Just acquired a 14060m sub but found out a few of the links in the bracelet are not genuine. The seller claims he thought they were original. I can’t really tell but wondering just how common it is to use these non original links in these bracelets. I suppose i could replace them for a few hundred dollars. The seller is happy to cancel the transaction and take the watch back but i feel i got a pretty good deal on it overall and it’s the correct birth year to be a gift for my sons graduation. Do people commonly use aftermarket links? They are all over the place for sale on eBay and Amazon.

 

If you call Rolex service center and tell them you are inquiring about the price of the links, or an entire bracelet, ask for the price. Most of the Rolex parts you see for sale on major websites are often more expensive asking prices than to just buy the parts from Rolex. Since these are non polished links on your watch they are probably $50 or less. If you otherwise like the watch but just need to replace something to make it all original, then a few links shouldn't cost much. Also the Rolex service center won't sell you the parts you can just find out the price, and then go to your local AD and order them.

 

If the watch is excellent, I wouldn’t let a few links stop me from buying it. You can ask the seller to knock a hundred off the price so you can source new ones.

 

Aftermarket links would be enough for me to think

Soooo...what else is aftermarket
Look at the movement very closely

 

They do get used pretty often since they are widely available on eBay and I suspect many people don't even know when they buy them. Similarly, people often have aftermarket end-links on their watches. If the watch is good otherwise, I certainly wouldn't return it over that. You can replace them for $50-$75 each. The main issue is that the screws are often really crappy, and when you try to remove them you can easily end up stripping the slot.

 

I have a stretched out oyster where I replaced all of the center links and kept the end links and clasp. I think this is pretty common because the hollow center links on the OG oyster stretch and get damaged from use over the decades. Check if the links are hollow or solid in the center. If they are solid, they are Fugazi. It is pretty shady to sell a bracelet that has a mix of gen and non-gen parts, especially since a good 78360 is like $1800++ these days

 

The aftermarket links stick out like a sore thumb and are utter garbage. They are always so rough, never fit right and have sharp edges.The screws will NOT work in real links without cross threading the threads because the Chinese use a different thread pitch.
Id be more concerned with whatever else is aftermarket on the watch. If its just the links then ask for a refund for the amount of picking up the correct links needed.

 

Thanks for the input everyone.
It was found to be authentic by Ebay authentication thing other than those links. The seller was willing to take it back for refund, every time we communicated even. Even reached out to me to offer refund before i even brought it up... Then pretty much told me with the deal i got i shouldn’t be complaining about a few knock off links (one didn’t even fit the bracelet) it was an auction and I suspect the seller was expecting to get much more? I’d just assume have the RSC add a few real ones when i take it for service. Hopefully i don’t get any other surprises there. It looks to be in great shape. Keeps good time. No scratches. Pretty nice for a 14 yo watch.

 

The seller is not offering a partial refund. In fact it sounds like the seller would be happy to reverse the deal, which might tell you something.

 

Yup- sounds like it sold cheaper than he wanted and would be happy to take it back. I’ve had sellers cancel auctions I won just because they weren’t happy with the outcome.

 

I have been really tempted. On one occasion, my auction ended very low, and within an hour I received two messages through eBay from people telling me that they missed the end and had wanted to bid. They offered me substantially more than the final price. I said sorry and sent the watch to the winner, but I felt a little stupid turning down the money.

 

But you erred on the right side of karma.