anton

it's definitely a gen website. notice that the watches in demand are given a 0-10% discount whereas models abundant in supply are given deeper discounts. since i'm partial to breitling, i would always recommend the superocean. but the PO and SO are both very beautiful watches.

oh, tgif... and then... hello weekend!

i have the gen on my wrist in the "general discussion" thursday morning wristcheck. when i looked at this one, even I was fooled!!! then reality struck... looks good flav!!! keep up the good work.

one of the reasons i buy breitling. the datefonts aren't consistent within their product range (even those that use the same base movements) so for me that's the giveaway for a rep (and also if you're covering your wrist while i stare )

Always liked the B1. The one they could NEVER rep right.

okay, maybe where you are it's not thursday morning, but let's see what we all have under our sleeves today...eh? this is for thursday morning: this for thursday evening (big event opening tonight)

look at this explorer ii-[censored]-submariner...not only is it a fake, but a bad one to say the least. and the minimum bid is $1.5K! http://cgi.ebay.com/ROLEX-EXPLORER-II-Blac...1QQcmdZViewItem

Anyone ever heard of this classic: The Rolex Explorer II Submariner? (Saw this on uBay).

yes! more cowbell!

There was one thread I saw a week ago that made me laugh until I cried... now I? would like to see this newer thread dedicated to various spelling errors found in your reps and to top it off with THE WORST LOOKING REP that makes you laugh so hard you wonder why you bought it in the first place... Please bring on the swilzerland/switzerladn/MONARCH POLFY GELENA SHITINERAND/RQLEX... And I assume By-Tor has some of the most laughable reps possible?

Oh geez, it's got Panerai hands, Hamilton hour markers, and Breitling subdials. A 7750 layout with 21J's inside! Gotta be limited edition...gotta grab me one of those for the fool's expo!

Judging from what I've paid him and how many I've purchased so far in a rather short period of time, I would say that his prices are dealer's prices+S/H. Like all retail outlets, any item that is high in demand (currently the HBB / BCE) expect to pay a slight markup. I would justify paying the slightly higher price because I can see and inspect the pieces in person before I buy. And the Daytona I purchased from him I was able to get serviced at no charge with a one day turnaround. You would be an idiot to buy the $60 mineral reps, but they are for the tourists.

Sorry I can't post any pictures (no camera good enough!) but just to give you an idea, I've picked up (so far) Explorer II w/ correct hand stack Big Bang Ceramic and Mellow Yellow Ingenieur Chrono (Overall impressed with this one). The good ones he has runs out fast, because they're usually taken by his regulars. He's located between Broadway and Lafayette. I've sent you a PM on who to look for.

you're right about that...apart from all the brass junk, "really green crystal" breitlings and "black-bagged" rolexes, there's one seller that happens to have some of the stuff that i see on our dealer's site(s). Looks more like Andrew's stuff. He won't immediately show you the "good stuff" unless if you know what you're looking for. the ones that go down to canal st. often probably know who i'm talking about. i've been there maybe 10 times in the last three weeks. I go to him because I can actually FEEL and WEAR the stuff before I buy.

Just curious to see what everyone considers as their "grail" tool when trying to make their reps as perfect as possible. To kick the topic off, I couldn't live without this: The Dremel Stylus rotary tool. This saved me the time and hassle of waiting and loads of money going to a trained "guy" who will (or will not!) work on your reps. For every new rep I buy, I spend maybe two days going through picture after picture of the gen and the real-life model then get to work scraping, cutting, burring, filing, sanding, trimming, buffing, then polishing (on some it's brushing). The end result of working on the reps makes me satisfied as I can now be with watches as I am with cars; making them look as beautiful as they should be! So, what do our fellow members use?

Nice watch. That being said, not much can be said about the company, as I could not find much information on it, except for a website of the manufacturer. Looks like it also has a Dubois-Depraz module installed as well (guessing DD 14000?) for use of the big date. Check out the Revue Thommen 16085. It has a similar layout.

The 'feller' (note I didn't say 'fellow') I had a conversation with was referring to a past experience he had on the subway when he saw someone wearing a DJ and it was ticking.

Someone from the General Public made my day as I was coming home from work. This person liked the 116520 I had on and asked to see it. Even held it in his hand and said the following things and tell you all the GP is ill-informed about this type of replica market: HIM: "Wow, it's hefty and it moves so smoothly. I don't know why people still buy knockoffs when even people like me could spot it a mile away. " ME: "Really? How?" HIM: "Simple. The seconds hand ticks like a Timex. And the fake gold looks so...fake." I smiled to myself.

