Rare Vintage Rolex Rep

[Noel Fleischer]

I just found one of my early reps- circa 1995 bought in Colombia, SA. It's says Sub but the insert looks like a GMT, no 3rd. hand.

I paid about $40, hadn't worn it in at least 10 years but the 21J movement still works.

[TeeJay]

Fantastic As nice as modern reps are, there is something charming and fun about the older and obviously 'fake' reps

[panerai153]

Works great if you're timing your dive in hours instead of minutes. WOW! Look at those surrounds, almost looks like a nipple dial. And the dial print on the bottom is so low it almost runs into the dial markers.

What this one and others of the same genre really show is how far the reps have come in the past 10-15 years. I would imagine back then, most of the genuine WIS and the watch manufacturers were just laughing their butts off. Reps were so bad, they could be spotted from across a room. Now, they are singing a different tune. Just the other day, a very respected member of the VRF had a thread about a GMT dial, that he felt was fake, but it had fooled 4 other guys who were also pretty darn knowledgable about Rolex vintage. basically, what he said were the replicas were getting better and better, and if you weren't knowledgable about what you were buying, it was getting easier to get taken. Fortunately, for us, the accuracy increase is a good thing, as we are not trying to sell a replica as a genuine. The closer to genuine, the better, as it makes them that much easier to mod.

[TeeJay]

Works great if you're timing your dive in hours instead of minutes. WOW! Look at those surrounds, almost looks like a nipple dial. And the dial print on the bottom is so low it almost runs into the dial markers.

Perfect donor parts for an accurate Rootbeer GMT project

What this one and others of the same genre really show is how far the reps have come in the past 10-15 years. I would imagine back then, most of the genuine WIS and the watch manufacturers were just laughing their butts off. Reps were so bad, they could be spotted from across a room. Now, they are singing a different tune. Just the other day, a very respected member of the VRF had a thread about a GMT dial, that he felt was fake, but it had fooled 4 other guys who were also pretty darn knowledgable about Rolex vintage. basically, what he said were the replicas were getting better and better, and if you weren't knowledgable about what you were buying, it was getting easier to get taken. Fortunately, for us, the accuracy increase is a good thing, as we are not trying to sell a replica as a genuine. The closer to genuine, the better, as it makes them that much easier to mod.

I must admit, I have a real softspot for the vintage reps like this, simply because they're not as easy to acquire anymore. Quite some time ago, I saw a fantasy Rolex posted, which I thought was a really nice watch in it's own right:

After seeing it, I decided that I would really like an 'obvious fake' for my collection, as it wouldn't be about how accurate it was, or if someone might think it was real, but a joke about it being an obvious fake, so in the end, I put a modified Rolex dial in a black plastic Submariner case

As silly as it might seem, I've worn this watch pretty much solidly over the last few months, as it's always made me smile, and always reminded me not to take life too seriously, and to enjoy things for what they are

[simonporsche]

This could be a great thread if others could add some pics and info on any early reps from years gone by they have tucked away.