The Watch Appreciation Thread (Reviews and Photos of Men's Timepieces by Rolex, Patek Philippe, Brei

[TC (Houston)]

Hmmm, I suddenly have the urge to order some french cuffed shirts!

 

[Cleav]



Gimme dat now.

Review Rolex 8171 here.

It really is a beaut, thanks Tukker

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@rnguy001

Lovin that ^

 

[Dino944]

I love the BLNR but I can't for the life of me decide if I would rather go with that or the Sub LV as my next watch. Perhaps I could trade my Sub ND towards the BLNR and pay cash for the LV but part of wants to keep the ND forever since it's my first Rolex (not to mention aesthetically it's damn near perfect). Still though, I can't get this beaut out of my head:

Hi Bawlin,...the one to go with is the Blue & Black GMT. I've seen the current LV and while the dial is fine, I find the bezel less attractive and IMHO it doesn't work with the dial it works against it. I much prefer the original LVs.

Any steers on this for me?

HMMMMMM....that's as long as I can hold out. Go for it!

So yeah, I caved and got them today. Got to say they look good paired with the 3970J eh?

Is the frillyvolousness over?!? Time will tell!

/****** Apparently I live on Instagram too - mainly timepieces, shoes, attire and the occasional cheeseburger. @no_frills_vc. ******/

Beautiful Combination....and as usually always happy to enable/help!

Frilly:
Could you tell us more about the links and what makes them technically impressive? Looking at them, it is hard to see why they would be difficult for someone else to reproduce. The finishing is pretty outstanding, especially on the PPs, but, again, I am not sure someone see couldn't do the same.
It sounds like you asked other jewelers and they told you they couldn't do it. I wonder why.

Any good jeweler could reasonably replicate it, especially with CAD. I think he more meant that an exact replica made by someone not PP is kind of like whats the point. I agree.

Also, good luck replicating the box and papers.

Hi Dopey & Stitches....I think Frills gave a good explanation...but I'd like to add a bit to his discussion. I don't think the photos do the links justice. They are not merely just flat links, they involve curvature, and differing thicknesses toward the pointed tips of the Calatrava cross symbol. Its really not a simply design to replicate. I've seen some high end jewelers that carry near exact replicas of Van Cleef, and Cartier designs, and from 15 feet away...yes you'll fool people that are just vaguely familiar with the piece. Within 7 feet...I knew they were fake and anyone that knows those pieces knows they are replicas. And this was from a place that is an AD for Lange, JLC, VC, AP and a few other high end brands. With the replicas, they just don't get the dimensions and spacial relations quite right. I'm not saying a really good jeweler couldn't do it, but probably for what they would charge you, the savings would be limited...you may as well buy the real thing. I know everyone is different, but I'm just not a replica kind of person whether its a watch or jewelry.

On the topic of cufflinks, I have been looking for some in rose gold to match my rose gold watches. I am not looking for anything too fancy or blingy, but they should be double sided

Anyone know of any?

I have not come across too many. I do check ebay periodically and what I mostly find there are vintage ones that, while interesting are not really my thing.

Thanks

It depends on what you are looking for..new, vintage, and of course your budget. When you say double sided, do you mean a nice well finished flexible back (some nice links have cheap backs) or do you mean an exact miniature version of the front piece on the back (generally you'll pay a lot more for that). Prices have gone up drastically since the cost of gold went up in the last for years...and even the the price has come down a bit...jewelry prices really haven't. Right now very few big name brands are doing rose gold links, the closest Cartier has come is their Trinity (3 color knots, which are WG, YG, and RG). Piaget has some interesting Emperador links (rose gold with hematite and matching backs), if you have a Patek you could get Calatrava's in RG (like the WG &YG models Frills purchased). If you are looking for an exact color match, you probably want to bring your watches with you to compare color. There are different shade of gold (I've probably mentioned before but there is a color scale) 3N is yellow gold, 4 in is pink gold (some yellow with a touch of rose), 5N is rose its a deeper color, then 6N is red gold. Different companies used different colors, for example Cartier seems to use 5N, but at times VC has used 4N and 5N. It might also help to know what the watches look like that you are trying to get links for...AP, PP, Breguet, and (I believe VC) all make links for their watches. Other than that sometimes its being at the right place at the right time. Check high end jewelry and watch stores when you travel. I picked up a pair of 18kt RG squares with a brushed finish at a very reasonable sale price from a high end watch & jewelry store a few years ago...today the raw materials might cost more than I paid for the pair of links.

Here is a quick photo of some basic links I have in RG. Then next to them is a set of Cartier Trinity knots (WG, RG, YG)...I find them very versatile as they go with everything.

 

[in stitches]

dont disagree for a minute, dino. i was never advocating for replicas. sorry if i was unclear.

 

[Cleav]

Dino, great post oh learned one

Re the 8171, its a question of finding. Finding one for sale then finding the mula!

 

[jbarwick]

That 8171 is beautiful but the 7 figure price tag is not. Pre-auction estimates on that bad boy were only 70-100K so it shows you get the right group of people together and prices hit the stratosphere!

 

[Dino944]

dont disagree for a minute, dino. i was never advocating for replicas. sorry if i was unclear.

Thanks for clarifying...sounds like we are on the same page on that

Dino, great post oh learned one

Re the 8171, its a question of finding. Finding one for sale then finding the mula!

Thanks Cleav. Also wishing you luck on finding an 8171 and at a reasonable price...if there is such a thing for an 8171

 

[Warren G.]



Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Here is a quick photo of some basic links I have in RG. Then next to them is a set of Cartier Trinity knots (WG, RG, YG)...I find them very versatile as they go with everything.

