Any pitfalls with an older “New Old Stock” rolex?

[Army_Doc]

Hey all, happy 4th. Considering a purchase of a circa 2002 day date 118238. The watch is being sold without box and papers, and is listed as new old stock. Stickers are in place. I plan to wear it as much as possible. Would you service this watch before wearing, or stay away from something this old altogether? Thanks for your help.

[zjd168]

this is not too old at all. If buying I would just wear it without worrying about the service unless issue found, provided you can trust the seller that this is indeed a NOS.

But I won't pay big NOS premium for this example

[Goose 104]

Originally Posted by Army_Doc

Hey all, happy 4th. Considering a purchase of a circa 2002 day date 118238. The watch is being sold without box and papers, and is listed as new old stock. Stickers are in place. I plan to wear it as much as possible. Would you service this watch before wearing, or stay away from something this old altogether? Thanks for your help.

I'm not sure how it can be NOS if it doesn't have box and papers.

[Army_Doc]

Originally Posted by Goose 104

I'm not sure how it can be NOS if it doesn't have box and papers.

Agree that was unusual. It is a trusted seller, and i have seen photos of the watch, all stickers are indeed on. The watch is a gift To my wife and i do not plan on reselling, but of course want to make sure it will still function.

[gmtln]

Regardless whether its NOS, it's still an 18 year old watch and at a minimum, I would get it pressure tested for peace of mind.

[jgottsman11]

I would really recommend getting a 2003 or later. The beefed up clasp is a huge upgrade.

[Tools]

Originally Posted by Army_Doc

Agree that was unusual. It is a trusted seller, and i have seen photos of the watch, all stickers are indeed on. The watch is a gift To my wife and i do not plan on reselling, but of course want to make sure it will still function.

It is, of course, not NOS, but we understand the marketing ploy.

If you like the watch, and the price is good, I would not be concerned too much about the watch functioning.

Some oil may have migrated from it's intended points, but oil in engineered to stay in place for the most part. The biggest concern is that the expendable seals may be somewhat compromised over time.

A pressure test may be a good idea, then wear it. Avoid the same water hazards as you would any 20 year old watch.

[THC]

NOS is a ploy to jack up the price, imo

[illiguy]

If you trust the seller and are comfortable with the price, great. If you intend to wear, then have it movement serviced to have peace of mind and enjoy!

[Polarexplorerii]

Originally Posted by THC

NOS is a ploy to jack up the price, imo

yuuuppp

[Henrimontgomery]

Originally Posted by THC

NOS is a ploy to jack up the price, imo

Can you elaborate ?

[TswaneNguni]

I dont believe NOS if there is no box and papers .

[Army_Doc]

To clarify, the price is roughly the same as other “excellent” condition models. To me NOS has only an added benefit of being free of wear / polishing. Of course this is assuming I'm not being bamboozled by “fake” stickers. The seller has a large presence and is trustworthy in my opinion.

[TellingTime]

If you lose the box and warranty papers you can’t call the watch NOS? I would think the watch is still new/unused with the stickers in place.

[mikkolopez]

It can only be NOS if complete set and the seller is an AD.
If not a complete set and not from an AD, then it can be unused but never NOS.


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[Calatrava r]

I will go a step further and say it is impossible to be NOS without box and papers as that term is defined by general parlance. The whole idea of New Old Stock is it is a new piece which was never sold and has stayed in inventory at a dealer. By definition a NOS watch would be complete with box and papers and have all the original stickers on it. This watch may be unworn and un-sized but it is not NOS justifying any NOS premium.

[77T]

Originally Posted by Army_Doc

To clarify, the price is roughly the same as other “excellent” condition models. To me NOS has only an added benefit of being free of wear / polishing. Of course this is assuming I'm not being bamboozled by “fake” stickers. The seller has a large presence and is trustworthy in my opinion.

As a gift it is better that it was unworn.
As for a box or papers, they really don’t matter in the beauty of wearing a DD.

Now on the point of what to do...trust, but verify. A claimed NOS without the papers is very curious. Send it to RSC. Have them review it to see if it needs servicing. If it is stolen, you will soon learn that. If it needs work then you’re better off having that done now.

I’d only buy it with a conditional bill of sale; i.e., a full refund if RSC retains the watch as stolen. Even a trusted seller can fall prey. If seller won’t provide that, then you are on shaky ground no matter what his reputation has been in past.


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[Xenon]

NOS to me means all plastic stickers still attached to the watch and unworn condition.

[S.Explorer]

There is a risk that the NOS term is applied to a used watch which has been subject to laser welding before polishing to correct flaws without the usual signs of wear, e.g. loss of material.

[envuks]

I’ve observed 2 occasions where friends purchased NOS watches that were 10+ years old and they had to go to service immediately. Had a couple other friends have it turn out fine.


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[Henrimontgomery]

Originally Posted by envuks

I’ve observed 2 occasions where friends purchased NOS watches that were 10+ years old and they had to go to service immediately. Had a couple other friends have it turn out fine.


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Buying a NOS, I would ask them to lower the price in accordance with a Rolex Service, unless it was done recently.

What annoys me to no end are the sellers who have “their watchmaker” service the watch. Yes I understand it’s more economical, but I don’t know your watchmaker and he could be a complete barbarian.

[shaunylw]

Originally Posted by TellingTime

If you lose the box and warranty papers you can’t call the watch NOS? I would think the watch is still new/unused with the stickers in place.

Agree. NOS-in a safe, unworn, untouched, pulled out and sold. If you lose box and papers It’s not NOS. Now, the watch was likely stored in a coffin and the box/papers were stored elsewhere and lost. That’s not your problem. Don’t pay a premium.


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[Chester01]

People use the NOS label to mean anything from worn hard, serviced, and not touched since that service to literally not touched in box sitting in someone’s safe. The older it is the more skeptical I am of a true new old stock. The hype was not the same as it is now and people wore their watches. Stickers and tags can be purchased and if someone separated the watch from the box and papers listen it was worn, maybe not much, but it was worn.

[enjoythemusic]

That's not much of an NOS without box, papers etc. Plus it'll need a service if you plan on wearing it. Personally, hard pass unless it's a great deal (and not stolen goods).

[japenney]

This is an example of NOS. People have asked me if it should be serviced and I tell them it keeps time but yes it should probably be serviced because it has been in a safe for 11 years...then they use the fact that it should have a service as a negotiation tool. I can only laugh.

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=750781

[htrap2294]

I purchased a 1996 NOS 16233 DJ36. There's nothing really wrong with it right now but I bought it keeping in mind that any day, the tritium lume plots can fall off if I give it too much shock, or it can simply stop running.

I put money away for those issues when they do come up, but doesn't mean I am not enjoying the watch as is.

Enjoy the watch, just put a rainy day fund for it when it has issues. And when they do come up, you can get them fixed and have the watch still look minty (assuming you do not request for a polish, etc).

[RWH]

NOS without box and papers. Smells like BS

[Bigblu10]

Originally Posted by TswaneNguni

I dont believe NOS if there is no box and papers .

Agree fully. NOS= box, papers and accessories!! I would not buy, IMO

[Nikrnic]

If its New Old Stock it should still be in stock at an AD with full box and papers. Well, technically, I would still stand on that if I were interested in buying. It sounds like unworn to me as that should make a difference. Once you wear it thats all out the window so buy accordingly. A service is 1K.

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