[s.m.b.]

Originally Posted by qrc36

HK guy here too. Excellent knowledge of how the system works.

The "waiting lists" are really not ranked in order and people can jump the queue. It's mostly decided by Libertas (the PP distributor in HK) after the AD hands them your name.

The scenario right now is that your AD feels you aren't "ready" for a 5711 yet, given the 15 month wait for both 5711 and 5712. I got my 5711 as a fresh client of my AD within a few months after putting my name down. I was told "it was [the distributor's] decision, not our [AD's] decision." I've also had several friends get their 5711 and 5712 within a few months after putting their name down (as fresh clients with no history). One of them got their 5711 several months after their 5712. So the inventory is definitely there, it's all a matter of your distributor agreeing on who to sell it to.

So if your AD felt you were ready for a 5711 (or "worthy" as some of my friends say), they would have allocated one to you already. So here it appears your AD feels you are now ready for a 5712, but not 5711.

Knowing the practice here in Hong Kong, I would advise you to buy the 5712. Wear it and visit your AD, telling him/her how much you love it and hinting that you'd love to get the 5711 too. Hopefully that will help your chances of getting the 5711 eventually.

I am not saying this to offend you in any way when I mention being "ready" or "worthy" - that's just how it works here, from my personal experience.

That's an interesting system. For the original poster's sake, I hope purchasing the 5712 will one day make him worthy of a 5711 in the eyes of his AD/HK distributor.