Reply With QuoteOriginally Posted by Griswold
Indeed Peter, these threads are always very instructive.
The business of fakes is a pretty nasty one though, no? With links all along the chain involving slavery, forced prostitution, child labour, murder, torture, run by brutal thugs with no respect for human life and values?
But hey, if it stops the real one getting nicked or scratched then it's ok. Like I said earlier, idiots.
Indeed Peter, these threads are always very instructive.
F.T.F.A.
You just have to think a little.
Buying fakes feeds organised crime.
People trafficking, slavery, drugs, protectionism etc etc.
It is not a "victimless crime" where some major brand is usurped by plucky "Robin Hood" fakers.
It is not an intelligent place to put your money.
Anyone thining fakes are "okay" is just as stupid as middle class coke heads who eat organic kale and drive a Nissan Leaf, but are happy enough to give their cash to drug organisations that murder indisciminantly. Deluded nonsense
Fakes are always to be avoided. Full stop
Dave
Don't worry about fake watches... Have you seen the situation with fake handbags?
I'm not condoning fakes, nor do I own any or want to own any...I was commenting on the state of the threads where fakes get mentioned. It always seems that each poster has to display themselves as more overtly outraged than the previous. Sorry, I obviously appeared a bit too nonchalent. Often wonder what some would do if they happened to stroll through some of the souks in the middle east, Grand Bazaar in Turkey, MBK shopping mall in Bankok etc.
Your few posts on this subject seem to relate that you are okay with the fake watch business??
Regarding your above post, come on that's rubbish isn't it, lets be honest "the look" is really the name, if it had Parnis written on it he wouldnt be wearing it simple, it comes down to wanting a champagne watch name while earning cider money.
If its all about the look buy one of these for £70 and at least you can hold your head up.
Last edited by murkeywaters; 31st December 2019 at 13:13.
Maybe not quite - my impression was that fakes are illegal to sell, but not to own? (in the UK anyway).
I like that analogy and rings very true, too many fake personas mainly built for social media while in the shadows they are simply out for themselves at the expense of others..
Looks like Mikes shopping centre in Pattaya.Bought some "fake" tshirts from there 12 years ago,might even still have a few in my drawer!.Great 'free advertising'....
....NOT!
What a strange attitude to have towards people who own a certain brand of watch. Perhaps you could tell us your views on owners of other watch brands, no doubt you have categories for them too.
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
This happens so much it’s unreal, why couldn’t it be that he’s good at his job, works loads of hours/owns the company and has other lads working for him thus can afford whatever he likes? I’m a lowly electrician yet wore a seadweller everyday for around 15 years regardless of what job I was doing, one too many negative comments similar to the above saw me not wearing it for work anymore.
Likewise with car choices for work, for nothing more than what comes down to petty jealousy of someone considered by these people to be lower on the social scale, I’ve not won a contract because of the car I was driving (my wife’s ) and off the record been told that the manager said “he’s obviously charging too much don’t give him the work”
I didn’t buy the watch to show off etc I bought it because of my love for watches and the yearning for one since being a boy, actually a submariner but the seadweller won when I came to the crunch.
Before I bought my first seadweller I bought a fake submariner to help me decide between that and a seadweller because I wasn’t sold on the cyclops and really wanted a date on my watch, worn only at home and smashed up once my decision was made. Do I condone the buying of a fake ? No I don’t but I did it and that was my reason and I’m glad I did because before that I was leaning towards a sub because that was the watch I’d dreamed of, I know now after owning a real sub later on and selling it I’d never have loved one as much as my SD.
Please try to accept that just because they don’t wear a suit to work doesn’t mean they don’t work bloody hard and deserve whatever theycan afford to buy.
It’s not that strange. There’s no doubting that Rolex has a certain cachet among idiots and WIS alike; there’s be no fake industry otherwise. Fakes ruin the brand image for all of us who actually like watches.
I have to admit - I have a Parnis (no idea if it is copied from a famous make) and a Corgeut (£60 lookalikee of a Blancpain FF). Some would call them ‘homages’, of course.
