would a Rolex shop keep my snide if I took it in?
Discussion
there's a few articles on this on the net but nothing to recent.
bought a genuine fake - love that term - from Egypt. Rolex submariner 2024. paid £90. got fitted in the shop and a nice fit. but as it was warm wrist was swelled up bit. now back in cold uk and its to big. so needs a link out.
was in Meadowhall and took it into beaver brooks or similar and asked to take a link out. would happily pay. got told they won't do it, need to go to Rolex shop.
so went in and asked if they could take a link out. they said everyone was busy but pop back in 30mins. tbf they were really polite etc. asked how much it would be and they said free. as above didn't want it for free, I'd happily pay.
when someone says 'free' to me I do more digging. so I'm online, as the wife's shops, and I come across the posts saying the Rolex AD will keep/smash/call the police if you present a fake.
as it goes I aired on the side of caution and will take it my local market to get done for £10.
told the story to a few (flash) lads in the gym will real ones etc and we had a good argument over it.
firstly, could they tell it was fake? I understand a repair centre could etc but to take a link out you won't see inside the watch?
second if it is fake its still mine? I could have unwittingly bought a fake. a stolen watch I could understand been kept - just like a stolen car etc - but its just a pretend Rolex?
like I said, either way I bottled it and didn't take it in!
bought a genuine fake - love that term - from Egypt. Rolex submariner 2024. paid £90. got fitted in the shop and a nice fit. but as it was warm wrist was swelled up bit. now back in cold uk and its to big. so needs a link out.
was in Meadowhall and took it into beaver brooks or similar and asked to take a link out. would happily pay. got told they won't do it, need to go to Rolex shop.
so went in and asked if they could take a link out. they said everyone was busy but pop back in 30mins. tbf they were really polite etc. asked how much it would be and they said free. as above didn't want it for free, I'd happily pay.
when someone says 'free' to me I do more digging. so I'm online, as the wife's shops, and I come across the posts saying the Rolex AD will keep/smash/call the police if you present a fake.
as it goes I aired on the side of caution and will take it my local market to get done for £10.
told the story to a few (flash) lads in the gym will real ones etc and we had a good argument over it.
firstly, could they tell it was fake? I understand a repair centre could etc but to take a link out you won't see inside the watch?
second if it is fake its still mine? I could have unwittingly bought a fake. a stolen watch I could understand been kept - just like a stolen car etc - but its just a pretend Rolex?
like I said, either way I bottled it and didn't take it in!
I recall this was discussed recently on here. IIRC there are no laws under which a dealer could relieve you of your property and destroy it - it is not illegal to own replica items in the UK.
Just go the the guy in the market and get it done for a tenner. No reason to go to a ££££ shop at all, that is just asking to create a potentially awkward situation unnecessarily. You could even buy the kit to do it yourself if you own a number of watches and purchase regularly - CousinsUK has some good kits for reasonable money.
Just go the the guy in the market and get it done for a tenner. No reason to go to a ££££ shop at all, that is just asking to create a potentially awkward situation unnecessarily. You could even buy the kit to do it yourself if you own a number of watches and purchase regularly - CousinsUK has some good kits for reasonable money.
Geertsen said:
I think an authorised dealer would know a £90 Rolex wasn’t real when taken off and handed to them. I’d imagine they’d just tell you they can’t work on it and hand it back to you. If it was a £500+ replica they may not realise and just change the link.
Most probably could tell as soon as you walk in / get a glimpse of it. One of my Local AD's for Tudor immediately spotted my Smiley ETA Black Bay Noir when I went in to look at a Tudor Ranger they had in the window. She commented on never having seen one in person before (they didn't start stocking Tudors until the in house movement version came out) and asked if she could have a look / hold of it. They won't confiscate it or anything like that (may be different in other countries) - they'd likely just tell you to FRO if it is an AD.
You can do it yourself. If you can lace your shoes, you can change a link or adjust the clasp (usually it doesn't need a whole link for warm/cold changes).
An AD would recognize a £90 fake, easily. A £500 fake and just seeing the front of house staff in a multi-brand shop - you may get away with it.
I'd be fascinated to see it. Bearing in mind £90 includes tourist tax, seller's mark-up, etc. it sounds like it probably doesn't bother 'replicating' things.
You can do it yourself. If you can lace your shoes, you can change a link or adjust the clasp (usually it doesn't need a whole link for warm/cold changes).
An AD would recognize a £90 fake, easily. A £500 fake and just seeing the front of house staff in a multi-brand shop - you may get away with it.
I'd be fascinated to see it. Bearing in mind £90 includes tourist tax, seller's mark-up, etc. it sounds like it probably doesn't bother 'replicating' things.
I'm struggling to understand why you would take an obviously counterfeit product to an authorised dealer of the genuine product and ask them for help? It's like going to a police station to ask them to help hide a murder weapon. Rolex AD's look after Rolex buyers, even if the watch wasn't bought from them they'll offer you a seat and a drink and treat you well - adjusting straps for free is part of the whole deal.
Taking a link out of a bracelet is easy - its not like you'll be losing value if you accidentally scratch a link in your souk-special.
Taking a link out of a bracelet is easy - its not like you'll be losing value if you accidentally scratch a link in your souk-special.
Geertsen said:
I think an authorised dealer would know a £90 Rolex wasn’t real when taken off and handed to them. I’d imagine they’d just tell you they can’t work on it and hand it back to you. If it was a £500+ replica they may not realise and just change the link.
And yet once when I was trying on something, the associate said the (very genuine) Reverso I was wearing was a great replica, and only fell short because it was quartz, and that they also never made one with the colour dial I have 
. This place was, as well as lots of other brands, a JLC authorised dealer!Also had a Louis Vuitton associate once say a (again, very genuine) bag was 'not made by us' when took it in after one of the rivets popped....took it to LV in a different major city a few days later and was fixed on the spot, for free, with a profuse apology.
Many dealers - or more accurately the workers there - don't know their stuff at all.
thanks for all the replies!
again at gym tonight the argument continued on the back of these responses!!
the genuine fakes are fantastic these days, visional its identical to a real. like I said some of the lads have real ones and you can't tell. same weight, same movement.
one lad said every piece of a Rolex is laser etched and these would be on the links and you can't see them with ur eye!?
its not my world as a)I'm to poor and b) to tight even if I had the money!!
again at gym tonight the argument continued on the back of these responses!!
the genuine fakes are fantastic these days, visional its identical to a real. like I said some of the lads have real ones and you can't tell. same weight, same movement.
one lad said every piece of a Rolex is laser etched and these would be on the links and you can't see them with ur eye!?
its not my world as a)I'm to poor and b) to tight even if I had the money!!
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