Okay, so, I’ve been wanting a Rolex Submariner for a while now, you know, the classic no-date black one. But getting your hands on a real one from an authorized dealer? Forget about it! I heard from some guys that the waiting lists are insane, like, years long for some models. I even heard that the Rolex Datejust, which is supposed to be easier to get, still has a waiting time of 6 to 18 months. Can you believe that? And the Oyster Perpetual? Around 8 to 12 months! It’s crazy.
So, I started looking into alternatives. I mean, I just want the look, right? I went down this rabbit hole of high imitation watches, and let me tell you, it’s a whole world out there. I stumbled upon this website, Catawiki, which seems to be a marketplace for special items, and they had some fake Rolexes listed. I’m not gonna drop any names, but there were some sellers on there that looked pretty legit.
After some digging, I found a seller that had this high imitation Rolex No-Date Black Submariner. And it was a pretty good fake, not gonna lie. I mean, from a distance, you probably wouldn’t even know. It had the right weight to it, around 130 grams I guess, which is similar to the two-tone Submariner, though this one was all steel. The bezel, the crown, the links, it all looked pretty spot on.
I started messaging the seller back and forth, asking all sorts of questions. I wanted to make sure I wasn’t getting ripped off, you know? After a few days of back and forth, I decided to pull the trigger. I mean, the price was way cheaper than the real deal, and I figured, why not?
The watch arrived a couple of weeks later, and I was pretty stoked. I compared it to pictures of the real Submariner online, and man, it was really close. I wore it out to a bar with some buddies, and no one even batted an eye. They all thought it was the real thing!
- The Purchase: I found it on this website which is like a market for special objects.
- The Negotiation: Talked to the seller, asked a bunch of questions, felt him out. Seemed okay.
- The Wait: Took a couple of weeks to get here. I was checking the tracking every day.
- The Unboxing: Finally, it arrived! I opened it up like a kid on Christmas.
- The Result: It looked amazing, felt good on the wrist, and fooled everyone.
Now, I know some people are gonna judge, saying it’s not the real deal, it’s unethical, whatever. But honestly, I’m happy with it. I got the look I wanted without having to sell a kidney. And you know what? I learned a lot about watches in the process. Like, did you know that the Rolex Submariner reference 5517 with its maxi dial is super rare? They only made 1,500 of them! This whole experience has been an adventure. I got the watch I wanted, and that’s all that matters to me. I got what I wanted. It’s good enough for me.
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