I posted this on RG too, but in case some of you aren't on both sites...
So as I recently posted I just picked up a Bell & Ross BR 126 Vintage Original PVD rep from another member on RWI. I was thinking about purchasing a gen so I wanted to wear one around to see how the smaller size fit my wrist and just how it looked in general.
So here's a quick photo review with some notes comparing it the gen.
First up is a pic of the watch head. The shape of the case is very accurate and the PVD finish is a nice matte black which is close the the gen B&R I own. The dial is very clean looking and the chono subdials are slightly recessed with a circular ring texture which I belive it true to the gen.
So the two biggest flaws and what really keep this from being a great rep is the movement and the dial ampersand (&) logo. The movement is a quartz chrono and what makes it worse, the functions are completely different from the gen. There is no running seconds hand on this watch. The 3 o'clock sub dial is a 24 hour counter which is basically useless unless you're setting the date so you'll know if it's AM or PM. On the gen, this sub dial is the running seconds. Next on the rep, the 9 o'clock sub dial is a 60 minute chrono accumulator, and on the gen it's a 30 minute.
My biggest pet peeve of B&R reps is when they get the ampersand (&) logo incorrectly shaped. For me that's an instand tell. They didn't make an excpetion here. The Bell Ross name is actually pretty good and the correct font, but the (&) is poorly mishapen. The CHRONOGRAPH /100M is a nice font, but they left out the word AUTOMATIC above it, which is another pretty easy to spot tell.
The domed crystal is not sapphire and doesn't seem to have much AR, but that doesn't really bother me. The shape of the crystal actually seems pretty perfect and has just the right amount of distoration. There were some slight marks in the crystal that were either a QC issue or from the previous owner, but it can only be seen at an angle.
The caseback is ok and has the similar light engraving like the gen, but of cource they f'd up the (&) logo again. Also, it says quartz movement and they misspelled movement.
Crown and pushers are ok, but again the (&) logo on the crown is off...
The strap feels quite nice and the actually got the (&) logo correct on the strap stamping. My only complaint here is the strap doesn't quite fill up the lug width. The PVD buckle is quite nice and seems to be the same quality of the BR 02 PVD buckles, which IMO are the best B&R rep buckles.
The lume is not great, but it's there.
Overall I think this could have been a great rep if the factories had just put a little more time into it. There was such hope in this RWI thread (http://forum.replica-watch.info/vb/showthread.php/123-126-update-71175?highlight=br126) and it never came to fruition. I would definitely have paid $300 for an automatic movement and better dial.
So as I recently posted I just picked up a Bell & Ross BR 126 Vintage Original PVD rep from another member on RWI. I was thinking about purchasing a gen so I wanted to wear one around to see how the smaller size fit my wrist and just how it looked in general.
So here's a quick photo review with some notes comparing it the gen.
First up is a pic of the watch head. The shape of the case is very accurate and the PVD finish is a nice matte black which is close the the gen B&R I own. The dial is very clean looking and the chono subdials are slightly recessed with a circular ring texture which I belive it true to the gen.
So the two biggest flaws and what really keep this from being a great rep is the movement and the dial ampersand (&) logo. The movement is a quartz chrono and what makes it worse, the functions are completely different from the gen. There is no running seconds hand on this watch. The 3 o'clock sub dial is a 24 hour counter which is basically useless unless you're setting the date so you'll know if it's AM or PM. On the gen, this sub dial is the running seconds. Next on the rep, the 9 o'clock sub dial is a 60 minute chrono accumulator, and on the gen it's a 30 minute.
My biggest pet peeve of B&R reps is when they get the ampersand (&) logo incorrectly shaped. For me that's an instand tell. They didn't make an excpetion here. The Bell Ross name is actually pretty good and the correct font, but the (&) is poorly mishapen. The CHRONOGRAPH /100M is a nice font, but they left out the word AUTOMATIC above it, which is another pretty easy to spot tell.
The domed crystal is not sapphire and doesn't seem to have much AR, but that doesn't really bother me. The shape of the crystal actually seems pretty perfect and has just the right amount of distoration. There were some slight marks in the crystal that were either a QC issue or from the previous owner, but it can only be seen at an angle.
The caseback is ok and has the similar light engraving like the gen, but of cource they f'd up the (&) logo again. Also, it says quartz movement and they misspelled movement.
Crown and pushers are ok, but again the (&) logo on the crown is off...
The strap feels quite nice and the actually got the (&) logo correct on the strap stamping. My only complaint here is the strap doesn't quite fill up the lug width. The PVD buckle is quite nice and seems to be the same quality of the BR 02 PVD buckles, which IMO are the best B&R rep buckles.
The lume is not great, but it's there.
Overall I think this could have been a great rep if the factories had just put a little more time into it. There was such hope in this RWI thread (http://forum.replica-watch.info/vb/showthread.php/123-126-update-71175?highlight=br126) and it never came to fruition. I would definitely have paid $300 for an automatic movement and better dial.
you get the gen, if you still have the rep, do a side by side, love to see it next to its counterpart. Thanks Buddy!