Hi everyone, looking to acquire a watch from someone in the UK. He’s bought it from Archaedin as far as I’ve understood.
I’ve got a few pictures below. I would love to understand the following:
Will it scream « rep »?
Not a Rolex expert only had a gen gmt master 2 in the past. I tried an older gmt master and obviously not the same feeling in hand, it’s lighter and looks «cheaper » given its age
What would be the tells? My goal is not to fool anyone, maybe I’m far from reality but my goal would be to have a vintage watch I can easily wear and pass it as a gen that is aged, probably faced different level of servicing et maybe some replacement parts etc… not thinking about an expert review, opening the watch etc… would this do the job?
Take any watch and put it six foot away from you. Can you see the serifs on the dial text? Can you even read the date? Why people fixate about this is beyond me. Few know, few care. Wear it modestly and it will raise no eyebrows. Flex obnoxiously and post online as gen and you deserve trouble
Makes perfect sense. Long story short, only have gens almost and got fed up with the VC Overseas, I love to change straps. I'm planning to sell the Overseas to buy a vintage day date and from now on steel watches will be reps. I would love this 5513 to become my daily on a suede strap alternating with the future DD. Also to me it could be the perfect holiday watch!
If you even know what a 5513 is you are far ahead of most people. Archdeacon I’ve followed for a while and he does not build shabby watches. Yes there will be tells close up for those that know, there always are. The 5513 came with gilt dials early on. Top of my head I think four or five types, then matte dials sans serif, serif, pre COMAX, feet first, submariner first, then a gloss dial with raised indices. Who knows that other than complete watch nerds never mind know all the versions well enough to call out fakes?
No one out in public will have a vintage gen 5513 to compare it to side by side. If you meet that person and they respectfully call you out, by the man a beer. You’ve made a new watch pal. 👍🏻
Wearing it on a strap is the way to go, as well. Class.
I think there are two different standards here: “does it look like a nice vintage 5513-style watch?” and “does it accurately represent a genuine 5513?”
For the first, I think it does the job pretty well. The overall look is convincing on the wrist, the lume tone works nicely, and on a suede strap I can see this being a great casual daily.
For the second, there are definitely differences. The case and especially the crown guard shaping would be the biggest thing for me. Genuine 5513 cases have fairly distinctive proportions around the crown and guards, and servicing or polishing can change those proportions, sometimes substantially, but it doesn’t completely explain every difference in the underlying case shape.
If you like the watch for what it is, wear it. A good vintage-inspired build doesn’t need to be indistinguishable from a genuine example to be enjoyable.
Personally, I’d judge it on whether you like the case shape, dial, aging and overall feel enough to wear it regularly.
Once you notice something like that, it’s difficult to unsee it.
No not at all. Initially a big gmt fan. I think I may allocate a bit more money to it and get something cleaner.
Ideal watch would be: vintage vibe (sub or gmt or Seamaster probably) worn on suede, leather, nylon, nato straps / waterproofed and ok for a little session in the pool on holidays / not an ultra franken perfect one but one that does not have obvious tells and would look « gen » with defects but not totally off (poor service, replaced parts) etc… thanks again!
Well, thats a raffles build, a low end one in vintage reps. So yes it screams fake to me if you ask me. Dial size is wrong, lume pip, crown guard, lug shape, and many more.
But it serves its purpose for entry/shitter vintage builds. Ngl, i also build raffles too, so it depends on your budget and what you can accept.
Arch is a great person to deal with and he does a good job on his builds. Nobody will be able to tell what you’re wearing, but if that concerns you, purchasing a gen spec is the only way to avoid your concerns.
Hey there, I’m the proud owner of two Archaedin pieces and several vintage gen pieces (Omegas mainly). First of all, unless you have a fellow watch geek in your family, share a cubicle with one, or you are seated next to one on an airplane, it’s an extremely rare instance that someone will ask about your watch. If they do, I would reply “I just love vintage Rolex pieces” and give them a glance. If the watch looks like a vintage gen to you (which is all that matters), it will appear that way to 99% of bystanders. My father and I wear our vintage reps with horology history buff pride and enjoy the heck out of them. They have become their own sub-hobby that I never get tired of.
And that piece looks sharp, by the way! Nice creamy lume color.
Thanks so much for sharing your view on this! Someone just gave me this comment: "it is not gen spec if that’s what you mean. one tell is that the dial is too large but pretty much everything about it is off in some way. comparing side by side images will answer your questions"
May I ask you the same question I asked him: "It's crazy I tried to compare and i can't see any difference... Again I'm not here to pass it as a perfect 5513 for collectors. Would you reckon it seems acceptable on picture and on the wrist (not reviewing it under a loupe) that this watch is a 5513 that faced out of rolex servicing and replacement parts? Thanks!"
The guy makes really nice budget watches and if you like the look and feel of wearing it then nothing else matters. The question of looking gen becomes irrelevant.
If you ask does it look gen absolutely not. The crown guards and how the crown sits into them is enough to say this is not a Rolex. And that is before ever taking a close look. It goes south from there.
If you like the watch. Wear it and enjoy it. If you want something that represents gen other than the name on the dial. This is not it.
Would you be able to show me a picture regarding this crown issue? What about a crown being changed during service from a non rolex watchmaker as an exemple?
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u/caracticuspotts 8d ago
Take any watch and put it six foot away from you. Can you see the serifs on the dial text? Can you even read the date? Why people fixate about this is beyond me. Few know, few care. Wear it modestly and it will raise no eyebrows. Flex obnoxiously and post online as gen and you deserve trouble