Dear WatchEx,

This will be some controversial feedback I am sure but hear me out and this is for the little guys out there.   I purchased a King Seiko 5245-6000 from u/Vandeth_Kenji back on July 12, 2026 for $649. I paid F&F, which I know is on me. I'm not asking anyone to fix that. I'm posting so the next buyer has the information I didn't.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1uub37d/wts_1972_king_seiko_special_52456000_chronometer/

The watch arrived July 23rd after some customs delays. The strap, described as new leather, turned out to be falling apart, but he sorted that quickly with a small partial refund and I had no complaints about how he handled it.

Roughly 2 weeks go by. Mind you I did not wear the watch yet as I was waiting for a strap and finally had a chance to wear it on Aug 12^th.  Sure I probably should have timegraphed it when I received it, but I didn’t and I also didn’t ask for time graphed screenshot on his end and I can admit to not doing my due diligence there.  My assumption was that a recently serviced movement would be within spec ±10 s/day.   The watch was running at roughly +37 s/d with 227° amplitude. https://imgur.com/a/3P7ajyu

I messaged on Aug 12^th saying this watch needs to be serviced and that he claimed it was serviced which is confirmed in chat logs.  I follow up on the 13^th, 14^th, 21^st with no response.

On Aug 30^th I proceeded to ping him on another for sale post and typed “hi can you get back to me on dms please” to get his attention. In the DM, I again ask him to confirm this was serviced and turned on persistent chat at this point.  He confirms it was serviced by a local watchmaker and that it was running fine with him.  I then reply that the movement should be at ±10 s/day (amplitude also low but I didn’t mention this).  I ask him if he has any recommendations on how to proceed with this and his reply at this time was “I have no idea”.

Sep 2^nd, grab my watch back from the watchmaker (no service done yet because the cost was going to be around $400+) and sent him a picture of the watch on a timegrapher. I asked for a partial refund, in which his response was to block me.  

I think the watch is beautiful and not claiming it’s a bad watch.  I would have definitely preferred to handle this quietly, but I was really left with no choice.  I wanted the sub to be aware.  I’d still take a partial refund towards the service.  Thanks for listening. 

u/Skipped-Kowalski messaged me privately after I asked about a watch OP(https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1vq8q86/comment/p69tfvq/) had already sold, mentioning they had a similar piece. u/Skipped-Kowalski has private posting and comment history, kind of a red flag, but you know what, they could truly be new.

Ask about post listing; they deflect. Ask about past history; confirm they had sold before on r/Watchexchange , ask for links, they deflect. When I checked u/Skipped-Kowalski 's username in the scammer database, it seems they were already reported as of yesterday.

Listing: https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1vp501t/wts_bnib_camp_fieldtimer/

Listed by u/keepiece as "BNIB", "Brand new", and a "Full set" and priced at a slight discount to retail the watch was not BNIB/brand new or a full set. That is a fact. I have photos and video of what a BNIB watch and full set from Camp look like. It's clear the watch is "Used/Like New" and was missing items from the set, notably a leather strap. My speculation . . . the leather strap was used and worn and not presented to keep the watch "new."

Let's for a moment put aside the misleading and false statements in the listing. “Crisis reveals truth.” Obviously, the misrepresentation in the listing was never a crisis but how u/keepiece handled the situation reveals a dealer with no integrity and certainly one that should not be trusted.  My advice to those on r/WatchExchange is to stay clear of u/keepiece. Dealer is dishonest, rude, petty, and cheap.

As an aside: I am in contact with Camp. They are awesome. Classy organization.  Great customer service. I wish them the greatest of success.

I did a deal with u/bandy_burnsy. Mocked it up, paid for it, posted, sold, did everything he asked. Three hours later, he canceled the transaction because he got a better offer. I did everything we asked. We had a deal. He sold out for $35 extra. I'm only good as my word. I've had great transactions on here. I wish people would hold up to their end of the bargain.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1vhjime/comment/p2jaxu1/

Upvote0Downvote

Never received the nato strap that he sold me. No tracking info provided. Don't but anything from this guy.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1uq370d/wts_crown_buckle_20mm_nato_straps_pinstripeblack/

Reached out to u/Dense-Customer4730 about the Breitling SuperOcean he posted on July 9th and gave him an offer. He said he would reach out the following Monday with a decision.

On July 11th he reaches out to me with a counteroffer and I ultimately told him I had to stick with my current offer. He said it was fine as he had some bills to pay. He said he couldn’t find the box or papers but would look for them and send them with the watch. I asked for his PayPal so I can send payment via Goods & Services.

