Rolex's Success Factors

If I were asked what is best in terms of Function, value, Cost of ownership of a watch,

I think that will be Rolex.

Why not as the money you spend would be having a lot of quality in return.

And That is a very reliable watch for your Daily uses.

HK Snob

How to tell my Rolex Box is Fake or Authenic or not?

There are fake Rolex Box in the market, and some of them is very easy to tell for his colour is very much different with the original Rolex Box.

But there are Class A copy cat that is very close to the original design in dimension, colour and some of the details.

However Fake is Fake....

Here we are looking at the difference between an Authentic Rolex Box and a Counterfeit.

If There is no apple to apple comparison, I can tell you that the colour is so alike.

The Green Tick is original Rolex Box whilst the Red Cross is Fake.

The Original Box cover has a more clearer stamping mark of the Rolex icon.

The PVC foam sheet is different, original one has horizontal flow lines whereas fake one is having a

lot of small dot marks

Check the inner box paper folding , this is easy to be found... just a closer look. However I think onlt this one has such a obvious defect.

Check the printing quality.

This is obvious, this is hard to copy as original one has a concealed paper ends.

The Original Pillow is fuller, smoother and even seam line.

There is a step at the top of the tray which is obvious.

Good Quality cannot be copy easily. this is the authentic one, the cutting edge is sharp and clear.

The Rolex crown lies flat on the box surface leaving no gaps.

The purpose of this is to help you to identify if the box is fake or not when you buy Rolex not from a very reliable sources or not from an AD.

However, as far as I know, even some of the young Rolex Sales managers cannot tell if he is given just the fake box alone.

If the Box is fake, so as there watch , so you need to beware.

I hope it help you to identify the box, it makes you spending money without worrying buying counterfeits.

HK Snob

www.hongkongwatchfever.com has just been launched

Dear All,


the WWW.HongKongWatchFever.com has just been launched,
more pictures, watch on sale, watch wanted would be published later.


This is a announcement only, we are working on that now.


HK Snob

New Rolex AD operations in Hong Kong

There has been a lot new operations in Rolex HK, they are:

1. Required to remove all Sticker on the watch since Nov 2018.

Since Feb 2019.

1. Required to remove the sticker on the Rolex.

2. Required to Register the name of the Buyer as on the Credit card on the warranty card of the Rolex.

3. Required to remove one or two links fir your wrist.

4. We have to put the watch without stickers, the removed stickers, the warranty card with name printed on and written with the date of purchase, Take a picture and Whatsapp to Rolex Headquarters office.

5. The Watch Buyer must wear the watch out of the Rolex AD entrance.

I don't know about your country? UK., Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Japan, are they strict as Hong Kong?

HK Snob

The Story of Rolex Submariner Onyx

The Story of Submariner Onyx

In my entire two decades of watch collection I have seen two Submariner Onyx and one Submariner Lapis Blue under same the Ref 16618. They are all in solid 18KT Gold.

The Submariner Lapis was on my wrist some 7 years ago one old friend sold me with HK$130,000 in a small restaurant in Tsim Sha Tsui.

I did not take that instead I bought a Daytona in Yellow Gold 15628 with HK$130,000!- Big mistakes!

That was my first RolexRegret as the watch was taken for auction and sold in that year at HK$730,000.

In 2014, the same guy sold me another Submariner Onyx 16618 at HK$180,000 but I hesitated in five minuets the watch was sold to an owner of a Pawn Shop in cash…. So I had not more chance to see that again until 2017 the same guy sold me another Submariner Onyx this time I did not think for a second and I not even asked how much I say I buy it…

Next day to went to borrow money from one of my mistresses for that watch….and I started to feel great and happy about it…and You have read probably about the haunted story that Watch owner died when My watch was having problem and stopped in the same week!? Weird right!?

 

Well I sold it to a rich man at HK380,000 and after less then month he sold me back again as he had financial issue and he had to run to Japan he lost 10% of the money and I got the Submariner Onyx again.

Well, Later I sold it to my friend at HK$240,000 and he had been a very Happy time with the watch and he showed to many dealer and even Rolex Service centre asking for proofing it and no one seemed had seen such a watch there. Of course the watch was authenticated later after that they have checked the serial number of that watch was originated with a rare Onyx Dial from HQs of Rolex.

A few buyers had asked about the watch and no one give a step forward and most are tire kickers though some are real collectors who know about it, one mentioned that Onyx dial must come with gold lines instead of white… Another one claimed that the bezel insert colour yellow is too fake!
Another one say there is no such Onyx dial on submariner. They must just want to get it at cheaper which is pretty common in Hong Kong…

At last friend of mine had been contacted by an American who is the Toyota Agent at Utah… very knowledgeable and he has the Submariner Lapis Blue… so within 30 minutes of communication, the deal was set and next day my friend received over HK$3X0,000 and the watch was then sent on courier to USA...

 

Moral of this articles is, there are many Rolex varieties that even Rolex Service centre people haven’t seen it. There are many things we need to earn from the gurus and experts and try to explore more we can as a Watch Hunter…

In HK colloquial saying: “Never be wrong to buy expensive…. but always a mistake bought it cheap..!”

Worth a Thought!

HK Snob

Patek Philippe Ref 5711 Would reach another new High price in 2019

Getty Picture

Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711/5712 would reach HK$650,000 in the year. 

Ask the average Peron what is the most luxurious watch is and he or she might give you a reply of “Rolex”.

There is another brand making his way into the mainstream because of its record setting and resale price and rising amongst the culture setting of celebrity and influence of certain Hip-hop artists.

That is no question the Patek Philippe…Patek Philippe is religion say some of the international head of auction houses.

