Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
- watchpalooza
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Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
Based on experience, are there places that you will never buy a watch from an why? For me there are no specific retailers or wholesalers, but I will never buy from a seller based in India. I have had too many counterfeits come from there, and believe there is simoly too much risk from overall lack of regulation / enforcement. Further, it is very difficult to prosecute or seek remedy when a bad sale does happen.
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Re: Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
I haven't had any counterfeits from India, but I have had some mongrels. Always knew what I was buying though.
Always cautious buying from Russia or Ukraine, especially now that most of the vintages with the best provenance have already ended up in someone's collection.
Based on a past experience in which Jomashop wanted to dock me for shipping on a return due to their own mistake, as well as having read countless anecdotes from others, I would be very reluctant to deal with them again. Would still buy the right watch at the right price, of course, but it would have to be an incredible deal on a watch I really wanted.
Will no longer buy from Good Stuffs after posters in f72 found evidence indicating several of the Sea-Gull models sold there are probably fake.
Always cautious buying from Russia or Ukraine, especially now that most of the vintages with the best provenance have already ended up in someone's collection.
Based on a past experience in which Jomashop wanted to dock me for shipping on a return due to their own mistake, as well as having read countless anecdotes from others, I would be very reluctant to deal with them again. Would still buy the right watch at the right price, of course, but it would have to be an incredible deal on a watch I really wanted.
Will no longer buy from Good Stuffs after posters in f72 found evidence indicating several of the Sea-Gull models sold there are probably fake.
- The Sultan of SoWhat
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Re: Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
Well, I have no problem buying from Jomashop. I have bought many watches from them with only one irritant--a dead battery, but even then they paid me for the placement battery. Today, in fact, I'm wearing my latest purchase from Joma--an Alpina automatic Startimer. One store I will absolutely not buy ANYTHING from is Best Buy. I once bought a computer from them that was going to be carried out of the USA and they (3 BB personnel) hounded me to get me to buy a service plan. I of course didn't. To hell with them!username wrote: ↑Wed Dec 26, 2018 12:43 pm I haven't had any counterfeits from India, but I have had some mongrels. Always knew what I was buying though.
Always cautious buying from Russia or Ukraine, especially now that most of the vintages with the best provenance have already ended up in someone's collection.
Based on a past experience in which Jomashop wanted to dock me for shipping on a return due to their own mistake, as well as having read countless anecdotes from others, I would be very reluctant to deal with them again. Would still buy the right watch at the right price, of course, but it would have to be an incredible deal on a watch I really wanted.
Will no longer buy from Good Stuffs after posters in f72 found evidence indicating several of the Sea-Gull models sold there are probably fake.
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Re: Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
Helgray. Never, never, never. The guy does not stand behind the product. You will be on your own in the event sometime goes wrong. All those stories about how awful he is are true.
- watchpalooza
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Re: Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
Aevig. I probably got a lemon considering all around good praise for the brand. So maybe i'll buy from them again in the future but not anytime soon. My issues were primarily with the slow support and responses on getting my watch fixed.
1. I bought an Aevig Thor Stark Black which was running too fast upon unboxing. Yes maybe maybe magnetized on transport somehow but first impression was a downer.
2.The crown on the watch kept slipping back when winding so got it regulated at a local watch dealer. Now it runs about 15 seconds off per 24 hours which is within specs of the 8N33 but when it bugs me again probably will take to someone better. The crown is nice and smooth now.
3. The underside of the strap got discoloured within a day or two of wearing. So I guess it wasn't made to handle not so sweaty wrist in humid weather. Apparently Aevig has no control over the dye used by the strap maker.
4. Dial markers and lume dots were misaligned on 12, 6, 9 and a bunch more hour markers. Once you see it, cannot unsee it and it drove me crazy. Left the watch in a drawer. The black dial easily shows imperfection of the alignment.
5. I got in touch with Aevig to the issues above. Responses took days. Finally refunded USD 100(USD 50 for cost of regulation and USD 50 for the misalignment issues)which i think is fair so kudos to them for that but the slow responses was enough to put me off.
6 A few weeks later, taking out the watch from the drawer I decided that I cannot live with the dial so wrote to Aevig requesting if they have spare dials that are aligned properly and 'd be willing to pay. After 3 weeks of no response, I got in touch with a dial maker and right when I was going to make an order, Aevig replied they had a few spare ones with about 90-95% aligned. After another month, got them and fixed. While they're not perfect, they're better than before.
The thing is yes, I realize it's just my OCD perhaps but the slow responses just put me off. Watches can be faulty but bad support makes me wary of purchasing once again.
1. I bought an Aevig Thor Stark Black which was running too fast upon unboxing. Yes maybe maybe magnetized on transport somehow but first impression was a downer.
