Hi guys,
As part of my contribution to the forum, i always make a point to do comparisons or analysis of reps so we have more information on these boards. There's just too much taking of info and too little giving back!
I was lucky to be able to pick up a used Cartier Santos 100 XL for cheap and decided to do a quick comparison to my ultimate rep version:
A couple wrist shots to kick this off:
My first thought was that the dial of the rep was just slightly duller than the pearl effect of the gen, pretty hard to describe but there is a slight difference there. However, this is impossible to detect unless you have a gen right next to it. Overall feel of the watch on the wrist is pretty spot on with the gen feeling just a bit more 'solid' and heavier.
Case shape and size is very accurate and no complaints there.
As expected the rep sapphire doesn't come close to gen and is much darker.
The engravings on the caseback is where we start to see the difference, albeit slight. Fonts on the 2656 being the most obvious and the alignment of fonts are off but again who's gonna notice when it's on your wrist and without a gen to compare side by side?
Also noted the caseback screws are more rounded then gen:
The clasp has a few notable issues, mainly the rounded screws of the rep as compared to the flatter ones of the gen:
The deployment clasp was well replicated apart from screw shapes which frankly shouldn't matter since it can't be seen when worn
Engravings are sharper on the gen but at least the right fonts and sizes were used on the rep!
One peeve was that the clasp was fit upside down vs the logo, obviously not a big issue but something that may not be fixed that easily. Not quite sure if it's unique to my piece so do let me know if that's the case for fellow owners. Basically when you don the strap the logo should be legible right way up to the wearer, then clasp should be closed inside then outside (not sure if I'm making sense here), but the rep was the other way around.
Whilst the lug pins are pretty similar, the rep ones are of poor qc with one of mine coming in a different shape. Doesn't affect the functionality though.
Construction of case between lugs were less sharp but did the job nonetheless.
Lume was pretty spot on but the gen obviously lasted longer than the rep
Summary:
All in all a fantastically replicated piece and truly deserving of a super rep status. Best bang for buck and the gen being something very affordable as well does not make this an easy call out on the wrist!
Hope you guys found the review helpful!
As part of my contribution to the forum, i always make a point to do comparisons or analysis of reps so we have more information on these boards. There's just too much taking of info and too little giving back!
I was lucky to be able to pick up a used Cartier Santos 100 XL for cheap and decided to do a quick comparison to my ultimate rep version:
A couple wrist shots to kick this off:
My first thought was that the dial of the rep was just slightly duller than the pearl effect of the gen, pretty hard to describe but there is a slight difference there. However, this is impossible to detect unless you have a gen right next to it. Overall feel of the watch on the wrist is pretty spot on with the gen feeling just a bit more 'solid' and heavier.
Case shape and size is very accurate and no complaints there.
As expected the rep sapphire doesn't come close to gen and is much darker.
The engravings on the caseback is where we start to see the difference, albeit slight. Fonts on the 2656 being the most obvious and the alignment of fonts are off but again who's gonna notice when it's on your wrist and without a gen to compare side by side?
Also noted the caseback screws are more rounded then gen:
The clasp has a few notable issues, mainly the rounded screws of the rep as compared to the flatter ones of the gen:
The deployment clasp was well replicated apart from screw shapes which frankly shouldn't matter since it can't be seen when worn
Engravings are sharper on the gen but at least the right fonts and sizes were used on the rep!
One peeve was that the clasp was fit upside down vs the logo, obviously not a big issue but something that may not be fixed that easily. Not quite sure if it's unique to my piece so do let me know if that's the case for fellow owners. Basically when you don the strap the logo should be legible right way up to the wearer, then clasp should be closed inside then outside (not sure if I'm making sense here), but the rep was the other way around.
Whilst the lug pins are pretty similar, the rep ones are of poor qc with one of mine coming in a different shape. Doesn't affect the functionality though.
Construction of case between lugs were less sharp but did the job nonetheless.
Lume was pretty spot on but the gen obviously lasted longer than the rep
Summary:
All in all a fantastically replicated piece and truly deserving of a super rep status. Best bang for buck and the gen being something very affordable as well does not make this an easy call out on the wrist!
Hope you guys found the review helpful!
