Hasaf 0 Posted June 27, 2011 (edited) Hello, I am just taking a moment to introduce myself. I am an American living in P.R. China (If anyone needs an MBA with strong technical skills, send me some contact info). I have been here, off and on, since 2006 While here, fake watches have become a bit of an interest. As I said in another forum: Yes, I realize that they are real in the sense that they keep time; however, the label on them is fake. For simplicity, I will refer to them as fake watches. I have ended up purchasing several and learning as I go. Most of them I have used as gifts, or just put away. For daily use I still use my Citizen eco-drive. Part of the reason that I purchase the watches is that it gives me a reason to wander around when I am visiting a city, looking for good replicas. I stumbled across this forum while doing research on the ETA 7750 clone movement. Someone mentioned that I was probably looking at that movement when I posted this in an entirely unrelated forum: I was at the Pearl Market in Beijing this weekend with a short-timer and he was looking at fake watches. I showed him how the stopwatch function does not work correctly on the fakes. For those who are not aware, most fake watches that have multiple dials do not work correctly. The buttons that should operate the stopwatch functions do not do that, instead they operate a calendar function that does not exist on a real watch. I was using my, real watch, with tachymeter, to show how the watch should function. The sales woman than pulled out a TAG that worked correctly. I was surprised that she had one that worked correctly and that the only watches that had the correct function were fake TAGs’. I would expect to see this movement in other fakes soon. So, one method for quickly identifying fakes is going away. Just something to be aware of. This was posted in a forum that had noting at all to do with watches; however, there was a watch discussion underway. In a response, the movement number was mentioned so I started doing a bit more digging. That landed me here. So, like I said, this is just me introducing myself. If I would like anything form this forum, it would be greater guidance in separating the wheat form the chaff. By this I mean to enhance my ability in identifying quality replicas when I am looking at them. The bad is easy to spot, I have seen things so bad it is just plain weird; things like "buttons" that are merely castings in the metal. I have seen lumpy casting and painted "gold." However, I have also seen some pretty good watches. I would like to have the knowledge that be a more discerning buyer when I am looking at watches at the markets. I am at the point that I am looking only at watches that have good, clear, markings and proper, crisp, functioning. However, there is more than that to spoting a good replica. This is where I am seeking guidance. Edited June 27, 2011 by Hasaf Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tonyrome0225 0 Posted June 27, 2011 Hello, I am just taking a moment to introduce myself. I am an American living in P.R. China (If anyone needs an MBA with strong technical skills, send me some contact info). I have been here, off and on, since 2006 While here, fake watches have become a bit of an interest. As I said in another forum: Yes, I realize that they are real in the sense that they keep time; however, the label on them is fake. For simplicity, I will refer to them as fake watches. I have ended up purchasing several and learning as I go. Most of them I have used as gifts, or just put away. For daily use I still use my Citizen eco-drive. Part of the reason that I purchase the watches is that it gives me a reason to wander around when I am visiting a city, looking for good replicas. I stumbled across this forum while doing research on the ETA 7750 clone movement. Someone mentioned that I was probably looking at that movement when I posted this in an entirely unrelated forum: I was at the Pearl Market in Beijing this weekend with a short-timer and he was looking at fake watches. I showed him how the stopwatch function does not work correctly on the fakes. For those who are not aware, most fake watches that have multiple dials do not work correctly. The buttons that should operate the stopwatch functions do not do that, instead they operate a calendar function that does not exist on a real watch. I was using my, real watch, with tachymeter, to show how the watch should function. The sales woman than pulled out a TAG that worked correctly. I was surprised that she had one that worked correctly and that the only watches that had the correct function were fake TAGs’. I would expect to see this movement in other fakes soon. So, one method for quickly identifying fakes is going away. Just something to be aware of. This was posted in a forum that had noting at all to do with watches; however, there was a watch discussion underway. In a response, the movement number was mentioned so I started doing a bit more digging. That landed me here. So, like I said, this is just me introducing myself. If I would like anything form this forum, it would be greater guidance in separating the wheat form the chaff. By this I mean to enhance my ability in identifying quality replicas when I am looking at them. The bad is easy to spot, I have seen things so bad it is just plain weird; things like "buttons" that are merely castings in the metal. I have seen lumpy casting and painted "gold." However, I have also seen some pretty good watches. I would like to have the knowledge that be a more discerning buyer when I am looking at watches at the markets. I am at the point that I am looking only at watches that have good, clear, markings and proper, crisp, functioning. However, there is more than that to spoting a good replica. This is where I am seeking guidance. i was just talking to some of the folks on this forum regarding the asian Valjoux 7750 movement. I was told the chronographs are suspect when it comes to the second subdial @ 6:00 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hasaf 0 Posted June 27, 2011 i was just talking to some of the folks on this forum regarding the asian Valjoux 7750 movement. I was told the chronographs are suspect when it comes to the second subdial @ 6:00 Can you expand on what this means? Is this a functional issue or a replication issue? Both? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 81 Posted June 27, 2011 i was just talking to some of the folks on this forum regarding the asian Valjoux 7750 movement. I was told the chronographs are suspect when it comes to the second subdial @ 6:00 Can you expand on what this means? Is this a functional issue or a replication issue? Both? The A7750 has a number of issues (mostly relating to the fact that the movement is a little delicate and parts are not generally available). However, as a rule, it's pretty reliable and these issues only become serious with secs@6 or secs@12 subdial configurations. The default position for the seconds subdial on this movement is at the nine o'clock position. To provide secs@6 or 12, extra gearing must be added to the movement, which adds a significant amount of drag and adversely affects reliability. There are a number of techniques that can be used to improve running, but ultimately if you buy one of these modified movements, you're going to have to be prepared for problems. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dingle 57 Posted June 27, 2011 welcome to the nuthouse Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
opus9 0 Posted June 27, 2011 i was just talking to some of the folks on this forum regarding the asian Valjoux 7750 movement. I was told the chronographs are suspect when it comes to the second subdial @ 6:00 Can you expand on what this means? Is this a functional issue or a replication issue? Both? The A7750 has a number of issues (mostly relating to the fact that the movement is a little delicate and parts are not generally available). However, as a rule, it's pretty reliable and these issues only become serious with secs@6 or secs@12 subdial configurations. The default position for the seconds subdial on this movement is at the nine o'clock position. To provide secs@6 or 12, extra gearing must be added to the movement, which adds a significant amount of drag and adversely affects reliability. There are a number of techniques that can be used to improve running, but ultimately if you buy one of these modified movements, you're going to have to be prepared for problems. Your latter comment 'be prepared for problems' what if you never use the chrono, but buy it for the design..is it more reliable then? regards opus Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Member X 91 Posted June 27, 2011 The running seconds at 12 or 6 is the problem - that's what needs the extra transfer gears, and as the seconds are always running when the watch is, you can't really escape it! lol Robert has some new versions with extra jewels that seem to be doing better, but you should always buy while being aware of the issues so you don't get a surprise later :P lol Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