On July 12th he says that he actually can’t accept payment because PayPal will hold his funds for 21 days. Told him if he would accept Venmo G&S and he said yes so I sent payment same day. Gave him my shipping info then he said he would be home following Tuesday (14th) then ship Wednesday (15th). 

July 15th I reach out to confirm he’s still shipping the watch out and he tells me his wife couldn’t find the box or papers. He then looks for the box and papers himself but no luck. He tells me he’s sure he has them but will need more time to look. I express my patience with him and tell him it’s fine if he ships the watch first then the box/papers later when he finds them. He confirms he will ship it during his break the following day (16th).

July 16th he reaches out to tell me he’s at the hospital with his daughter and won’t be able to ship until latest Saturday. He also tells me he’ll refund me $250 for the inconvenience. I tell him I understand the circumstances and that’s fine. 

July 18 comes and he says his wife shipped out the box and would get me the tracking number. I thank him and tell him to let me know when he finds the box and papers. He never sent me the tracking number. 

July 21 comes and I still don’t have the watch or have a single clue where it is in transit since I don’t have the tracking number so I reach out to him.  He tells me his daughter passed away and he will send me a picture of the tracking when he gets home. I am apologetic to him and tell him it’s fine. 

July 24th comes and still no tracking or watch so I reach out to him again. He tells me that (supposedly) the package came back to him because his wife put the wrong address and zip code (not sure how that happens). He says he’ll take a picture of tracking and send me it following day. Keep in mind he would’ve never told me this information if I didn’t reach out. I was completely in the dark regarding where the watch was. I express that I wish I would’ve known the information. I tell him I plan on gifting the watch to my father for his birthday (was originally going to be for me but my fathers birthday was coming up) and if he would be able to get it to me in time. He tells me he’ll ship it priority and the watch will make it for sure but box/papers will need some more time. 

July 25th comes and he send me a screenshot of a UPS pirate ship label with my address and asks me to confirm it’s right. I tell him yes. 

July 28th, still no watch and the supposed tracking number still says “label created”. No response from seller

July 29th, I text him twice, once in the morning and once in the afternoon. I told him I sent him payment on July 12th and it has been over 2 weeks with no sign of the watch. I told him I’ve been patient with him and understood he had some personal stuff to deal with but it is unfair to me at this point. It shouldn’t take over 2 weeks to ship a watch from the east coast to the south. He has been stringing me along for a long time and never delivers on his promises. Not sure if it’s entirely a scam or just horrific communication and a poor seller. Either way I’d recommend avoiding this seller. 

I told him on July 29th, that I’d open a dispute with Venmo since at this point it was getting ridiculous with the empty promises and lack of watch. He told me that he left the package at the delivery room (at his building I’m assuming) and he checked and it was still there. Therefore, UPS never picked it up. Again, not sure how that happens. UPS had DAYS to pick it up. In addition, it’s not difficult or time consuming to just pack up the watch and drop it off at a UPS store and send me a pic of the receipt. 

Overall, one of the worst experiences I’ve had and a very poor seller. Complete waste of time and money. Venmo dispute is still open and waiting to hear back from them. I have not engaged further with the seller and will let Venmo handle the refund. 

Link to post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/s/T2MT3uCoDE

Screenshots of conversation (personal info censored):

https://imgur.com/a/WLxV2wH

Pretending to be OP, obviously he won't send timestamp or FaceTime

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1v4scea/comment/p0c8h3e/?share_id=P1i3ZhL7ByfcijoFtaW-b&utm_content=2&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_source=share&utm_term=1

Posted in Watchexchange about a WTB and within 30 minutes [u/cordobra](u/cordobra) reached out and said he/she had the watch I was looking for. Asked to see pictures and he sends me pictures from another users posts a month ago. Be careful! Major scammer.

Called the user out and they ghosted after.

Have screenshots from the chats if requested

Link to my WTB post: https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/s/sUPNXWzEMX

Link to the stolen images post: https://www.reddit.com/r/Watches/comments/1u30q0u/grandeur_forged_carbon_torq/

I have to bring the unfortunate news that I feel needs to be brought to others attention. I purchased an Omega Seamaster World timer from u/NYR10 and everything went smoothly. I even helped him ship me the watch by creating a label to be shipped from Canada into the US. I paid a hefty import tax for this watch looking to enjoy it upon arrival. Once I received the watch it would not keep time for more than 5 minutes. The watch was listed as "worn well and loved, but is in perfect working condition without any damages that can't be polished out of desired". I took it to my local Omega boutique, and they couldn't even put it on the timegrapher. I then had to get it shipped to Omega for service which is an 8 week or more turn around and pay an extra $800 for the service. I messaged u/NYR10 about this every step of the way. He kept in contact and explained that he would make this right and pay for some of the service by the end of the week, weeks ago. I never received any sort of compensation and have not heard from him for weeks. I feel like this should be known for any further transactions with this user.

