Problem with some Grey Dealers who are Investors

[motoikkyu]

In my early days of collecting, the funniest example was the vendor who picked up a manual-wind watch from his tray, shook it a few times until the sweep started moving, and said, "See, automatic!" with such conviction and confidence, I didn't have the heart to tell him I had a brain.

[GeoffS]

Yeah, this stuff is annoying. Unless the dealer has personally had the watch in his/her own private collection for its entire life then how on earth do they know if it was polished or not. They don't. What they really mean is that the watch is showing signs of wear (of course it is - it's 29 years old) and that they didn't have it polished before putting it up for sale. Could have been polished many times before (and this one clearly was).

[Juhuatai]

Originally Posted by GeoffS

What they really mean is that the watch is showing signs of wear (of course it is - it's 29 years old) and that they didn't have it polished before putting it up for sale.

That is not what this dealer means by "unpolished." It's clearly understood in the vintage world that "unpolished" means the watch has never seen a polish in its lifetime, which is clearly not the case here.

[daveo5]

When buying vintage the first rule is buy the seller before the watch.


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[1665fan]

When buying vintage you better do a lot of research(sometimes need to know more than the seller)or just pay less for luminova replacement parts and wear it

[brockburst]

Originally Posted by daveo5

When buying vintage the first rule is buy the seller before the watch.


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Disagree. The first rule is to learn an enormous amount about the reference prior to purchase. This information, generally speaking, is not hard to find.

Second is to buy the seller, but there are a lot of sellers with fancy websites and ommission of data isn't necessarily a crime, and it happens frequently. So do your homework. If you love the watch enough to buy the heritage, you should love it enough to take it down to every last detail...you should know as much as you think the seller knows.

[steven.veres]

Originally Posted by Robtayham

I don’t think it’s vintage.

20+ years is vintage. It's not up for debate.

[brockburst]

Originally Posted by steven.veres

20+ years is vintage. It's not up for debate.

Watches from 1999 are largely not considered vintage on this forum. Same goes for 1989, truthfully.

[GeoffS]

Originally Posted by Juhuatai

That is not what this dealer means by "unpolished." It's clearly understood in the vintage world that "unpolished" means the watch has never seen a polish in its lifetime, which is clearly not the case here.

Maybe that is what unpolished is supposed to mean, but it is WIDELY misused, and clearly misused in this case. Of course it is often blindingly obvious that the watch has been polished but not always, and without detailed knowledge of the history of the watch, people will use unpolished to mean the watch currently has the usual signs of wear. It could have been polished before and then collected new signs of wear and will be advertised as unpolished. That is common.

[linesiders]

Originally Posted by GeoffS

Yeah, this stuff is annoying. Unless the dealer has personally had the watch in his/her own private collection for its entire life then how on earth do they know if it was polished or not. They don't. What they really mean is that the watch is showing signs of wear (of course it is - it's 29 years old) and that they didn't have it polished before putting it up for sale. Could have been polished many times before (and this one clearly was).

This remark is generally wrong. There are tells on watches that can indicate whether polished or not and if you are familiar enough with a specific model, you can tell. Owning a watch for it's lifetime is not a guarantor of polish level - many owners will swear they never had a watch polished (and that the dial and hands are original) because they simply don't know.

If the dealer is saying unpolished since they didn't polish it - that is frankly BS on the dealer's part. I think most dealers won't do that level of mental gymnastics to cover their tails.

[Bizcut1]

What is the cut-off year for "vintage?"

[Kingface66]

Here we go again

[Juhuatai]

People really need to use the search function

[037]

Originally Posted by Bizcut1

What is the cut-off year for "vintage?"

That depends entirely if the watch has been polished or not.

[Dan S]

Originally Posted by GeoffS

Maybe that is what unpolished is supposed to mean, but it is WIDELY misused, and clearly misused in this case. Of course it is often blindingly obvious that the watch has been polished but not always, and without detailed knowledge of the history of the watch, people will use unpolished to mean the watch currently has the usual signs of wear. It could have been polished before and then collected new signs of wear and will be advertised as unpolished. That is common.

Nope. As others have said, this is not what is meant by polished or unpolished. It has to do with the sharpness of the original edges and case features, not the presence or absence of scratches. Keep reading the forum, you will learn.

[springer]

Originally Posted by Bizcut1

What is the cut-off year for "vintage?"

Would 1999 work for you?

[springer]

Originally Posted by Juhuatai

People really need to use the search function

The "me or entitled" generation could care less about the search function. They want someone else to do all the work for them.

[DGB]

So vintage or not vintage?


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[Mark020]

Originally Posted by springer

the "me or entitled" generation could care less about the search function. They want someone else to do all the work for them.

+1

[GeoffS]

Originally Posted by linesiders

I think most dealers won't do that level of mental gymnastics to cover their tails.

Really! Then all the threads on here and other forums highlighting shady dealer practices must be fiction.

[schaumburgla]

Lol!

[BigJaJa]

Originally Posted by motoikkyu

In my early days of collecting, the funniest example was the vendor who picked up a manual-wind watch from his tray, shook it a few times until the sweep started moving, and said, "See, automatic!" with such conviction and confidence, I didn't have the heart to tell him I had a brain.

I don’t understand why the sweep started moving after he shook it?

[phillip ridley]

Originally Posted by 1665fan

Lol that’s the tip of the ice burg when you see little lies and large lies...everyday...then the professional dealers will just omit the re-lumed hands and spots on the dial....or newer insert... oh I forgot sorry! Exactly why people on the new forum are scared of vintage....

[locutus49]

You should not bash millennials. Leave that chore to me.

Originally Posted by springer

The "me or entitled" generation could care less about the search function. They want someone else to do all the work for them.

[oysterquartz17000]

Originally Posted by locutus49

You should not bash millennials. Leave that chore to me.

For a millennial I bet 1999 is vintage.