Air-King going for over retail

[jltait]

I went to a local grey dealer yesterday to try on some various models and get ideas for what could be my next piece. Low and behold they had a new Air-King sitting in the case. While I had my eye on a bluesy I'd never tried on the AK so thought why not, might as well give it a go. To my surprise I liked it.. a lot. It felt like it had almost as much wrist presence and heft on my puny wrist as the submariner, and the colorful pops on the dial appealed to me in person in a way it hadn't in pictures. Asked how much and they said retail, and wouldn't budge so decided to go home and do some research. Bobs has one up with stickers charging slightly ABOVE retail. DSW has new without stickers going for about a grand less. Is the AK now in the same group with all of the other SS sports models as it relates to supply/demand?

[jlafou1]

I don’t think so. At least not in my area of Southern US. I see AKs in every display case!

[Soarer]

AKs are available at ADs. Not hard to find. Slight discount usually possible if you know the AD.

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[77T]

The shortage may go downstream from the Daytona 500 & SS Pepsi - but the demand isn’t there to fetch prices over MSRP.

IMHO, that dealer is simply showing a sucker price and then trying to “deal” down to MSRP.


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[Etschell]

try out a trusted seller here. they have many below msrp that people barely wore.

[Mephist]

A little off topic, but not completely. I have never understood the Air-Kings place in the Rolex lines. First of all you have only one dial no variations like with most of the other Rolex's. Also it is very similar to the Oyster Perpetual, so it could be a 40mm Oyster perpetual. However it has Mercedes hands, so it could also be a 40mm Explorer I. It is like if you crossed Explorer I and Oyster Perpetual you would get the Air-King. Also I do not get why the Air-King is an aviation watch.

Do anyone think Rolex may discontinue the Air-King line at some point?

[Old Geezer]

They now call it “market pricing” instead of gouging.

[Etschell]

Originally Posted by Mephist

A little off topic, but not completely. I have never understood the Air-Kings place in the Rolex lines. First of all you have only one dial no variations like with most of the other Rolex's. Also it is very similar to the Oyster Perpetual, so it could be a 40mm Oyster perpetual. However it has Mercedes hands, so it could also be a 40mm Explorer I. It is like if you crossed Explorer I and Oyster Perpetual you would get the Air-King. Also I do not get why the Air-King is an aviation watch.

Do anyone think Rolex may discontinue the Air-King line at some point?

it appears you own a milguass which i dont understand at all. the air king is just a repackaged milguass.

[Jason71]

You know Rolex prices are going nuts when the new AK is being sold for > MSRP

[Thuilln]

Originally Posted by Jason71

You know Rolex prices are going nuts when the new AK is being sold for > MSRP

Agree!

[Rolexavidfan]

FWIW, I got my Air King at zero discount and had to wait but not as long a wait as the Sub C.


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[Coop13]

A week ago I was offered the new air king at an AD for $5,500 plus tax.

[joshua182]

Lack of AK in HK, but the situation has improved a little with the downturn in equities and depreciating RMB.

[Mephist]

Originally Posted by Etschell

it appears you own a milguass which i dont understand at all. the air king is just a repackaged milguass.

The Milgauss actually has a Faraday cage protecting the movement against magnetic. So it has a unique function. I did not ask the question to offend someone. I asked because I am curios of peoples opinion on it and what makes it an Aviation watch. The GMT can track two time zones, so it makes sense it is an aviation watch. Also it is fairly rare that a Rolex line only has one watch in total. Usually it is several with different dials, bezels and/or bracelets. So that made me think maybe they are discontinuing the Air-King?

[BLNR Nairobi]

Originally Posted by Mephist

The Milgauss actually has a Faraday cage protecting the movement against magnetic. So it has a unique function. I did not ask the question to offend someone. I asked because I am curios of peoples opinion on it and what makes it an Aviation watch. The GMT can track two time zones, so it makes sense it is an aviation watch. Also it is fairly rare that a Rolex line only has one watch in total. Usually it is several with different dials, bezels and/or bracelets. So that made me think maybe they are discontinuing the Air-King?

The new Air King also has a faraday cage ...it is a repackaged Milgaus.