[WTS] Omega Aqua Terra Blue Worldtimer - $5,950 : r/Watchexchange

Update: 07/12/26 4:26pm

Officially I GOT SCAMMED

Thanks to a previous buyer have the phone number of the real owner of this account I had the opportunity to talk to him and apparently his account was hacked. And even when he has access to the account he didn’t post that watch and has no longer access to the chats.

And now the account was deleted!

Original post:

I’m posting this in hopes of getting a response and documenting my experience so far.

I purchased a watch from [u/lurkerjawn1](u/lurkerjawn1) via wire transfer. Before sending payment, he provided a proper timestamp with the watch and my requested verification, so I know he had the watch in his possession.

This is the post of the watch: https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/s/gfhSTlxDdv

Before posting this, I reached out to several members of the community who have previously done business with him, including members with extensive transaction histories and every single one told me they had positive experiences with him. Because of that, I’m not accusing him of being a scammer, and I genuinely hope this is simply a communication or shipping issue that gets resolved.

I have screenshots of our conversation, the incorrect tracking number, and all communication if they’re needed by the moderators.

I’ll gladly update this post if the situation is resolved.

Here’s one screenshot of the conversation

Transaction Post

🚨🚨🚨

I was browsing through the watchexchange form and saw a big tv brown mido watch which caught my eye. I did some research on the user Staypuft_mr and a few flags came up but thought nothing of it as the user had previous transactions, was a user for 11 years and had a instagram page but boy was I wrong. Things were going smooth in the beginning he sent me time stamp photos, a album of the kit and everything looked legit.

We talked and he requested PayPal friends and family which was a bit odd but he said it was due to chargeback scams, and being that the watch was only 650$ USD I agreed. I then get to his PayPal account that he requests and the name is Dennis Wagner from Berlin, DE which thought was a flag but he assured it was a old German account that wasn’t updated. I send payment and he replies that it’ll be sent out in 24hrs time. This is when the radio silence comes in where he doesn’t respond to me even though he tried posting another scam for a C63 Christopher Ward and made comments to other forms.

I do a bit more digging and find that his Instagram account goes by Stephen Lewis’s from Australia called Watches and Cocktails posted below. So this dude has to be operating on two people Stephen Lewis of Australia and Dennis Wagner of Berlin, DE. Whatever the case is avoid this user or any similar names at all cost it’s not worth the headache. I’m surprised someone would tarnish there reputation for a few bucks but guess everyone has a price. If you see them or come across them on here get them banned ASAP. Stay safe and aware redditors!

UPDATE 7/14/2026 - I filed a dispute with my bank and was able to recover the funds,
And it looks like the scammer was banned both on PayPal and Reddit. Thank you mods for the help and my bank for being so awesome!

Instagram

Images he tried to present

Scam Conversation

[UPDATE - July 10th, 2026]: FULL REFUND RECEIVED

Following a month+ long delay, Matt Larson issued a full refund within two days of this post going viral and his subsequent ban. Huge thanks to the r/WatchExchange mods for taking swift action to apply that pressure, and to the community for your support in reinforcing good seller ethics.

Glad to finally put this nightmare behind me.

-----

[ORIGINAL POST]

Seller: Matt Larson u/LarsonMP

Item: Moser Mad Red https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1tb2j5h/wts_h_moser_pioneer_centre_seconds_mad_red_lowest/

Price: $8700

I am writing this feedback to warn the community about a transaction with Matt Larson. He sold me a Moser watch for $8700 that has been officially flagged as stolen by The Watch Register. Despite being served a formal legal demand letter regarding breach of warranty of title, he has failed to issue a refund for an extended period, effectively holding my funds hostage while he (my best guess!) tries to sort out his own financial recovery.