Patek Philippe represents the finest watch humankind can make since it was founded in 1839.

The brand has set up itself apart from all others with a unique combination of craftsmanship, function, style and some of the most complicated mechanical watches.

With small volume of watches made that one year Production Volume of Rolex would be more than the total number of all watches Patek Philippe made over their entire 180 years of history.

Within one year the price of Nautilus Ref 5712 Blue was increasing from HK$440,000 to current price of HK$500,000, note that the SRP is just HK$298,740.

What do you think if there is another surge of price in end of 2019, everything goes up must come down, right.

But I think it is reaching a very high price , well, speculator is still looking for another price up whilst Patek only make less the 2,000 such watches a year.

Patek Philippe Produces 50,000 -60,000 watches a year and there are 10-12000 steel watches and most of them are Twenty Fours and there are 441 AD World Wide from Patek.com and here I assuming every AD may get 2 X 5711 and 2X 5712 a year.

That means they produce about 2,000 of 5711/5712 total mix in a year, and may be less than 50% in Blue Dial.

So with this equation on, base on the current buying habit and people spending ability, Hong Kong people will be paying premiums even up to HK$650,000 for a such a watch.

Don’t quote my word as this is purely more estimation and I have long forgotten to think of this two animals already since I got on 5712 at SRP in May 2018 after waiting for 2 weeks, patiently…

I still expanding collection of Patek more on white gold or yellow gold simple watch function, partly due to my financial ability to, and expensive service charges on complicated watches.

Of course that is that is purely my personal habit, if you can afford a 6m Patek and a 4m Lambor, you are not likely the frequent reader of this blog…

HK Snob

Black dial H. Moser & Cie

Black dial H. Moser & Cie

A typical minimalist returns to the fundamentals of traditional watchmaking with a timepiece removing hands from the dial, a Dark Dial, telling time only by Its Repeater. A new manual-winding HMC 901 form calibre, with its delicately hand-decorated bridges and plates. Sorry that I will not spend this kind of money buying a watch which is 80% alike a Apple Watch.

HK Snob

Courtesy of FHH

New Ferdinand Berthoud 2019

Ferdinand Berthoud

Directly inspired by an astronomical pocket watch that was designed by Ferdinand Berthoud then assembled in Paris, in 1806, by his pupil, Jean Martin, the Chronomètre FB1 – Oeuvre d'Or lavishes new decorations on the very first watch by Chronométrie Ferdinand Berthoud. The gold dial is hand-patinated with line engraving. Turning the watch over reveals the collection's first pyramid-motif decoration, cut free-hand with a graver across the three half-bridges. Last but not least, the sides of the white gold case are discreetly adorned with baguette diamonds, making this the first gem-set case from the brand. Beneath this new aesthetic, a tribute to a watchmaking legacy, lies a precision movement whose many technical tours de force include a tourbillon with a fusee-and-chain constant-force transmission.

HK Snob

Courtesy of FHH

New Piaget 2019

The Limelight Gala's asymmetrical curves together with its retro-contemporary style have made this one of the brand's iconic collections. The hand-engraved bracelet on this new model is a reminder that Piaget is also a specialist in textured gold. Its "Décor Palace" pattern is a hallmark of several outstanding Piaget watches since the 1960s. This particular tour de force by the brand's artisans is beautifully paired with a banded dark green malachite dial. A cascade of diamonds, in a new "open" setting, around the bezel and along the lugs takes advantage of larger stones that appear to hold each other in place.

Piaget has imagined how light and shade can play on the scales of an exotic animal, and reproduced this rippling effect in pink gold on the Extremely Lady watch, which adds to an already rich collection of textures inspired by nature and wrought in gold. Each scale is brushed by hand, in delicate touches and with minute differences in angle and pressure. The result is a shimmering bracelet whose scale decoration continues on the gold dial, a nod to the signature aesthetic of Piaget's 1960s and 1970s watches. The bezel, set with 24 brilliant-cut diamonds (1.46 carats) and the pink tone of the gold lend a vintage touch to this charmingly elegant watch.

To me this is one of the five most beautiful lady watches in the year.

Ever since the manual-wind 9P calibre, released in 1957 and just 2mm high. Piaget needs no introduction as a master of extra-thin movements. During the 1960s, the brand was also acclaimed for its original hardstone dials. This year, it carries on both traditions with the introduction of three models featuring meteorite dials in its Altiplano collection. The meteorite has been given a galvanic treatment to impart a golden, blue or anthracite colour, depending on the model. The blue dial version also has 72 diamonds (approximately 1 carat) around the bezel. Piaget has equipped these 40mm-diameter watches with the automatic-winding 1203P calibre, which stands barely 3mm high. All three are proposed as limited editions.

I was once a fan of Piaget especially those special hardstone dial, Onyx, tiger eyes. I am still a fan of Piaget too.

HK Snob

Courtesy of FHH

Rolex Day Date 2019

Rolex presents its iconic Oyster Perpetual Day-Date with a fresh aesthetic and a new-generation mechanical movement, Calibre 3255, inside a 40 mm case. From a design perspective, this new Day-Date features refined lugs and case middle, a large dial opening, and an exclusive return to the President bracelet that is more closely integrated into the Oyster case. The movement has COSC certification (Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres) yet in fact complies with precision criteria that are twice as exacting. It incorporates the patented Chronergy escapement which combines high energy efficiency with dependability. Made from nickel-phosphorus, it is also insensitive to magnetic interference. The oscillator has an optimized blue Parachrom balance spring. New barrel architecture and the escapement's greater efficiency ensure a power reserve of 70 hours.

HK Snob

Courtesy of FHH