Anyone bought a "Rolex" off eBay?

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Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 2:05 am

I can't believe I'm asking this but........... my superficial, entitled, fashion victim teenager wants a Rolex for her 16th birthday. Dream on baby. Knowing that it will be lost/stolen/broken and will quickly be "like gross and SO totally yesterday, ew" (plus I don't have a spare few thousand $$$) I've told her I'd consider getting her something they call a Grade 1 Authentic Replica off eBay. I also said I wish she'd put in this request while I was in Hong Kong last year Rolling Eyes

Anyway, before I plunge into the realm of the damned that is eBay can anyone share their advice/experience for this kind of transaction. I can blow the cobwebs off my PayPal account if necessary but I'm more interested to know about what to look for with this kind of item. I'm more of a Swatch kinda person really and haven't a clue so any shonky watch people on eBay will see me coming a mile away. Thanks.

Baiting Guru Joined: 31 Jan 2007 Posts: 12237

Quote:

Grade 1 Authentic Replica

Sounds 100% risky free to me.

Edit: Sorry to sound like a smart ass. Check the feedback profile of the person you are considering buying from, that is a good indicator of their reputation. I use the evil Ebay all the time and have had nothing but positive experiences with it.

Edit again: Instead of a FAKE Rolex why not convince her to get a REAL Movado. (or something similar) I am not sure what your price range is, but here is a nice one that I found on Ebay.

clicky

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 2:35 am

"Movado??? That's not a Rolex! I hate you!!!" Very Happy

I've found a couple of sellers (dealers, not private individuals) who both have very good feedback (99+%) who both have the same model of watch. In the pics the watches look identical. One is charging x8 more than the other. So is either selling really crappy fakes or the other is a rip off.

Baiting Guru Joined: 31 Jan 2007 Posts: 12237

Damn I wish I knew how to make a "clicky" link. That was a mess.

You had 2 replicas that had that much of a price spread? The other thing to remember is how close the auction is to ending...At the end of the auction the true "market value" is reflected. If it was just listed, the asking price is usually very low.

edit: clicky situation corrected.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 3:01 am

A rolex

Now, if you're in Italy, especially Rome, Florence and Pisa, you can get a really good fake Rolex or Omega for a decent price. I found an Omega Speedmaster on the streets for 40 Euros, and was able to haggle the price down to 15. I didn't buy it because I didn't have any money on me at the time, but if you happen to go there, just check the streets Wink

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 3:42 am

eBay is VERY aggressive about protecting the Rolex brand name, under their "VeRo" (Verified Rights Owner) program. Just mention the name "Rolex" even as a passing part of a legitimate historic reference (as I once did) and eBay will jackboot the sale.

But there are plenty of fake Rolexes available elsewhere on the web. Most are pure crap, some are halfway decent, and a few are dangerously good, right down to accurately reproduced hologram 'seals of authenticity.' Avoid any replica with a battery. Dead giveaway to anyone halfway in the know. There are some surprisingly good mechanical fakes around that are very cheap. But there's no easy way to tell which ones are good fakes and which ones are crappy fakes without a close inspection (and some basic knowledge).

PS: By the way, you're lucky. When my my superficial, entitled, fashion victim daughter turned 16 she wanted a car. Shocked

(She didn't get it until she was 17. We're such mean parents.) Wink

Baiting Guru Joined: 31 Jan 2007 Posts: 12237

But isn't this a great parental teaching moment? A fake by any other name is still a fake. I would tell my sons that I would respect a man with a nice REAL Omega more than a man with a FAKE Rolex. But I have sons, not daughters... so it may be different in your case.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 4:28 am

@ Gnasher - i don't have much experience with buying counterfeit goods off eBay but I do know that if the watches are sourced from asia the quality of Grade 1 Authentic or Grade AAA+ is often very poor.

I have seen in Hong Kong (the home of good fakes) some very ordinary looking Grade AAAA+ rip offs. The Grade AAA or AA are even worse, but the point is that you might get a "You call THIS a rolex?! I hate you" anyway. The same goes for Thailand and Vietnam.

Incidentally, if she gets that for her birthday I can't wait to find out what I'll be getting! Very Happy

Cheers

From the son you never had (no, the other one...)

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 5:19 am

Personally I wouldn't buy a Rolex, real or replica, via eBay. Do you not have any contacts in Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur or Dubai (to name just a few) who may or may not be able to get a decent replica or real Rolex (I'm trying to phrase this so that it doesn't look like I would advocate buying fake watches, which of course, I would never advocate and which is a silly thing to do Smile

)?
When do you need it by?

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 6:33 am

Yeah - I have a mate in Hong Kong who is sufficiently dodgy to know all the really good fakey watch blokes. I'll ask him to find one. I know some telltale signs of a 'bad' fake like a 'ticking' second hand, holes in the case, pins not screws in the strap, very lightweight, wrong date font, etc.