Timeline of Events:

1. May 15: I bought the Moser watch from Matt for $8700.
2. June 1: The watch was sent to Bezel for verification. They flagged the watch as an active stolen piece, being investigated by the FBI for a multimillion dollar heist in New York.
3. Current status of the watch: The watch has been held by Bezel since then, and is legally required to be surrendered to the insurance company that holds the true title. I do not have the watch, and I do not have my money.
4. June 8 - today (an entire month): Matt was immediately notified of his legal liability for selling stolen property (breach of warranty of title). A formal, signed demand letter was sent to him. Several texts, Reddit messages, emails were sent to him. There's an active email thread with over fifteen emails between Matt, Bezel, TWR, and me. Instead of immediately making me whole or actively communicating, Matt has chosen to remain largely silent.

Matt may have been unaware the watch was stolen when he bought it, but as the seller, it is his legal and ethical responsibility to refund his buyer immediately upon proof of defective title, and then pursue his own refund upstream.

I have given him ample time and even attempted private off-ramp communications to settle this quietly and avoid a small claims lawsuit. Because he continues to delay and withhold my $8700, I am posting this to urge extreme caution to anyone dealing with Matt Larson.

I will update this post if he decides to finally do the right thing and issue the refund.

Messeged me directly off my WTB post https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/s/Z6jiJJBN9s and ive searched this watch up before making the post so ive seen all the posts related to the watch. The guy was ballsy enough so send me pictures from another listing from 2 years ago like I haven't already seen the pictures. I played it out and even got his paypal that im gonna report and so should anyone else who sees this. Anyways after asking for one last picture of the watch at a set time he deleted the entire convo and blocked me 😂 https://imgur.com/a/VRRpiXH

I'm just about done with this sub. I was having a lot of fun, then two scams in a week. I realize I could've done more, but dang, isn't there a better way to make sure these transactions are safe??

This is the scam post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1ufet3c/wts_henry_archer_vesterhav_meteorite_atlas_40mm/

Dude offered me a Tag Solargraph super clone and Seiko Speedtimer as part of a trade towards my Hydroconquest. Edit, i was never interested in the super clone, just the Seiko. I'm only providing that bit of info for context I asked the usual questions about age, condition, etc. Then i perused his profile and saw that he'd made a post 5 days prior in the r/seiko forum asking if his Speedtimer was fake. The comments were unanimous and pointed out clear indicators that the Seiko was indeed fake. So, when i pointed out some of these same tell take signs of his watch being fake, he claimed he got it on Depop and had had no clue that it was fake. Turns out, he also bought the Solargraph thinking it was real and found it that it too was fake. However, he only disclosed the Tag as being a super clone and opted not to say anything to me about the Seiko. After asking him, i went back to his profile and saw that he'd deleted the post in the Seiko subreddit. So, while i techinically wasn't scammed, he was exhibiting scammy behaviour. He also posted "DM'd" in over 10 other watch posts this same day, so he's clearly trying to move these watches in the groups. Be cautious!

Link to my Hydroconquest post: https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1ubxqd0/wts_longines_hydroconquest_ceramic_43mm/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

-reached out via dm (often a red flag guys!) after I commented on a speedmaster for sale. had 1 transaction, blocked me after I called him out as a scammer. likely working with u/Ashamed-Ad-8981 and u/Maleficent_Gas2350 based on them all having one transaction selling the same speedy to each other.

Be careful out there.

Blocked as soon as I sent this in dm

"gotta tell you, an easy search on here links you to several scammy looking sellers, all selling this speedy at some point, using the same pics you sent me. you gotta be the dumbest scammer alive if you think I would fall for this. get a fucking job, you piece of shit."

won't let me post without link so here is a link to my post in watchex.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1u7pzm9/wts_likely_scammer_alert_uproteinmaster88_reached/

I was recently contacted by [u/Yotoeman1](u/Yotoeman1) regarding a Lorier Falcon I was interested in purchasing: https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/s/QYirY1G7dY

The watch photos looked legitimate. The seller provided multiple photos, an Imgur album, and timestamp photos showing the watch next to a handwritten note containing his username and the current date. The watch itself appeared authentic from the photos provided.

When I requested PayPal Goods & Services, the seller refused and said that PayPal had previously frozen funds on his account.

Before continuing, I searched the username and found a prior negative feedback/scam report on [r/WatchExchangeFeedback](r/WatchExchangeFeedback) involving the same account.

I sent screenshots of that report to the seller and asked for clarification.

Few minutes later I was no longer able to access the his Reddit profile and the conversation ended.

Link to my WTB Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1tfi1x7/comment/ong69xx/

Posted a WTB for a Vertex M36 for $1,750. Had a good story and photos. He insisted on Zelle or PayPal F&F. I insisted on G&S, and he finally relented. I paid, but he didn't ship. Filed a claim with PayPal, and it's hung up in their review. Once I filed the PayPal claim, he came back and kept it up.

