Fake watches - how do you tell.

[bluespit]

Ok. Now I'm nothing like an expert or even an enthusiast. But I've always fancied a premium watch. Everything I've seen has been £2000 plus and I may well treat myself sometime soon

But what this?

https://www.gumtree.com/p/mens-watches/ ... 1215711807

I guess it must be a fake but how would I know or tell the difference. This guy has loads on gumtree for similar prices so what's he selling?

I know there are some experts on here so I'd welcome their opinions.

BTW I'm not tempted to buy one just yet even at £200!

Cheers

[Ducklakeview]

Yup, that's a fake. My Speed master DSOTM came with a ballistic nylon strap. Oh, and the retail in them is , £7,500 odd...

The colour is wrong, a real one has a black ceramic case, the glass on that is curved and it should be flat, the bezel should also be etched and engraved ceramic too..

This is a real one;

SP_Moonwatch_DSotM_31192445101003_vueC_640x480.jpg (65.94 KiB) Viewed 951 times

The fakes can be had much cheaper than that too..
http://www.ukswisswatches.org.uk/replic ... p-442.html

So he's chancing his arm at £200!

Mike

[ekimj10]

I'm no expert and externally it is difficult to tell, the weight is often a giveaway, but you may be able to spot the difference between real and fake from photos side by side.
Have no doubt this is fake and would cost you around £25 on the streets of Hong Kong.

[sticky]

Never seen that model in these colours. Lots of quality watches around but do your homework, seems to be just as many scammers as dealers.
If you are looking to buy new then not from UK dealers, overpriced. German dealers much better. sites Chrono24.com and you can search by country and watch. Chronomatic.com watchmaker and dealer south of London. the lanes in Brighton for new and vintage and much more in Chichester. US prices are cheaper if you are travelling but if you import then risk import and vat. Ebay has traders on there and I have had good results from them but also scammers can look like traders, study study study or "kidnap" a collector and take him with you for advice

[DMC63]

Fake or replica watches as they're sold as vary in quality and accuracy of the copy. Often but not always the price reflects this. With a fake watch the external case, strap,face and glass are considered to be the most important parts.
In a good fake the same metals are used by plating instead of being solid. The thicker the plating the more expensive the watch. Of course when it's stainless steel this isn't an issue of expense and the fakers use this too. The innards are not important as a good quality quartz mechanism will keep accurate time. Needless to say that fakes also deal in Swiss movements, or Chinese movements, hehe.
Some fakes are very difficult to tell apart from the original. In some cases the back has to come off to tell. For the cheaper ones it's as simple as looking at the band, lugs, crown and engraving on the case back or the attention to detail on the dial, numbers, date and time etc. But to identify the fake you must first be familiar with the original, so buying an expensive watch should be approached with care if you don't know what you looking for.

[M1ghty_m0use]

If you unsure buy from a reputable dealer I use blowers for my watches, www.blowers-jewellers.co.uk a well known long established company with plenty of stock

[85genius]

That Gumtree dealer is making some serious profit the boxes and papers he includes are probably worth more than the watches in them.

His replicas aren't particularly good but there are some pretty damn high end versions about that are good enough to fool most people even experienced watch collectors so if you are serious about buying a high end watch either stick to a well known dealer or be prepared to do a lot of research first.....

Or else just buy one of the high end replicas

http://www.pf-818.com/omsp00068-speedma ... l?___SID=U

[TitanTim]

I've found with Fakes there will usually be one aspect of the watch that stands out whether it be text size on the dial face, quality of the hands etc. As said you need to totally familiarise yourself with an original and hold one in your hands. I had this conundrum when buying a Tag Gulf Monaco, I first looked at the States as watches are always cheaper over there, then looked within the EU, Chrono 24 etc but decided in the end buying from Watchfinder, who were great to deal with and you know you're getting the real deal and have comeback if things go wrong. I think if your paying literally 1000s then buying off someone you don't know privately or a company with too good to be true prices then its your call and money.

I bought this as a fake Tag Monaco 24 Calibre 36 off Gumtree, it was advertised as such and cost 60 quid and its actually a pretty fine watch in its own right, keeps good time and is good quality, I bought it out of curiousity and can see how people can be easily caught out.



My Genuine Tag Monaco Gulf,



Tim.

[bluespit]

Yup, that's a fake. My Speed master DSOTM came with a ballistic nylon strap. Oh, and the retail in them is , £7,500 odd...

The colour is wrong, a real one has a black ceramic case, the glass on that is curved and it should be flat, the bezel should also be etched and engraved ceramic too..

This is a real one;

SP_Moonwatch_DSotM_31192445101003_vueC_640x480.jpg

The fakes can be had much cheaper than that too..
http://www.ukswisswatches.org.uk/replic ... p-442.html

So he's chancing his arm at £200!

Mike

Now I can't tell the difference between the real and fake one you show. £90!!! Will it work?

The two square watches are obviously different.

[ekimj10]

Now I can't tell the difference between the real and fake one you show. £90!!! Will it work?

The two square watches are obviously different.

My experience of fakes is that the main time piece movement will work OK and is accurate, problems I've had is with the secondary dials and date not working. There is an advantage in that these fakes usually don't require any maintenance unlike the high end watches that dealers charge a fortune for to replace batteries, clean, retest etc. every two years in some cases.

[sticky]

Now I can't tell the difference between the real and fake one you show. £90!!! Will it work?

The two square watches are obviously different.

My experience of fakes is that the main time piece movement will work OK and is accurate, problems I've had is with the secondary dials and date not working. There is an advantage in that these fakes usually don't require any maintenance unlike the high end watches that dealers charge a fortune for to replace batteries, clean, retest etc. every two years in some cases.

High end watch with a battery ???????? I sincerely hope not

[Z4M-2006]

There used to be some seriously good replica's out there..

That good that externally they were indistinguishable from the genuine article,you had to get the back off to see what was going on..

Many of the rep shops have now been closed down in Asia..

[marchantsuk]

Surely there is one and only give away that it's a fake.... THE PRICE.
No one sells a genuine watch at those prices, when compared to the price of an original.

[sticky]

Surely there is one and only give away that it's a fake.... THE PRICE.
No one sells a genuine watch at those prices, when compared to the price of an original.

And with that comes greed and optimism, greedy t**t selling and the optimist hoping against all odds he"s on to a good deal

[bluespit]

Surely there is one and only give away that it's a fake.... THE PRICE.
No one sells a genuine watch at those prices, when compared to the price of an original.

No, but I bet there are some fakes selling for genuine prices. I wouldn't know what was genuine and what wasn't.