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Wtf happened to affordable polerouters?

  1. Ohmeguh Sep 10, 2020

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    This may be more of a vent. But I have been searching for an honest UG polerouter forever but everytime one goes up for sale there is some flipper within minutes that snags it and posts it for sale on Ebay, forums, or Instagram for like 2K+. These flippers are single handedly taking the soul out of collecting and have been inflating prices at the same time. Gold plated 2K euros?! Black dial ss 2800 euros?! Cmon. Let me buy a peice to enjoy and WEAR not for greed. This applies to a few other peices that have been on my radar too. Can someone kick these douches out and start a rebellion in which if they are caught flipping just to flip they are ridiculed and denied business?! Haha.
     
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  2. gatorcpa ΩF InvestiGator Staff Member Sep 10, 2020

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    GLWT! In the current market, there are more dollars chasing fewer nice watches.

    ECON 101 taught me that when that happens, prices go up.

    It is the law of nature.
    gatorcpa
     
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  3. Ohmeguh Sep 10, 2020

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    I took plenty of economic courses and I get supply and demand. Buuuuut it still sucks and I wanted to vent about it lol. I am sure there are plenty of non flippers that get bummed by this as well. ;)
     
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  4. ConElPueblo Sep 10, 2020

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    It's the same mechanism that allows you to buy said "overpriced" Polerouter, enjoy it and sell it on without loss later on. Or hold on to it for long and lose your shirt.

    Rolex 101.
     
  5. llvhhui Sep 10, 2020

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    And what's up with those online dealers. They put up watches for sale. You ask one question about the watch, they stop responding.
     
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  6. Ohmeguh Sep 10, 2020

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    Ahahaha Rolex 101. I dig it!
     
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  7. janice&fred Sep 10, 2020

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    Your problem and cure is quite easy. You are simply looking for love in all the wrong places. Get off the interweb and start looking where you can see the watch in person...you know like real life.
     
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  8. Ohmeguh Sep 10, 2020

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    "Hi do you know if ____ is original to the watch?"

    Flipper: "It looks like it to me but I am no expert. Do you want to buy?"

    Flipper McGee's honest response should be: "I honestly just see these going for more and I get alerts on my phone so I decided to buy at 1400 usd and sell for 2500 usd to make some money. I personally have no idea and really don't care. Someone will buy it. So buy this shit already or move on."
     
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  9. Ohmeguh Sep 10, 2020

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    If only life could be so simple lol. Pawn shops and antique stores catch on pretty quickly and I am not much of an estate sale guy.
     
  10. Tony C. Ωf Jury member Sep 10, 2020

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    Why not buy a very similar, and arguably better sports watch from the period for a fraction of the price? :D

    (hint: it ends with "DS")
     
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  11. Scarecrow Boat Burt Macklin, FBI Sep 10, 2020

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    One day I’m going to buy you coffee and follow you around to all of these mythical locations you speak of ;). All of the second hand/thrift stores in my surrounding area have been turned into “upscale boutiques” and all the estate sales are hosted by two competing companies. Families hire either of these two companies to run the sale out of the respective houses, and these companies mark up the items to their respective values. ::facepalm2::
     
  12. Ohmeguh Sep 10, 2020

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    I second this as you worded this so elegantly. If you find the magical real life land please do tell! I will fly there and the ticket roud trip and cost of the watch would probably be cheaper than what I am seeing!
     
  13. janice&fred Sep 10, 2020

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    Oh this isn't "mythical", but most definitely geographical. For instance I wouldn't expect to have this kind of action on the left coast. My best luck is in old factory towns and old cities. The old Yankee upscale towns can also be good but takes more work to track stuff down. The best way to start is begin networking with small jewelry shops and like-minded local treasure hunters.
     
  14. ConElPueblo Sep 10, 2020

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    NO MORE HINTS! NO MORE HINTS!!!
     
  15. Scarecrow Boat Burt Macklin, FBI Sep 10, 2020

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    100% agreed. Edited to add: you just always have crazy/awesome treasure stories from your time in the US and over seas. Having spent half my life on the right coast I know exactly what you are referring to. You just don’t find these places out here on the left side. On the right coast, I used to spend my days off driving around on little adventures that resulted in a lot of fun treasure hunts.
     