[Tools]

Originally Posted by Mephist

The Milgauss actually has a Faraday cage protecting the movement against magnetic. So it has a unique function. I did not ask the question to offend someone. I asked because I am curios of peoples opinion on it and what makes it an Aviation watch. The GMT can track two time zones, so it makes sense it is an aviation watch. Also it is fairly rare that a Rolex line only has one watch in total. Usually it is several with different dials, bezels and/or bracelets. So that made me think maybe they are discontinuing the Air-King?

The Air-King has been around since the '40s, well before the advent of the GMT, and was considered useful to pilots of the time.

Pilots needed a reliable time-piece for calculating time-and-distance, turns and other navigation chores, and was easily accessible (on the wrist) flying is not all about GMT time. The Air King became a tribute to those pilots, especially military, and has a rich history in aviation.

The new Air Kings use the Milgauss movement because it tolerates higher magnetic fields at altitude and flying in areas of variable flux. You do not want a magnetized watch if you rely on it.

I would say that the Air-King is a better tool for pilots than the GMT, which only gives you another time-zone; one that you already know and what your flight charts tell you.

[RJRJRJ]

They are readily available at ADs. Saw one the other day but there was no discount.

[The Libertine]

Originally Posted by Jason71

You know Rolex prices are going nuts when the new AK is being sold for > MSRP

Truth!

[Tampashooter]

I know an ad in the south that had SEVEN in stock not too long ago. Seven! I go between digging it and not.

[Mephist]

Originally Posted by Tools

The Air-King has been around since the '40s, well before the advent of the GMT, and was considered useful to pilots of the time.

Pilots needed a reliable time-piece for calculating time-and-distance, turns and other navigation chores, and was easily accessible (on the wrist) flying is not all about GMT time. The Air King became a tribute to those pilots, especially military, and has a rich history in aviation.

The new Air Kings use the Milgauss movement because it tolerates higher magnetic fields at altitude and flying in areas of variable flux. You do not want a magnetized watch if you rely on it.

I would say that the Air-King is a better tool for pilots than the GMT, which only gives you another time-zone; one that you already know and what your flight charts tell you.

Thanks for the information very interesting. I did not know that the Air-King used Milgauss movement.

Any guesses to why there is only one option when it comes to the Air-King. It would probably be more popular with 2-3 different dials. Many like the Mercedes hands and also the 40mm is a perfect size for many.

[faaaaaaaasterrrrr]

I love the Air King, but no way in hell would I pay over retail for one.

[hbombkid]

Sounds like did your research and found the answer.

DSW has it for 1k less than MSRP. Sounds like your next step is to buy from him

[tyler1980]

Originally Posted by Old Geezer

They now call it “market pricing” instead of gouging.

regardless of what its called, its the equilibrium price as the secondary market is an efficient market. The retail market price is a made up number with no basis in reality. Some models its too high, and for some its too low. The secondary market sorts all that out. No one complains with the AD arbitrary RRP is too high because you can get a discount.

[Etschell]

Originally Posted by hbombkid

Sounds like did your research and found the answer.

DSW has it for 1k less than MSRP. Sounds like your next step is to buy from him

takuya has one bnib for 5875.

[hbombkid]

Originally Posted by Etschell

takuya has one bnib for 5875.

Sounds like me this is a model you don’t dare buy from an AD at MSRP hehe

[Etschell]

Originally Posted by hbombkid

Sounds like me this is a model you don’t dare buy from an AD at MSRP hehe

nope

[Hamstur]

Originally Posted by Mephist

Any guesses to why there is only one option when it comes to the Air-King. It would probably be more popular with 2-3 different dials. Many like the Mercedes hands and also the 40mm is a perfect size for many.

As 2 people mentioned in reply to you above ... the AK is part of the Migauss line vs the OP line.

Exactly how the Explorer1 is a one-off variant of the OP39, but instead of going upstream in price, it's offered for less.

Clear vs green glass. Brushed vs polished lugs. Still get a EasyLink extension. Oysterclasp vs Oysterlock. Mercedes style sportvs DateJust style hands. etc.

I have both the AK and Exp1 ... and can say for me, the AK gets much more wrist time. As you know since you have a MG, it wears nothing like a OP39/Exp1.

Personally, I think we're overdue for a sporterized/tool version of the DJ41.

[henrylee]

AK, OP39, and Explorers are last SS Rolex's that are still available in AD display cases.

[Singslinger]

Originally Posted by Soarer

AKs are available at ADs. Not hard to find. Slight discount usually possible if you know the AD.

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Ditto for Singapore.