2.The crown on the watch kept slipping back when winding so got it regulated at a local watch dealer. Now it runs about 15 seconds off per 24 hours which is within specs of the 8N33 but when it bugs me again probably will take to someone better. The crown is nice and smooth now.
3. The underside of the strap got discoloured within a day or two of wearing. So I guess it wasn't made to handle not so sweaty wrist in humid weather. Apparently Aevig has no control over the dye used by the strap maker.
4. Dial markers and lume dots were misaligned on 12, 6, 9 and a bunch more hour markers. Once you see it, cannot unsee it and it drove me crazy. Left the watch in a drawer. The black dial easily shows imperfection of the alignment.
5. I got in touch with Aevig to the issues above. Responses took days. Finally refunded USD 100(USD 50 for cost of regulation and USD 50 for the misalignment issues)which i think is fair so kudos to them for that but the slow responses was enough to put me off.
6 A few weeks later, taking out the watch from the drawer I decided that I cannot live with the dial so wrote to Aevig requesting if they have spare dials that are aligned properly and 'd be willing to pay. After 3 weeks of no response, I got in touch with a dial maker and right when I was going to make an order, Aevig replied they had a few spare ones with about 90-95% aligned. After another month, got them and fixed. While they're not perfect, they're better than before.
The thing is yes, I realize it's just my OCD perhaps but the slow responses just put me off. Watches can be faulty but bad support makes me wary of purchasing once again.
- cortman
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Re: Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
Sounds like you got treated right in the end. Getting something that slipped through QC is super disappointing but it's really revealing how the company handles it after that.pgcity wrote: ↑Thu Jul 04, 2019 8:39 am Aevig. I probably got a lemon considering all around good praise for the brand. So maybe i'll buy from them again in the future but not anytime soon. My issues were primarily with the slow support and responses on getting my watch fixed.
1. I bought an Aevig Thor Stark Black which was running too fast upon unboxing. Yes maybe maybe magnetized on transport somehow but first impression was a downer.
2.The crown on the watch kept slipping back when winding so got it regulated at a local watch dealer. Now it runs about 15 seconds off per 24 hours which is within specs of the 8N33 but when it bugs me again probably will take to someone better. The crown is nice and smooth now.
3. The underside of the strap got discoloured within a day or two of wearing. So I guess it wasn't made to handle not so sweaty wrist in humid weather. Apparently Aevig has no control over the dye used by the strap maker.
4. Dial markers and lume dots were misaligned on 12, 6, 9 and a bunch more hour markers. Once you see it, cannot unsee it and it drove me crazy. Left the watch in a drawer. The black dial easily shows imperfection of the alignment.
5. I got in touch with Aevig to the issues above. Responses took days. Finally refunded USD 100(USD 50 for cost of regulation and USD 50 for the misalignment issues)which i think is fair so kudos to them for that but the slow responses was enough to put me off.
6 A few weeks later, taking out the watch from the drawer I decided that I cannot live with the dial so wrote to Aevig requesting if they have spare dials that are aligned properly and 'd be willing to pay. After 3 weeks of no response, I got in touch with a dial maker and right when I was going to make an order, Aevig replied they had a few spare ones with about 90-95% aligned. After another month, got them and fixed. While they're not perfect, they're better than before.
The thing is yes, I realize it's just my OCD perhaps but the slow responses just put me off. Watches can be faulty but bad support makes me wary of purchasing once again.
It's also good for some of us (probably me included) to be able to take a step back and recognize that sometimes we are the hard to please, tough customers, and to be willing to be patient and give credit where credit is due for honest, reasonable service.
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Re: Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
Yes I think they did. If the brand responds slowly or doesn't back their product like what [mention]barutanseijin[/mention] says of Helgray, consumers will not buy from them again. It is a collective loss on both sides especially if watches are interesting. For me when there is no answer to queries within a 3-5 days period, it makes it harder to be their repeat customer, especially when my first purchase isn't geat. Waiting several weeks/months is not acceptable.cortman wrote: ↑Thu Jul 04, 2019 10:59 pmSounds like you got treated right in the end. Getting something that slipped through QC is super disappointing but it's really revealing how the company handles it after that.pgcity wrote: ↑Thu Jul 04, 2019 8:39 am Aevig. I probably got a lemon considering all around good praise for the brand. So maybe i'll buy from them again in the future but not anytime soon. My issues were primarily with the slow support and responses on getting my watch fixed.
1. I bought an Aevig Thor Stark Black which was running too fast upon unboxing. Yes maybe maybe magnetized on transport somehow but first impression was a downer.
