The old Fake,copy,replica,homage debate

Tricky topic to talk about as everyone has different opinions but here goes

As we all know you can buy Rolex watches from the market whilst abroad on your holidays and these Rolex are out and out Fakes BUT here is my question what if a watch "looks" very similar to a popular branded watch but has a different name and different movement are these watches accepted among the watch community ?

Here is the watch I am talking about



Yes these watches look like the famous Seiko Marine Master but in fact are completely different

The name on the dial is different , this one is braded Fiftyfour
The movement is different this one has a ST2130 movement
The price is different , really different

I love the Seiko MM to me it is a dream watch , the Grail but I know I will never be able to afford a genuine one but not only would I never be able to afford one even if I could afford one I would not spend that amount of money on a watch as I would be afraid of wearnig it in case I scratched it , banged it , dinged it .

So back to the original question would this FiftyFour watch be accepted among the watch community , before i finish can I just point out that I am not asking should I buy it or not buy it as only myself can make that decision but I am just curious as to members opinions .

Cheers John

just going on the watch you show i think 99.9% of people would look at it and think "nice watch" as they wouldn't have a clue what a Seiko 300MM was anyway, out of watch enthusiasts probably 99% would say "Nice watch" with the rest saying " FAKE ! "  as they would be comparing it to the Seiko version.
Homage is such a grey area IMO  because in reality ALL watches are homages one way or another, Rotary for example spent a number of years literately copying just about every design cue from every Brand on the Planet, but no-one said much because they had "ROTARY" on the dial  
at the end of the day provided the watch isn't branded as something its not [ IE fake ] then its down to the taste of the individual thats going to wear the watch ...no one else

and i think the gold one is stunning

the aesthetics of the watch design appeals to me , I am really tempted to buy one to replace the Helm .

Any idea how uk tax/import/customs works I have had a look at the HMRC website but it is a little confusing , the watch is up for $229 approx £180

it is confusing, there is no duty on a watch costing up to £135 so i think the duty would be on the £40 odd which would add about £8, add it all up and you are at £188 then add 20% Vat which will also be payable on any postage, plus a handling charge of about £12 from RoyalMail so you would be around £230 ish
BUT ........it may just sail through...you just never know

I reckon even if it cost around £230 it is still worth it and if it was to slip through customs then a definite bargain .

looks as though I have found my next watch .

Ah just noticed a little bit of small print on their website ... Watch delivery estimated around November , so I am guessing that they are taking orders early in order to get money together to build them .

SeikoJohn wrote:Ah just noticed a little bit of small print on their website ... Watch delivery estimated around November , so I am guessing that they are taking orders early in order to get money together to build them .

yep looks that way is there nothing on ebay for sale right away ?

domecurb wrote:yep looks that way  is there nothing on ebay for sale right away ?

Not really .... I have seen these but Yuck that name is horrible



One of these but priced at $420 (£330 ) and could still be charged customes etc

you could always change the dial to a Yobokies or Dagaz, now that would be something

domecurb wrote:you could always change the dial to a Yobokies or Dagaz, now that would be something

I can buy a genuine MM dial for £160 and put it into a skx007 and that would look great but it would not be the right thing to do .

I have found this though on Ebay and although not a MM homage I do like the M Forces

A yobokies mod would look great something homage is a nice route to take

Iceblue wrote:A yobokies mod would look great something homage is a nice route to take

i agree and it is likely to be unique too

Iceblue wrote:A yobokies mod would look great something homage is a nice route to take

It is all about finding the right dial though , I already have Yobokies MM dial



If I was to go the mod build route it would need to be as close to a MM dial as I could get .

I have messaged an ebay seller about an Orient M Force but he does not have the spare links and as the bracelet is now it will not fit my wrist so that one is a no go

The hima is a option if it was me I would be looking to remove the name and then it would look lovely

Iceblue wrote:The hima is a option if it was me I would be looking to remove the name and then it would look lovely

knowing my luck though Andy I would be left with two pin holes where the name was

Depending on the movement is a replacement dial a option

Iceblue wrote:Depending on the movement is a replacement dial a option

Again though it all falls back on the finding the right dial . I have just had a look at ebay and the Hima runs a NH35 movement which means plenty of dials out there but none in my eyes are suitable . I know I know I am fussy

Took the Plunge and bought the Hima but rather than buying from ebay I have saved myself about £40 and bought direct from Taobao in China using a company called Spreenow. Basically Taobao only ship to China so an agent is required who will ship internationally .

The Hima I bought comes on a bracelet rather than rubber strap and the plan is to hopefully find a Dagaz/Yobokies dial to swop over.

Now the wait begins for delivery