Selling a 10+ year DJ - recoup RSC costs?

[Cru Jones]

In my never-ending quest to evaluate all the possible routes to take with my 1997 TT DJ, here's another question for you....

Assuming I am unable to find the box and papers, is a +/- €500 trip to the RSC a worthwhile investment to get a good/fair price? Note that this watch has never been serviced (hasn't been worn a lot, but, buyers won't necessarily believe that.)

Pros: get some documentation; watch will be shiny and new; buyer gets comfort of 2-year warranty (right?)

Cons: since I'm guessing I might see €1,500-2,000 for the watch, spending €500 on RSC seems like a big expenditure....(unless, of course, the expected sale price would be more than €500).

Thoughts?

Thanks (again).........

[sellingblackbird]

Well Bill my 2 cents is to keep that fine looking watch. DJ is a timeless classic and that one you have is a real looker.

[Cru Jones]

Originally Posted by sellingblackbird

Well Bill my 2 cents is to keep that fine looking watch. DJ is a timeless classic and that one you have is a real looker.

thanks, keith, for the compliment. it is a nice watch, definitely, but, it's been collecting dust for years and year because i'm just not into the TT look.

i've requested advice from TRF in other threads on changing dials, straps, etc., and have received many well-intentioned and passionate posts for why i should keep the watch (a gift), but, i'm still not sure.....just thought i would solicit advice on this RSC point.....

[sellingblackbird]

Good luck my friend. I hope you able to get what you are looking for.

[Puffy]

PM sent Bill

[Ed Rooney]

Hang on to it. TT and yellow gold is starting to come back into style. It sets you apart from the thousands of lemmings wearing chunky SS quartz chronographs and boot-cut jeans.

[ed54]

I'd recommend that you have it serviced, not to increase the amount you'll get when you sell it, but to increase your ability to sell it.
As a recent DJ purchaser, my biggest issue was to find a watch that was verified as genuine. I was willing to pay a bit more to get one that I could have a watchmaker inspect before purchase. A private seller with no record will have the most difficult time finding a buyer. You could sell to a dealer, but then you only get wholesale for the watch.
If you have it serviced, you've got papers that will assure prospective buyers that the watch is genuine. While I don't think a buyer will up the price to cover the full cost of the service, he's more likely to buy, rather than moving on to another seller.

[Cru Jones]

Originally Posted by sellingblackbird

Good luck my friend. I hope you able to get what you are looking for.

thanks! it's a difficult position to be in, i know, LOL, but, i'll muddle through...

Originally Posted by Puffy

PM sent Bill

thank you...i'll be on the look out for it. seems like the PM system is sometimes slow on this site? your new DJ is fantastic. congrats.

Originally Posted by Ed Rooney

Hang on to it. TT and yellow gold is starting to come back into style. It sets you apart from the thousands of lemmings wearing chunky SS quartz chronographs and boot-cut jeans.

thanks....i'm not much of a fashionista, so, if it comes back into fashion, great, but, i just can't get around the SS and gold look....my wife says i'll be happy to have it when i'm retired, but, i doubt my tastes will change THAT much! LOL....we'll see (hopefully!!! LOL....).

Originally Posted by ed54

I'd recommend that you have it serviced, not to increase the amount you'll get when you sell it, but to increase your ability to sell it.
As a recent DJ purchaser, my biggest issue was to find a watch that was verified as genuine. I was willing to pay a bit more to get one that I could have a watchmaker inspect before purchase. A private seller with no record will have the most difficult time finding a buyer. You could sell to a dealer, but then you only get wholesale for the watch.
If you have it serviced, you've got papers that will assure prospective buyers that the watch is genuine. While I don't think a buyer will up the price to cover the full cost of the service, he's more likely to buy, rather than moving on to another seller.

i appreciate these insights very much, thank you. it's true that i have no track record and, without any papers, only my charm to sell it (translation: i'm doomed!!!).

is selling it wholesale to a dealer THAT bad? for my watch, would i be looking at more than a RSC-visit difference in price? thanks....

