crystalcranium Posted February 21, 2007 Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 Let me start of with a disclaimer. In the past month, I have sold or given away almost all of my replica collection with the exception of my gold FA Jones and my stainless Sub. I have a growing collection of good genuines and I found the reps were collecting dust getting very little wrist time. So my perspective on the value of investing in replica watches is a little skewed these days. I will probably buy an interesting piece here and there but for now, my days of investing a major chunk of my take home pay in replica watches are over. Replicas still present a remarkable opportunity for watch lovers to own beautiful mechanical pieces but in the last 4 weeks, I've had the opportunity to purchase some remarkable watches, like the Maurice Lacroix Masterpiece Grande Guichet and quite frankly, the fit and finish of the replicas were looking a little forlorn down on the farm once I saw Paris. That being said, I wonder who will buy pieces like the Breitling Chronomat Swiss 7750 with diamonds or almost $2000? Does anyone think buying this watch makes good sense???? "Grade A diamonds"???? What the hell is a grade A diamond? I thought letters like VSI and D flawless were the letters used to describe diamonds. Now there's some fodder for the "little lies" thread. I actually consider the $90 Asian 21j reps better deals these days. Some of them are beautiful, all are affordable and none of them will put a dent in your genuine savings cookie jar. This is in no way meant to be a replicas bashing post. My replica experience is evolving,...not ending. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris5264 Posted February 21, 2007 Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 I'm not sure what to add, except to say I could have posted this myself. I guess I would say the moment of things changing for me came when my ultimate PO crown tube broke off from the case. It just changed the way I feel about reps. I'm not anti rep in anyway but my collection now is all gens and if I go for another rep, it will be something under 100 (usd) just to try out the watch if I'm considering a gen. I actually considered one more as a last attempt,,,a breitling, but never got around to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corgi Posted February 21, 2007 Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 For those of us who are still using motorboats instead of yachts and piloting our own motorcoaches instead of hiring chauffeurs, reps are the way to go. Besides... for the price of one $3000 genuine omega I can create a very substantial and rewarding collection of replicas that will last me a very long time and bring me lots of pleasure. I will never buy a genuine... unless I hit the big-lotto jackpot or have as much money as apparently every single member of these forums. My favorite messages to read on any forum on the internet were the "what is your salary" thread I think it was on RWG1. Some posts made me laugh until I cry. Oh, and to answer your question, the quality of these Grade A diamonds can be easily discovered if you just think: Price of watch with Grade As: $2000 Price of watch with cz: $725 TF diamond upgrade is: *bust out your calculators* : $1272 There are 40 diamonds, so each 2mm piece costs 31.80 Now, what kind of diamond do you thinl you're getting for 30 bucks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
By-Tor Posted February 21, 2007 Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 Who wants a diamond Chronomat in the first place (rep or gen)? Insane... the rep price is even more insane... considering you can buy preowned genuine stainless Chronomats for that price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest chronomat123 Posted February 21, 2007 Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 Gotta agree 100% with you guys. I've sold off pretty much everything. I've also sold of a whole lot of my gens to finance the down payment on a new car purchase. Right now I have a genuine Rolex GMT II, genuine Breitling Crosswind TT on Pilot bracelet, and genuine Breitling Chronomat Longitude yellow dial with black rubber strap. I have a little bit of cash left to blow, which I'll probably spend either on a fully modded MBW 1665 "Comex" or a BCE from Angus, although I am waiting for him TO FINALLY RELEASE THE DAMN TWO TONE CHRONOMAT EVO so I can sell off my Crosswind, keep the genuine bracelet to put on the replica, and then take the cash from the sale of the Crosswind and get an IWC Fliegerchrono or a Dubey & schaldenbrand Aerodyn Chrono. I'm done with reps, for the most part, until maybe the IWC Cousteau comes out, assuming it's priced reasonably and looks good. @ CC, Maurice LaCroix makes some beautiful watches, and they're seriously undervalued. Another beautiful