billyfras Posted July 26, 2013 Report Share Posted July 26, 2013 Is Panerai really that unknown? I was of the opinion that they were pretty popular, especially in recent years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mt666tm Posted July 26, 2013 Report Share Posted July 26, 2013 There was this one time... I didn't get called out, but I was new to the game and wearing a quartz AP rep, white dial with rubber strap, 7750 case (so half decent). I was just having a drink out at a hockey game and a guy was standing around and eyballed it hard! .. and i know that after a second he knew, but he just nodded... knowingly... and that was it. I personally didn't care one way or another. I call others out in a friendly way when I can to get conversation started. If TD's gave out bird-dogs for references then I'd probably make some decent $ on the side. And I've turned a few new members onto the forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankt Posted July 26, 2013 Report Share Posted July 26, 2013 Is Panerai really that unknown? I was of the opinion that they were pretty popular, especially in recent years. Among whom...??? The VAST majority think that "Panerai" is just a misspelling of a popular restaurant's name.... Over the past 10-12 years, i have seen exactly one other person wearing one here in SW Florida...He was a doctor at the local hospital, and when I asked him what model it was he replied: "A 44mm one"...(It was an 024 IIRC!!)... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronin Posted July 26, 2013 Report Share Posted July 26, 2013 Geography has a lot to do with it also. It is not uncommon for me to be at my local sushi bar, or bar and see a Panerai, AP, Rolex, Breitling, etc... ~Most actually genuine. I see at least one Panerai per week on the street. Granted, I am in a major metro area that has not been impacted by recent economic events. If you live in the suburbs or rural area, yeah, you may never see something like a Panerai in your town. Age as well. I know many a >40yr old sporting GEN $$,$$$ watches wearing their Levi's 501, and New Balance shoes and T-Shirt from Target. With age comes a certain wizdom, and confidence that says I can be who am I with no pretense. I would NEVER assume a REP based on that. Still. Seeing a 20 something getting out of a primered 1991 Honda Civic wearing a Rolex Daytona makes me take pause and assume a rep... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wilazn Posted July 26, 2013 Report Share Posted July 26, 2013 Never. Once time I wore my AP rubberclad and my friend saw it. He was like "WTF?! When did you get an AP???" He new the price of it and didn't even question if it was fake lol. I had to tell him it was a fake so he would calm down. Let him hold it and inspect it and he refused to believe it was a fake lol. Said the quality felt amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billyfras Posted July 26, 2013 Report Share Posted July 26, 2013 I find that many people do not realize how big the rep market is. Many of them still think canal street Rolex reps are as far as it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronin Posted July 26, 2013 Report Share Posted July 26, 2013 I find that many people do not realize how big the rep market is. Many of them still think canal street Rolex reps are as far as it goes. I disagree. I did a post a few years ago about this. Between the Replica Forum' s the average number of registered users is in the 25,000 to 30,000 neighborhood. Even if we assumed 30,000 "active" rep buyers that is nothing. Add on tourist sales in China, etc. Rolex produces something like 700,000 genuine watches per year!!! New York City has a population of 8.2 million people. If every forum member lived in New York and bought a rep that would only account for 0.037 % of the population. Now since we are not all in NYC, spread that out across the world. You have a better chance of seeing a GEN in the wild than you do a REP. Statistically speaking. Because WE know and deal with reps, we think we see them everywhere. I call this "Replica Forum Member Syndrome" just like "Medical School Student Syndrome". :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CptTripps Posted July 27, 2013 Report Share Posted July 27, 2013 Ha. I remember Medicalschoolitis! When every ache/pain results in a corner-case diagnosis of some rare cancer.Those were the days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingkaiser Posted July 27, 2013 Report Share Posted July 27, 2013 Been called out by a fake watch dealer. He tried to sell me a canal street cheapo for $1000 and when I laughed at his price and pointed out inaccuracies that anyone with a fleeting knowledge of panerai would know, he said : "this is a good fake, not cheap fake like yours."I was wearing a gen... