Does a rep lead you to purchase gen?

[anton]

I guess there's really no need for me to explain my topic, since my question is already in the title, but to further elaborate...

For you, did anyone ever purchase a rep only to find themselves purchasing the gen of said watch shortly thereafter?

[kdirty]

Not for me, my first rep led me to buy more reps. : )

[TeeJay]

For me, that'll be a no. I buy replica watches for the same reason I buy generic clothes: I refuse to pay the artificially inflated price tags attached to 'brand name' items. That's not to say that I don't like the products, I just don't think they're worth as much as their parent companies do

[rgriffith24]

Not me you can buy a lot of reps for the price of one original and generally no one will know except the person wearing it.

[georgegrasser]

Just after I bought my SMP rep I saw an

Omega Quartz at my local Sam's Club for just $1,250

I'm thinking about it.

[TeeJay]

Not me you can buy a lot of reps for the price of one original and generally no one will know except the person wearing it.

That is very true. Other watch enthusiasts (0.01% of the population) might have an idea, if they can see the watch for long enough, but the majority of the viewing public aren't going to have a clue. There's a hell of a difference between unlimited viewing time of a high def image 5 times the size of the watch, and catching a glimpse of someone's watch as they pass on the street or on the bus

PS Welcome to the party

[sssurfer]

For you, did anyone ever purchase a rep only to find themselves purchasing the gen of said watch shortly thereafter?

[LordRasta]

Not if it's a great rep.

[Watchmeister]

My answer is yes. For many years I bought only gens. Then I bought only reps. Now I am buying fewer reps and the occasional gen. But I will say this much. I only buy gens that are not easily copied now.

[TWP]

The only reps that have forced me to buy gens is Panerai, an unknown and obscure brand prior to my knowledge of replicas.

Cheers

TWP

[omni]

Yes I have, but a little different from Kruzer00. I have to really like the genuine for what it personally represents to me to purchase, although the fact that it is easily copied by a replica has some small consideration in the decision. Comes down to are you buying for appreciation of the timepiece or buying it to impress that you can afford it (In the case of replicas for some, the perceived impression they can afford the gen.) The latter shouldn't have bearing since as Teejay implies, if the general public doesn't know then why spend the money.

[Victoria]

My answer is yes. For many years I bought only gens. Then I bought only reps. Now I am buying fewer reps and the occasional gen. But I will say this much. I only buy gens that are not easily copied now.

Personality-wise, I seem to be closest to Kruzer00 in this.

He already predicted that I would buy a Panerai gen sooner than later, and I fully intend to next year (God willing). I NEVER would've bought a gen Panerai, if I hadn't already bought 16 PAM reps and counting.

I guess like so many people, I'm tired of the minor and some major "issues" one has to deal with in the replica watch world.

Things I love about reps:

- COST

- Good cosmetic similarity

- Decent movements

- Peace of mind in losing/or having one stolen (though it doesn't lessen fears of being mugged)

- Having found a great forum like RWG!

Things I hate about reps:

- The lack of quality control and general HASSLE of the rep world

- The feelings of scuzziness in dealing with an underground activity

- Nitpicking details; incorrect or hard-to-service movements (which take away from ultimate enjoyment the more knowledgeable you become)

- Increased risk of being mugged (as recently heard on RWI), whereas before we weren't able to buy SO MANY expensive watches

Unlike Kru, I'm going to continue buying reps and not thin out my collection FOR NOW. It's fun and you can have unimagined variety in watches.

But like Kru, I am also going to start buying more gens of those I genuinely like and admire, as time goes on.

I have no problems with paying a comparative king's ransom for a gen watch I could get on the cheap, because I honestly believe that intellectual property is not to be dismissed as mere capitalist excess. There is nothing wrong with charging a high price if you believe your R&D, your marque's high performance record and history demand said price.

But not being rich, I cannot do so.

Should there ever be a serious crackdown with the hobby, however, I wouldn't have any problems with that either.

[FasTTaP]

My first rep was a Rolex DJ with a jubile band and silver face (in 1989, a very crappy rep), I bough my first gen, the exact same model, two years later

[Victoria]

My first rep was a Rolex DJ with a jubile band and silver face (in 1989, a very crappy rep), I bough my first gen, the exact same model, two years later

I'm going to post a Poll-only thread regarding this phenomenon. Hope Anton won't mind!

[anton]

Thanks for all your replies!

The reason I ask is that I frequent the Diamond District. And by "frequent", I mean "all the time." Call me a watch W H O R E if you will. When I see something that catches my eye, I head downtown and see if the rep is available. If not, I may buy it online; since after all I can't try them on at the dealers without those salespeople breathing down my neck as if they have more important things to do than take my money.

I may have explained this in other posts, but I liken reps as "demo" models that i can try on and then finally take the plunge if I buy it. I still like and wear reps, but there are those inane and annoying things about the rep that lead me to purchase gen. One of those being crap for lume. Another is a tricompax with a sunken datewheel.

Recently I purchased 2 BR01 reps. I'd like them ALOT if not for the stuttering seconds hand and off-centered and cheap screws. So that caused me to purchase a gen.

