Which super rep is better overall? TC Sub V6 or BK Noob V5 Sub-C

[GrapeJam]

TC pretty much always wins whenever it comes to Rollie's. I personally prefer the ceramic bezel though, the V5 is still a fantastic rep. The main benefit with the TC thiugh is that you can franken it at a low cost. The ceramic parts on the other hand are very expensive


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[SUMIKITO]

You can find all the TC information here : https://forum.replica-watch.info/vb/forumdisplay.php/323-TC-Watch-Parts ................ I encourage all those wanting to find out about a TC or anything for that matter to scan the front page of the RWI forum. Look, look, and look closer. Just as you would when in a new restaurant [menu]. Or entering a new mall. The 'menu' will always be there, in your face. Saying "hello", "read me" ! You size up the place. Up down, left right. Bam ! .......... Just like in a new brothel. You check out the goods. Ask the regulars. Slap the butts. Are the smiles 'real'. Are the 'make up' too thick ? Big boobs could be Reps. Check the 'bounce'. Real ones bounce differently. ............ Do your homework, and be a happy camper. Good luck !!

 

[d4m.test]

Both are fantastic watches, the TC is closer to Gen, the BK with the ceramic bezel looks and wears "bigger" and is (much) more comfortable because of the adjustable glidelock clasp. The TC bracelet is very close to gen and feels light and flimsy, the BK is not so close to gen and has flaws but feels heavy, solid and well made. All the rest is comparing apples with oranges, different watches, the V5 has fat dial markers and blue lume, the TC has thin dial dots and green lume, the TC insert is aluminium and close to gen, the Noob V5 insert is ceramic and only superficially close to anything.

Sumikito has summed it up, I´ll put it with my words: TC is far superior in direct comparison.
One look at them side by side and You "know" the TC "is gen" and the BK "is fake". It´s the shine of the polished markers of the TC dial, the deepness of the black, the crispness and sharpness of the lettering and the crown on the dial, the distance of the hands to the dial, a sum of details and not a stand-alone fact.
You put a TC side by side with a 16610 and You have difficulty telling them apart otb, put a gen insert and crown on the TC and it gets almost impossible;
Take a BK and put it next to a gen 116610 and You know instantly which is which, it takes less than 5 seconds.

A TC has handpicked parts for every detail and a superior dial, the BK is a Noob V5 with better qc and a better movement than the otb Noob V5. You "need" to buy a TC without alternative, You can anytime buy a Noob V5 from TD´s for far less than it costs with BK (I´m not saying BK is not worth it, alone the movement makes up for the difference and the additional qc is for free, the thing is You don´t absolutely "need" a better movement than the ETA-clone and if wanted You can always put it in later, this may be 5 or 6 Years later).

Modded by TC himself 16610 lumeshot

Noob V5 from Toro

 

[Lagunax]

Bottom line is if you want a ceramic bezel and the "rolex" engraved on the rehaut (under sapphire side walls) then Bk is your choice.
TC is more accurate but for an older model, there is no rehaut engraving or ceramic bezel (it is metal).
TC lume is the older green, BK is the newer blue.

There you go.

P.S. I have a TC.

 

[vegasbaby]

My 2 cents - the sub C, gen and rep, is a superior watch to the 16610. However, if I'm going into a social situation where I want 0 chance of being called out, I put the V5 in the watch box and strap on my TV LV.


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[efthimis]

I am waiting my 16610LV (have a solid month to 45 days ahead of me I am afraid) to experience myself what all the fuss us about. I had a Noob V5 and will get a BK in the months to come and will go with the argument that 95% or even more of the people.around you will not be able to tell from a gen. Only the trained eye will spot the difference or a gen owner that really did some homework and appreciates what is on his wrist (unlike some showoff cocks). I am excited to get my TC, BK is for the Mrs and I sold my Noob as I had an issue with the movement and lost my enthusiasm over it because of that

Sent from my S6 Edge+

 

[jonathanw]

This thread has produced much valuable information, that for many of the experts it may well be obvious, but not for the newer inexperienced guys like me that despite having a newly found passion for this and having spent 3 weeks and 100's of hours and nights of reading sometimes can't get the fines details on a deeper level of understanding like you guys have.

thank you to all for the valuable contributions!

 

[jonathanw]

I didnt know if I needed to start a new thread or not, but I guess I will somehow hijack my own thread haha!

