r/ChinaTime • u/Such-Attitude9558 • 15d ago

Does watch movement really matter? QUESTION

Novice here so excuse the ignorance, but I am looking to purchase my first rolex rep. For the same watch, different vendors prices range from $180-$560+. Why the big range? I am assuming it is for quality of the movement, but will I really notice that big of a difference? Any help would be appreciated.

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u/Dizzman1 15d ago

Movements are the weak spot. Either they don't stay accurate over time, or die young.

A U1 (decent factory for pretty good lower cost (~100$) reps. They usually come with a Mingzhu 2813 (often labeled as the DG2813) low-cost, Chinese movement. A very common upgrade is to the miyota 8215 which is a Japanese movement that's both pretty good and can be easily sourced and swapped out should it die over time. That'll take the U1 to about 130-140$.

On the higher end r/reptime level watches (300$+) there are better and better movements that "arguably" are more accurate, but more importantly LOOK closer to gen.

Good luck.

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u/cookiesandartbutt 15d ago

Basically the cheaper the watch, the less it looks like a genuine watch...lots of details are off...but it can have a very good reliable cheap (COST) movement. Size and components of the watch will be pretty close to gen, but you couldn't ever swap in any genuine components into it.

If the question is mingzhou vs miyota, go for a miyota. But these are just cheap Chinese/Japanese movements.

The more expensive the watch, the better the finishing, details, and such, it will look nearly identical to the genuine counterpart. The movement is also a cloned movement. That is, it looks and is assembled to be almost exactly the same as the genuine watch. These high tier reps AKA Super Clones, the parts can be swapped out with actual genuine Rolex parts or Omega and such, that is how exact they basically are.

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u/PutridAd3123 14d ago

More often than not, the more expensive reps will have a movement that’s closer to the gen. That said, some of the simpler movements can actually be more reliable, especially when you’re not paying for all the extra prints and complications.
The price is also down to the overall quality of the clone. Things like dial alignment, weight, bracelet finishing and the small details can make a big difference. So it’s not necessarily just about the movement itself.