2.The crown on the watch kept slipping back when winding so got it regulated at a local watch dealer. Now it runs about 15 seconds off per 24 hours which is within specs of the 8N33 but when it bugs me again probably will take to someone better. The crown is nice and smooth now.
3. The underside of the strap got discoloured within a day or two of wearing. So I guess it wasn't made to handle not so sweaty wrist in humid weather. Apparently Aevig has no control over the dye used by the strap maker.
4. Dial markers and lume dots were misaligned on 12, 6, 9 and a bunch more hour markers. Once you see it, cannot unsee it and it drove me crazy. Left the watch in a drawer. The black dial easily shows imperfection of the alignment.
5. I got in touch with Aevig to the issues above. Responses took days. Finally refunded USD 100(USD 50 for cost of regulation and USD 50 for the misalignment issues)which i think is fair so kudos to them for that but the slow responses was enough to put me off.
6 A few weeks later, taking out the watch from the drawer I decided that I cannot live with the dial so wrote to Aevig requesting if they have spare dials that are aligned properly and 'd be willing to pay. After 3 weeks of no response, I got in touch with a dial maker and right when I was going to make an order, Aevig replied they had a few spare ones with about 90-95% aligned. After another month, got them and fixed. While they're not perfect, they're better than before.
The thing is yes, I realize it's just my OCD perhaps but the slow responses just put me off. Watches can be faulty but bad support makes me wary of purchasing once again.
It's also good for some of us (probably me included) to be able to take a step back and recognize that sometimes we are the hard to please, tough customers, and to be willing to be patient and give credit where credit is due for honest, reasonable service.
On the issues of the crown slipping back and misaligned lume dots on the dial, the response I received was this:
"It's normal for the crown to slip back. If the "misalignment" is not visible at normal viewing distance then it is within tolerance. Note that the printing and placing of the indexes is done at different stages. Before the indexes are placed, holes are drilled. Also the indexes have pins and these can also have a slight deviation.All things considered and tolerances added up it is within QC norm"
IMHO QC needs to be better than this, but again like I said it could be the odd lemon watch that I received considering the praise on the brand. And if the regular watch dealer could get the crown to not slip, then i think QC is to blame. Regardless, I bought 2 additional dials from them. The lumed dots on them are still misaligned but much better and not so visible compared to the original one.
Someday in the future when it bugs me enough, i'll just remove the lume dots on the dial because as a dress watch it looks better without them or I may still get that custom dial if it's made better.
- mconlonx
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Re: Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
Never buying ebay from regions with sketchy history. A "recently serviced, good working order" vintage watch I bought from Indonesia ended up being a total nightmare.
- kgrier
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Re: Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
parnis.org - I was looking for a sterile Explorer I homage to use as a donor for a simple "Route 66" dial decal add to create watches for a trip I'm taking with my dad and son. So I bought a sample Expedition 07 from Parnis.org after believing their quality marketing. It is just that - marketing. The watch arrived with finishing grind compound embedded in a bent end link causing the bracelet to jam, no glidelock clasp just a tack welded non-adjustable look-alike, but worse was the DG2813 running at +45s/d when the watch was advertised with a true Miyota.
Parnis.org refused to honor the 14 day return, saying I had to return for repair. And contrary to their site there is not a "local" country option, u have to ship it back to China. Had the watch been $70 I would have been unhappy but ok. I can address the issues. At $144USD I feel ripped-off. So the watch became a donor for some mods I want to try. That's when I discovered the Miyota-clone movement.
Moral here - buy your Parnis watch where u can get it the cheapest, hopefully at a retailer u have some recourse with. Parnis.org is not that retailer. Using AliX or ebay is probably your best bet.
Parnis.org refused to honor the 14 day return, saying I had to return for repair. And contrary to their site there is not a "local" country option, u have to ship it back to China. Had the watch been $70 I would have been unhappy but ok. I can address the issues. At $144USD I feel ripped-off. So the watch became a donor for some mods I want to try. That's when I discovered the Miyota-clone movement.
Moral here - buy your Parnis watch where u can get it the cheapest, hopefully at a retailer u have some recourse with. Parnis.org is not that retailer. Using AliX or ebay is probably your best bet.
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Re: Where will you NEVER buy a watch from?
That shady guy in the alley that can get you any Rolex you want at 90%off list price from inside his coat...
As an Indonesian,I’d say that getting your watch serviced here is pretty difficult,as there are limited number of capable watch repair in our country....heck I won’t even buy a mechanical watch that was serviced locally except by some good ones....
As an Indonesian,I’d say that getting your watch serviced here is pretty difficult,as there are limited number of capable watch repair in our country....heck I won’t even buy a mechanical watch that was serviced locally except by some good ones....
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