Reply With QuoteYear thats a GSAR
Very under rated watches
I was wearing my JSAR yesterday and hit the dreaded Google for Marathon and found this, described as a "Marathon Automatic 300m"
So have i bought a GSAR or yet another Marathon Military watch?
Year thats a GSAR
Very under rated watches
Thanks, in that case I got a bargain. Thanks for confirming.
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That’s a very nice watch!
What's a gsar?
Government Search And RescueOriginally Posted by trott3r
It does look like a fake. Shouldn't the 12 o'clock lume pip be orange? ... and the bezel triangle be white instead of green?
The pip is always a pale green
The 12 should be orange but in some light it is hard to tell the difference in colour, tubes look pale green/ off white.
For comparison a MSAR
look at the colour similarity between the tubes at 11 and 12 and the colour of the lume pip. (For the avoidance of doubt this has just come back from servicing at Marathon as has the CSAR).
Edit - however looking at the pictures again the hour hand does look a little short, as does the tube
OP what size is this? It could be the Medium GSAR At 36mm
Edit again
It does seem as if there are some really good fakes out there (I did not know that but don’t know why I am surprised)! The over arching give away is the glow to the 12 tube as pointed out above.
John
Last edited by Sinnlover; 18th February 2020 at 09:57.
Can you post a good definition pic of the back so we can see the printing.
AFAIK it's the watch is 42mm according to the advert, I don't physically have it yet, but it should arrive today/tomorrow.
The seller who specialises in vintage watches has serviced it and I feel he may have swapped the second hands over, as I have compared them to current models. His feedback is impeccable however.
My JSAR which I bought from Marathon many years ago has the Orange 12 and all the lumes match around the bezel.
I have no reason to believe it's fake but also why would anyone fake one of these?
Not sure about the minute hand, my other Marathon has short minute hands that fall shy of the numbers also.
How would i tell for sure if it's faked or not?
The plot thickens
The pip is always a pale green
The 12 should be orange but in some light it is hard to tell the difference in colour, tubes look pale green/ off white.
For comparison a MSAR
look at the colour similarity between the tubes at 11 and 12 and the colour of the lume pip. (For the avoidance of doubt this has just come back from servicing at Marathon as has the CSAR).
Edit - however looking at the pictures again the hour hand does look a little short, as does the tube
OP what size is this? It could be the Medium GSAR At 36mm
John
This was in the advert also
Very nice,I used to have a tsar,but sold it in a moment of madness.
I still think it’s ok
This was in the advert also
The dead giveaway will be the glow of the 12 marker, all he fakes I have seen on line can’t seem to get this right.
A 2010 dated watch is a good one as it has both the crown and pip issue sorted. So cross finger you have a good one.
with regard to the 12 being orange, it would seem not from every other GSAR in google images
Really good looking watches and almost makes the MM300 look like a dress watch in comparison. No idea re JSAR/GSAR but I love the overkill of it. I was on their website a few weeks back but I was put off by the price having never seen or handled one in real life.
I am referring to the glowwith regard to the 12 being orange, it would seem not from every other GSAR in google images
As per my earlier post they look off white in daylight.
If you are ever in the city of London give me a shout, more than happy for you to have a look at mine (snigger)
Quality wise they are up there with CWC.
The back looks OK. One last request, can you please take a pic of the lume in a dark room...
Arrived today, looks and feel fantastic, but damn it's small compared to its bigger brother.
That rubber is so smooth.
Glad it arrived safe and sound.
Have you checked the colour of the glow of the 12 marker?
Colour looks good, will check the lume a bit later when it's darker.
Lume shots as requested. it may be a tad more feint than the JSAR (right) but I am satisfied.
The 12 marker looks to glow green, is this the case?
It should glow orange
In addition a 2010 watch should be approaching half life as such the tubes should be a fair bit dimmer than a mariglo dialled JSAR
As you can see my 2009 watch is now quite dim but still very usable - (the hands were changed at service before Xmas) - the pip and second hand are mariglo by comparison
What's a gsar?
abraxas: Government Search And Rescue
thanks
Does the GSAR mean that it was just issued by the US government and has history compared
to the normal Marathon?
The hour hand looks like a later replacement? That could explain the shorter tube and brighter lume.
As I explained earlier, it's green, like every other GSAR I found in Google. As opposed to the JSAR which is very orangeThe 12 marker looks to glow green, is this the case?
