November 06, 2004, 12:57
Lindell V. RiddleFakes abound these days and they're getting tough to spot. I recently spoke at some length with a Rolex expert who told me a very interesting story.
Seems a pilot who lived in his town dropped off a watch for evaluation. It appeared to be a current model Stainless and 18K Rolex Submariner. Our guy checked all the usual numbers and examined every detail. The watch was absolutely flawless in every respect. All comparisons side by side with a known genuine article from his inventory revealed no discrepancies. Timing was impeccable, flat line on the timing machine, that watch truly outstanding. Apparently the watch in question was the genuine article!
But when the owner came back he revealed the purchase price in Italy was under a thousand dollars in US Currency. Could it be he bought the real deal for a small fraction of its value? Upon opening the back, everything looked right at first. Upon further examination the movement turned out to be an ETA modified to appear like the Rolex movement. In fact our guy said it actually outperformed the genuine Rolex in time-keeping abilities!
So there you have it Greg... I'm no expert, but in answer to you question... perhaps the only way is to be sure of authenticity is by buying direct from an authorized dealer. Even then, can you ever really know for sure?
Lindell