And also, I purchased a PAM 196 Daylight. How they could get the dial so perfect except for the "Panerai Luminor" being in serif and a sunken datewheel drives me crazy. So I'm leaning towards purchasing a gen.

[anton]

I'm going to post a Poll-only thread regarding this phenomenon. Hope Anton won't mind!

Of course I won't mind. But in your case, do you mind answering the same question, but in strap form?

And yes, you can include aftermarket high quality straps in the category of "gens" as well.

[chris5264]

I can tell you two reps that ultimately resulted in not buying the gens...not because the rep was so great I didn't need the gen (the UPO and SOSF) but more that I just didn't care for the style which I got to try out on the reps. I was very close to picking up the gen PO, but after wearing the rep,,,I can't say why, but the way it fit on the wrist just didn't do it for me. And after just getting the SOSF,,,I mean, it is a great quality rep as far as the case goes,,,great AR,,but just not a style I like. And,,,I don't think I would have come to this conclusion at the AD,,,I mean, I had to have it on for a while before I really got a feel for it. So, I saved some money on two gens by trying out the high end reps, which I think had to be high end or I wouldn't have really gotten a feel for each.

[Victoria]

Of course I won't mind.

Whew, getting that poll sorted was like giving birth!

But in your case, do you mind answering the same question, but in strap form?

Sure!

And yes, you can include aftermarket high quality straps in the category of "gens" as well.

I buy OEM straps to legitimise the look of my reps. There. My honest answer.

Whilst I saw how nice the OEM Bordeaux was in the Orlando Bloom Fiddy thread, and how much I personally like the look and feel of the OEM calf tan which Raymond searched for DAYS to buy, I cannot say they afford me the same pleasure as a PAV 91 or a Simona Cherry Bordeau.

In fact, the OEMs are no where close to quality and looks as the aftermarket straps, that I have seen.

Since I got into straps because of my Panerai interest, I by force got into aftermarket straps first. After quickly buying the OEM calf tan and OEM calf black, I have no interest in OEM Rivas, and the like.

I'd rather save for more Pacis or a really nice V strap.

[anton]

After quickly buying the OEM calf tan and OEM calf black, I have no interest in OEM Rivas, and the like.

I like how the OEM calf fits on me. It's also buttery soft and doesn't show stress lines. Do you find yourself using the two much, or do you have literally A KATRILLION straps?!?!?

[lanikai]

for me it has been the opposite..

after my first couple of Panerai reps I gratefully lost the "burning desire" to buy a genuine.. not that i never will.. but the reps are getting so good and the genuines soo expensive.. well that's all I need to say on the matter..

Still genuine is genuine .. but i am loving the reps .. especially when I start adding the gen crowns (kruzer) mags(chieftang) and lume (ziggy)

[Victoria]

I like how the OEM calf fits on me. It's also buttery soft and doesn't show stress lines. Do you find yourself using the two much, or do you have literally A KATRILLION straps?!?!?

I'm nearing 130 straps now. With that kind of strap rotation, even if some are now "married" to certain PAMs, it's hard to get any patina on them.

Speaking of V, his fabulous Greek hide is still as light beige as it was when I first received it. It just doesn't get more than a fortnight's wrist-time, but that's all right! Knowing I have these straps, makes me feel good.

P.S.: Agreed about the softness, and lack of stress lines on my OEM calf. The OEM calf black looks MINT, but it was worn by a gen 112 owner for a year.

[Guest dave123]

opposite for me,i had a gen Rolex and came online looking for a used gen President,then came across these boards,had no idea there where quality reps that there is,started buying them out of curiosity,then sold my gen rolex as i didn't like it anymore....

[anton]

Sometimes I like to relate the rep collecting from watches to art. Everyone knows you can't really buy an original Matisse, but if you were able to obtain a facsimilie, you'd probably hang it on your wall and people would admire it for its' beauty, not its' authenticity.

Kinda like how no one asks you, "nice watch. Is that real?"

[sssurfer]

A gen would spoil me from enjoying all the mods.

[Victoria]

Sometimes I like to relate the rep collecting from watches to art. Everyone knows you can't really buy an original Matisse, but if you were able to obtain a facsimilie, you'd probably hang it on your wall and people would admire it for its' beauty, not its' authenticity.

Kinda like how no one asks you, "nice watch. Is that real?"

I think a lot more people would question me (in my own home!) if I were to hang a Picasso on my walls.

Heck, even a Hockney.

BTW, just to throw this out there -- as I observed the other day to my boyfriend, it is women who keep the replica business afloat.

For every guy who buys a Breitling Navi TT, there have been two decades worth of women who have bought fake Le Must de Cartier watches and fake Christian Dior bags.

I remember them being very big in the mid-1980s. My mother had a local rep bag seller who actually went to gaol shortly after the big crackdown (late 1980s-early 1990s?).

Somewhere I read that Aldo Gucci would go up to American women in NYC, and question them about their bags. If he found a fake, he would chastise them very strongly, but in that gallant Italian way -- "Nonono", shaking his finger.