Omega Watches   Real or Fake?

I am writing this to help buyers on eBay get value for money and not get ripped off. I have just seen a few so called genuine Omega watches sell for £500+ that were not real ones and I hope that this short guide will help you to perhaps avoid being in that situation. Plenty of watches for sale both here and in other places are not all that they may seem to be… The most important thing is to make sure that you know what you are buying and don’t pay way too much for it. I believe that both real ones and fakes have their place so lets look at that first

Real v Fake
Real Omegas are beautiful watches, built to a very high standard and will last a life time if well looked after. Omega will supply spare parts for at least 30 years after the end of a watches production and you can be sure that you have purchased a very good timepiece indeed. You are buying a work of art and wherever you are in the world Omega will look after it for you. They are also waterproof as stated and will keep very good time. The downside is that they cost from around £850 upwards, can be expensive (£120) to service every 3 years or so and they are not something you would want to wear when doing DIY or servicing the car! Having said that I just adore my Seamaster and consider it to be one of the best things I have ever owned.

Fake or replica Omegas are a real can of worms! They come in many shapes and forms and you need to take real care. The real advantage is that you can have something that looks close to the real thing and at a very low cost, perhaps from $40 upwards. But, as in all things in life, you tend to get what you pay for, so don’t expect the cheap fakes to last very long. They will not be made to the same standard and some functions of the watch may not even work, they will only be water resistant to a degree and time keeping is very variable. I own a few fakes, mostly because I cannot afford to buy lots of real ones and also because I am happier for the fake one to get damaged when doing DIY or car repairs! So perhaps both real and fake ones have a place, so we need to know how to tell them apart.

The first thing to do is to research your watch. The Omega web site has loads of information on both new and old watches and should be the first place to look. Check out the model you want and take note of how it looks. Most fake watches will differ in some way, look carefully at the hands shape, size and colour… check the fonts and the descriptions being used on the bezel and watch face… see if the watch strap is the right design, material and colour, the back of the watch should have the right type of cover complete with correct logos as well. Compare what you are being offered with the pictures on the Omega web site. Some of the better fakes WILL look exactly the same as the real ones, and you need to take great care if you wish to get a real Omega. I believe that most recent Speedmasters and Seamasters all have the serial number etched by laser on the outer lugs and on the movement inside the case and perhaps the hardest thing to copy is the anti reflective coating on the glass. This looks like the coating on a camera lens and I have never seen or owned a fake that has this feature. Also check if any stopwatch features work as they should… most cheap fake movements (cheap Chinese and Japanese ones) will not work as a real one should, and although extra dials may move, they will not work as a stopwatch. Some of the fake Omegas using a swiss movement will have correctly functioning sub dials and will work as a real one would. Also beware that a lot of fake Omegas will come with a box and tags that look real but are also fakes. Very few fakes come with the operating instructions or with a receipt of purchase, so that could be a good indication that it is real. Anyone selling a watch without proof of purchase, box etc and asking you to bid accordingly is saying that the watch is a replica. Real Seamasters and Speedmasters will retail for £900 upwards, I would never pay more than £65 for a basic replica, perhaps £150 for a good swiss movement replica seamaster and around £350 for a top of range swiss movement Speedmaster replica.

What started me writing this article was seeing 2 replica Speedmasters selling for over £500 as a genuine Omega watch. I would suggest you need to check the seller’s background, feedback and history very carefully if you are considering buying a watch for this value. Ebay has some good advice on its site and I would add by saying to be wary of new members just selling watches, poor feedback and totally avoid anyone wanting you to wire money direct to a bank account as there is no safety net at all for this type of transaction. There are some very good and honest specialist sellers of Omega watches on Ebay, with large amounts of positive feedback, and by buying through them and using the likes of Paypal you will give yourself a good degree of protection. Enjoy the real watches and the Fakes at the low prices, just make sure you don’t end up buying a replica for the price of a real one!

I hope you found this useful, if you would like to add to my ramblings or have a special point to raise please feel free to mail me.