AD visit today

[phaedo]

So I decided to go into the city here and have a look around the AD's and see what they had on offer. Turns out there is quite a bit around Sydney. Of 4 shops, 2 of them even had Hublots. Seeing them in person, although I wouldn't drop $10,000 on one, they do look good. Rolex everywhere. Saw the new GMT ceramic, but after the big watches I usually wear, they just look too small. Went into 2 Panerai dealers, one had the full Ferrari range, 2 40mm and a Radiomir regatta, but that was it. They could take a deposit on anything I was after, but would have to wait for their allocation of it to arrive in, which could take up to 18 months. Apparently they are very popular here, and most of what comes in in a 44mm is already presold. As a general rule it seems only the 40mm even hit the shelves. Which is suprising, since I have yet to see anyone wearing one. I guess, with such limited runs, no matter how populalr it would be hard to find anyone wearing one.

Saw the superocean heritage, and according to the guy at the shop, there will be no more coming into the country until next year as there is a huge shortage. Not cheap at $4100 AU and it was on rubber. It was nice, but just didn't shout out 'buy me!'. Plus that he said none of the other bracelets other than the mesh one will fit, puts me off a lot.

Went into Cartier, pleased I never got a rep of them, as they just didn't do anything for me.

Also went into the Omega shop, which was nice. I had a good look at both the PO and PO chrono (both the big one) and very nice watch. I am very tempted to make that the gen I do buy. And also, with either of them, free servicing for life. Which if I live another 50 years, assuming a 10 year service interval (which is what they recommend for the co-axil) that would mean half the price of the watch is recouped in free servicing.

One thing that puts me off the PO though, is I like the bling of the Breitling bracelets. I like the polished look of them. Makes things hard. Asked at one Breitling store about the new GMT Bentley, and he said they were supposed to have it 6 months ago, but are still waiting. Which I thought was strange since it has only just been released at Basel, but he said that we were supposed to get it early here. Price around $11,000 AU.

Even saw some Franck Mullers at one place, which I must say look worth the $10-20,000 price tag. I doubt the reps would look anywhere near as nice.

Saw some IWC's too, including the big pilot. Now that this lives up to its name being big.

Anway, all in all, a nice day off work.

[Corgi]

It sounds like you had a really great time! If you're looking for a gen, have you considered one of the more affordable Blancpains? They are very rare watches and quality is right up there with the most recognized Swiss brands in the world. Many are also surprisingly affordable, until you start piling on the complications of course! Omega, despite its servicing policy, is just not a brand I would ever get in gen form. Why? Too many reps already exist - and the exclusivity factor is too low. Owning a Blancpain, on the other hand, means you're a connoisseur who understands and appreciates the beauty of traditional horology.

[StormTooper4]

Sounds like you've had a great Window shop.

Have to agree with the Corg fully , on his no omega stance 150percent. 3 of my best mates turned up at a wedding all proudly sporting their Gen Blue Seamasters their smiles soon dropped.

Did you go upstairs in the Hour Glass? Its like a Horological sweet shop up there they have some 44mm Pams when I last went there.

But my Fav Sydney shop is in the Strand Arcade. if you pass there you may see the imprint of my forehead still in the window. I could stand and look there all day.

Keep us posted on your Purchases

If you want to see PAMs the prom at Balmoral in the morning will let you catch a glimpse of these rare sweeties.

Enjoy

ST

[jkerouac]

A few weeks ago in San Francisco I passed by a small but upscale jeweler just off Union Square who had both a Hublot and a DeWitt Academia in the window. The HBB doesn't do much for me, but I was rather curious about the DeWitt, so I went in and tried it on. Nice enough watch, but $30K for the gen??? Rep or gen, it isn't my type of watch.

A few doors down was a larger shop that carries Panerai and quite a few other high-end brands, including Cartier and Rolex. As usual the Panerai section was almost empty; all they had was a single Radomir. And as usual I was drawn to the JLCs.

[UB7]

This is how my AD visit went today, traded in my colt II auto for this skyland slate grey dial, picking up the pro 2 on friday, but in the meantime here are some pics of it on black leather

[piratedzeus]

Ub7 now tell us how the skyland wears, PLEASE

[UB7]

It wears big..Very big @ 45mm, especially on the leather because in proportion the leather looks alot smaller in comparison to the watch..On the pro 2 it wears a bit smaller. Keep in mind i have a very small wrist, 6 + 1/2 ..Go for the breitling phaedo, you wont be disappointed..The BCE is a winner, along with the skyland, the CA, and the cockpit to name a few..All of their watches are great and a little bling wont hurt ya And if you don't want any bling, you can always go for the steelfish which is all brushed..And just a little pointer, if you want a gen watch now is the time..Price increase for all high end brands is coming at the end of the month..Expect a 10-14% increase very soon

[phaedo]

@Corgi: I am looking for more an everyday beater watch not a dress watch for now, so don't think the Blancpains would work. Just never really in a situation I need a dress watch. Sure, I don't dive either, but I like the PO.

