Chad-
Very pleased to see you have come around. Reps are anything but perfect. Gens aren't perfect. But reps cost 5-10% of the cost of the gen. On that basis if the watch is in one piece you are ahead of the game. But if you invest in having a watchsmith (or yourself, if so inclined) go over your watch you can improve your rep life dramatically. IMHO, expensive (or any for that matter) mechanical watches never make economic sense. Mechanical watches, rep or gen, are for those who aprreciate them. I long ago accepted the fact that even within the most expensive watch categories each specific watch has its own eccentricities. That is one of the nice things about them. When we pay what we pay for reps which is exponentially more than what the factory receives there is no way that QC pays for the factory unless people refuse to buy them. In the new anonymous illegal goods through the mail world it would be very difficult to organize an effective boycott. The manufacturer has no idea who you are and you have no idea who they are. Even in our safe little world for all the screaming about dealer inaccuracies nothing has really changed except for a couple of descriptions and dealers ceasing to post anything here. We used to be able to come to the forum to see new things for sale first. Now you either search the dealer sites or see someone else posting the link.
Back to the IWC, I can't wait for mine.