have sometimes accused folks of wanting to wear a rep to pass it off as genuine. I'd like to offer this flipside to that feeling: It's nice to wear a watch which flys under the radar. Something that simply doesn't attract attention or scrutiny. Such a watch would never be passed off as genuine if noticed, but the chance of such a watch being noticed, is just not going to happen because of the watch being a 'sleeper'. I wouldn't say that was the same as wanting a flawless rep to be able to pass it off as gen, but certainly a 'related topic'

I'll see your Keeley Hazell, and raise you a Keeley Hawes

That reminds me of something I read a while back which was the ultimate example of how it is the owner's perception of the watch which influences the way they feel about it. It was where a guy had had a Sub for about 10 years, but taking it in for service, was told it was a rep. During that time, he had thought it was gen, so probably never paid it any heed at all, was pleased as punch to wear it, and be able to say 'Yes', if someone asked if it was a 'real Rolex', but once he was told that it wasn't gen, it probably felt like a piece of worthless junk, simply because it had been emotionally de-valued. I didn't think my 6200 was anything special till I took it into the watchsmith. Sure, I liked it, and I was pleased that I'd built it myself, but I always knew deep down that this detail was wrong, that part was inaccurate, that dial print is a few mm too small, etc etc, but since seeing the look on the watchsmith's face when I handed it over, I've come to realize that I've actually built a nice watch which I really can wear with pride Certainly not something I would try and pass off as gen, but certainly something which would at least be appreciated as a 'nice watch' by others who might notice it

+1 Nothing more irritating than people with unrealistic expectations who don't seem to understand that they are not buying gens at discounted prices...

Intersting topic, bro As I've said before in reviews, my expectations are pretty low. As long as it's got hands and tells the time, chances are I'll be happy with it, heck, I've been known to wear a watch which doesn't tell the time just because I like it I think my 'bare minimum' is that I'd expect to see reasonable quality printing and accurate spellings. Beyond that, the details themselves can be pretty irrelevant. For example, in Thogaa's bad rep thread, there have been some really nice fantasy models, in particular, I really like the white-dialled Planet Ocean which had the same dial texture as on the QoS LE... The QoS LE was a monstrosity of a watch, and the dial looked horrible, but that variation, accurate or otherwise, resulted in a very nice watch, which I would have been happy to wear (mid-brown Breitling-style leather strap with off-white stitching would have made an awesome combination) I'm not someone who buys or builds for 1:1 perfection, and I think my 6200 project sums up my position on reps perfectly: custom/self-built to a recognizable theme (not so much brand recognition, but that the model/theme is loosely identifiable) and of apparently good enough quality that a professional watchsmith was impressed by it (maybe he was just humoring me) Ironically, whenever I compared the details of my EuroFakes 16110 to the 'how to spot a fake Rolex' page, it never had any of the flaws which were noted... I think this one is going to be my favorite for a long time

Thanks for the feedback By choice, I would stick to one theme, but as I alrady have the tribal on my shoulders and chest, it needs the tribal on the hips to keep a balance with the Japanese, but maybe the Hawaiian would be 'one style too many'... I figure giri is a complementary concept to jihad, one must take engage in jihad to uphold giri Loving Jihad Cat

Do you mean this one? Given the dealer also sells this watch, I'm sure they would be able to do a strap switch for you Welcome to the party

That's awesome results, my man

You're absolutely right there, brother, it's a shame how things can be so misinterepreted and twisted till people forget the true meaning behind the words... Although of course, all that distortion does allow us to enjoy Achmed the dead terrorist

Thanks, it's a project which has about a decade of vague contemplation, and a lot of recent deep consideration as to what elements to include, and how best to include them (such as hiding the Starfleet arrowhead as negative space) Do you have a bodysuit as well? Photos are a must Thanks, brother, just going by the words of Muhammad (PBUH), as the prophet is quoted as saying, when returning from battle, "we have returned from the lesser jihad (jihad al-asghar) to the greater jihad (jihad al-akbar).", and Muslim scholar Mahmoud Ayoub states that "The goal of true jihad is to attain a harmony between islam (submission), iman (faith), and ihsan (righteous living)." Greater jihad can be compared to the struggle that Christians refer to as "resisting sin", i.e. fighting temptation, doubt, disbelief, or distraction. The greater jihad is about holding fast against any ideas and practices that run contrary to the prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) revelations (Qur'an), sayings (Hadith) and the examples set by how he lived his life (Sunnah). This concept of jihad does not correspond to any military action.