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cromag Posted July 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 27, 2013 Been called out by a fake watch dealer. He tried to sell me a canal street cheapo for $1000 and when I laughed at his price and pointed out inaccuracies that anyone with a fleeting knowledge of panerai would know, he said : "this is a good fake, not cheap fake like yours." I was wearing a gen...LMFAO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OmegaPOFL Posted July 27, 2013 Report Share Posted July 27, 2013 (edited) Still. Seeing a 20 something getting out of a primered 1991 Honda Civic wearing a Rolex Daytona makes me take pause and assume a rep...True... that would be the case for 99% of the time. I have a good friend who got a new submariner when he graduated from undergrad.. and lol he drove a civic! He also has a navitimer.. Unfortunately he never wears them anymore. He much rather wear a g-shock.. or no watch most of the time. He has them in his dresser.. I'm always like, just sell those beauties if you're not gonna wear it! I'll take some pics of them when I visit him next weekend! Edited July 27, 2013 by astrograph Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alterego Posted July 27, 2013 Report Share Posted July 27, 2013 I was called out once, a few years back. But not exactly wearing a rep, but a franken. I own an Oysterquartz, about 50% gen (but the movement) and this guy says I was wearing rep since the second hand jumped and did not swept. I told him that it was a franken OQ, the only quartz watch ever made by Rolex. He did not believe me as - he said- Rolex would never make a a cheap quartz watch. I told him he was wrong, because Rolex produced the OQ for decades. So he argued that it was unfair that I was making up this story, to cover my "unathic" practice. What can you do if he was half right ? I hope he later realized I was being "honest" to some degree in my explanation. Here is a pic of the frankenstein Oysterquartz, which I wear as I write this post. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geof3 Posted July 27, 2013 Report Share Posted July 27, 2013 Sigh... This whole logic of it is a Rolex and therefore must be fake is the stuff of myth if you ask me. A Genuine Rolex can be had for the price of fully loaded MacBook Pro. Quality Vintage Date/DateJusts for well under $2k. Where I live, and travel, the MAJORITY of Rolex's I see are Gen. Rolex makes on average 750,000 watches a year. That is 2885 per day or 360 per hour. DO THE MATH. Yup. I completely agree. There is more stereotyping going on in this thread than I would have expected. Lets just put aside that any of us wearing a rep are posers of one type or another. We can justify it anyway we want. If it were truly just about the "look" of the watch, not a single one of us would be wearing anything with a brand name on it. The notion that one needs to "look the part" to own an expensive watch is also utter [censored]. Some of us save, scrimp, sell, or whatever to own nice, possibly expensive things. Our outward appearance may or may not "look the part". It certainly doesn't indicate (at least to me) whether or not a piece of jewelry is fake or not. My daily life is lived in a t-shirt and shorts. I've owned several gens, and my daily wearer is a gen Sinn UX. I drive a 95 4runner. I've also owned a 911 at one point. What I am trying to point out is "money" does not have a "look". Seems to me, more and more, people that "look" like money, actually don't have any and live their lives in debt up to their eyeballs. So, the notion that one must "look" the part, to be less likely to be called out for wearing a fake is BS. One more rant, if one's eyesight is good enough to glance at a watch and determine whether or not any watch is genuine, is WAY better than mine. And if someone is oogling my watch with that much interest, and don't ask me a question or at least compliment my watch I'm going to seriously question their intent, and label them a creeper... Oh, and btw I've never been called out either rep or gen. Really, 99% of people could really care less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pecman Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 well , only one time ...... i was riding my bicycle to my mcdonals part time job while wearing my platinum patek perpetual calendar , i dont get how could they realized it was a fake since mcdonals is a multimillionaire business , and i could be working as the undercover boss there ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vootzilla Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 Its inevitable that ppl will estimate u on how u dress or "look the part". Thats what ppl's first judgment on others. So if u dress well, its more likely that ppl will think what u wear are also good items (if they are not super cheap crappy reps). Its silly but we can't change others' thinking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeJay Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 Not exactly a call out, but going into the supermarket with wifey yesterday, the guy walking through the door immediately in front of me was wearing a PAM (possibly a 111) the strap was definitely not the usual PAM rubber, but I know that doesn't mean shit... Seemed fairly tidy and well-dressed, so who