Old timers....tell me bout the good ol days

[Demsey]

This is the best thread in months.

The threads of nostalgia are here. I have nothing more to add, that hasn't been posted already, with regard to 'watches', but suffice; the best two weeks in the 'old days' were the two I enjoyed before 'highflyingclive' registered.

It certainly would be errant to say ".........the best these boards have seen have come and gone". In some cases that is true, but the beauty of the thing lies within the simple fact; equal to those who have come before are the ones who are here now and the ones who have yet to discover 'replica'.

The 'Old Timers' are merely the icing on the cake.

Summarily; this is an awesome time to begin a 'collection' of replica from scratch. These are the good old days. I laugh at with us in '04. Junk. Comparatively.

[jeff g]

My first pam rep from Eddie - the 112 (no swan neck/no blue screws) was 400.00 in 2004.

The 196 was 450.00 from Eddie, in 2004. I however feel as though those initial Pam offerings were all TW best, not CN, and comparitively speaking they were the first of Eddies best reps.

Not sure what a good 112 costs these days, but I would venture to say it is less now than it was in 2004.

Whether todays product is as good the older original TW Pam offerings is a matter of opinion.

In 2003 thru 2007 the cheaper asian models of the most popular Rolex/Omega reps was around 100.00. Good reps for the price. The newer CN reps seem well made, and so must be considered a good deal for the money as well.

Two plus years ago I paid 450.00 for my MBK PPN. There are many collectors who think that 450.00

for a non chrono rep is too much money. I on the other hand have always felt that the 750.00 plus

that people were paying, and are paying, for HHB reps is really much more incredible.

Additionally, after modding many of these better eta reps, the money for a modded rep can increase by hundreds of dollars over the cost of the rep itself. How much are you willing to spend is a personal decision.

In the long run the cost of my MBK/PPN rep is 750.00 modded, compared to 30,000.00 or so for the gen. My Eddie's original 3717, modded, is also around 750.00. The gen is plus 6000.00.

The very notion that I can wear such beautiful timepieces for such a reasonable cost is what is truly amazing.

[ExtraExtra]

The first reps that hit the 700 plus mark is the 196 with 7753 or any model with this movement. There was another that went close to 1k.

Anyone remember when the Piaget Upstream rep first came out? Everyone went nuts over this rep.

How about when the first modified A7750 with seconds at 6 for the Daytona came out? No one believed that it was or could be a modified 7750. Ahhh...the good ol days....

[Guest Carl]

There was no real demand for reps when, for example, you could buy a gen Rolex GMT Master for $700 in Dubai or elsewhere from an AD in the 80's.

But then Rolex prices tripled and quadrupled in short order. And went up from there.

The rest is history.

Carl

[DavidBreitling]

I bought my first rep in HK in 1986 for about $20, there weren't any good reps then, but they were fun, and $800 seemed like alot of money back then for a gen rolex sub or gmt. The quality today is miles ahead of "the good old days", and approaches gen quality in appearance and materials for a small fraction of the gen cost. So enjoy the fun of having 1960's dollars to acquire timepieces of timeless design. Recently saw an original ad for a 1963 Navitimer cosmonaut for APOA members for $86!!! As a comparison, I spent over $8000 modding my 386 computer in the early 1990's, if only I had spent it on gen watches.

[pizzanooo]

Good old days, lots of fun times on the old board.

But after it`s all said and done, it`s all about the people.

My friends and brothers from another mother are here.

Pizz

[automatico]

"There was a time when some gen ETA watches could be had for $175-$250..."

Yeah, "Paul" had vintage rolex subs with genuine Eta movements for $159 including shipping.

There was a catch though...

There was no inner bezel and the outer bezel had the retaining ring running in a shallow groove in the crystal. The crystal was glued to the case and cracked sooner or later and the top of the crystal and bezel fell on the floor.

They looked real cool for a few days though.

"However the quality of finish and accuracy today is far beyond the "old" days."

You got that right!

"Now we just need the old prices, on the new reps!"

Fer sure!

[CarPlus]

I also bought my first rep in China. It is really ugly compare with my new rep!

However our friend in China really done are great job recently!

I love this:

They do however offer a wide rane of accuracy, quality and features, as with any product line, so this hobby can still be lots of fun even with a tight budget.

[KB]

The good old days was about a tighter more personalized community, it wasn't about the watches.

The numbers today mean we will never quite achieve that homely feel of yesterday again but we are still one of the best communities on the net.