I have seen this, BK offers to realign the more-often-than-not OOTB misaligned engraved rehaut on the Noob V5 Sub-C rep. Ive read some other moders can do the same. I am not arguing about it being model-congruent or not, Ive read on rolexforums that some collectors consider the Engraved rehaut Sub's of 5 digit model like the 16610 to be more valuable, I find that fact interesting and I personally LIKE the way the engraved rehaut looks both on the 16610 and on the 116610. I don't care that the font is not gen like and that its not model-correct, etc. I like it.

The question is, if BK and other moders are capable or actually re-aligning a misaligned rehaut that can only mean that this particular ring-like piece can be removed from the case as a separate piece, right? otherwise how would it be possible to align it if it was engraved on a solid one piece case?

The 2nd question is, if this is actually a separate piece, could I get a TC sub V6 and remove the engraved rehaut from a Noob V5 Sub C and put it on the TC sub v6? I already checked around and the specs like diameter etc are identical in both models, just the ceramic one is called a maxi case or super case because of the larger lugs and shape, etc.

thank you.

 

[DVNE]

The engraving doesn't get centered. The dial does. The movement clamps are loosened and the dial is slightly rotated.

Get a TC and be done with it. For reals...

 

[jonathanw]

The engraving doesn't get centered. The dial does. The movement clamps are loosened and the dial is slightly rotated.

Get a TC and be done with it. For reals...

So then the dial would be "slightly off centered" then when BK aligns the rehaut on his noob v5 sub c's?

 

[d4m.test]

So then the dial would be "slightly off centered" then when BK aligns the rehaut on his noob v5 sub c's?

When and if BK slightly turns the dial. Noob V5s will be ok straight out of the box. Most of the one´s BK gets from his TD are well aligned anyway to start with. Plus the TDs will send You qc-pics to take a look and if the dial is not centered You can ask for a replacement. It just happens people don´t look or don´t notice that the pearl or the rehaut engraving is off when ordering or are in such a hurry to get the watch that they just approve anything.
It´s irrelevant, like the offset from the TC, on the TC we are talking +-0,02mm (a tiny fraction of a mm) when and if is "misaligned" because most are not. This is something You cannot see with the naked eye and You cannot see it with a 4x loupe. It´s just fun to discuss this kind of detail on rwi. If You start checking a gen with a 20x loupe You will detect flaws.

What is relevant on the Noob V5 (if You go into that detail) is that the crystal is too high, including on the BK. And the Cyclops does not have the correct a/r, it´s too bluish, like on the second pic. Honestly I couldn´t care less, but each has a different approach.

- If this kind of thing annoys You, there is really no other way than the TC.
- If You want to have a rehaut engraving on the other hand, You will have to live with the mostly invisible flaws of the sub-c and there is no other way than the Noob V5,
either direct from TDs or from BK.

Yet another option, just to show how much fun all of this is, is to get the stock Noob V5 from TDs and invest the $300 price difference saved, in a better crystal with the correct anti-reflex on the Cyclops for a black hole effect and to have a shorter crystal gasket mounted, so it sits lower and more gen-like. If You start doing that with the BK You´re in for a $1.000.

OTB Noob V5 from TD

 

[JoeyT]

Just get a Noob V5 no date brother. No need to worry about cyclops mag, crooked cyclops, DWO left/righ/hi/low, crystal AR on cyclops, possible movement issue, etc etc etc. for reps I always go with no date models. It's a lot less that can go wrong. It's like a cheap car with a ton of options, you know that you will have to fix them in the future anyway so if your gunna get a cheaper car, just get a basic that looks good without all the bells and whistles.

 

[thefinger]

Having owned and worn both TC and BK subs, both are great. I think the biggest thing BK has going for his pieces is the gen Swiss movement he installs in his watch. As a reliable timekeeper, the BK wins OOTB. The TC is closer in appearance to it's gen counterpart, and easier to add gen parts for cheap.

I have made the mistake of getting too hung up on the BK vs. TC argument many times before, and my conclusion is this: Both TC and BK watches are "good enough," so which model Rolex do you want to wear everyday? Pretend they are the real deal, and you get to choose your favorite between the two.

Which do you like wearing better?... A larger, blingy-er, heavier, more modern 116610? Or do you want to wear the more lightweight, subtle, classic 16610? It's a question of comfort and taste. Both are beautiful, but holy crap are they different!

 

[SUMIKITO]

Comparing both these 2 watches without having them in your hands is a fruitless 'go no where situation'. Like test driving a car in your armchair after reading all the reviews you can find in print. You will only be kidding yourself. The moment you buy any of these 2 watches, [cash and carry], and have them on hand, in 5 minutes, you will be holding the TC in awe as you recline back staring at it and saying, "shit"! Damn ! what a Rep !! ....................... And that is how it usually goes, all of the time.

