AP 15300 buying advice

[RoyalOac]

Originally Posted by rolexbud

I believe from 2012-ish (?) on, AP moved to the newer clasp style (non-AP letters in metal connecting the bracelet to the clasp itself) which seemed a bit more robust from the ones I tried on (26331, 26315, 15500). But I've only ever seen one 15300st H serial with the newer clasp so it wasn't a hard requirement for me. Just interesting as I did more research on AP watches/bracelets.

thanks for the cool info. I did not know this!

[Nauti]

Originally Posted by dh1

I tend to agree... I think the 15300 blue jumping from 35k to 50k was ~entirely due to the 15202 jumping from 60k to 80-100k almost overnight.

Every SS RO in every size going up may not be justified, but watches in the 39mm sweet spot are just more scarce. Supply & demand...

Agree

If you want a 39mm watch which is for me the perfect size RO then its a 15202 or 15300...

I chose 15300 blue as it has all the charm of the 15202 but also a seconds hand which keeps the dial alive....

Is a 15300 as good as a 5711 ?... i think they are on par but the RO bracelet is the deal clincher.....

[chiscott_29]

Originally Posted by VogelPhoenix

That was a hypothetical question - I just got an invitation from my boutique to pick up my wife's blue dial 15450. But your answer illustrates that on the high end SS sports watch side pickings are very slim. And I agree with the basic point - if there was no chance to get a SS RO at MSRP or close, I'd find something else to do with my money.

Sorry...I didn’t mean to offer a pedantic answer either. LOL.

And I saw the new incoming, so advanced congratulations to you (and the wife)!! At retail, a RO in any size is a no-brainer for sure.

Wear the RO in great health!!


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[VogelPhoenix]

Originally Posted by chiscott_29

Sorry...I didn’t mean to offer a pedantic answer either. LOL.

And I saw the new incoming, so advanced congratulations to you (and the wife)!! At retail, a RO in any size is a no-brainer for sure.

Wear the RO in great health!!

Thanks!!!

[jay_kay]

I have been round the houses with watches and to me the AP 15300 with blue dial is the best watch I have ever owned, twice. I prefer it to my old PP 5711 and it so much more enjoyable to wear for me than any of my Rolex.

As others have mentioned I prefer it over the 15202 because it has a second's hand, screw in crown and easier date setting operation. If feels a bit more substantial too.

[rolexbud]

Originally Posted by Nauti

Agree

If you want a 39mm watch which is for me the perfect size RO then its a 15202 or 15300...

I chose 15300 blue as it has all the charm of the 15202 but also a seconds hand which keeps the dial alive....

Is a 15300 as good as a 5711 ?... i think they are on par but the RO bracelet is the deal clincher.....

This was exactly my thought process and preference after trying on numerous other RO models (size, fit, features, bracelet, etc.). I think the question that collectors/enthusiasts have is around the valuation of these pieces and how to rationalize them given historical pricing the last few years. Guess this is just basic supply/demand (not saying I'm a fan of it either), and with the 15300 discontinued for years, top condition, well maintained units will likely retain some value as long as the 15202 keeps going up (now that it's discontinued).

Now I can imagine this all could changes if AP decides to release a 39mm similar to the 15300 as a tribute to the original over the next few years. For the car fans, maybe similar to the 911R first being introduced and then the 911 GT3 Touring coming out tanking the R prices. But in today's market, anything that's a hot commodity has sky rocketed back up in price.

Like others have mentioned, buy the watch to enjoy and if the value goes up, great. If not, you still have an impressive, timepiece to marvel at.

[dh1]

Originally Posted by rolexbud

Now I can imagine this all could changes if AP decides to release a 39mm similar to the 15300 as a tribute to the original over the next few years. For the car fans, maybe similar to the 911R first being introduced and then the 911 GT3 Touring coming out tanking the R prices. But in today's market, anything that's a hot commodity has sky rocketed back up in price.

If AP released a 15300 39mm tribute, the secondary market price would generally be relative to how much supply they release. Do you think they would make it easier or harder to get than the 15500?

[V25V]

Originally Posted by dh1

If AP released a 15300 39mm tribute, the secondary market price would generally be relative to how much supply they release. Do you think they would make it easier or harder to get than the 15500?

I would venture a guess that anything new named Royal Oak would be harder to get. And because it would be homage to the original proportions, I would say 100% harder to get due to that alone.

[VogelPhoenix]

Originally Posted by V25V

I would venture a guess that anything new named Royal Oak would be harder to get. And because it would be homage to the original proportions, I would say 100% harder to get due to that alone.

Agreed - unless they screwed up the design (unlikely, BP notwithstanding) or flooded the market (even more unlikely), a new 15300 would be somewhere between 15500 and 15202 on the open-ended unobtainability scale.

[rolexbud]

Originally Posted by dh1

If AP released a 15300 39mm tribute, the secondary market price would generally be relative to how much supply they release. Do you think they would make it easier or harder to get than the 15500?

Originally Posted by V25V

I would venture a guess that anything new named Royal Oak would be harder to get. And because it would be homage to the original proportions, I would say 100% harder to get due to that alone.

To be clear, I 100% completely made up the "if AP were to release a 39mm tribute reference" -- I know this is how rumors start.

But fair point that even *if* AP were to release something, it'd be limited in quantity and hard to get so pricing may not normalize in any meaningful way.

[bob101]

Still seems value to me vs 15202 and 5711 prices. For me the 15300 is a better watch than both and first with in house 3120, one of best automatic movements ever made. I’m sure over time will become much more appreciated and prices will reflect that.

[rossi46]

And to think I traded my black dial 15300 a couple years back for the equivalent of $15k

The market is just insane right now. I'll never buy another one.

