Rolex Watch Question

asphaltgambler · 05-02-2009, 06:59 AM

Are there any good, convincing 'fakes' out there ? How do I tell what is a good fake or a bad fake other then the dial, second sweep, etc.

Thanks

Dottore · 05-02-2009, 07:11 AM

There are some very good fakes out there.

In almost all cases the giveaway is if the second hand doesn't sweep.

But I have occasionally seen a fake where the second hand does sweep.

The other way to tell pretty easily is by weight and heft. Many fakes are far too light.

Also, look closely at the printed words on the dial. Particularly the small wording "superlative chronometer officially certified". Almost all fakes do this very badly.

masraum · 05-02-2009, 07:23 AM

I've read that there are fakes so good that it pretty much takes the factory to tell, but I'm sure that those are the exception. I suspect that most fakes are pretty low quality.

asphaltgambler · 05-02-2009, 07:26 AM

If I were to buy one; where to look? Any websites or sellers online?

javadog · 05-02-2009, 07:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by asphaltgambler

If I were to buy one; where to look? Any websites or sellers online?

Are you looking for a real Rolex or a fake one?

JR

on2wheels52 · on2wheels52's Garage

The fakes have gotten so good I don't think the average joe can tell anymore (I know I can't). I'm at the point I want to see it with the back off, and it takes the special tool for that.
Jim

Dottore · 05-02-2009, 07:34 AM

They're everywhere these days.

Lotta playas pawning their bling in the recession.

vash · vash's Garage

fakes have the smooth sweeping second hand now??? damn.

widgeon13 · 05-02-2009, 07:52 AM

I think you can get pretty good fakes on Canal St. in NYC for $20 or so.

Rick Lee · Rick Lee's Garage

The really good fakes cost plenty more than $20. I decided to take a look when I was walking around Shanghai and the umpteenth fake watch peddler tried to pull me into his alley. He had a small shop in his apt. and it was full of all the high end watches and handbags, all fakes, of course. I've had a few Breitlings and know how they're supposed to feel, look and how much they weigh. One Rolex GMT with the Pepsi bezel I was thinking of getting as a gift for our own Eric Coffey, my house sitter, started out at around $100. Of course, I probably could have gotten them down to $30. But the watch just didn't have the heft of a real one and the bezel didn't feel right. It was, indeed, a real automatic and you could hear it when you shook it by your ear.

Later at my in-laws' house in Shanghai, my "uncle" had a very real looking and feeling Breitling Navitimer. Being a local, I'm sure he knew how to get the best deal on it and he still paid close to $200 for it. I only realized it was a fake when I couldn't hear the winder moving when I shook it and saw the second hand sweep was too smooth. It was a battery-powered watch. But it looked and felt perfect.

Dottore · 05-02-2009, 08:22 AM

If you want to buy a fake—fine.

But if you want to avoid buying a fake, see my earlier post.

Go to a Rolex shop and see how the words on the dial of an original are slightly raised and perfectly executed. Look at a number of watches and get a feel for this.

This is the most obvious thing that counterfeiters always get wrong. Some simply leave the tiny print off altogether because it is too difficult to duplicate accurately.

BeyGon · 05-02-2009, 08:29 AM

I wouldn't get the fake, I am on my second GMT Pepsi bezel now, this one is a 2008 and I just can't see owning a fake. If you are just buying something that looks good and tells time why not get a Seiko, at least it is real. buying a fake Rolex, or any other, to show off is just strange to me.
There are a lot of real good watches if you don't want to pay the $$ for the Rolex.

widgeon13 · 05-02-2009, 08:52 AM

I was speaking a little "tongue in cheek" about the $20 fakes. If you only want a faux Rolex, why spend more than $20. As someone has said, there are many excellent watches at much less than the cost of a real Rolex.

Rick Lee · Rick Lee's Garage

Invicta probably makes the nicest Rolex copies, but they don't have Rolex on them. They're a lot of watch for under $200.

GG Allin · GG Allin's Garage

www.idealwatches.com has some good fakes. They say a Rolex dealer could only tell they're fake by the serial number. They ship C.O.D. too.

Hugh R · 05-02-2009, 10:29 AM

http://www.ireplicastore.com/

DARISC · 05-02-2009, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dottore

In almost all cases the giveaway is if the second hand doesn't sweep.

But I have occasionally seen a fake where the second hand does sweep.

The other way to tell pretty easily is by weight and heft. Many fakes are far too light.

Not exactly. Modern mechanical movements commonly have balance wheels that oscillate at 28800 beats per hour which equals 8 beats per second. These beats of a "smooth" sweep second hand, if observed closely, can be seen, if not easily counted.

The Rolex Perpetual movement beats at 28800 bph. So does the Swiss ETA 2824 25 jewel movement which is significantly less expensive than the Rolex. There is no visual way to tell if the movement in what might appear to be a genuine Rolex is an ETA 2824 (or some other 28800 bph movement) without removing the case back and examining the movement itself.

If a fake Rolex has a second hand that sweeps, it just means that it has a cheap mechanical movement.

Incidentally, I own two automatic watches with identical ETA 2824 movements; an $800 Jacques LeMans and a $250 no-name gray market titanium cased watch. One loses about a minute in two days and the other is extremely accurate, well within the COSC standards of -4/+6 sec. per day (as good or better than most Rolex COSC certified) and it is not COSC certified (only 3% of swiss made movements are COSC certified).

The heft of a watch is determined by case material. Most decent watches today are stainless steel, some gold plated (with an insignificant weight of gold) or are solid gold and MUCH heftier than stainless. A stainless steel cased Rolex knock-off will have the same heft as a genuine stainless steel cased Rolex. Titanium cases are, of course, very light.

A cheap quartz watch is more accurate than any mechanical watch and most, if not all, beat at 1 beat per sec., clearly identifying them as quartz as opposed to mechanical.

Uhh...is there a difference between weight and heft?

DARISC · 05-02-2009, 10:35 AM

Fake Rolex watches go well with fake Rota Fox Fuchs.

BeyGon · 05-02-2009, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DARISC

Fake Rolex watches go well with fake Rota Fox Fuchs.

Maybe true but everyone knows the Rota wheels at 17" are not Fuch, you aren't trying to fool anyone, just getting the good look with bigger tires. A fake Rolex is different. You are trying to fool someone.

pwd72s · 11:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BeyGon

Maybe true but everyone knows the Rota wheels at 17" are not Fuch, you aren't trying to fool anyone, just getting the good look with bigger tires. A fake Rolex is different. You are trying to fool someone.

Kind of like fake cars that are out there.

My watch cost around $200. My pool cue cost about the same as a real stainless Rolex. http://www.joseycues.com/ Guess it all depends on what floats your boat. What's kind of funny is that these days I often leave the $pendy cue home and play with a base model McDermott cue, early 80's vintage, that I picked up in a local pawn shop for $100. After having it retipped and doing some ding removal and clean-up on it's shaft, this cheap cue has a really sweet hit.

If I bought a rolex, I'd probably wear my $200 watch more. But I never did like fakes...in people or items.