Quality of Replicas and Durability after a few years

[Lacuadra]

Hi Friends,

 

One of the topics I have searched but have not been very succesful at finding has to do with long durability and integrity of the replicas.  

 

Are the replicas, specially  automatic ones, working as expected after say 3, 6 ,12 months or so?  

How about parts? do they break down a lot and/or are these easy to  purchase or replace?

 

I enjoy reading and looking at the pictures of some outstanding collections, but it would be kind of crappy to find out that 6 months later, the hot replica just became a "closet replica."

( I wouldn't care if it falls a few min behind after a week or so, after all it is not the original watch)

 

 

Is there  a poll section ( of actual  owners) which compilates durability, wearability (parts lose color, shine),  or integrity ( parts dont get loose, dont break)?

 

Many thanks !

[flyr]

A hard question to answer, all my reps are in rotation and don't get a lot of wear. I have12 or so now. (have owned around 25)

I am also quite careful when wearing them and leave any rough activities to my gen Deep Blue,G Shock or Luminox type watches.

I have not had a failure yet.(touch wood)

Mind you I have never kept a A7750 movement watch long enough to have it fail(several Pam GMT's)

Never bought any A7750 chronos either.

My longest owned rep is about 4 years, and is one of my most accurate timekeepers.

An Omega UPO.(Swiss movement)

[StormTooper4]

Wearing my Pam 055 today had for around 7 years, never serviced but upgraded the dial. Runs like a champ. Had a Quartz Omega dropped it smashed the glass stuffed up the repair so it lasted less than a month. It all depends.

If you really worry about spending $$$ and having a long term investment in a replica watch then you might want to choose a different hobby. Sure some frankens are to be treasured but at the end of the day we are playing with Fake watches. You can spend $500 on an Armani or Hugo Boss watch and IMHO they are of a similar quality and if you get 3 years out of it your doing well.

[Lacuadra]

Hi Thanks for the replies.  Very good insight, specially coming from top vip members.

 

I guess we see original prices a little bit different here in the US.  When I travel to Germany, I  gasp for air once I see what the Jewelers charge !

Usually  Armani or Hugo Boss watches are low end and cheap around here. Say ~200.00 USD

$400.00 is close to what one would pay for say a Ferragamo or Gucci ( not that I particularly care for any of these).  

I'd rather pay 300.00 Usd+ for  a top Panerai replica, and hope to enjoy this copy for a few years or so, not as an investment but as a nice toy.  

( Originals go for like 6k+, more or less in the US).

 

I just wanted to know if the watch experience is similar to  that of a decently manufactured watch.   

As long as one takes care of it can last for a little while.  

( not a beautifully designed unit that is expected to break down within a 3 or 6 month period). I think the general answer is now a yes. Correct me if I have the wrong assumption.

 

Finally I am very aware all watches break down sooner or later ( except a Puma I bought like 12 years ago, that keeps running despite all the punishment!).  I guess I will do more research into finding some decent machinery and a decent and discreet watchmaker that can service these.

 

Again many thanks for your opinions and time. I hope this is a topic that interests all of our new and freshmen members like me.

Edited May 4, 2015 by Lacuadra

[Nanuq]

It's best to buy simple watches because fragile complications (like chronos) fail. So get a simple watch and maintain it, and there's no reason it won't last awhile. A real Swiss movement ought to last better; I've got a couple frankens (Swiss movements) that are still going strong after 10+ years of weekly use.

[Rolexman]

I service all my watches and they are running strong. One A7750 is running constantly for 5 years as I wear it almost daily. The Asian movements are very reliable after a proper cleaning and service.

[gran]

Replicas are no good....as a rule. I have had 40+ replicas. Current collection about 10+ replicas.

 

I have several replicas running fine after 10 years and with no othe damages....but most will fail/run poorly/have poor power reserve within 1-3 years if not serviced

 

However all replicas I have given to my girls or to other relatives tend to brake in one way or another well within 2 years...often after a few months..braceletts that brake easily is the most common failure followed by failure of some kind to the movement.....

 

replicas need tender loving care, sometimes a new movement or sercvice and knowledge to survive

Edited May 4, 2015 by gran

[Rolexman]

Think this is relevant in this topic:

http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/134432-qa-why-do-our-a7750s-need-a-service/?hl=+need%20+service

[pcardoza]

I have been at this for about two years now.   Some 2 dozen watches (chronos and non-chronos) and I have yet to have a movement fail on me to date.   Granted, none of the are worn daily, but a few get quite a bit of wrist time.    Only my PAM Bronzo has been serviced by a local watchsmith, but a couple of others bought MTM were claimed to have been serviced.

[mui.richard.hk]

...Finally I am very aware all watches break down sooner or later ( except a Puma I bought like 12 years ago, that keeps running despite all the punishment!). I guess I will do more research into finding some decent machinery and a decent and discreet watchmaker that can service these.

Not necessarily...my oldest watches in my collection (an Oris certified chronometer and a Tudor Sub, both 20+ yrs old) are both running fine and never needed more than a couple services this far...So I believe there IS a reason to buy well made pieces.