Last week I went to my AD and put my name on a waiting list for a 116520 and 16622 (116520 is about two-three years; the 16622 I have to check back in six weeks). To satisfy myself for the time being, I went to my local 'guy' and picked up both of these models (probably has the same distributor as Andrew). Upon intial inspection, both these models looked nearly spot on! But before I decided to wear these in confidence (I wanted to pull a Maradona!), I did all the exhaustive research I could on both these models and made the conclusion that: (EXPERTS: Correct me if I'm wrong) In the case of the 116520, the model itself is nearly six years old and has gone through some minor revisions since then (fat indexes > slightly thinner ones; skinny hands > fat hands; text placement)...I could go on and on, but the list would be exhaustive. I would say that the one I've purchased clearly resembles the 2001 "premiere" Daytona. Same is the case with the 16622. This particular model has been out for ten years already and also has been through some minor mods (notably the "swiss made" text is spaced wider on the more recent models). So anyone willing to call you out (if he's not one of us or *ughhh* one of the people @ TZ) probably has the wrong reasons as to why yours could possibly be a rep. Who knows, if you're 18 and wear a Daytona, it could very well be an heirloom! Secondly, the biggest fools are the ones who take in pride at the expense of others.

thanks for the replies! it actually releived my suspicions. as far as the HBB's cost is concerned, I say the complexity of crafting such a piece (if it IS indeed crafted just like the original, there's going to be a bit more than making a case out of let's say, a single piece of forged steel) justifies the price of nearly $600 on this rep (I paid $700 here but at least I got to try on three different models and see them in person!). by the way, the version I received had materials engraved on the caseback. Although it's wrong (says Ti/Cer when it's a SS), who is going to want to stare at the back of it anyways? Screws felt solid and material shines. I've noticed now the misaligned "20/10" on the subdial and I have to run the chrono to 45, reset, then run it again to 15 and reset to get it aligned between the "6" and "0" in "60" (but this is whenever I use the chrono).

count me in for three 2 rep - 1 PAM212 / 1 Ingy Chrono 1 gen - MB TW Big Date Please let me know if all spots were filled up for run 4 / 5.

Question to all the other HBB owners (besides me) and those who know their HBB stuff: Is it just me, or are there unavoidable inconsistencies between the Rep HBB and the Gen HBB? 1) Incorrect date font 2) "HUBLOT" text on dial should be sans serif? I was almost going to point out the chrono seconds hand, but after triple-checking other posts I've learned this is also correct. If it is incorrect, I plan on smoothing out the text with some black paint (not me; my surgeon friend is going to do it) and try to source a datewheel.

I've been down "reps row" for four days this week to see if anything caught my eye. So far, I know of only ONE who sells the quality of reps that the dealers have; some with A7750 others with ETA's 7750. He has them far up on display (I guess so noone steals it or they must be higher priced than the 21J's on the bottom and 'green-tinted' navitimers.) Like others said on here, the priced are on par, if not slightly higher (Think $25-50 USD). At least you hold these things in your hand before you buy, unlike buying them on the 'net. But one is GROSSLY overpriced --- the HBB which I expected to want to pay maybe $500 for. But the guy was selling it for $750. Ceramic bezel; correct markings (even "ceramic" and "titanium" on caseback) Before I splurged, I wanted to do some research here first.

Of course, here in US if you wear a R*l*x or Car***r, people immediately think $$$.

Hi All, Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Anton, longtime watch collector, first-time internet WIS. (sounds like an Al-Anon intro). I found this forum through a google search to better my knowledge. I'm a member on lots of gen forums; and now proudly a member of this forum. Here's my story: I came to this forum because I was duped into buying a PAM113 on craigslist. A rep paying gen money for (about $1700). The irony is that I went to a certain reference site and did all the homework. Somehow, I still ended up taking this rep home. I'd have laughed it off if it were a good rep (like those on Josh and Andrew's sites), but compared to those, this was out of their league. Hour font was bolder, "SWISS MADE" indication instead of "L SWISS MADE L", no SNR, and lume on the 5 and 8 were off-center. I found out because I wore it to an AD. I walked in with the rep, walked out with a gen on my wrist; rep in the box. The good thing about the rep was that it was a pretty good Asian 6497 (save for a short power reserve). I own about 15 gens, ranging from a Swatch (daily wearer) to a Vacheron (bi-weekly wearer). Anyone knows that this is an expensive habit. I made the jump to the other side for two reasons: 1) The crowd I "hang" with could care less what's on my wrist and never even acknowledge half of the brands that I own, except for Swatch and Rolex. (That's one extreme) 2) The crowd in the neighborhood I live (land of pompous men and large shoulder-bag carrying women) seems to think that there are only two brands the "rich" wear (and they're not Lange or VC). I think you all know what they are. ------------------------------------------------------ At first, I hated the prospect of being associated with wearing a rep, but after enough convincing by my wife (her justification was rep handbags), I realized that when worn with pride, no one would assume that YOU are wearing a rep (unless you happen to be sitting next to a guy who wears the same watch as you). I noticed I come here often because the members are more knowledgeable than the members on those gen forums. You all have an eye for detail and from being here (and not of those gen forums), I learned how to spot a rep from a mile away (this is literally true when it comes to Breitlings). So a rep is not at all negative, as I previously have thought. It's actually positive and I always learn something new everyday from here. Now I own two reps (not good ones, but reps nonetheless) and am actually happy I own them.