Sure, there are reps of the PO around that are very good, but I just don't care really - whatever I get will be a gen, I will know that, I don't care what anyone else thinks. And of course, it has to be a watch that I decide is 'the one'. Kinda like trying to find a good woman you might like whilst sober

@ST: yes, went upstairs at the hour glass, they had a lot of tudors there actually. And yes, they had Panerai. Total of 3 Radiomirs, 2 of which were in gold, and both a black face and white face daylight. That was the extent of their stock. They were the ones with the superocean heritage.

@UB7, nice watch. I do have the (rep) BCE, and just not feeling that i want it as a gen. What I do want is that new Bentley GMT, looks niiice. And this decision is one that I don't want to rush into, how long did you have the colt before you traded it? I don't want to be deciding 2 months after buying that I got the wrong one. Not thatrich (yet).

Although at the moment it is a moot point buying a gen, am looking at starting a business and so not going to have enough cash for a while to buy I think.

[By-Tor]

One thing that puts me off the PO though, is I like the bling of the Breitling bracelets. I like the polished look of them.

I guess those Breitling bracelets kinda divide watch fans in two... I never liked them. There's the version of the Chronomat Evolution which is all brushed (can't remember what it's called) and it's SO much nicer than the bling version. Same thing with the Navitimer Serie Speciale. All brushed = much nicer.

The polished steel looks very good on the two-tone models though. The TT BCE is quite a looker.

[Dave123]

Must have been AD day....

I was at the AD today as well,went in intending to buy a black dial skyland on rubber,a summer watch to rest my bling SA,ended up dissapointed as i found the skyland to be to small after taking my SA off and putting the skyland on....

I know that sounds silly as the skyland is a large watch,but once use to the SA,everything including the skyland seems small.....

Oh well,looked at some other nice Breits,all to damn small,but i must say,the blackbird dial impressed me most....very nice.....to bad that watch is not polished,at least the one for sale,i know they have them polished now as well.....should be a real winner.....

[fakemaster]

Looked at Hublots this weekend. Very interesting. Especially the salesmen's attitude.

[Watchmeister]

Sounds like a fun day. The bizarre thing about PAM's is that very few dealers have inventory. They have what doesn't sell - 40mm luminors, Radiomirs and Ferrari's. Now here is the odd thing. If you are ever in NYC take a walk through the jewelry district and you will find 4-5 dealers. They will have anywhere from 20-100 pieces each. And they are models you will want. What they don't have are the standard handwinds. They all sell for about 15% or so below list. And since they do take trade-ins they will even have rare older models. And the larger guys have learned. They also sell on TZ, Risti and Watchnet. So if you know what you want there is no reason to wait for your dealer unless you are looking for the very latest stuff.

I am a big fan of buying watches second hand. And on the comment about price increases - that is true if you are buying new. In the U.S. most brands (AP ROO, IWC BP's and some PAM's excepted) have been coming down pretty substantially in price. Amazing what a sinking economy will do to increase your buying power.

[Corgi]

@Corgi: I am looking for more an everyday beater watch not a dress watch for now, so don't think the Blancpains would work. Just never really in a situation I need a dress watch. Sure, I don't dive either, but I like the PO.

Here are two of my favorite diving-inspired watches. If I were to get a "water oriented" timepiece, it would be one of these bad boys... simply because they are so unique and (most importantly) unrepped.

[phaedo]

Here are two of my favorite diving-inspired watches. If I were to get a "water oriented" timepiece, it would be one of these bad boys... simply because they are so unique and (most importantly) unrepped.

Didn't realize they came in a sportier range at all. I stand corrected. Although, still doesn't quite say buy me! to me.

[UB7]

I agree with kruzer in most everything you said. However, trade in's are usually for convenience, and most of the time they will lowball you and not give you what you want for the watch you want to trade. I got lucky because i'm friends with the manager of the AD i buy from and he gave me exactly what I paid for the colt II towards the skyland. Again, price's for all high end brands will be increasing effective may 1st, and it will be a 10-15% increase so if anyone is interested in buying a gen now is the time. The 2nd hand market is a great place to buy if you want to save a alot, but keep in mind you dont get the warranty and sometimes they scratch off the serial # - this makes it's resale value not so great down the road. The AD i buy from usually gives me 30% off and that most of the time ends up being a much better price than the 2nd hand, and it comes with the warranty and all. If you can get a 25-30% discount from an AD, it doesn't make sense to buy on the 2nd hand IMO

@phaedo : i had my colt II auto for about 30 days before i traded it in, and my friend gave me exactly what i paid for the colt II towards the skyland. given the colt II was in pristine condition and virtually new

[Corgi]

Oh no, ub7, you got rid of your colt? I really liked that watch - it looked great on you.