WATCH POP

Can you educate a beginner on the gray market. If I buy from a reputable source (non AD) with serial number in tack and all that comes with the watch, all I am missing is the 2 year warranty, right? After two years, its a wash? i.e., the only reason I need an AD, is the two year warranty? It's $800.00 more from an AD, and surely any repair can't cost that. What am I missing?

Some (a few) ADs discount 20 to 30%. The one problem I have found is that they don't always have a large inventory and must order your watch. Worth the wait if they can get it within a reasonable time period. Grey market dealers sometimes sell used or returned watches as new- even with all the paperwork and peripherals. Another common situation with the grey market is buffed out movement numbers. You're right - you won't have the warranty. However, some things you should be aware of with regards to grey market watches:
- serial numbers may be removed from the lugs
- you can't be sure of the provenance of the watch (it may be a return, or possibly a frankenwatch)
- resale value will be lower compared to a watch from an AD

Personally, I choose not to go the grey market route. It may cost slightly more (and there are some AD's which will come close to the grey market price anyways), but for the peace of mind it's worth it.
Omega f300 Tuning Fork, Omega Speedmaster Professional "Snoopy Award" Limited Edition 3578.51.00, Porsche Design by IWC 3702, Omega Seamaster CK 2518 (c. 343), Breitling SuperOcean Steelfish A17360 What Mike said, and you might be surprised what repairs can and do cost. R Ω ger
Omega SpMP Moonwatch Ref: 3570.50
Omega Black Dial SeMP Ref: 2254.50
Omega "Electric Blue" SeMP Ref: 2255.80
Omega BA Chrono 1957 Ref: 321.10.42.50.02.001
Omega "Great White" GMT Seamaster Ref: 2538.20
Several nondescript Citizen, Seiko & Timex quartz
The date & time here is:
Fountain Pen Talk Mailing List gray market dealers that are reputable. Box, papers, serial numbers intact, and a large discount. I'd say it depends on the particular watch and it's availability. But, you won't get the warranty or be able to get a COSC certificate if you don't have the warranty card. It's a gamble. You could get a "Monday watch" that is semi defective. Think of it like this: You are about to pony up 2-3K for a watch. What's a couple of hundred more to give you the bumper to bumper warranty? Just my dos centavos. - David A man in the company of a hot, suggestively dressed woman must remain sober enough to fight. - Man Law #17 Once you from a relationship with a good local AD, you might be surprised by the discounts that can be had. "$27,000 for a watch! For that kind of money, I'll pay someone to follow me around and tell me what time it is." -My Dad a ser# ground off on a PO or something like that. Maybe not, or was it 2 watches, no, I think it was one with a bad caseback or,
wait, maybe it was a gray market or was it two gray markets.......
anyway, I don't think he is around, or wait, maybe he is........
jim pimp. - David A man in the company of a hot, suggestively dressed woman must remain sober enough to fight. - Man Law #17 My first Omega was from a slick, typical gray market dealer -- a black GMT at a great price, and it was new enough with documentation tht I was able to get the COSC cert on it. My second watch was from him also, but once I got it home and looked at it, it was well used, polished down, years old, and had several other issues -- luckily, despite his no-returns policy, I got my money back and never returned.

Now I only go through AD's and have ever since and it's been worth it.
OD Sapphire-sandwich Speedmaster, Railmaster chronograph, and five Seamasters (classic Bond, GMT, 45.5mm Planet Ocean, electric blue, and SMP chronograph) make up the modern core of a collection that features over 33 vintage Omega's dating back to 1935, including 14 other Seamasters and nine hummers (f300's). About 18 months ago I took a fancy to a Brietling Headwind but it was out of production. I phoned around all ADs within a reasonable distance (living in London there were alot of them!) to no avail - there were none to be found. Looked on the internet at grey market dealers as a last resort, and a couple of them stocked the watch. I chose the dealer that looked the most professional, placed my order and received the watch soon afterwards. Serial numbers were intact, all papers were there as was a AD stamped warranty card, so no complaints at all.

The company I chose was based in the UK, provided a bricks & mortar address, VAT & company registration numbers etc. so everything was legit, don't know about the US.

I'm now in the same boat again - been looking for a brand new SMP 2231.50, couldn't find one, so placed an order with the same company and received an email this morning telling me it would be here on Friday - I'll keep you posted.

So no bad experiences so far, I do prefer the personal touch and still go to an AD out of preference, even though discounts are non-existent, and only use grey dealers as a last resort.

G David Moose NRF NREMT-I EVTMT If it's a current model, I'd go with an AD discount every time.

Nomis, makes a good point, though, about discontinued models no longer stocked by AD's. I know it's hard to generalize, but what if it comes down to a choice between a new one from the gray market or a used one from an unknown seller, e.g., SC? Based on the consensus I went with an AD and ordered my first Omega - the black gmt. Thanks to everyone and especially Mike for the AD lead. I should have it Friday afternoon. I should add, I've always been a Rolex guy, so I'm really excited to see how it goes with Omega.