Absolutely love that Tank Louis XL. great cufflinks too

 

[no frills]

For comparison. Aquanaut seems legit (dddrees?) but I do not think that's a Patek cuff link:

Mine in yellow gold:

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/****** Apparently I live on Instagram too - mainly timepieces, shoes, attire and the occasional cheeseburger. @no_frills_vc. ******/

 

[Dino944]



Absolutely love that Tank Louis XL.

great cufflinks too

Thanks Warren... Its one of my favorites. I'm always happy to share some pix of it.

For comparison. Aquanaut seems legit (dddrees?) but I do not think that's a Patek cuff link:

Mine in yellow gold:

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/****** Apparently I live on Instagram too - mainly timepieces, shoes, attire and the occasional cheeseburger. @no_frills_vc. ******/

Yes, in the photos with the Aquanaut, although it has the general shape, it looks blunted, as the tips aren't as sharp/pointed, and the prongs don't seem to come quite as close together were they return close to the center of the design. It's the subtle nuances and spacial relations that are usually messed up on replicas.

 

[dddrees]

For comparison. Aquanaut seems legit (dddrees?) but I do not think that's a Patek cuff link:

Mine in yellow gold:

/****** Apparently I live on Instagram too - mainly timepieces, shoes, attire and the occasional cheeseburger. @no_frills_vc. ******/

Well I would certainly hope so.

By the way it didn't really come from Costco.


Great PIC by the way.

 

[no frills]

Haha thanks dddrees. If they really sold Pateks at Costco I wonder what kind of discount via MSRP we should expect...

The Cartier Trinity knot cuff links that Dino posted a page or two back are really lovely. It's very hard to photograph the swirling, knotted strands of pink, yellow and white gold because their colors reflect against and shade into each other.

I visited the Cartier boutique on Fifth Avenue in NYC on the afternoon of December 23 and they didn't have it in stock. They ordered it for me (out of state, in the midst of the holiday season), and got a call on Sunday the 29th even though I said I would be out of town and wouldn't be able to return to the store till January 2. Had it ready for me to examine and yes, I did get a pair as part of the last phase of the frillyvolous start of 2014 cuff link upgrade process.

So yes, Stitchy, it was a great run. I now have four pairs of cuff links, two in YG and two in WG, that complement my timepieces.

The frillyvolous cuff link run is done. For now..... Hahahah!

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/****** Apparently I live on Instagram too - mainly timepieces, shoes, attire and the occasional cheeseburger. @no_frills_vc. ******/

 

[mimo]

Frilly, I am right here my friend, and touched that you would think of me! Been spending some quality time driving around the UK with my children visiting relatives, so no SF-ing for a few days.

Anyway, I knew you wouldn't let me down! That's a beautiful collection, inevitably including two of the PPs - exquisite they are too. I think Dino's probably right that the knots from Cartier are beautifully subtle and versatile, in the unlikely event you ever decide not to make a loud impression! And the others are gorgeous; some serious workmanship there.
One shade of disappointment: no platinum? I mean, visually you can match your platinum watch with white gold links, but I can't help but see it as a corner cut.

Absolutely agree with you on the replication thing: getting something made because you can't find what you want makes sense. Getting something copied to pass off as real to shave some money of someone's carefully-nurtured brand, is low.

 

[Newcomer]

Hey guys! First and foremost, congratulations on the new links Frills! 2014 has certainly been the year of the cufflinks so far. I think that the ones that you chose are most excellent. I particularly like the VC&A links, they are gorgeous. And the Cartier knots... that is about as traditional as one can get! The PP links are much more dynamic than I thought at first blush. The workmanship is quite impressive. As impressive as a watch? Not quite. But they are beautiful nonetheless.

Now, I just wanted to wish all of you a "belated" happy New Years!

I think it was just about a year ago, give or take, that TWAT really started speeding up. Back then it was known as the Watch Pr0n Thread for those who have not been with us as long! But anyways, this thread has given me an unbelievable amount of joy. Through interacting with this thread, I have gained new friends, and have met some of these fine folks in real life.

Sure, there have been the few odd tiffs, but everyone bounces back and gets right into what is important--watches. I am not going to list everyone who has made this thread worthwhile to me, because honestly, the list is too long to say, and I am sure I will negligently leave someone off. But you know who you are. And I want to thank you for providing (in my opinion) the best discussion on watches, shoes, tailored clothing, cufflinks, diamonds, etc., on the web. Everyone has their opinions, and the beauty of this thread is that everyone is welcome to share their opinions. Even if that opinion happens to be about disliking another person's watch. Watches are such a personal purchase--there is no right and wrong--and it takes a certain level of maturity to be around people who do not blindly congratulate every purchase. If I ever pick up a Hublot Big Bang Shawn Carter, I hope that you all rain down holy hell on me .

So I just wanted to say cheers to another year! We have SIHH right around the corner, followed by Basel. The winter doldrums are almost over. The best time of the watch year is nearly upon us! And I look forward to talking about everything with you gents.

Cheers,

Nuke.

 

[no frills]

MIMOOOOO - happy new year! No, no platinum cuff links. Searched high and low too. There are some available on eBay but I didn't like the designs. I may end up working with a jeweler for precisely this purpose: cuff links and tie bars in platinum. Boooom! My own designs though, a tweak here or there.

Belated happy new year Nuke. It was so good to meet you a few weeks ago. You too DLJr! Hehe.


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/****** Apparently I live on Instagram too - mainly timepieces, shoes, attire and the occasional cheeseburger. @no_frills_vc. ******/