Fakes - no
Lookalikees - sometimes.
Liked the first of Ser 4 The Grand Tour (Seamen) - where the three are perusing the ranges of ‘genuine’ Rolex/Breitling/Hublot/Omegas in the Cambodian market......
In the UK, buying them, owning them and wearing them is legal. End of.
At the moment I'm unaware of anyone on the forum disregarding laws that may apply to them with respect to counterfeit goods.
This argument always interests me. I have to wonder : if slavery, drug trafficking and the rest are so unprofitable that they have to be subsidised by the sale of replica watches - why do the organised crime gangs bother with these nefarious activities in the first place?
Heres my thinking.......
So could you perhaps enlighten me and others how buying a fake watch extends to what you say in your first statement please (in terms of facts,not hearsay).As I see it,and I have absolutely NO insight as to who the people are that are making fake watches in their factories,or what the working conditions are like etc etc.
Or is it for the most part something that is perpetuated on forums like this to say what you did without anything factually?.Do you know for a fact that the making of fake watches has all or any of the sinister things underneath,or are they simply making fake watches?.
I watched a programme last week about drug making and how the cartels are moving it around the world,no mention of fake watches on there,lots of mutilations,shootings etc etc but nothing about fake watches!,or would it have been too awful to see something like fake watches on tv!.
Show me facts and or explain how so in greater detail please,as I'm curious how it can be as you said if I were to ever contemplate buying a fake in let's say Turkey?.
I personally think people choose to say this without really knowing the full facts........IMO.
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
I'm a working man too doing lots of different things over the years, but I get why people have these opinions, its human nature to judge regardless if they are right or wrong, driving or wearing items that are deemed out of your jobs remit tells people you have too much money, they then subconsciously judge that you will charge them too much.
See a guy in Greggs covered in paint and plaster rocking a Submariner you dont think, ahh he's worked his nuts off for his dream watch!
I know because I have been that guy, but instead I wear a G-Shock and leave the Sub at home.
Don’t worry about it.
Last edited by Sahara; 2nd January 2020 at 16:45.
Total nonsense, buying fakes is plain idiotic. If you have a nice watch but you don't want to wear it for fear of scratching it or losing it, it means you can't afford it, plain simple.
Wearing fakes is not only fooling other people, but especially fooling yourself. In dangerous situations just wear a real G-Shock or a Seiko Diver.
Sent from my SM-N960F using TZ-UK mobile app
And having watched the tv programme I mentioned above,the authorities have absolutely no chance of stopping this sort of thing.Bribery,threats to murder the families of the Police and people in higher positions like politicians will never see an end to this sadly.
A very sad world we share with some very very bad people doing equally bad things,and ALL for MONEY!.
I agree on the image to some extent. You’ve only got to search YouTube for “Rolex buying” to see how people want the name and don’t have a clue.
“Buying my first Rolex” goes to store with zero idea and just wants a Rolex and chooses from the only watches in the cabinet.
If there’s a brand people want when they don’t know a thing about watches it’s Rolex. Then when they’re really into watches they talk up AP, gotta get that AP baby! (and by ‘into’ I mean they’ve seen one on a rapper on Instagram)
It’s pretty funny to think people are willing to spend many thousands on something they have zero idea about but it doesn’t sway my opinion of wanting a 1680 with nice warm patina and a ghosting bezel though!
Every three months or so one of these threads crops up on TZ and they always go exactly the same way it is like an unpleasant case of Deja Vu.
Anyone considering posting about their "friend's" replica/fake, you will get flamed as they are really not tolerated on here for good reason.
The most perverse thing about wearing one of these fake Rolex, however accurate it may be, is that it is not a Rolex at all, it is a watch thrown together in a Chinese Sweat Shop carrying a stolen trademark. There is nothing impressive about this.
Last edited by petay993; 31st December 2019 at 14:01.
It is part of the black economy
If you wish to produce fakes you cannot openly own a large factory that proudly displays the fact that you make fake watches, because it would be illegal to do so.