Ken

[cosmosblau]

Although I rarely post, I've been around for awhile, and I've picked up dozens of watches from almost every significant dealer.

On this topic, I have to say, without a doubt:

These ARE the Good Old Days!

-Andy

[Noel Fleischer]

like doc - i came here after spending 1k for a YM. i have to agree though its a great rep with a real eta movement.

that's my main gripe now- the watches look much better generally. the qc on the movements is not good- i've had many break.

i just factor an extra $100-200 for repairs in most watches now. the good news- i have a HBBB lite for about $300 from Puretime.

iwas out with a friend who has a 18k gen. i took it off to really look close and i was amazed at the rep's quality for the $.

[automatico]

"Good old days, lots of fun times on the old board.

But after it`s all said and done, it`s all about the people.

My friends and brothers from another mother are here."

I was on the old EZ Board RWCC and TRC from the start (member 43) and it seems that most of the members from back then have left the scene. There may be a few of them on RWG but they have probably changed their screen names like I did.

I remember the early TZ regulars after RP brought it over from Singapore...ei8htohms, BrandonS, Terry Russell, foie gras, Mycroft etc.

One of my favorites was Watchbore. He was a watch industry insider who posted in the third person and told it like it is and when he did...the swiss watch worshippers would blow a fuse.

Here is a sample...a Watchbore post from 8-5-02:

"The latest figures from the Swiss Watch Industry Federation reached Watchbore a couple hours ago.

They show that for the first time in eight years the average price of the Swiss watch has fallen. Compared to the first half of 2001, the value of exports dropped 4% from January to June 2002 while the volume of exports rose slightly.

Export values of high-grade (gold watches) dropped more than 10%. Exports to the six main markets, which account for 60% of the value of exports, are down across the board. USA -7.9%, Hong Kong -3.2%, Japan -2.5%, Italy - 2.8%, France -9.8%, Germany =- 13.2%.

The overpriced Swiss watch you allude to was a product invented in the late eighties under the guise of traditional watchmaking -- which did not exist before quartz watches.

The quartz shock saw a secret revival of the Swiss watchmaking cartel first instituted in 1932. This cartel fixes prices of mechanical watches according to category, forbids price competition, promotes the manufacture of obsolete styles and mechanisms, monopolizes distribution channels, controls the trade and consumer press, and encourages all manufacturers to copy one another and to write exactly the same drivel about their products.

The success of the watch brands depends entirely on price maintennce. If they fail to keep raising consumer price tolerance, the house of cards could collapse very suddenly."

[rotten03]

This is good stuff. I'm enjoying everyone's reminiscing.

[Star69]

here some of my first reps :

good times ?

not in terms of accuracy

cheers,

Frank

[Samurai]

I came into this thread thinking that perhaps we were getting nostalgic over Jetmid

[AllergyDoc]

the best two weeks in the 'old days' were the two I enjoyed before 'highflyingclive' registered.

"You told a lie, an odious, damned lie;

Upon my soul, a lie, a wicked lie."

The best threads, in my old mind, are the jests between HFC and Demsey.

Especially,

"This is why we don't talk old leches in English pubs." He says to his two young blond daughters.

The Demsey/HFC vollies were the best.

The old f**ucker. Hope he's doing okay.

Edited April 27, 2009 by AllergyDoc

[AllergyDoc]

The good old days was about a tighter more personalized community, it wasn't about the watches.

Too true. I caught the end of it. Wish I could have been there earlier.

[AllergyDoc]

I laugh at with us in '04. Junk. Comparatively.

Still...

Let's hear the story of the DS clasp that wouldn't unclasp after body serfing and the accompanying pics.

[Demsey]

The old f**ucker. Hope he's doing okay.

The good die young Doc because it's hell on Earth. Clive however, will outlive me merely to spite me. If there really is an afterlife that is interactive with the living realm, I'm going to send that old son-of-a-[censored] head over heels everytime he even looks at a staircase.

[Pugwash]

The good old days: Silix sold ETA datejusts for $120.

[retep]

The good die young Doc because it's hell on Earth. Clive however, will outlive me merely to spite me. If there really is an afterlife that is interactive with the living realm, I'm going to send that old son-of-a-[censored] head over heels everytime he even looks at a staircase.

The love is still there i see.

[JJFlash]

The good part of the good old days - everybody took PayPal, no WU premiums.

The bad part of the good old days - nobody posted prices, had to send out an email, and everybody got a different price.