I commonly watch eBay as many of us do. I see ridiculous listings, grossly misrepresented items and deceptive practices and typically let them slide as you know the sellers are opportunistic or just swamp scum and move on.
Recently there was a listing for a “Benrus Military watch” with original strap. I keep the US mil watches on my watch lists as they are kind of my thing and I have a pretty decent knowledge and small collection of them. This particular watch wasn’t military issue but rather a commemorative D-Day watch retailed in 1994 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the war- I know I have one that was NOS in box (until I wore it so not NOS anymore). The release of the watch pissed a lot of war historians off as Benrus was not a contractor during WWII, the watch in question was designed after the Benrus military issued watches of the 60’s so it was not accurate to represent it as a WWII commemorative watch as it was neither of the style, nor from a company that was contracted-hence it doesn’t fit in either a historic context nor a real mil-watch collectors market. But it is still a lovely watch with a manual wind ETA, great Tritium lume and an almost 1:1 reissue of the 33mm Vietnam era watch for very little money.
I know we all like pictures here, so this is mine:


The seller had a history of legitimate listings, lots of watches, all fairly inexpensive and honestly described, so I figured he just didn’t know. I reached out and informed him that his watch wasn’t actually military issues but was a commemorative model and that the strap wasn’t military issued but just an older khaki colored nylon strap. He responded with a simple “thanks”. And I figured he was blowing me off.
Next I see the listing bas been withdrawn and a new listing posted- a new leather strap is on the watch and the listing clearly states that the watch is “military style” and is a commemorative model from 1994. He took my advise in the spirit it was intended and changed his listing to be transparent. There are still good sellers on eBay it seems.

As we are the people in the “know”, and there are sellers out there trying to be honest, I feel it can be helpful for us to share our knowledge- helpfully- with others to keep the marketplace honest. Some may blow us off and some may argue. But in cases like this, it can make a difference. Whomever buys that watch will know exactly what they are getting and won’t be victim to the post purchase regret. We can make a difference.

 

I do what I can to help out. Lately it's been pocket watch holders to convert to wristwatch that are described as shrapnel guards. I tell them that what they're selling is actually a lot cooler than that.

 

In NASA parlance, you, sir, are a steely-eyed missile man.

 

Would you consider giving us the name of the seller in question, or would that be against the forum rules?

I just thought that there are so many negative comments about sellers offering redials or overpolished watches without mentioning it, so why not name someone who actually seems to be genuine?

 

I personally see no reason not to- I don’t know the seller and have had no communication other than to let him know what he had, and he corrected his listing- so I make no endorsements.



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Just did it with another one- same style Benrus different seller who has listed it as a military issued watch. He responded with curiosity about the watch and was thankful for the info. He even asked how he should word the listing to avoid confusion.
That’s 2 for 2!