Everything you do as a result has to be hidden away, obfuscated or denied.
Organised crime recognises that the people who engage in illegal activity have no recourse to the law, it is their weakness.
You cannot go crying to the police that your fake factory is being held ransom by armed criminals demanding protection or whatever, simply because what you are doing is also illegal. The police would shut you down as quickly as help you.
So organised crime takes over, as it does for many things that make profit illegally.
The fact that fakes often have to be smuggled around the world also puts you in the hands of the people who routinely smuggle drugs, guns, people or other illegal products around the world.
I cannot tell you with any certainty that particular fake factories are owned or financed by particular organised crime networks, but it is often referred to by police and other enforcement authroities, and it stands to reason.
The force of law and legal systems only protect those involved in legal activities.
As a result, illegal activities become consolidated like many other industries, for similar reasons of shared interests.
D
Counterfeiting has always been a significant revenue source for terrorist organisations too.
Utter nonsense, the fact that you might find it difficult to either financially or mentally write off the loss of an expensive item doesn't mean you can't afford it.
Could most afford to have. Their house destroyed and just build / buy a new one? Nope, does that mean they can't afford said house? Nope.
Lots have nice cars they enjoy at weekends, they saved long and hard to be able to enjoy the luxury and deserve it. If they paid the money for it, they can afford it. Not being able to replace it <> unable to afford.
Wearing a 25k watch during manual labor is just stupid anyway, even if 25k is peanuts to you, why be so potentially wasteful?
Tldr : unable to emotionally or financially justify needlessly destroying an expensive item <> unable to afford it
How could a person that bought and wears his fake watch be "fooling himself"....He bought it,he knows what it is.
And he might just go about his life wearing it under his shirt sleeve,how's that fooling others?.
With regards to "dangerous" situations,thats just the everyday sad world we live in,and a lottery as to whether you are targeted by some thug for whatever reason.Ill be celebrating tonight with friends,I will wear a watch yes,but it won't be anything super expensive,the choice is made with me thinking were I to perhaps get too giddy after a few and fall damaging said watch.And having said that,the watch I wear will still be in the several hundred £s.
But I WILL still wear one because I like to wear a watch,I just try to lower the potential risk,as we all might.
The only time I’ve thought of wearing a fake is next time I go to Barcelona - so the thieving scumbags that stole my Sub get to take a fake next time.
in reality I’ll wear my 5146J - they won’t want trashy gold watches
Last edited by MartynJC (UK); 31st December 2019 at 14:12.
I recall a Rolex advert in the 70s promoting how robust the SS watches were where an owner had accidentally run over his watch after taking it off to clean his car. Upshot was the watch still worked perfectly afterwards. The Rolex response was to ask why he took watch off in the first place? Great bit of marketing to get the message across how tough the products are. Protecting yourself re: security is another matter of course.
Dont really see the point of wearing a replica as the OP describes I suppose wearing a brand like Steinhart may be an option but then if I did get one I wouldnt want on that is a direct design of a watch I already had, I suppose to me if I bought something else I would want it to be different.
Just seems an odd thing to do, if I was doing work that may damage a watch I would just take the watch off until I was finished. If I really needed a watch while I was working though and worried about it being damaged I would just get a cheap Casio or something.
Ok, to elaborate on the not being able to afford it. People so scared to lose something expensive, just buy an insurance for the car, house, watch etc. Or keep the watch in the safe and just touch it with white gloves. But how wearing a piece of trash, coz all fakes are rubbish is solving the problem?
And yes, wearing a fake is fooling yourself, because you pretend to wear something which is not real.
Sent from my SM-N960F using TZ-UK mobile app
Did some pottering in the garden myself today. No stunt double required.
Only thing worse than buying/wearing fakes is defending fakes:-)
- - - Updated - - -
Is that a fake DSSD underneath?:-)
Did some pottering in the garden myself today. No stunt double required.