Interesting about eBay being protective of the Rolex name. I found one dealer there who's openly selling fakes, with sales pitch/demonstration videos to match. He's selling the watch I want for under $800 (retail real one $7000). It looks great in the video Cool

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 6:56 am

I am not sure how it is in your place, but I know for sure that buying fake brands here is illegal and you could really get into trouble for that here. Just my 2 �-Cents....

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:35 am

D'oh!

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:42 am

@breadcrumb: He's trying to source a Rolex, not a coockoo clock. Wink

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:43 am

^^^^^ pretty much the same....both of them are annoying me Wink

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:22 am

Ok here's the deal Gnasher-

My Mom, bless her little heart has bought watches for me since I was ten. The last one was a Rolex GMT Master II.
A real Rolex has smooth rotor bearings. That is what winds the spring automatically. The date pops out just like the ads, as the cyclops of the cheap knockoffs does not have enough magnification. The date should be centered in the magnifier. There is a laser fired crown at the 6 O'clock position of the crystal. Its extremely small. The stem locks down with three turns and there is a rubber o-ring on the stem slightly visible when its out. When it is pulled out, the hacking action will stop the sweep second hand. The new bezel has ROLEX laser inscribed around it. The band has screws not pins. The movement should barely be audible when put to your ear. The box should contain all documentation.

That said, an excellent Folex will have all of the above and cannot be determined to not be a Rolex unless the back is removed.

As a parent, I would not recommend buying a knockoff. It sends the wrong message and could lead to problems. I was jacked for a Citizen Titanium Ecodrive.

I wear a $67 Casio. Its stainless, goes 100 meters, is analog, backlit, has multiple alarms, displays day/date or time zone, and never needs setting. It does not have a stem to set the time. It understands daylight savings time and picks up a shortwave signal from Colorado every evening to reset the 1/10 of a second it may have gained or lost.

I bought the military boy a digital version with a solar cell on it last year. It got hit with a targeting radar beam last week and now turns its backlight on automatically. He turns it so he can read it and the light turns on. He puts his arm down and the light goes out. I offered to buy him a better watch and he turned me down.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:56 am

I was about to say something along the lines of breadcrumb but in a more relevant way:

The $800 watch you saw... don't buy it.

Why? You can't see it (as you know).

But more importantly, if it turns out to be crap (there's a possibility I'm sure you'll agree) you'll have no recourse.

The guy who sells it to you is not going to give you a refund and eBay will not be interested either. On top of that, you'll have no basis in law to try and sue the guy for your money back because it is an illegal item and you cannot contract to buy illegal items.

So bottom line, go the HK one, and if your time frame is short, buy her a pony

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 9:27 am

A pony would be cheaper Crying or Very sad

but probably doesn't carry as much kudos at highschool.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 9:46 am

I've never spent more than �20.00 (I'm cheap) on a watch, time is time however you measure it.
Which means I'm no expert, but I've heard you can spot a fake Rolex by looking at the second hand. It should sweep smoothly around face and not incrementally tick its way around.

I like pony idea, buy your daughter a boy and a girl money, make more ponies, sell them and get a Rolex from the profit. Wink

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 9:51 am

Hey Gnasher,
This morning I only had one email message (yeah, I know . . . . sad. Crying or Very sad

)

It was obviously meant for you:-
http://www.swissmades.pp.ru/catalog/firms/274.html

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 10:55 am

I have a talking Rolex. It says Mickey's big hand is on the 5.......................... Laughing

I'll pass you some of my spam watch mails Gnasher!
Customs will seize it mate!

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 11:04 am

Sigh - yeah I know Customs will probably grab it. Why can't kids be happy with a Lego kit and a trip to McDonalds?

Baiting Guru Joined: 03 Mar 2006 Posts: 7103 Location: Yes

Leaving aside the do's and dont's of buying fake watches (my wife buys fake designer purses every time we go to NYC -- the best part is the lads [and yes, they're lads] will tell you to go across the street to Macy's and compare the $800 one to their $40...errr, $35....er, $25 version Laughing

), the real issue is what your daughter expects out of the transaction.

If she just wants one to "impress" her circle of friends, then anything for $100 or less should be more than enough, b/c as you have said, within 6 months it will be Cartier that is "in". If she's hell-bent on having one, and she wants to pass it off, if I were you, I'd have her pick it out so that if it's total rubbish, she only has herself to blame.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 1:43 pm

I had a fake Rolex, my boss was mortified that it kept better time than his $6,000 real one.

If Customs let me buy 2 expensive camera lenses form Hong Kong (via Fleabay) without interfering, despite all the doom and gloom I was promised, you'd be unlucky to have your watch intercepted.

Just my $0.02.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 2:41 pm

My father bought a fake Rolex, and it was the best investment he ever made. He had an older real Rolex that was a college graduation gift from his father. It was a much more conservative looking than the flashier ones of today. It was quite valuable, and very special to him.

His house got robbed and the fake was stolen while the real one sat modestly next to it, unnoticed.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 3:32 pm

i get plenty of e mails offering me good quality replica's of various brands.
i can forward them onto you.

Shocked

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