New vs nearly new

[seabreeze]

Ok, newbie here, and again I find myself looking for opinions from this really good group. Learning before I jump in

My question is about new vs nearly new. I know the benefits of buying new and the price, but what about 1-5 yr old watches? I might call them "nearly new'. I assume that the warranty is not transferable but that 'papers' shows the provinence of the watch and that the original owner might be the one contacted in case of theft and could use any remaining warranty?

So my question is if buying a nearly new watch having bit hit with the new depreciation I'd a good idea if so why or why not and where to buy?

I am deathly afraid of all these frankenwatches and I don't have the experience to select a 20 yr old specimen.

Hope this makes sense.....any input is again appreciated

[kultschar]

Hmm I was in a similar situation last year.

I decided to go new because it was my first hence wanted the experience of opening a brand new one in my name from AD etc

Now that I have done that I would happily go for minty new. Guess depends on price diff etc and more importantly the SELLER e.g trust and safety

In fact I have just repeated this when pulling the trigger on a DSSD. I had a good deal from my AD. I could have got one from a trusted grey dealer but for the sake if $300-400 extra I went the AD route

[RolexPete32]

I went with new from the AD. I am sure somebody will be along to tell you to buy from a trusted seller soon but even that route is not my cup of tea. I am not sure what kind of discounts AD's do these days. Back in 2007 and 2008 I scored 20% off on a sub LV and air-king which at that time and I guessing still today is considered good. That helps with the depreciation hit of buying new if you can get a good discount from the AD.

[mruhland31]

I went with new...I really think its personally preference and I'm sure that a watch that has a couple years on it can be a great way to go as well...my only suggestion is to be careful as to where you buy....I would encourage you to look inside TRF

[SCsailor]

Are you the type of person that only buys new cars? If you just can't stand having something that is preowned, then you probably won't be happy with your significant purchase unless you buy a new one through an AD. It's a matter of personal taste and comfort level, really.

[padi56]

Originally Posted by seabreeze

Ok, newbie here, and again I find myself looking for opinions from this really good group. Learning before I jump in

My question is about new vs nearly new. I know the benefits of buying new and the price, but what about 1-5 yr old watches? I might call them "nearly new'. I assume that the warranty is not transferable but that 'papers' shows the provinence of the watch and that the original owner might be the one contacted in case of theft and could use any remaining warranty?

So my question is if buying a nearly new watch having bit hit with the new depreciation I'd a good idea if so why or why not and where to buy?

I am deathly afraid of all these frankenwatches and I don't have the experience to select a 20 yr old specimen.

Hope this makes sense.....any input is again appreciated

Always buy from a reliable source buy the seller before the watch and don't rely on any bits of paper to prove authenticity of any watch.As with today's technology these bits of paper/plastic cards are the easiest to fake.

[AJMarcus]

Padi is 100% correct. If they can counterfeit a watch the papers and boxes are simple. Buying the seller is key. For 100% certainty I go with an AD. There are, however, some very reputable sellers on TRF. When buying preowned ask plenty of questions and don't buy unil you are satisfied.

[BAT]

New to this forum, what is TRF?

[BAT]

Originally Posted by BAT

New to this forum, what is TRF?

Duh! Just figured it out.

[Chad072]

Sometimes you don't have a choice. I love the 16610 and I had no choice but to go looking for a pre-owned. Don't get me wrong, the SubC is beautiful, but doesn't have the "it" that the 16610 has to me. I was patient and found an unworn piece here on TRF and ended up with it. So, I guess you can say it was new...sort of.

[subtona]

I will gladly save the $$$ on a LNIB vs the AD experience which is for me like going into a car dealer. New from a trusted seller is also a preferable option for me vs AD.

Find a trusted seller & do your homework.

[seabreeze]

Originally Posted by Chad072

Sometimes you don't have a choice. I love the 16610 and I had no choice but to go looking for a pre-owned. Don't get me wrong, the SubC is beautiful, but doesn't have the "it" that the 16610 has to me. I was patient and found an unworn piece here on TRF and ended up with it. So, I guess you can say it was new...sort of.

Please tell me the difference between sub c and 16610

This particular Ad I visited had a new submariner with date. And the rolex website seems to suggest the new one is sans date. Is that what you mean?

[solarpower44]

Originally Posted by kultschar

Hmm I was in a similar situation last year.

I decided to go new because it was my first hence wanted the experience of opening a brand new one in my name from AD etc

Now that I have done that I would happily go for minty new. Guess depends on price diff etc and more importantly the SELLER e.g trust and safety

In fact I have just repeated this when pulling the trigger on a DSSD. I had a good deal from my AD. I could have got one from a trusted grey dealer but for the sake if $300-400 extra I went the AD route

I agree and this is why i went AD. The price differential does not make sense to go with the online LNIB experience since most (actually all AD) dealers i recently visited give standard 10% discount and up to 20% on some models.
From reading the forum, i thought that AD don't give discount anymore but apparantly that's not true anymore.. Market must be slow..

[SeaDweller50]

Originally Posted by seabreeze

Please tell me the difference between sub c and 16610

This particular Ad I visited had a new submariner with date. And the rolex website seems to suggest the new one is sans date. Is that what you mean?

Basically the new ceramic Sub's are known as the Sub C 116610. Both the date and no date, ND, versions. The 16610 Sub's are pre-ceramic and are favoured by some.

[03cobraa]

Originally Posted by seabreeze

Please tell me the difference between sub c and 16610

This particular Ad I visited had a new submariner with date. And the rolex website seems to suggest the new one is sans date. Is that what you mean?

