jleonid Posted September 22, 2013 Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 Hello I'm new to this forum, and I was hoping someone could assist me in determining whether or not my fathers Rolex is authentic. He acquired the watch over ten years ago, and I believe it to be from 1986 or thereabouts. Now we don't know much about it as it was a gift, and it was damaged when he was hit by a car whilst riding his motorcycle. The watch is missing a lug, and has some scratching on the crystal. The watch was neglected for a while, and me, being me, thought i would pull it apart. Whilst researching the Rolex brand, i was concerned with a few inconsistencies. Firstly, I was under the impression that the SM should click 120 times with a full bezel rotation. Before losing the clicking mechanism (after removing bezel), i counted 60 clicks. The next thing is that the clicking mechanism is different to what I have seen most commonly. Rather than use a pin, there is a hole on the flat surface which houses some sort of spring loaded ball bearing. The under side of the bezel does not look like an inverted gear. Rather, it looks like a bit more like a hole saw (without teeth, obviously). Apart from that, the bracelet numbers seem to indicate it is of 80's vintage, however, there are no serials on the watch body. Now i don't think they have been rubbed off intentionally. There is a lot of perfectly straight vertical scratching, which indicates that the lugs have perhaps rubbed against the body for some time. Now it is missing the cyclops, but it could have been removed at some point. So this is basically everything I have looked at, short of the movement as I cannot remove the backing. Ill leave some photos for consideration, I hope someone can help out. I'm more than happy to help in any way. Also, the photo's could be better, perhaps they would be clearer during the day. Thanks Jacob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmj Posted September 22, 2013 Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 Hi, welcome to the forum. Some better photos will definitely help you get some definitive answers. However based on the photos, it looks like a replica. The date wheel is incorrect for a start. Bracelet is definitely not genuine. Post a clear photo of the face front on and it will help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docthor Posted September 22, 2013 Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 Dial, inlay, case, crown guards, bracelet...these are the flaws just visible even with those bad pics.Sorry to say that...it's a rep and a cheap one too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSTEEL Posted September 22, 2013 Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 I echo the above, its a replication. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike on a bike Posted September 22, 2013 Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 Well gents that was fast no debate on that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jleonid Posted September 22, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 Yeah that's fine, i appreciate the input. I suspected as much, im not bothered at all. At least i can move on and buy a real one. Was i right about the number of clicks and clicking mechanism? What threw me was the stamping on the bracelet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSTEEL Posted September 22, 2013 Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 im not bothered at all. At least i can move on and buy a real one. You are going to buy your father a new, genuine Rolex? Wow.! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alligoat Posted September 22, 2013 Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 Yep, your bezel mechanism is definitely rep- old style rep at that. Crown and cgs are a giveaway also and as pointed out, it's a rep bracelet. But it might be worth opening the case to see if you have an eta movement- there were no clones back in that day, just Asian 21j as the other choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanuq Posted September 22, 2013 Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 Welcome aboard Jacob, and nicely done researching the watch! That effort puts you in the top 1% of all newbies. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irolexu Posted September 22, 2013 Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 Good thing you came here first instead of just assuming it was gen and possibly selling it on eBay! We see a lot of that as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jleonid Posted September 23, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2013 (edited) To be honest I was a bit scared to ask as I did not expect people to be so understanding. Especially the missing numbers part, but hey, that's how it has always been. Since it was neglected I was going to take possession of it and bring it back to life. The sad thing is I think someone payed good money for that watch at some stage. However I would like the remove the backing and have a look inside. What is the most obvious giveaway that a Rolex is fake when it is opened? Who knows maybe the movement is original, bar everything else. Is the clicking mechanism a DEAD giveaway that the housing is fake? It is still a nice watch, I would like to wear it but I honestly do not think I can live with it knowing as much as I do. Ignorance is bliss! Thanks Edited September 23, 2013 by jleonid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docthor Posted September 23, 2013 Report Share Posted September 23, 2013 Well...the most obvious giveaway when opened is...the movement...no way that there will be a gen 3135 housed in this case...to be honest...I would be surprised if there is an ETA inside...I'd bet it will be driven by a simple asian movement...maybe quartz...would be interesting to know Try to open the case with a tape ball Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jleonid Posted September 23, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2013 AHA! I could not find a rubber ball but a tape ball is ingenious (ball rolled up from tape i presume?). Yeah i know it's a long shot, but worth a look. Can someone tell me that the case is 100% correct based on the clicking mechanism? Also, the terminology is confusing me; ETA? I know it has perpetual movement, but then again is this easily replicated? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbh Posted September 23, 2013 Report Share Posted September 23, 2013 I wouldn't waste any time or money on trying to resurrect that one. For a little over $100 you can buy a much, much better one. I'm not sure what you're asking about the case being 100% based on the clicking mechanism. Your case is definitely 100% not correct in many ways including the clicking mechanism. Also, ETA is the largest manufacturer of Swiss movements and supply the higher quality rep movements. Although the higher quality rep movements are generally the lowest quality ETA movements made. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jleonid Posted September 24, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 24, 2013 I pretty much wanted to know if I was right about the case. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flex Posted September 25, 2013 Report Share Posted September 25, 2013 its cheaper to acquire a new watch for your dad from a trusted dealer/ a used one from the sales forum than fixing that watch. Unless you can source the parts from the sales forum, acquiring those parts may be difficult. Seriously the watch has so many flaws you don't want to fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
live1 Posted September 25, 2013 Report Share Posted September 25, 2013 wocky rehault aswell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sneed12 Posted September 26, 2013 Report Share Posted September 26, 2013 Can someone tell me that the case is 100% correct based on the clicking mechanism? I'm not sure why you're so hung up on this, but yes, a gen should click 120 times. Many reps do as well. Some older gens will not, quite, due to wear or damage to the bezel teeth and anything model 1680 or older doesn't click at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sneed12 Posted September 26, 2013 Report Share Posted September 26, 2013 But it might be worth opening the case to see if you have an eta movement Based on the datewheel font, I'd bet it's an ETA. I pretty much wanted to know if I was right about the case. Thanks No, I don't think so--there's a lot more to the "clicking mechanism" than just counting the clicks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitchbaria Posted May 30, 2014 Report Share Posted May 30, 2014 Did it have gen construction bezel assembly couldn't tell? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seanpz1 Posted May 30, 2014 Report Share Posted May 30, 2014 How can you tell the Rehault is wocky from that angle? not being sarcastic just seems like all rehault look wocky from an angle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deokhoon jun Posted May 31, 2014 Report Share Posted May 31, 2014 How can you tell the Rehault is wocky from that angle? not being sarcastic just seems like all rehault look wocky from an angle. How you dont know the rehaut is wocky? Its very terrible.. Awful.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbh Posted May 31, 2014 Report Share Posted May 31, 2014 I guess I'm the only one that thinks it's not too bad looking. I like the old style hollow end links and the drilled case lugs. It sure would be interesting to see the inside of the case and case back. Could be one of the old "Monarch Polfy" Polex cases. It might be worth cleaning up and putting back into service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jleonid Posted June 2, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 2, 2014 Care to elaborate a little? I had some pretty strong opinions about it not being authentic, it was pretty much destined for the bin. I'd be interested to hear what you think. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbh Posted June 4, 2014 Report Share Posted June 4, 2014 I certainly didn't mean to imply it's a gen. Just not such a bad looking rep as people are making it out to be. Open the case back and see if it says "Galena Shitinerand" instead of Geneva Switzerland on the inside. If it was, those were some pretty good rep cases for the early Subs.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.