It should glow orange
In addition a 2010 watch should be approaching half life as such the tubes should be a fair bit dimmer than a mariglo dialled JSAR
As you can see my 2009 watch is now quite dim but still very usable - (the hands were changed at service before Xmas) - the pip and second hand are mariglo by comparison
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As long as you are happy that is all that matters
As I have explained this is not correct the 12 o’clock marker should glow orange not green
All GSARs, TSARs, MSARs etc have a 12 o’clock marker that glows orange in the dark.
Could the good lume be down to this being a D-SAR dial? 'D' being defect.
IIRC there was a small batch that the dials were printed as Tritium but were actually luminova.
The baton @12 may look green in daylight, but should 100% shine orange when activated.
Last edited by Jon Kenney; 19th February 2020 at 08:44.
The DSAR had a luminova style dial no tubes. the dial but H3 and the radioactive symbol
Ah OK. Makes sense.
After careful consideration, it's also 36mm and not 42mm as advertised.
Feels great on the wrist and wears larger but there's definitely no orange on that dial, anywhere!
No, it's just a name. Marathon used to sell (to the public) overruns of the Government contracts but I am pretty that these days all the watches sold to the public are made for selling.
So, what you have is "the medium diver". My feeling is that the medium diver (which hasn't been out that long) should have a tritium tube at the end of the seconds hand.
Also, I am not happy with red line of text on the dial. None of the 36mm autos appear to have it.
OP
Have a look at this link
https://www.marathonwatch.uk/product...tomatic-medium
If your watch is the medium diver. (36mm) these have only been out for a 2 years at the most so were not around in 2010 (the date on your watch)
This combined with the strange hour hand, the different second hand (old style) and lack of orange glow on the 12 o clock marker (also the super bright lume on a 2010 watch) has me questioning the originality / authenticity of this watch. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, on first glance of the photos it did look like the real deal; In fact I had no idea these were faked until I checked the web.
I hope I am wrong but I have handled quite a few Marathon (possibly all types) and there are enough features for me to have my doubts now.
The polt is certainly thickening.
Not sure I have a fake, it just looks too good, my feeling is that the guy who restored it, serviced it, renovated it and polished it, may well have changed a few things along the way.
I guess Marathon themselves can confirm what I have? It's very clean and very good quality and I realise that fakes are getting better and better, this just doesn't seem like a watch anyone would bother to fake, especially the movement also.
It's certainly sparked a lot of conversation, that's for sure.
That is, of course, quite possible. However I find it hard to see how he could have changed the 12 o-clock tube from an orange one to a green one - that would be a strange, (and hard), thing to do!
Best Regards - Peter
I'd hate to be with you when you're on your own.
100% fake I'm afraid. Check Marathon GSAR sold listings in eBay and you'll see numerous cases with the exact same serial number on the back as yours.
At the moment I'd have to say that the seller is full of sh*t. Looks to me like he bought an eBay "make-your-own-fake" kit and added a movement. Hope you can get your money back okay.
You are correct
https://www.mwrforum.net/forums/show...same-serial-No
OP get your money back asap
Wow this is really interesting stuff!
I called Marathon UK and he seems happy that it's real, soem ha the red lettering, nothing has the orange replaced by green however. The serial numbers all matching rings alarm bells for me I'm afraid, and the seller has glowing references.
Have asked him to explain himself and refund. :(
You guys are well clever!
Email from seller
"hi, that's a shocker, please go ahead and return it back i will discuss this with my source"
No apology, no explanation.
Do you mind if I ask who the seller was?
ArtofSwiss on Etsy
Lots of really good, old stuff on there, real shame.
Holy cows that guy is selling an absolute sh*tload of fake watches!
Link added: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ArtofSwiss
Last edited by Lampoc; 20th February 2020 at 19:26.
Oh wow
Art of Swiss looks like it’s the source of all the fake kits on eBay!
Some of the Fortis look quite convincing on first glance much like this watch.
I found his eBay account too where it seems some have already left fake-watch-feedback: https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/silcon933...p2047675.l2562
Well done on this folks. A wee bit disturbing when relatively low value watches are getting the 'Rolex treatment' by the fakers.
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Refund issued today, thanks everyone for your comments and advice.
Good I am glad it worked out in the end
It’s worth buying real GSAR they are a cracking watch
Thanks for this. I might take you up on on it later if that's ok as I'm I work in the city just next to the Gherkin. I need to research more first and figure out if a Marathon would sit alongside the MM300 or replace it. I've never handled a CWC either, mainly different Rolex/Omega/Seikos but want to branch out.
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