    Edited Sep 10, 2020
  16. kip595 Sep 10, 2020

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    I tend to agree. When I lived in L.A. I could find almost anything, but was going to pay accordingly. There was this one weird little vintage store down in the OC that had a few nice Hamiltons and Elgins, but that's the only time I ever really saw much for bargains in that area. Further north, the inland mom and pop shops have nice stuff sometimes. Found a rare Ithaca shotgun and an early 90s Rolex DJ at a pawn shop in east Sacramento for pennies on the dollar compared to anywhere else. Didn't have the money for the DJ at the time, but the side by side made an excellent clays gun for several years.
     
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  17. janice&fred Sep 10, 2020

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    Well alrighty then. If you want to fly anywhere I will help you out with the very best two places on earth I have ever seen for watch treasure hunting.

    1) NYC 47th St. between 5th and 6th. Chum up with a few friendly "outside" dealers on the sidewalk. These guys buy from each other as well as from out of town wholesalers and the general public coming there to unload what they don't want for instant cash. However this is dog-eat-dog and you gotta know what you're looking at within seconds or it's sold to someone else. This is the first link of the chain in nice stuff. No need to get there too early...9 am is fine but be prepared to spend the better part of the day on the street. One thing for sure is the good stuff is a steady stream all day every day, you just gotta chum up to penetrate the circle of outside buyers/dealers so they throw some stuff your way. No opening case backs, no baloney, you gotta know what you're looking at and fast. Cash only and on the spot. All brands will be seen of all ages and models. The NYC alternative would be the weekend Chelsea out door markets when they start up again after the covid. Gotta get there before 6am and pester the vendors as they set up. Later in the day just keep hanging out and watching for new arrivals. Good stuff there on any weekend but loads of competition.


    2) Colon St. Cebu City Philippines. English speaking country. Plant yourself among the vendors and hawkers on the sidewalk in front of Gaisano's supermarket and let the locals know what you're looking for. It's hot, crowded, noisy, smelly and dirty but this is where the "canvassers" who are guys from all the neighboring towns and islands come to unload the stuff they found. Get there around 6am when the sun is coming up and vendors are starting to set up and be ready to spend hours in that tropical climate waiting for good stuff to arrive. Might take quite a few days before you score but you might get lucky and snag a few good pieces daily. Not quite as hurried as NYC 47th St as usually you can examine stuff for a bit longer and look inside the watch. However be prepared to pay cash quick as there will be people looking over your shoulders waiting for their shot. Most swiss brands but mainly Omega, Longines, Tissot, Tudor, Rolex, Tag Heuer, Breitling, JLC, along with Seikos of all types. Sometimes a very unusual swiss piece comes along...I would say maybe 3 or 4 times a week. However there is usually a good dose of vintage chronographs and of course divers. San Pedro neighborhood in Manila is actually much much better for watch treasure hunting but not safe for Foreigners. Cebu City is perfectly safe. Better if you can also chum up with a few locals as they hear of good stuff as it arrives. Cash Cash Cash and quick wins every time. Your advantage will be having the ready cash as many local dealers have a hard time rounding up the funds quickly.

    An honorable mention would be Kowloon in Hong Kong on any given evening. Plenty of outside vendors set up in the night markets and loads upon loads of very good swiss stuff with an emphasis on Tudor, Rolex and Omega, but the language barrier is a challenge which is why HK ranks lower than NYC and Cebu City. Again...HK is quick and cash is king. The nice thing about HK markets is it's night time when it's cooler and of course much more leisurely than waking up at the crack of dawn.

    In all my experience these are the hottest spots. However it's not always possible to be there at those places so I work on what's available around my home town.
     
    Edited Sep 10, 2020
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  18. amcclell Sep 10, 2020

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    The price of vintage Certinas is going up by the minute.
     
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  19. Carlton-Browne Sep 10, 2020

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    There's more to UG than Polerouters.

    Have you thought about collecting travel alarms? :whistling:
     
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  20. Redwes25 Sep 10, 2020

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    I want to see you in action in NYC!
     
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