knows Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masmannan Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 Its inevitable that ppl will estimate u on how u dress or "look the part". Thats what ppl's first judgment on others. So if u dress well, its more likely that ppl will think what u wear are also good items (if they are not super cheap crappy reps). Its silly but we can't change others' thinking. We all make assumptions on others. That's why it's called 'first impressions'. When I wear my suit (weekdays) I get the best service and respect from everyone I encounter. People go out of their way to help a guy in a custom made suit, finest leather shoes and looking super business-like. And when my AP pops out when I bend my arm...well no one will remotely suspect it's a rep. If I wear my casual wear, I get treated not as well. Masmannan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geof3 Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 We all make assumptions on others. That's why it's called 'first impressions'. When I wear my suit (weekdays) I get the best service and respect from everyone I encounter. People go out of their way to help a guy in a custom made suit, finest leather shoes and looking super business-like. And when my AP pops out when I bend my arm...well no one will remotely suspect it's a rep. If I wear my casual wear, I get treated not as well. Masmannan. Masmannan, the statement for discussion wasn't first impressions. The discussion was, if someone, like yourself, were dressed as you say, the assumption would be your watch is probably gen. But, if you were to wear that same rep and were in a pair of shorts and tshirt, more would assume it is a rep. That is where I disagree. First impressions are what what they are, no doubt. But one can't assume money just because a person is wearing a suit, or otherwise. I live in Colorado, we have a very casual way of going about things. The guys I know that have the most $ wear jeans and a nice shirt, and most don't care about watches in the first place. They are perfectly happy wearing a g-shock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cromag Posted July 28, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 Have you ever been called out while wearing your rep? I'd love to hear some of the stories. Please share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asciwhite Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 I only get looks at my watch when I am walking my dogs on the golf course! All other places nobody cares... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masmannan Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 Geof3 - surely 'first impression' is all about assumptions. You see a guy with a watch. You are unsure whether its a gen or rep. You look for other clues...What area are you in?What is the establishment?What does he look like?What is he wearing?These are all natural signals we look for, mostly unconsciously. If you or I want to validate our assumption, I guess we just ask him.Masmannan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geof3 Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 Mas, true... A good example... I was picking up my parents in Denver this weekend and saw a "kid" 25ish I would guess, and of course noticed his watch. He was dressed classic Abercrombie and Fitch/Hollister but sporting what looked to be a Daytona. Again, I couldn't verify without looking obvious. The thing is, and this is sort of the point, it could have been a 20k Daytona, or any number of homages, or even a rep. There was NO way I was identifying that watch for sure at a glance, and I'm pretty good at watch spotting. If I am not able to identify a particular piece trying, then the public, and even other collectors/wis probably can't either. I never once wondered if it were fake or gen. Just thought it was a nice looking watch with good presence... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronin Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 Hell, I can often be found wearing a pair of Checkered Van's (shoes), jeans and a T-Shirt sporting any number of high end watches. Including my GEN Rolex's. (In my 40's now, but I still wear Van's since I was 13!!!) Personal Style Statement - My wife loves it. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geof3 Posted July 28, 2013 Report Share Posted July 28, 2013 Ronin! You are the man! I LOVE my checkered Vans! Pushing fiddy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indywatchguy Posted July 29, 2013 Report Share Posted July 29, 2013 To be honest i dont think it matters what you wear or how you look. Most ppl who have money try to fly under the radar. My uncle made tons and tons of money in the housing market in Miami and he sports a Metorite dial dayona almost every day. Hes a big collector and has tons of watches of every brand and dress like a normal person. You would have no idea he had money if you looked at it him. So i disagree the car, clothes ect do not mean anything. +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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