Queries about buying a pre-owned watch

[edsonchan]

Hi brothers,

This is my first time and I have decided to purchase a 14060M from a 2nd hand dealer in Singapore.
This piece is without any papers. I have a few questions in my mind that I would like to see if anyone can help

1. I will be doing an authentification at RSC at my own cost. What is the procedure? Will I be getting any black and white from them?

2. If RSC inform me that the watch requires any repair or services, do I bring the watch back to the dealer or do I just have the bear all services and repair charges by myself just because I am not getting from AD?

3. If the watch is report stolen before at RSC, will I be getting the watch back? What will happen?

Thank you guys for reading and giving this inexperience lad a hand.

[Darkangel]

Hi brothers,

This is my first time and I have decided to purchase a 14060M from a 2nd hand dealer in Singapore.
This piece is without any papers. I have a few questions in my mind that I would like to see if anyone can help

1. I will be doing an authentification at RSC at my own cost. What is the procedure? Will I be getting any black and white from them?

2. If RSC inform me that the watch requires any repair or services, do I bring the watch back to the dealer or do I just have the bear all services and repair charges by myself just because I am not getting from AD?

3. If the watch is report stolen before at RSC, will I be getting the watch back? What will happen?

Thank you guys for reading and giving this inexperience lad a hand.

1. Why must you go and verify it? Why don't you trust the dealer? There is no cert or wad to say...this watch has gone through verification and is therefore authentic. You will only get a receipt for paying $75....

2. You have the ultimate choice to service or not....no obligations. But usually they won't tell you that la. Any service charges...you pay. But of course u to go outside do is cheaper...

3. No you won't get your watch back. They will detain you and the watch...and be prepared to go drink lots of kopi at police station. Well chances of this happening is slim,as slim as striking toto first prize.

[seiko.citizen]

rolex once detailed my father because the name didnt tally with the original owner, but after some time on the phone and cross checking details all was good

[edsonchan]

1. Why must you go and verify it? Why don't you trust the dealer? There is no cert or wad to say...this watch has gone through verification and is therefore authentic. You will only get a receipt for paying $75....

2. You have the ultimate choice to service or not....no obligations. But usually they won't tell you that la. Any service charges...you pay. But of course u to go outside do is cheaper...

3. No you won't get your watch back. They will detain you and the watch...and be prepared to go drink lots of kopi at police station. Well chances of this happening is slim,as slim as striking toto first prize.

Thank you Darkngel,

2. Does it mean that the 2nd hand dealer will not warranty the goods if there are any services needed after purchase?

3. Why do you think that the chances of this happening is low? Nobody report? If it happen, does my receipt of the 2nd hand dealer help in any way? I definitely wouldn't want myself to waste my time at the police station.

Thank you once again.

[Reborn]

a. Better buy with papers, because if you want to sell later, the buyer will ask the same questions you are asking now. Very troublesome. No need to authenticate unless you do not know the dealer well or if the dealer has a bad reputation in the market. In the first place, if the dealer has a doubtful reputation, I am sure you will not want to buy from that dealer.

b. When you buy a used Rolex, you usually have to bear the cost of servicing. You are after all buying a used watch. However, if there is something seriously wrong with the watch, say the Rotor is damaged or something, I think the seller has an obligation to compensate you, especially when he/she claims watch was in good working condition when it was sold to you.

c. Stolen watches will of course be confiscated by RSC. When I buy from dealers, I insist on them putting the case number on the receipt to protect myself. If any dealer sold you a stolen watch and you have the receipt to prove it, the police will be looking for them, not you. But it could take some time before you get your money back. So, the golden rule is to only buy from shops or collectors with good reputation.

d. The rule of thumb is always to buy something at the correct price. If something is too cheap, it is usually fishy. Unless of course, the person selling the watch needs the money badly and don't mind losing money on the watch.

My 2 cents.

[Darkangel]

Thank you Darkngel,

2. Does it mean that the 2nd hand dealer will not warranty the goods if there are any services needed after purchase?

3. Why do you think that the chances of this happening is low? Nobody report? If it happen, does my receipt of the 2nd hand dealer help in any way? I definitely wouldn't want myself to waste my time at the police station.

Thank you once again.

2. It's up to the dealer. Some they give 1 year warrenty from them. If watch is still within warrenty period by Rolex then yes you can bring back to Rolex.

3. Why ah? Well,it's usually stolen goods are sold overseas instead of here. People do report...but how many actually bring a stolen Rolex to RSC unknowingly?