 

[ryantunna]

I have a hybrid of both. I have a TC 16610 sub with BK's DWO and a gen insert/crown. I think BK's DWO is the only superior aspect of his 16610. I didn't realize TC made the Hulk sub.

 

[jonathanw]

@Daywatch : Why $1000 bro?
http://www.intime.co/rollie/1237-noob-factory-2014-submariner-black-116610ln-a3135-superlumed-.html

A noob V5 goes for $448. How much does the genuine crystal with AR etc goes for ? + the modding for having a shorter crystal gasket ? would that account to $1000 or more? Theres a super franken rep on sale on repgeek for $3500 I was almost banned for calling the high price with which you would buy a genuine aluminium submariner, new at an AD. I guess the price stacks up very fast! Supposedly BK already puts in a shorter gasket for the crystal in order to make it Gen-spec... If only BK would sell his sub-c without the swiss ETA I would buy it and put in a Y3135 instead.

@Ryantunna : Thats what I also now, the BK DWO is better than TC's DWO, but I don't know for sure if that comparison is true in the BK vs TC V4 (latest version) DWO. Does someone know for certain?

@JoeyT : The "no date" idea is great actually! and the new car analogy is accurate too. I don't know if noob makes its "no date" sub c identical to its sub c... is it? does it only change the date attribute?

 

[zero_deficit]

@Daywatch :

A noob V5 goes for $448. How much does the genuine crystal with AR etc goes for ? + the modding for having a shorter crystal gasket ? would that account to $1000 or more?

A BK is already $650, then add on the cost of a gen crystal WITH AR and LEC (B25-295-CAR) which is around $300, then shipping and labour, that's $1000 right there

 

[jonathanw]

A BK is already $650, then add on the cost of a gen crystal WITH AR and LEC (B25-295-CAR) which is around $300, then shipping and labour, that's $1000 right there

Exactly, but BK's Sub C's are the same as Noob Sub-C V5, minus $200 USD and minus a Swiss ETA movement and his mods. So if I go the route you just posted I would go up to $800. Still would need the mod to put in a shorter crystal gasket though and all the back and forth shipping. so yeah, $1000 easily.

Is the OOTB Bezel insert for the BK/Noob V5 Sub C too bad or too telling?

 

[d4m.test]

While I appreciate the attention to detail as much as anyone, I have found with reps, you are getting a rep watch. No matter how many things you do to it, and how many people mess with, it is not going to be a gen. Genuine luxury watches, and even affordables, have a level of detail that reps cannot achieve. Sure you can have someone fix it and make it a lot better, but it is just a different feel. Most reps I feel like I am just waiting to find some quality flaw on them, and I inevitably do. If thats not something you can accept, maybe go to gens then.

I prefer ceramic over aluminum, but TCs sub is the most solid rep I have felt/worn. Really great for the price. As far as being "too far from gen" 99.9% of anyone will never notice. Hell members here post the reps on IG and everyone loves them! Only people in this community would know the difference, I have studied gen Rolex for a few years now, and I have learned more in here in 3 months. No one is ever going to be like "hey your hand pinion isnt correct. Your ceramic bezel doesn't reflect light and the engravings aren't deep enough"

Just buy what you like and wear it. Its your money and your watch.

P.S. for $1000 you can get a MUCH better genuine watch than anything that comes from the rep world, just my opinion.

 

[sicilianu]

While I appreciate the attention to detail as much as anyone, I have found with reps, you are getting a rep watch. No matter how many things you do to it, and how many people mess with, it is not going to be a gen. Genuine luxury watches, and even affordables, have a level of detail that reps cannot achieve. Sure you can have someone fix it and make it a lot better, but it is just a different feel. Most reps I feel like I am just waiting to find some quality flaw on them, and I inevitably do. If thats not something you can accept, maybe go to gens then.

I prefer ceramic over aluminum, but TCs sub is the most solid rep I have felt/worn. Really great for the price. As far as being "too far from gen" 99.9% of anyone will never notice. Hell members here post the reps on IG and everyone loves them! Only people in this community would know the difference, I have studied gen Rolex for a few years now, and I have learned more in here in 3 months. No one is ever going to be like "hey your hand pinion isnt correct. Your ceramic bezel doesn't reflect light and the engravings aren't deep enough"

Just buy what you like and wear it. Its your money and your watch.

P.S. for $1000 you can get a MUCH better genuine watch than anything that comes from the rep world, just my opinion.

Yeah with 1000dollars you can buy an Tag Aquaracer and it's a premium build luxury diving watch.