Betelgeuse
Stylish Dinosaur
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2012
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- 11,324
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Thanks. Did the Mk XVI come on a croc grain strap? I thought it was a real croc? Either way, I found it a little odd that IWC chose to dress the buckle down, from a deployant to a tang, and dress the leather up, going from buffalo to croc, when they replaced the XV with the XVI...
@suaviter, I use a Bergeon tool too (No 6767). Less risk of getting scratches when changing spring bars, than when changing Panerai style straps with a screwdriver, IME.
I haven't had a chance to read it but I plan to when I get a bit of time.Has anyone had a chance to read the article on Hodinkee yesterday?
http://www.hodinkee.com/blog/audemars-piguet-royal-oak-chronograph-review
A great article, despite it being review for the most part. Nonetheless, I like the general premise--that the ROC is nothing short of a modern classic. It really is an excellent combination of past and present. I am not sure how I feel about the rose gold, and I feel like the author has similar feelings. Gold may be a big soft, especially considering all the brushed and polished surfaces.
Once you catch RO fever...there is no cure. The best you can hope for is a prescription from the doctor to explain to your wife/significant other why you need a RO!Great article ... after this thread with our friend dino and TC's showcasing I have serious Royal Oak fever.
Only the top/cap is hexagonal. Personally, I think its a nice finishing touch, but not that practical on the chrono pushers. I find them a bit slick and a pain to grasp to unscrew. The "teethed" screw down pushers on Daytonas, Overseas and other watches are easier to screw/unscrew.hmm...how does one unscrew a hexagonal screw? that may be explained in the video, but i am not in a position to play it right now
great read, gorgeous watch, but for me, the simple 3 handed RO is the watch to have. :swoon:
also, thoughts on the 15202?
Personally, I think its a beautiful watch. The finish greatly exceeds that of what you will get with a current Rolex Daytona. There simply is no comparison. As for the price...well you have to remember you are now dealing with a boat load of gold. Keep in mind a new SS Daytona is under $14,000 ...but in rose its $40,000. As for the AP in steel its about $24,000. So what you are really seeing is prices escalating by about $30K on each watch. In the mid 1990s a steel Daytona was about $4,000 and in gold it was $17,000. In the late 90s a RO chrono listed for $12,500 and in gold it was about $25,000...but you could get bigger discounts on the APs. Fast forward to huge price increase both because watch companies decided they could (even on steel models) and the huge jump in the price of gold in recent years and you now have gold watches that sell for crazy money. Even a basic Calatrava was a $9,500 watch (before huge discounts in the late 1990s you could buy new from ADs for about $6K)...now they are hovering around $30K.I read it. I am an AP fan and own a stainless RO chrono (the prior 39mm model) which I absolutely love. I wouldn't have any problem with wearing the watch in gold either.
However, I have a hard time seeing what this new model brings to the table other than a larger case. It has the same non exclusive chrono mvmt as the prior model (which is I have to say works great and has been running flawlessly for me for years). Without question a beautiful and beautifully made, high quality, high end product, but it seems to me like most of the RO offshore models: extremely cool but not especially interesting. 54k for this watch is hard to justify. The comparison to Patek IMO is a non starter. I don't especially like the nautilus which itself is outrageously priced but they are just not in the same league.
A Rolex Daytona in rose gold lists these days for about 37k or so and that has its own excellent house mvmt. It's very hard for me to see the premium AP is looking for here as justified. Maybe on the secondary or grey market with discounting, the difference between those 2 watches gets a lot smaller. I can see myself paying more for the AP but not much frankly.
I think the idea expressed in the article that the customer AP has in mind for the RO and offshore models (that is most of them, some are quite complicated and interesting) is not really interested in the horological aspects is essentially correct.
Gold is insanely soft. It shows hairlines from dress shirts in just a few days. I have a SS RO that I've worn as a daily wearer for 16 months and because I'm careful with it it still looks like new.I was a bit surprised to see how scratch heavy the rose gold ROC was. How scratchy are stainless Royal Oaks? Anyone have both a stainless & gold one and can compare them?
During my summer tyre-kicking I came to the same conclusions - the 41mm case is OK, but 39mm is perfect. And for price comparisons, a mint 39mm ROC costs about $12k used. As even a used Daytona is still $10k-plus if mint with box and papers, then the ROC looks like a real winner. But new versus new, I think Rob's probably right: the ROC might still be nicer, but two-Daytonas-nice is debatable.
Stunning!!! Congrats and enjoy that beauty in good health! Way to ring in the New Year!!!
yes sir, and thank you. it is a happy new year for me and between this and the JLC i think i am done for awhile.
Personally, I think its a beautiful watch. The finish greatly exceeds that of what you will get with a current Rolex Daytona. There simply is no comparison. As for the price...well you have to remember you are now dealing with a boat load of gold. Keep in mind a new SS Daytona is under $14,000 ...but in rose its $40,000. As for the AP in steel its about $24,000. So what you are really seeing is prices escalating by about $30K on each watch. In the mid 1990s a steel Daytona was about $4,000 and in gold it was $17,000. In the late 90s a RO chrono listed for $12,500 and in gold it was about $25,000...but you could get bigger discounts on the APs. Fast forward to huge price increase both because watch companies decided they could (even on steel models) and the huge jump in the price of gold in recent years and you now have gold watches that sell for crazy money. Even a basic Calatrava was a $9,500 watch (before huge discounts in the late 1990s you could buy new from ADs for about $6K)...now they are hovering around $30K.
so the rest is history...i still have some buyers remorse because this is by far the biggest impulse purchase i've made, but still very happy. besides, i did stick to the plan to get it in 2014, didn't i?
Congrats again. Just an amazing time piece. To me its still as fresh and beautiful as when the design was first unveiled many years ago. Its dressy and yet its not stodgy, which is an issue I have with some dress watches from high end brands. Hopefully, the buyers remorse will be gone soon and you will have many years of enjoyment from this watch. Wishing you lots of luck with it.thank you everyone for your very kind comments. i'm super excited about this.
in response to the request for more info - it is new, and purchased from an AD. the Lange 1 has been my grail primarily because of its aesthetics - it's the pinnacle of how i would define a simple, beautiful watch. i know that there are many reasons to buy a ALS, but if i'm completely honest with myself, that's the primary reason for me
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so the rest is history...i still have some buyers remorse because this is by far the biggest impulse purchase i've made, but still very happy. besides, i did stick to the plan to get it in 2014, didn't i?