Oooooooh

That was an awesome episode

As I mentioned in the wrist shot thread, the studio my friend/tattoo artist was at closed down, and, so as to not have to go back to working on pigskin, as well as trying different techniques, he said it would be more cost-effective for him to do my bodysuit rather than buying the flesh of swine I just thought I'd share the stencils I've done for it, and a little info on each My overall inspiration for the bodysuit, is the tattoos worn by Mark Dacascos in Crying Freeman: It immediately stuck me that that was the kind of design which I should have done, so gradually evolved the design into something I was happy with. The design is very auto-biographical, and refers to the season and date of my birth (10/10) as there will be ten colored Japanese maple leaves and ten maple leaves breaking the wind bars as negative space The design also has other less obvious astrological aspects. Libra is an air-sign, so one side of the design focusses on wind (which is normally more background filler, rather than primary design) I also love the water, swimming, diving etc (it's also my favorite drink) so the other side of the design is primarily water-based. On top of all this background, are thirteen cherry blossoms (my lucky number) I wanted to do something a little different for the design of the cherry blossoms, and to make it a definite tribute to my trip to Tokyo, so I took the traditional design the more stylized design featured on Y1000 notes and came up with this fusion, which personally, I think looks great: Several flowers featuring in Japanese design (chrysanthemum and peony) as well as two less traditional: A daffodil (my Nan's favorite flowers) and a blue rose (my favorite flower) This dragon, for the right side of my chest, is one of the most direct references to the Freeman tattoo. For the background, I've combined water and wind designs to create what I refer to as 'typhoon swirls', and I think this will really make the red of the dragon pop The hannya mask is being used as a literal representation: A beautiful woman transformed into a demon by her jealousy (Emily knows that it refers to her ) My earliest memory is of watching The Doomsday Machine, and I grew up wanting to be a Starfleet Captain, so another element I wanted to include in the design, was the Starfleet arrowhead, and I think it goes nicely in the negative space Given the heavy water theme of the suit, I had to include a koi carp somewhere, and this will be on the back of my right triceps. Note the hybrid cherry blossom design thrown in... I think it works... I also wanted to have feature some traditional Hawaiian designs as well, so after some discussion on the subject with Lani, I came up with this design which will be mirrored in the tribal work on both thighs, a kind of dagger of shark's teeth. As can be seen in the basic layout above, the back piece is going to comprise of two dragons, and a huge wind spiral (which is being used to disguise a scar from an aortic coarctation) Much of that will simply be freehanded, but the lower dragon, is what I have come to think of as the 'lode stone' of the design, as everything can be placed according to it's very central location. Here's the stencils for that dragon, as well as the work which will wrap round onto the right hand side of my ribcage: A close up of that rib panal reveals the afforementioned flowers, as well as the kanji nickname of Hattori Hanzō, and the crest of the Tokugawa clan he was affiliated to: Lastly, on the inside of my left biceps, will be the kanji for giri: which is a visual and thematic complement to the Arabic text for Jihad*, on my right biceps: Photos of the actual work will be added as and when possible *The term "Jihad" used without any qualifiers is generally understood in the West to be referring to holy war on behalf of Islam. In broader usage and interpretation, the term has accrued both violent and non-violent meanings. It can simply mean striving to live a moral and virtuous life, spreading and defending Islam as well as fighting injustice and oppression, among other things.

I'm guessing it's more of a formal wear only, rather than a daily beater Sure does look classy