I’ve always had a fascination with watches, every since I bought a nice looking (but cheap) Seiko wrist watch for my sixteenth birthday. Since then I’ve collected a few down the years, but my favorite is the Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean. I get frustrated when I hear of people getting scammed into buying counterfeit Omega watches though, so I thought I’d write a post on how to avoid being caught out. The internet makes it a lot easier to buy vintage watches, but the chances of coming across a fake are vastly increased.
The problem with counterfeit watches is that they can be hard to identify online. If you’re buying from eBay or somewhere similar, make sure you visit a site like Chronocentric before you bid. That particular site deals specifically with Omega watches, but there are a variety of others for different brands. It has a buyer’s guide, as well as galleries of watches.
The more information you can about a model of watch the less likely it is that you’ll get scammed. Another good site is Vintage Watch Brands, which has listings of all the top manufacturers, as well as details about individual collections and timepieces. If, for example, you wanted to buy a pre owned Omega Planet Ocean, then compare images from Chronocentric and look up the details and specifications on Vintage Watch Brands. When dealing with resellers of used or preowned watches, make sure you ask to view images of the movement as well.
Don’t get too scared of counterfeit watches though – just make sure you’re aware of them! There’s nothing more exciting than buying a new watch you’ve always wanted. I’m a fan of sports watches, especially diver’s, so I regularly look through the timepieces at OceanicTime to see what’s available. It’s another useful site for getting an overview of certain models, and it’s regularly updated.