brand you should check out is Dubey & Schaldenbrand, their Aerodyn Chrono is amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_uk Posted February 21, 2007 Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 I sold off most of my collection years ago. IMO the best way to buy reps is buy them from the member sales section, they're tried and tested, usually unused, and usually a lot cheaper than new, the one you want will always surface eventually, and if you're lucky you'll get one on your own continent, especially if you live in the US. Just my 2 pence worth. P.S. I think anyone who spends anywhere near $2k on any rep should seek medical advice immediately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve G Posted February 21, 2007 Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 Crazy...when I first saw that Joshua posted that the first thing that came to mind was "SCAM SITE" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crystalcranium Posted February 21, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 @ CC, Maurice LaCroix makes some beautiful watches, and they're seriously undervalued. Another beautiful brand you should check out is Dubey & Schaldenbrand, their Aerodyn Chrono is amazing. Funny, there must be some common brain pathways. I just turned my sights on the Aerodyn Chrono and it is a very sexy watch. I found one for an amazing price on collectorstime.com but quite frankly, I'm at a loss to explain how they sell this watch for $2300 when the MSRP is over $5000 and the best price I can find elsewhere is $3700. As for some of the other comments, I stated that replicas are still a remarkable value. I have not jumped ship or joined the "all fakes are crap" crowd. Yes, I'm fortunate that my wife and I can afford some luxuries but I'm in no way impuining the wisdom of collectors who would rather spend their thousands on many reps than on one genuine. I bought upwards of 25 replicas over the years using that MO. What I found was that, after aquiring 3-4 nice genuines, they were what I wore most of the time and that the reps were gathering dust. The reason I still have the FA Jones and Submariner copy is that I wear them. My wife thinks the FA is beautiful and she actually talked me out of selling it. I can't say enough about Maurice Lacroix as a watch line. They are a blossoming major player in the mechanical watch game. The ML Masterpiece Grande Guichet has a reworked 2892 as it's caliber. It is decorated, has a polished Glucydur balance, balance spring and balance [censored], blued screws, Nivaflex mainspring and Nivarox balance spring and is adjusted to 5 positions (although ML did not submit this +- 1 sec/day watch line for COSC certification). The bezel and crown insert are solid 18K rose gold. The dial is solid silver. I got this $3995 MSRP watch for $2300 at 2000watches.com. The price was remarkable. And yes, I thought the perfect-clones posting of that abomination of a watch was something of a joke in the light of recent events and discussions. I guess they will sell some and, judgements about the aesthetics of the watch aside, that's remarkable. I'd like to meet the people who would send $2000 to a dark hole in China for a diamond studded watch knowing nothing about the quality or appearance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest chronomat123 Posted February 21, 2007 Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 Yea, that MLC is a beaut. Collectorstime is actually very well-reputed, I think the owner's name is Zeetan. I was just on the site, and unfortunately they sold my dream watch, the GranChrono with black and copper dial, NIB, for $2190. Jesus, I was outbid at $2550 last week on eB@y for one last week. Eat your heart out, CC ...... lol is she a beauty or what? : Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertk Posted February 21, 2007 Report Share Posted February 21, 2007 I agree with you on one thing. Maurice Lacroix is a very classy watch and terribly under valued. Some of the most beautiful watches are from ML. I have one Gen and may get another. But, I still enjoy my reps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crystalcranium Posted February 23, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 Yea, that MLC is a beaut. Collectorstime is actually very well-reputed, I think the owner's name is Zeetan. I was just on the site, and unfortunately they sold my dream watch, the GranChrono with black and copper dial, NIB, for $2190. Jesus, I was outbid at $2550 last week on eB@y for one last week. Eat your heart out, CC ...... lol is she a beauty or what? : God,...I'm so depressed....time to smoke a Dubey!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
obelisque Posted February 23, 2007 Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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