Sent from my D6653 using Tapatalk

Edited May 4, 2015 by mui.richard.hk

[gran]

Not necessarily...my oldest watches in my collection (an Oris certified chronometer and a Tudor Sub, both 20+ yrs old) are both running fine and never needed more than a couple services this far...So I believe there IS a reason to buy well made pieces.

Sent from my D6653 using Tapatalk

 

We need to see some pictures of these! Are they really 20+ yrs old Replicas??...propably genuines

[mui.richard.hk]

We need to see some pictures of these! Are they really 20+ yrs old Replicas??...propably genuines

Oh sorry they were gen of course...

Sent from my D6653 using Tapatalk

[gran]

Oh sorry they were gen of course...

Sent from my D6653 using Tapatalk

 

But still some images would be nice

[mui.richard.hk]

Newbie here so I still cannot upload photos...

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Edited May 4, 2015 by mui.richard.hk

[preacher62]

Gran must have had some bad experiences with reps.  The Swiss made ETA 2824/36s have been used in production watches for decades.  Being almost 70 years old, I remember life before Quartz movements.  Everyone wore these watches.  I had an uncle who was a framing carpenter and he had an old Tudor watch that he wore everyday for 15-20 years. He had it serviced for...are you ready...$20 at the local jewelry store and away they went.

 

I hear people talk about how they "baby" their watches.  Even the Asian made ETA clones are as good today as the old ETA movements were in the 60s.  I have an MBK sub with a Swiss-made ETA 2836 on board and I have no reason to think that it wouldn't be running 20 years from now with proper service.  I built two DJs from gen parts and ETA movements and they will be passed on to someone else to use.

 

If one always buys the "canal street" specials he/she will have a bad watch experience.  If one always buys the cheaper rep with the Chinese made movement then you get that for which you paid.  I agree that they are not very good movements, but they do what they are intended for.

 

I think that anyone who would make the broad, general statement..."Replicas are no good..."  just doesn't know what he's talking about.

[gran]

I think that anyone who would make the broad, general statement..."Replicas are no good..."  just doesn't know what he's talking about.

 

Unfortunately it is a fact that replicas (in general) are no damn good, for reasons that are pretty obvious ......maybe, just maybe 0.1% of the replicas are good to great watches depending on what standards one is setting.

 

Fortunately we are in a position to find and choose between the better replicas and gather information to choose the better ones

[Edaw]

Newbie to newbie here! I've purchased 3 watches to date. All of which are functioning properly. Your research of the TD's and members are, in my opinion, your greatest asset. Know what you're buying and who you're buying from. Ask the stupid question, so to speak, if need be. This forum, in my opinion, is a tight group and they will call bull$&@& when they see it!

[preacher62]

Still think your facts are not supported by the data.  Not sure from whence the .1 percent comes, but I'd like to see the data. All this said, we can agree to disagree.  That is what this community is about.

[gran]

Still think your facts are not supported by the data.  Not sure from whence the .1 percent comes, but I'd like to see the data. All this said, we can agree to disagree.  That is what this community is about.

 

Agreed. I said maybe 0.1 percent

 

Note! You use maybe to indicate that something is possible, although you are not certain about it.

Edited May 4, 2015 by gran

[pcardoza]

Using "maybe" does not reduce the hyperbole. That estimate suggests that only 1/1000 pieces are decent? I'd suggest that the TD's would never be able to operate if they had to deal with those numbers when ordering from the makers.

[gran]

Using "maybe" does not reduce the hyperbole. That estimate suggests that only 1/1000 pieces are decent? I'd suggest that the TD's would never be able to operate if they had to deal with those numbers when ordering from the makers.

 

I never said they were decent. I said "good to great".

 

I would be thrilled if it was hyperbole, but mind you I was talking about all replica watches made by not just the ones sourced by our best dealers from the better makers so my "hyperbole"  includes also "the plain ugly fakes".

[jex]

i bought a TUDOR BB Heritage from Puretime 1 year ago, had to service the watch when i received it because the crown was not working well. 2 months later the crown stopped working for good. I think worn it about 20 times so for the price it's not woth it.

I'll never buy reps again !

[pcardoza]

I have some 20 reps and 2 gens.

 

ONE of the 20 reps has given me problems.   It arrived DOA and had to be returned to China.   Took an eternity, but came back functioning perfectly.

 

If we rely on our TD's the quality of reps is amazing for the price, IMO.   Not sure what the point is of comparing what we receive to Canal Street pieces, since none of our TD's deal in that junk......    Can we expect perfection?    Absolutely not.    

 

Spending time learning about this hobby and becoming knowledgeable about what to look for and what to avoid, goes a long way to avoiding disappointment.

[gran]

 

If we rely on our TD's the quality of reps is amazing for the price, IMO.    

 

 

 

I agree with the essence in your post, provided the member is well trained in buying replicas.

 

I would guesstimate that what you are stating is true for maybe as much as 20% of the replicas our TDs offer, all different brands considered.

[gasebah]

Funny if I think about it. All the watches I had problems with at one point in time were GENS. All reps I own have worked without a glitch for years. Plus if you really have a problem instead of wracking your brain about what could be wrong, with the movements being so cheap you simply order a new movement and swap it. Try that with a gen.