Originally Posted by
Vancity74
Originally Posted by
elgrenas
Vancity74 wrote:
Aight, I just placed my order:
44m luminor style polished steel case w/ crystal
Black phantom sterile dial
White superlume hands
$108 shipped. Gonna rock it with a red ballistic Nato strap.
so how is the movement. compared to the real thing?
I'm sure it doesn't even come close to comparing to a real Panerai movement, but on that note I will be the first to tell you that I could care less about movement (as long as it's not quartz). I can respect the work that goes into creating a movement and all that jazz, but watches to me are a fashion statement and I would be lying if I told you I've ever used my watch to tell the time.
Panerai uses a similar 6497-2 and the Chinese equivalent is pretty close.
This movement is not very special. It's a manual wind that has been around for close to a 100 years. It's a workhorse, but it is not complex. Thereis no toubillion, date, chronograph, alarm, etc. With that understanding the Chinese movement is a really good value. It is pretty accurate, and can take abeating.
The Panerai movement has engraved bridges (on rhodium I believe), and it has a incabloc for shock protection. These features make it pretty and a little moresecure, but not worth an additional 4k.
You don't see too many watches like this in the open market because Panerai has a copyright on the crown guard. If they didn't you would have Guessand Tommy Hilfiger throwing crown guards on everything.
A nice workaround is to get these from Asia where they don't care.
Panerai cases are shaped from one piece of metal. I doubt they do that here, but I assure you no one can tell.
Panerai is best known for their lume, and their depth rating. Both of which is of no use unless you are a diving enthusiast.
I owned a Panerai 112 about 5 years ago, but eventually sold it. I like the style of the watch, but it really isn't worth the price you pay.
Hommages are a great way to get that look, and to save money.