Fake Rolex wall clock

[crowncollection]

Originally Posted by garpesce

re: rolex wall clocks. as former rolex usa advertising and promotion manager from 1966-1970, i can only speak to this subject for that period, although i imagine geneva's policy was continued for some time thereafter. rolex geneva distributed promotional items for various purposes; some as "gifts" to authorized jewelers (note jewelers, not dealers at that time), some for exclusive display in authorized jewelers retail stores (eg, countertop mirrors, wall clocks, shadow box displays, etc). the former were sometimes given to jewelers at discretion of the territorial salesman. the latter were purchased by the jeweler either from co-op advertising funds or out of pocket. the gift items were impressive, made of luxury materials for, not by, rolex geneva.
under andre heiniger, rolex carried the banner of excellence in whatever bore the crown and letters. this was in the rolex dna. i still have some of the items from those days and their quality is unmistakeable. one item is a soft leather tobacco pouch made for geneva by dunhill of london, in black with a crown stamped in a corner. running out of space now. hope this helps clear up the question raised by "yakmeister".

We all know that rolex made lots of items from paper weights to pens, knives, tobacco pouches, keyrings etc. many of us have been. Rolex official clocks never took this form to our knowledge, they were square with white dial and the classic green Rolex and coronet gold hands , no second hand , not sports models with second hands like these cheap fakes as you state their quality is not remarkable. Please note I refer to walk clicks only there are other desk top clocks I have not mentioned.
The other form is round with a gold fluted beze surrounding the clock face, gold hands no second hand and white face again with green Rolex writing and coronet they are fairly plain. If you have seen others please show us and enlighten us we always love to learn more regards.

Save the photos to your desktop and then just upload them directly to the forum, can't wait thanks.

[Puffy]

would look half decent in a man cave...

[garpesce]

if this works, you are looking at a "section" wall clock, vintage 1968. details available, if you like. still works on a "c" battery.




C:\Users\grf\Pictures\rolex wall clock\P1020273.JPG

[garpesce]

sorry, it didn't work. from photo in picasa, i copied a shortcut to desktop, right clicked it, copy, then paste into qp. and the rest, as they say, is mystery.

[garpesce]

you're looking at my "section" wall clock, vintage 1968, still running well. the green case is very reflective, possibly of bakelite. i tried to tent it so that the lights wouldn't wash out detail. but there are reflections in the lens and case. the white dot at the 6 marker is a highlight. battery powered, "c" cell.
it was my office wall clock at rolex in nyc. i have a few other souvenirs from that time. much of what was available to authorized jewelers (not dealers) were simply and elegantly designed, mfr'd in europe for rolex, not by rolex.
i will post a section of the page in the 1968 "co-op advertising mat book" which describes the 4 types of clocks available to authorized jewelers at that time.

[crowncollection]

Great info thanks, my memory failed me a touch, but as I stated, white dial, fairly plain, no second hand, gold hands and here's where my memory failed me as i pictured the clock in my mind, I knew something was the Rolex classic green, it is the surrounds as shown of course the writing and coronet would be gold as shown if the hands are gold, these are the ones I have seen if you have others please post them, if you have one it's worth good money. I would love to see them, enjoy the forum. Regards

[ausneal]

I'm assuming that this one is fake...

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Rolex-Dea...#ht_500wt_1180

[Johny]

Originally Posted by garpesce

hi johny, i haven't yet figured out how to attach photo files to a post or thread. my photos are in picasa. the "insert image" above asks for the url. i need more detail than that. i'll keep on it til i get it.
thanks for your request.
garpesce

no rush. we love pics on here. the clock looks great.

[garpesce]

hi "ausneal" the "ebay" clock you refer to may be authentic. see the attached photo of a description of 4 available clocks for rolex jewelers in the usa. the source is "the rolex co-op advertising mat book" which i produced that year. the "G-061" is an 18" square electrically powered wall clock in a walnut finsh. the "ebay photos" are poor quality, but i can see enough to recognize the look..question remains...is it genuine rolex or a knockoff. if the latter, seems a lot of trouble for not much money. but who can say what idle hands in a third world country would consider "not much money"? the G-061 was very popular with jewelers because it didn't clash with the store decor. the "Pan Am " G-062 with or w/o PanAm logo was more institutional.
the "section" model was pure rolex modern.
although i am in touch with a former service manager, i have not kept current on rolex matters since i left in 1970. the rolex geneva of the '60s kept stringent control over product distribution and related marketing materials. that was very doable with only about 2,300 authorized jewelers (in the usa) at the time. worldwide network also very limited at that time. low "OP" production created an enormous backlog, more than 6 months for men's DDs, GMTs, SUBs DJs, EXPs, DCs, all metals. ladies "OP"s also.
it may be absurd to say, but that same obssession with protecting the brand, reputation and product integrity might only be achieved today if, say they installed a gps microchip (size of a flea's naval") in each watch so they could track it's wherabouts thru the pipeline to the end user.
in the end, the "ebay" clock just might be a nice conversation piece for a den,
or clubroom. value? who's to say?

[crowncollection]

As i stated they are very plain, and all follow the same form in general gold hands and writing and coronet, if there is one thing you can count on rolex for is clear trademark branding, not these messy submariner/gmt clocks a non wis would not recognise, it must be clearly recognisable to anyone. It is interesting to here that they also made a wood background one, can you provide a picture for us.

[crowncollection]

bidders be wary on this walnut clock. The movement described in the literature kindly provided states it is electrically powered ( plug in to mains power), not battery like the one on eBay the seller states movement is available in a craft/hobby shop ( in other words a cheap chinese quartz clock movement) the literature above states the battery operated type has a precision Swiss movement, good quality in keeping with Rolex quality, In the rear view photo you can see where the hour markers a affixed to the wood dial all the way through by studs. But the rolex lettering and coronet are not ? You see no studs in the rear view, they are just glued on to the front of the dial, hmmm ? These are just my observations. bid accordingly

[ausneal]

Originally Posted by crowncollection

bidders be wary on this walnut clock. The movement described in the literature kindly provided states it is electrically powered ( plug in to mains power), not battery like the one on eBay the seller states movement is available in a craft/hobby shop ( in other words a cheap chinese quartz clock movement) the literature above states the battery operated type has a precision Swiss movement, good quality in keeping with Rolex quality, In the rear view photo you can see where the hour markers a affixed to the wood dial all the way through by studs. But the rolex lettering and coronet are not ? You see no studs in the rear view, they are just glued on to the front of the dial, hmmm ? These are just my observations. bid accordingly

The eBay listing also states that the markers are gold coloured plastic whist the book states that all the markers and hands are brass. Sounds like its been slapped together.

[garpesce]

i agree. the ebay "walnut" clock is bogus. caveat emptor. sorry, i do not have any photos of the rolex clocks other than the "section" clock i posted above.