[padi56]

Originally Posted by ed54

I'd recommend that you have it serviced, not to increase the amount you'll get when you sell it, but to increase your ability to sell it.
As a recent DJ purchaser, my biggest issue was to find a watch that was verified as genuine. I was willing to pay a bit more to get one that I could have a watchmaker inspect before purchase. A private seller with no record will have the most difficult time finding a buyer. You could sell to a dealer, but then you only get wholesale for the watch.
If you have it serviced, you've got papers that will assure prospective buyers that the watch is genuine. While I don't think a buyer will up the price to cover the full cost of the service, he's more likely to buy, rather than moving on to another seller.

X2 and if you dont sell it it will be good for another 5 -10 years.

[hhh007]

In my opinion you may not recoup 100% of the RSC service cost but I think you'd at least recoup a big portion just due to the fact it will look like new after the RSC refinishes it, and the Rolex documentation to go with the watch. I also agree with the others that it will be easier to sell with official RSC papers.

[CKLinLA]

I had a similar dilemma, and opted not to go the RSC service route.

Is using it as a trade-in an option? The key here is that the watch shop accepting
the trade-in will be able to verify authenticity for themselves, unlike private/online
sale.
I had a 1980s Precision date 6694 (no bracelet) I wanted to sell, no paperwork, I opted
to use the watch at Tourneau's in LA as a trade-in (plus cash) for a Breitling. You do
need to figure out the true trade-in value. They assigned a trade-in value of $1400,
but the true value (after reducing for the lower all cash price for the Breitling) was
really about $800.

It still made sense, as I have no sales history here or elsewhere.

[sakuraba]

If you plan to sell to enthusiasts (ie this forum), then an RSC service would be a great selling point.

If you plan to sell on other markets (ie ebay, craigslist, locally, etc), then how about just getting the case and bracelet polished?

Good luck!

[Cru Jones]

Originally Posted by padi56

X2 and if you dont sell it it will be good for another 5 -10 years.

Yes, I hear that, definitely. But, considering it's a safe queen right now (well, actually, more of a "in the wife's jewelry box queen"), I probably won't get it serviced unless/until I either sell it (possibly) or want to wear it (unlikely).

Originally Posted by hhh007

In my opinion you may not recoup 100% of the RSC service cost but I think you'd at least recoup a big portion just due to the fact it will look like new after the RSC refinishes it, and the Rolex documentation to go with the watch. I also agree with the others that it will be easier to sell with official RSC papers.

Originally Posted by CKLinLA

I had a similar dilemma, and opted not to go the RSC service route.

Is using it as a trade-in an option? The key here is that the watch shop accepting
the trade-in will be able to verify authenticity for themselves, unlike private/online
sale.
I had a 1980s Precision date 6694 (no bracelet) I wanted to sell, no paperwork, I opted
to use the watch at Tourneau's in LA as a trade-in (plus cash) for a Breitling. You do
need to figure out the true trade-in value. They assigned a trade-in value of $1400,
but the true value (after reducing for the lower all cash price for the Breitling) was
really about $800.

It still made sense, as I have no sales history here or elsewhere.

Originally Posted by sakuraba

If you plan to sell to enthusiasts (ie this forum), then an RSC service would be a great selling point.

If you plan to sell on other markets (ie ebay, craigslist, locally, etc), then how about just getting the case and bracelet polished?

Good luck!

Thanks all for these thoughts....My "AD" in Paris is not really an AD, more of an "official Rolex store" (the only one in France), so, my guess is they won't take a trade-in (I guess I could ask). I don't have relations with another AD, so I'd be just a walk-in off the street.

Seems like if I want to maximize the value of the watch and ease the private sale process, RSC is 100% the way to go....If I just want some money (but not very much) and have zero hassle, I should go to an AD and see if I can do a trade....

Sounds about right.

Thanks again to everyone!