I won't touch on this anymore...well simply because...it's really rare. It's like striking 10m TOTO and only 1 share.

a. Better buy with papers, because if you want to sell later, the buyer will ask the same questions you are asking now. Very troublesome. No need to authenticate unless you do not know the dealer well or if the dealer has a bad reputation in the market. In the first place, if the dealer has a doubtful reputation, I am sure you will not want to buy from that dealer.

b. When you buy a used Rolex, you usually have to bear the cost of servicing. You are after all buying a used watch. However, if there is something seriously wrong with the watch, say the Rotor is damaged or something, I think the seller has an obligation to compensate you, especially when he/she claims watch was in good working condition when it was sold to you.

c. Stolen watches will of course be confiscated by RSC. When I buy from dealers, I insist on them putting the case number on the receipt to protect myself. If any dealer sold you a stolen watch and you have the receipt to prove it, the police will be looking for them, not you. But it could take some time before you get your money back. So, the golden rule is to only buy from shops or collectors with good reputation.

d. The rule of thumb is always to buy something at the correct price. If something is too cheap, it is usually fishy. Unless of course, the person selling the watch needs the money badly and don't mind losing money on the watch.

My 2 cents.

a. Well sometimes no papers doesn't mean that buyer will ask questions la....I would say best to have papers but not compulsary unless it's vintage.

[feilong108]

or u can choose to buy from our fellow bros in here..can check the sales threads out...got quite a number of gd prices pieces..

[edsonchan]

Dear all,

Thank you once again for all the information.

Just one last questions, what are the main things I should see on the watch before dealing at the shop?

Do I need to ask them to open the case? (I do no know what to check also)

Is there any MUST points to check before exchanging hands?

Thank you

[Reborn]

Only way is do lots of homework on the model you are buying

You can find pictures of watch movements on the internet, so definitely ask for the watch to be opened and compare against what you find on the internet. There are plenty of reliable sites with good information on the internet.

Apart from authenticity of the watch, one thing to look for is corrosion - especially corroded watch cases.

But your best bet is to deal with shops and dealers and private collectors who have a good track record. I think you can ask on this website and people can respond to you via private email, the normal practice in most watch websites. I assume it is the same approach here?

To me personally, the "Must Point" is to make sure you are given a receipt indicating the case number of the watch you are buying. That way, if there is any problem, you can prove that watch came from the shop you bought from, and can seek redress if you are sold a fake or a watch with lots of problems or malfunctioning internal parts.

Good Luck!

[Darkangel]

Dear all,

Thank you once again for all the information.

Just one last questions, what are the main things I should see on the watch before dealing at the shop?

Do I need to ask them to open the case? (I do no know what to check also)

Is there any MUST points to check before exchanging hands?

Thank you

Well...no need to ask them to open the case. Trust them! 1 big word is TRUST!

Just make sure the condition is not too bad and the box,papers are there if available.....and lastly...enjoy the watch!

You can find pictures of watch movements on the internet, so definitely ask for the watch to be opened and compare against what you find on the internet. There are plenty of reliable sites with good information on the internet.

Apart from authenticity of the watch, one thing to look for is corrosion - especially corroded watch cases.

But your best bet is to deal with shops and dealers and private collectors who have a good track record. I think you can ask on this website and people can respond to you via private email, the normal practice in most watch websites. I assume it is the same approach here?

To me personally, the "Must Point" is to make sure you are given a receipt indicating the case number of the watch you are buying. That way, if there is any problem, you can prove that watch came from the shop you bought from.

Good Luck!

Hmm that should not be a big problem la...corroded cases usually happen to the older pieces

[Reborn]

agreed, but I have heard of pawn shops being cheated by crooks who put a fake movement in a real Rolex case. Better to be safe than sorry. haha.

that's why better buy from a good shop, or people who have good ratings on your site.

[Darkangel]

agreed, but I have heard of pawn shops being cheated by crooks who put a fake movement in a real Rolex case. Better to be safe than sorry. haha.

that's why better buy from a good shop, or people who have good ratings on your site.

I talked about this pawn shop thing in one of my threads...

The pawn shop people are not as up to date already....so they get fooled easily. They do not open the caseback to check as it is just used as collateral and not for sale...and also...they dun hav the tools to do so usually.

[edsonchan]

Does Submariner ND 14060M's marker glow? If yes, is there anyway to check if it still glow during a 2nd hand purchase? If it doesn't, can it re-lum?

[Reborn]

Glow Check

If indeed you want to check, just bring a strong torch light and shine at it at a dark corner in the shop. But I think the shop people will be quite amused by this because not many people bring torch light to buy rolex.

Anyway, if watch is not too old, luminous will not disappear so fast. The other thing is, I have never heard of the new style dials being relumed. At least I have not seen those.

[Darkangel]

If indeed you want to check, just bring a strong torch light and shine at it at a dark corner in the shop. But I think the shop people will be quite amused by this because not many people bring torch light to buy rolex.

Anyway, if watch is not too old, luminous will not disappear so fast. The other thing is, I have never heard of the new style dials being relumed. At least I have not seen those.

If feel that there is no need to do a lume check...well because it's no choice 1 la...I rather live with it. If that piece comes with a good price,box and papers,great condition,irresistible offer...but I wont give it up coz of the lume. It's just not significant enough

Does Submariner ND 14060M's marker glow? If yes, is there anyway to check if it still glow during a 2nd hand purchase? If it doesn't, can it re-lum?

Yes it is SUPPOSED TO. Haha...well if older watches about 10 years old..usually the glow not that strong already....as the days go by the lume get lesser and lesser. Live with it =)