Gotta Share This With Ya!

[SPACE-DWELLER]

I rarely post in this section, but I just got to share a recent fake Rolex spotting of mine with you.

Here goes:

This Saturday, I went to the local flea market as I normally do if I have a day off that day. Then I see a young man wearing a Rolex. He is about to pay for something, and as he hands over the money, I spot a watch on his (right) wrist..... it looks like the SS GMT IIc!

First one I have seen in the wild on another person's wrist than my own, so I was thrilled!

I could not help myself, so I had to comment on his watch, initially thinking it was real. I wanted to share my thoughts on this watch since I have owned it myself.

We had a talk, and the guy let me handle his watch.

Then I realise it's a FAKE! But quite a "good" fake (hate to use the adjective "good" about ANY fakes!) - at least seen from a distance.

Here were the specs of it which made me realise it was a fake:

• Cyclops was magnifying the date too MUCH (not to little, as often seen of fakes).
  
• "Ceramic bezel" was smaller in diametre, and just made of anodized Aluminium like the GMT II 1671X's.
  
• SEL (and other links, for that matter) were slightly rounded off at the junctions and generally badly fitted.
  
• Overall weight of the watch was wrong.
  
• The fake was less thick than the real one (the fake was of about the same thickness of the Sub Date, I would say).
  
• Automatic movt. (probably ETA).
  
• Noisy bracelet.
  
• Clasp was like the NEW Oyster bracelet, but with NO "OysterLock" flip-over security clasp. The clasp sported all "right" markings such as the swirled Rolex logo, a "clasp code" and also "72200" as the bracelet ref. number.
  
• The font was actually okay (glossy, white and not printed), but the green of the "GMT Master" was wrong, so was the green of the GMT hand.
  
• The crystal had a green-ish hue to its edge. I suspect it was made of ordinary mineral glass, not sapphire.
  
• The dial was "semi-maxi" like the one of the Sub Date LV: Minute hand is maxi, hour hand is normal size. On the real GMT IIc, both hands are maxi.
  
• The watch did sport the "RBR" (Rolex Branded Rehaut), but the "ROLEXROLEX" was held in too large fonts. The rehaut was satin finished, not mirror edged, not on genuine Rolex watches.
  
• The watch also had a "serial number" engraved at six on the rehaut. The number was "D23419" (one number missing: real serial numbers have SIX numbers after the letter).

When I told him at was a fake, he replied: "How can you see that"?

I then told him the things that I listed above.

He was very kind and admitted it was a fake. No pretense. He also told me that he had bought it from a fake site in the UK. Cannot recall the name of the site, but it was something with "exquisite" as far as I remember.

[pwrslider]

Amazing....you would think that the fakemasters would at least have a correct serial # letter......a "D" for a IIc.......that's funny!

[Ed Rooney]

They generally use components for as many watches as possible. That case was probably used for fake Subs, GMT's, SD's and YM's. For a long time the fakes all had an R serial number.

[stevemulholland3]

wow,I would have had a hard time telling him it was a fake to his face,I usually dont like confrontation in public.this has happened to me in the past with people trying to pass of fakes in my presence.I usually just hand them back their watch and in the middle of their sentence I will just politely excuse myself.

[shedlock2000]

Originally Posted by stevemulholland3

wow,I would have had a hard time telling him it was a fake to his face,I usually dont like confrontation in public.this has happened to me in the past with people trying to pass of fakes in my presence.I usually just hand them back their watch and in the middle of their sentence I will just politely excuse myself.

Same here, only come across the one, and was a little awkward moment, i think i complimented the guy on how the fake was fairly accurate, and quite a 'good' fake to relieve the awkwardness.

[topcat30093]

Originally Posted by pwrslider

Amazing....you would think that the fakemasters would at least have a correct serial # letter......a "D" for a IIc.......that's funny!

Good point.
But at least it makes it easy for us to recognise it.