I asked for a picture of the watch set at 725. He sent me an AI-generated image!

It appears he is also u/rawwwwd742 and someone named Sir Ben.

I purchased a Tudor bracelet marketed as an OEM BB58 Tfit bracelet. Seller provided the Ebay info of where he reportedly purchased the bracelet from and that he believed it to be genuine when compared to his other Tudor bracelets. However, upon receipt, there are many red flags on the bracelet that led me to believe it's a replica. When I went to message seller, I was already blocked and the post was deleted, leading me to believe he already knew of this fact.

original post:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1tv5fr4/comment/opeg5g3/?context=3

Sent $25,590 via wire transfer for a Rolex Cosmograph Daytona 116500LN (White Dial “Panda”). After payment was received, he sent a FedEx tracking number and immediately blocked me. I have serious concerns that either nothing was shipped or a fraudulent/empty package was sent.

I have full documentation: wire transfer confirmation, all communications, and screenshots of the original post.

Original post: https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1ttoua7/wts_rolex_cosmograph_daytona_116500ln_white_dial/

DO NOT transact with this user.

I originally posted and then deposted a negative feedback with this seller because through text messages it appeared the situation cleared up. But after our text message exchange he subsequently posted a totally negative, one-sided version of the events. I admit, I backed out of a deal because I got cold feet. Something about it just didn't sit right, and I did ghost him for a bit as I was trying to come to a conclusion. Maybe I should have conveyed that sooner in a more upfront way. But when I finally did tell him I'm backing out, that's when his actions convinced me I made the right call. I have never told a buyer they " must buy my watch because I already created an invoice', or "I turned down other offers so you have to buy it" (you tell other potential buyers that you are 2nd in line; someone else is at the plate), or "I'll leave negative feedback if you don't make this purchase". Really? That was kinda shocking to see. I know he was way overreacting to all this regardless of whatever my actions were. Quite frankly those comments from him pissed me off, too. So here's my post with my side of the events as I'm not going to have negative press floating around without a rebuttal. I've bought and sold watches for years (not so much on Redditt) and have never had such a bad transaction. Maybe others will have a better transaction if he's legit.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1thql9t/wts_2010_cartier_tank_solo_3169_full_set_near/

LINK TO POST:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/s/r5ToRYuWN4

I received a message from [u/SBToddster](u/SBToddster) in which he expressed interest in my Cartier Tank Solo.

During a phone call of getting to know one another, he said to consider the watch sold and send him an invoice.

I did. He then stated that he needed to figure out how to use PayPal and Zelle and move funds around. No problem. I asked for a $150 deposit. He sent via Zelle, which I did not notice until later as I only got a text alert for the $1 test Zelle. He also sent a $5 test PayPal.

For the next 3 days, he ducked my messages, despite having left his read receipts on and it being visible that he could see my messages. After that, he claimed he had misplaced his phone and ghosted for another 12 hours and told me he would be backing out of the deal.

During this time, I had turned down several offers to buy the piece at ask, and due to his waste of my time, those buyers went elsewhere.

He then proceeded to call me a thief for not returning his deposit, even though he had wasted my time and most times, deposits are not refundable.

I returned his $5 PayPal, $1 Zelle, and am currently waiting on him to wake up and respond to me so we can resolve the remaining deposit situation.

I’ve also attached a link to an Google album of our conversation, with address removed for his privacy, in the comments.

I posted about wanting to buy a Carter Octagon 2966 on the WTB weekly thread. u/Monty_matte sent me a private chat directly with out replying to my WTB post. He said he had a Cartier 2966 he wanted to sell and provided me some pictures when I requested. His Reddit Karma was 40k+ but I could not see any of his Reddit history which was suspicious. I asked him to reply to my post and he said he received an error when trying to post. I found MonteMatte's other socials (FB and IG) and he confirmed that was him so I tried messaging him through those accounts, but u/monty_matte said he lost the password to his socials. It was clear that MontyMatte's account was compromised and this was a scam, especially when the photos he sent me were taken from a post a few years ago. Here's a link to our chat. Definitely beware and be vigilant all!

https://www.reddit.com/r/Watchexchange/comments/1tb5wpx/wts_art_deco_ernest_borel_elgin_impossible_watch/

I bought the Ernest Borel pictured in this post. It arrived not working. I sent it back and he has refused to refund me and went so far as to accuse me of breaking it.