Very close, but it isn't a fake and it isn't a DSSD ;-)
Very true, these days it makes me laugh more than winding me up just a shame that these judgements are still so prevalent within our society.
at the time I bought my SD I was working so much that if I hadn’t worn it for work I’d have never worn the bloody thing lol. The Apple Watch has been a great leveller for work in that respect nobody bats an eyelid to them
Selling them is illegal. Ask Haywood what he would do with your fake, if you handed it to him in his shop, and the recourse you would have. The product was illegally made, it is infringing a copyright, it needs to be destroyed.
But thank you for confirming where your moral compass is.
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
Exactly right Peter.
Of course anyone who will buy counterfeit watches will also not baulk at other fake stuff either.
Be careful out there in Sales Corner.
Cheers,
Neil.
Rolex for the office, CWC for site visits, "replica" in the bin.
I would never buy or wear a fake I dont want to impress or fool anyone, its like cheating at games or sport you haven't really won and you know it.
I take my watch off even if its just doing the washing up, even while wearing a cheaper watch. I just cant be uncaring to anything I own (or borrow for that matter).
why anyone would want to wear a high end watch while doing manual work beats me,but each to their own I wouldn't criticise them.
Please tell me who in this thread has said they’d want to buy or own counterfeit watches? I think we’ve only had one “good lad” old-time member who has sold counterfeit watches on SC.
Like my roofer with his DSSD. He works incredibly hard and prices jobs reasonably enough to guarantee a continual supply of them. Just because a business is manual doesn’t mean it can’t earn a lot of money.
The fact that Rolex are popular would mean people across a broad spectrum would like them.
No doubt some are idiots as you say. Probably the same percentage of idiots among those who like AP and Bremont for example. I don't think you can claim idiots only like one brand. Unless of course you are simply trying to associate that brand with idiots in an effort to denigrate it. I own Rolex and the brand certainly isn't ruined for me because fakes exist.
Perhaps saying. "There’s no doubting that expensive watches have a certain cachet among idiots and WIS alike; there’s be no fake industry otherwise." would be nearer the truth.
Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.
So on the above would you advise a fake Daytona to save messing up a real one?
I can certainly fault the logic. Wear a (real) watch that you feel is appropriate to the situation - he's duping himself and others around him if he thinks he 'needs' to be seen wearing a Daytona in those situations.
Plus fakes fund organised crime - end of story.
I can see your point, all the bad things that go on in the world today and people breaking the law by wearing a fake/copy/replica watch. my god what is the world coming to?
... you forgot replicas, but only one type is targeted here: the fakes.
For the rest, your straw man did not stop you from missing the point.
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
Nearer the truth maybe but unfortunately the vast majority of the public have an understanding of the ‘fake Rolex’ stereotype and have never heard of AP. Remember I’m not ridiculing anyone with an interest in watches, but the seemingly desperate clamour to own something with ‘Rolex’ on it is the opposite of why I like watches. Thus when I see one I don’t think ‘ah, watch guy’ because it’s far more likely that the watch is owned by someone who wants a Rolex, not a watch. Like I said before I’m obviously not taking about members here who are by virtue of membership here probably not in this camp. But the general public? Not sure. Just the way I see it with my ‘low self esteem’ however the other guy worked that out.
I've known quite a few people over my life that have worn fake rolex.
Most of them because they wanted the real thing but didn't have the money/ want to pay for a real one.
These l understand, but find a little sad as they're only kidding themselves - although, out here in the real world there are thousands of people who wear fake gear and own up straight away when asked... some have even shown me their "rollie" in the pub, held their wrist next to mine , said "100 quid - looky looky man" and l have been on the receiving end of several of my mates who don't "get" expensive watches laughing at my ridiculous genuine watch while comparing the fake in a favourable light! Always best just to smile.
One guy l used to know. An old manager of mine. Owned several expensive watches and replicas of a couple of his favourites, bought on holiday to wear on holiday, or in the garden. Mainly on holiday.
So...at least one person HAS done this - theory disproved and sweeping generalisation and insult forgiven...
He was a bloody nice bloke as well. Generous to a fault and scrupulously honest.
I miss the guy.
If somebody could dig out that advert ld love it!!
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