Agree with the poster who mentioned Lange 1 or Chrono as alternative at these ridiculous price points. There isn't close to $40k worth of watch in a 15300 (as much as I think it's the best all-round RO of all time).

[whiterabbit66]

Originally Posted by bob101

Still seems value to me vs 15202 and 5711 prices. For me the 15300 is a better watch than both and first with in house 3120, one of best automatic movements ever made. I’m sure over time will become much more appreciated and prices will reflect that.

Agreed the 15300 and 15400 much better value these days than 5711 or the multitude of overpriced common Rolexes sports. I would not buy any at these prices but would consider swopping my 5711 for a 15300 and $50k :)

[karasus]

Originally Posted by whiterabbit66

Agreed the 15300 and 15400 much better value these days than 5711 or the multitude of overpriced common Rolexes sports. I would not buy any at these prices but would consider swopping my 5711 for a 15300 and $50k :)

Since the price hike of the 5711 on the open market I've considered retiring my 5711/1r to the safe.

Also considering to do the same with my 15300ST blue since its value has also skyrocketed due to the discontinuation of 39mm ROs.

The market is crazy and really there are not many great deals out there for integrated bracelet sports watches. The VC overseas Gen 1 (ref 42042) 38mm which can still be bought $6-9k is one of the few remaining but even that watch is slowly gaining traction, especially the salmon dial variant which I've see sell for around $15k.

Last year I though the value on the 5711s and 15202s would come down a bit due to covid but god how wrong I was.

[agsstructures]

Good friend of mine is in the market for a full set 15300. He reached out to a few dealers and they seem to be in the $45k range for a black or white one.

[V25V]

Originally Posted by agsstructures

Good friend of mine is in the market for a full set 15300. He reached out to a few dealers and they seem to be in the $45k range for a black or white one.

Yeah a black one just popped up in classifieds for 45K. Nuts.

[Rogerab]

Blue dial 15300’s are $52 to $55k. Doubly crazy.

[agsstructures]

Originally Posted by V25V

Yeah a black one just popped up in classifieds for 45K. Nuts.

That’s actually one of the cleaner ones I have seen. A lot are no box/papers, over over-polished, etc.

Price is wild either way!

[chiscott_29]

Originally Posted by Rogerab

Blue dial 15300’s are $52 to $55k. Doubly crazy.

I feel like the 15300 is a perfect example of how the market is being played by the larger grays. Not even 6 months ago you could pick up a 15300 for less than $30k silver/black, and mid-$30k blue. Recently, EWC had a 15300 blue with extract for ~$52,500. It sold, and now there’s one out there for $59,000 complete set.

There is no rationale for the pricing right now. It’s literally “let me throw this out there and see who will buy it at a greater and greater price”.

It’s frustrating because I think it moves us close to a genuine bubble where everybody is going to get hurt, but admittedly if I owned these companies I’d be doing the same thing.

Also agree on the comments of the conditions of these. Some of the bezels look like a used rubber plumbing gasket.


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[dh1]

Originally Posted by chiscott_29

There is no rationale for the pricing right now.

What was the rationale before?

[chiscott_29]

Originally Posted by dh1

What was the rationale before?

LOL, fair point.

Maybe “rationale” isn’t the right word. It seemed as little as a few months ago that things followed what I perceived to be normal behavior. Things trended up, but slowly. The $28,000 Daytona was replaced with a $28,200 Daytona. You didn’t see substantial price increases almost by the week or the month.


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[agsstructures]

Originally Posted by chiscott_29

LOL, fair point.

Maybe “rationale” isn’t the right word. It seemed as little as a few months ago that things followed what I perceived to be normal behavior. Things trended up, but slowly. The $28,000 Daytona was replaced with a $28,200 Daytona. You didn’t see substantial price increases almost by the week or the month.


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Agree with this here. We saw jumps but feel like the jumps recently are $5k in a week on some watches.

[Nauti]

Everything is worth what someone is prepared to pay......

Are they selling ?...what are the transaction prices..?....who knows...

But a 15300 is a fabulous proposition....

[agsstructures]

Fog city vintage just listed a beautiful white dial for $42k. No affiliation just posting in case someone is interested. As complete as it gets with service papers from AP.

[BigTexRlx]

Originally Posted by V25V

I just jumped on Chrono24, are these actually selling for around 50K right now?

58-60k now !! Price going up so fast the thread prices are outdated

[V25V]

Originally Posted by BigTexRlx

58-60k now !! Price going up so fast the thread prices are outdated

Crazy. I keep thinking about listing mine but with the prices continuing to go up, might as well let it ride. lol

[dh1]

Originally Posted by BigTexRlx

58-60k now !! Price going up so fast the thread prices are outdated

Meanwhile it looks like the 15202ST may have peaked for now. Back when they were 50-60k they would sell as soon as they were listed. Now European Watch Company has 3 that have been there for a while (in relative terms).

[Nauti]

Originally Posted by dh1

Meanwhile it looks like the 15202ST may have peaked for now. Back when they were 50-60k they would sell as soon as they were listed. Now European Watch Company has 3 that have been there for a while (in relative terms).

I know its heresy to say or think it but …..I chose a 15300 after looking and handling it and a 15202 side by side and preferring the 15300 for its extra thickness ,second hand and screw down crown….yes i accept fully its not ‘the’ holy grail that the Jumbo is but its a solid contender that ticks many boxes if you want a 39mm AP that’s easy to live with and I think current prices are beginning to reflect that…

[subprimero]

I'm glad I bought mine four years ago. The current prices are insane. It's amazing that the 15300 is now selling at or near the price of a PP 3940.

[descartes]

Even at $58,000 the blue 15300 is a relative bargain compared to the 5711 or 15202.


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