New Ceramic Sub = Sub C

[AJMarcus]

Discounts can certainly be had at an AD these days if you don't mind negotiating a bit. TT and Gold models will usually be discounted. Some SS models may also be discounted some. The exception is the SS Daytona. Although US ADs may have one in their safe these days they still won't discount.

[munshpe]

I've bought new and preowned. I'll never buy new again.

[herbalt]

Originally Posted by munshpe

I've bought new and preowned. I'll never buy new again.

There are a few trusted sellers here on TRF that have made me forget about going the AD route. I guess never say never, but I've had only great transactions and fully satisfied, excellent discounts vs. what I could score at an AD.

[threemonkeys]

My first was purchased new from an AD. Second watch was 9 months old and bought from an AD and I saved several thousand dollars. I would probably by my next watch as mint from a TRF seller.

[seabreeze]

So just to be clear....buying from a trusted seller here will still allow me to have the watch serviced by rolex...providing it has not been compromised? And would allow warranty repair provided it is within the time frame?

Would appreciate hearing from a "trusted" seller.

Thanks

Originally Posted by seabreeze

Ok, newbie here, and again I find myself looking for opinions from this really good group. Learning before I jump in

My question is about new vs nearly new. I know the benefits of buying new and the price, but what about 1-5 yr old watches? I might call them "nearly new'. I assume that the warranty is not transferable but that 'papers' shows the provinence of the watch and that the original owner might be the one contacted in case of theft and could use any remaining warranty?

So my question is if buying a nearly new watch having bit hit with the new depreciation I'd a good idea if so why or why not and where to buy?

I am deathly afraid of all these frankenwatches and I don't have the experience to select a 20 yr old specimen.

Hope this makes sense.....any input is again appreciated

[RADMD3]

First rolex was from AD; great experience!

Second and third were from trusted seller on TRF. Saved 25-30% Bnib and couldn't be happier! Name on warranty cards

[Solo118]

Go with DavidSW and have no worries!!

Save thousands new or used!

[melons]

Originally Posted by subtona

i will gladly save the $$$ on a lnib vs the ad experience which is for me like going into a car dealer. New from a trusted seller is also a preferable option for me vs ad.

Find a trusted seller & do your homework.

+1

[T. Ferguson]

Seabreeze, welcome to the forum.

The SubC (116610) is simply the new version of the date Sub. The previous version is the 16610. Both have date with cyclops magnifier. The SubC (C=ceramic bezel) has a different case, the maxi-dial with larger indices, improved bracelet, and a ceramic bezel. The Sub without date is a different model number altogether and the differences between the new and old versions of this model are similar.

If buying used 1-5 years the warranty means absolutely nothing once the watch is 2 years old.

As for the warranty, it is a little murky. Generally speaking the warranty follows the watch but it's been said that the East Coast RSC (Rolex Service Center) is a stickler and will only fix the watch under warranty for the original owner. Apparently the Dallas RSC doesn't care as long as you provide a valid warranty card. If this concerns you, just figure on sending the watch to Dallas. Also, consider the chances you will need the warranty versus the cost savings of buying pre-owned. As the watch comes closer to the two year mark the warranty obviously means less as long as the watch is in working order when you get it. Once the watch is out of warranty, the "package" (box and papers) only has value in that for resale purposes some people will only buy a watch with a full package and some others will pay a premium over a watch without these.

Out of warranty the RSC will work on the watch no problem as long as it's a real Rolex. However, if there are any aftermarket parts or modifications, they typically insist on bringing the watch back to all original condition at your cost, otherwise they will refuse to work on the watch. So if you know the watch has an aftermarket bracelet for instance, send the watch head only in for the repair.

As far as provenance, once you have the RSC service the watch out of warranty your name will be attached to that serial number in the Rolex database. I'm a little unclear on how it works if you have the watch serviced under warranty using the card with another name on it. This isn't a big deal as long as the watch isn't reported stolen to Rolex (another reason to use an AD or trusted TRF seller). In any event, always get a bill of sale on seller's letterhead when you purchase so you can prove how you came by the watch.

Personally I would only buy from either an AD or a trusted seller here.

Best of luck!

[Chad072]

Originally Posted by seabreeze

Please tell me the difference between sub c and 16610

This particular Ad I visited had a new submariner with date. And the rolex website seems to suggest the new one is sans date. Is that what you mean?

SubC on the left (116610) and non-ceramic on the right (16610)*






*both images borrowed from the net

[solarpower44]

Originally Posted by Solo118

Save thousands new or used!

How, show me ? You can save few hundreds at most since you can get at least 10% discount from AD anyway, therefore buying LNIB i don't think is worth it. I prefer to have my name on the warrantee card for extra hundreds..

However, IMHO, this is a great place to buy older (discountined) watches.

[T. Ferguson]

Originally Posted by Chad072

SubC on the right (116610) and non-ceramic on the left (16610)*

I think you have that backwards. The SubC is on the left and 16610 on the right.

[gwozhog]

Here is my experience. Buy new and pay more. As soon as you walk out the door the watch is not new. Depending on the watch you could be out possibly thousands. Buy preloved and save money. AD experience is way over rated. You even have the possibility to make money as soon as you buy the watch depending on your negotiation skills. Either way all that matters is what you feel comfortable doing.

[Chad072]

Originally Posted by T. Ferguson

I think you have that backwards. The SubC is on the left and 16610 on the right.

You're right. I've been cleaning all day and the fumes have gotten to me.

[Angrypuppy]

T. Ferguson. Great post, thank you very much