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ceriano
·I’m in the market for blue dial aqua Terra. Should I buy pre owned or grey market?
Are they reliable watches in general?
Are they reliable watches in general?
Omega aqua terra - should I buy preowned or grey market?
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Annapolis
·Phenomenally reliable watches, they go with anything, and function very well as daily/only pieces. The new (master chronometer) ones are extremely antimagnetic; even the older ones are very robust.
In general, when possible, I’d recommend preowned for Omega or pretty much any modern luxury watch (with a few brands excepted), especially if you think you might someday want to upgrade/sell, since they tend to depreciate very badly. For most Omegas (most ATs included), a $5500 watch becomes one you’d be lucky to sell for $2800 the second you walk out of the store. Why not buy it for $3500, then, with box and papers, from a reliable, trustworthy dealer? But some people want the Omega dealer experience or want to be the original owner or don’t want a watch that might have a few hairline scratches or other signs of light wear. To each their own.
If I were you I’d read around about good secondary dealers (DavidSW, EuropeanWatchCompany, OCWatchGuy, CrownAndCaliber, Millenary—all the dealers who sell here—and also check the private watch sales here on OF), and then wait. The watch you want will pop up. ATs are made by the thousand—they’re by no means rare or hard to find preowned.
In general, when possible, I’d recommend preowned for Omega or pretty much any modern luxury watch (with a few brands excepted), especially if you think you might someday want to upgrade/sell, since they tend to depreciate very badly. For most Omegas (most ATs included), a $5500 watch becomes one you’d be lucky to sell for $2800 the second you walk out of the store. Why not buy it for $3500, then, with box and papers, from a reliable, trustworthy dealer? But some people want the Omega dealer experience or want to be the original owner or don’t want a watch that might have a few hairline scratches or other signs of light wear. To each their own.
If I were you I’d read around about good secondary dealers (DavidSW, EuropeanWatchCompany, OCWatchGuy, CrownAndCaliber, Millenary—all the dealers who sell here—and also check the private watch sales here on OF), and then wait. The watch you want will pop up. ATs are made by the thousand—they’re by no means rare or hard to find preowned.
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lucian23
·You can find great watches preowned. There are many persons outside there who take good care of their watches and at some point they sell them. Anywa to find your watch you will have to spend some more time to find the right watch for you..
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ceriano
·Phenomenally reliable watches, they go with anything, and function very well as daily/only pieces. The new (master chronometer) ones are extremely antimagnetic; even the older ones are very robust.
In general, when possible, I’d recommend preowned for Omega or pretty much any modern luxury watch (with a few brands excepted), especially if you think you might someday want to upgrade/sell, since they tend to depreciate very badly. For most Omegas (most ATs included), a $5500 watch becomes one you’d be lucky to sell for $2800 the second you walk out of the store. Why not buy it for $3500, then, with box and papers, from a reliable, trustworthy dealer? But some people want the Omega dealer experience or want to be the original owner or don’t want a watch that might have a few hairline scratches or other signs of light wear. To each their own.
If I were you I’d read around about good secondary dealers (DavidSW, EuropeanWatchCompany, OCWatchGuy, CrownAndCaliber, Millenary—all the dealers who sell here—and also check the private watch sales here on OF), and then wait. The watch you want will pop up. ATs are made by the thousand—they’re by no means rare or hard to find preowned.
Grey market prices for aqua terra right now are around $4000-$4200. I saw some listing for NIB with papers under $5k. I assume warranty is active.
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·Yeah for anything less than 5 years old, as long as it comes with the warranty card, you should be covered for the remainder of the period. Preowned dealers often include that material. Gray dealers (like Jomashop) might replace the mfr warranty with their own—I’d avoid that.
Here’s an older (but still not old) one from one of the best preowned dealers in the US, and I’m guessing the price is negotiable.
https://www.europeanwatch.com/watch...a-Terra-Co-Axial-Date-Blue-Dial-SS-45497.html
I would not pay $5k for a preowned or gray market AT. That’s insane.
Here’s an older (but still not old) one from one of the best preowned dealers in the US, and I’m guessing the price is negotiable.
https://www.europeanwatch.com/watch...a-Terra-Co-Axial-Date-Blue-Dial-SS-45497.html
I would not pay $5k for a preowned or gray market AT. That’s insane.
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·Another one from a reputable dealer (and again, price probably negotiable):
https://www.bobswatches.com/omega/o...Ji1mhIr4zRluzJ1lNLIaAiATEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
I'd also track Govberg/Watchbox. Would avoid eBay and Chrono24. Patience and persistence will save you thousands of dollars.
Once you get into $5k territory, I'd just pay the few hundred bucks extra and get one new from an authorized Omega dealer--who might, in fact, offer a 10% (or more) discount. (If you absolutely must have the newest model with a warranty, then this is probably the way to go. If you're willing to get one a generation older but still in great shape with all the original goodies, then you should most certainly be able to do that for well under $4k.)
https://www.bobswatches.com/omega/o...Ji1mhIr4zRluzJ1lNLIaAiATEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
I'd also track Govberg/Watchbox. Would avoid eBay and Chrono24. Patience and persistence will save you thousands of dollars.
Once you get into $5k territory, I'd just pay the few hundred bucks extra and get one new from an authorized Omega dealer--who might, in fact, offer a 10% (or more) discount. (If you absolutely must have the newest model with a warranty, then this is probably the way to go. If you're willing to get one a generation older but still in great shape with all the original goodies, then you should most certainly be able to do that for well under $4k.)
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gbesq
·I can’t speak for others, but I’d have no issue buying new from an established grey market dealer. You’re not likely to need the manufacturer’s warranty on a new watch, and even if you do, the grey market discount off retail on a $5000+ watch is likely to be far more than the cost of a full service.
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·I can’t speak for others, but I’d have no issue buying new from an established grey market dealer. You’re not likely to need the manufacturer’s warranty on a new watch, and even if you do, the grey market discount off retail on a $5000+ watch is likely to be far more than the cost of a full service.
Fair enough. The risk is probably minimal. Guess what I’d say (or what I should have said) is that I’d consider the gray seller’s in-house warranty to be pretty much worthless if the watch has any issue that actually requires a movement service—with the coaxials, only an official Omega service will do, and that’s going to be several hundred dollars without an oem warranty. But, as you suggest, maybe still less than the delta between retail and gray pricing, so a fairly low-risk gamble.
