A trade I turned down....

[Blah114aa]

It was tempting but I said no. I had an opportunity to trade my pepsi, bought new , for a preowned vacheron overseas dual time grey dial. I adored the vacheron and admit the vacheron is the better watch , but not the better watch for me.

My wife told me I’d regret this for the rest of my life... she is right. The pepsi couldn’t ever be bought again for the msrp paid a year or two ago..

I welcome feedback. Obviously the vacheron grey dial, or silver is the least desirable per forums but it’s my fav overseas because it’s old school. It came with three straps. The irony is I like the grey overseas because it reminds me of my 1973 air king which to,this day is my nicest Rolex piece. Just too small. My wife wears that air king all the time. It’s in pristine condition as well. But I digress.

I’ll just be upfront and say it was wempe in Manhattan that proposed the deal when they saw me looking at the vacheron while wearing the pepsi. Nice people at that store. I love the vacheron but the pepsi holds a very dear place to me. It always willl and I won’t sell it. It’s the perfect watch. The pepsi steel bracelet doesn’t get enough attention or accolades either.... I wear that piece weekly or more..... it has shown zero wear and is quite resilient.

Mathematically, on paper, the vacheron is a nicer piece with “complications” (gmt, am pm, date, switchable straps, etc).. brilliantly finished movement as well.

I didn’t make a mistake in passing that deal, but welcome thoughts. I think I’d have had to pay taxes, but I said no. If I wanted an overseas, I’d just buy it outright, the black or grey. Not much into the blue.

[Chester01]

I don’t know. I do like the VC blue dial and especially the chronos. I am not a fan of the 6 digit Rolex but would likely hold the gmt in this showdown. I mean it comes down to preference. Some may say the RO or VC is better, but it’s not better for me given my style and lifestyle (I have fewer watches and expect that they take anything I can dish out. I’m not one of these guys that is like ok, I’m running errands and then play some pick up basketball let me stop off and change my watch and then later for dinner with the wife test another watch.- my sub looks and functions perfectly in every situation that’s the appeal of Rolex versus VC and some of the other brands for me.)

[Blah114aa]

Originally Posted by Chester01

I don’t know. I do like the VC blue dial and especially the chronos. I am not a fan of the 6 digit Rolex but would likely hold the gmt in this showdown. I mean it comes down to preference. Some may say the RO or VC is better, but it’s not better for me given my style and lifestyle (I have fewer watches and expect that they take anything I can dish out. I’m not one of these guys that is like ok, I’m running errands and then play some pick up basketball let me stop off and change my watch and then later for dinner with the wife test another watch.- my sub looks and functions perfectly in every situation that’s the appeal of Rolex versus VC and some of the other brands for me.)

The irony is I bought a new AP a day later ... an offshore. I liked the overseas but once I wore the AP it was more,suitable. Cheaper too. They gave a discount for the AP . I may regret the AP but I doubt it.

[Chester01]

Originally Posted by Blah114aa

The irony is I bought a new AP a day later ... an offshore. I liked the overseas but once I wore the AP it was more,suitable. Cheaper too. They gave a discount for the AP .

Hard to beat that! Enjoy it.


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[djgallo]

You did the right thing....

[rmlovett1]

You said the VC wasn’t a better watch for you....enough said!! That’s all that counts!
BTW...I agree with your choice!

[Mystro]

The solution is a diverse collection. Rolex is a great watch but far from any brand I would devote my entire collection to. I found I appreciated my Rolex watches more with other brands and Vice versa.

[subtona]

If it was a good value for you the nice people at the AD wouldn’t have offered.

[Cabaiguan]

Right choice in my opinion. Pepsi is an all-around great watch and daily wearer. As you mentioned above, it’s not always about the “best” watch but the “best watch for you”.

[Rolex_AG]

Originally Posted by Blah114aa

It was tempting but I said no. I had an opportunity to trade my pepsi, bought new , for a preowned vacheron overseas dual time grey dial. I adored the vacheron and admit the vacheron is the better watch , but not the better watch for me.

My wife told me I’d regret this for the rest of my life... she is right. The pepsi couldn’t ever be bought again for the msrp paid a year or two ago..

I welcome feedback. Obviously the vacheron grey dial, or silver is the least desirable per forums but it’s my fav overseas because it’s old school. It came with three straps. The irony is I like the grey overseas because it reminds me of my 1973 air king which to,this day is my nicest Rolex piece. Just too small. My wife wears that air king all the time. It’s in pristine condition as well. But I digress.

I’ll just be upfront and say it was wempe in Manhattan that proposed the deal when they saw me looking at the vacheron while wearing the pepsi. Nice people at that store. I love the vacheron but the pepsi holds a very dear place to me. It always willl and I won’t sell it. It’s the perfect watch. The pepsi steel bracelet doesn’t get enough attention or accolades either.... I wear that piece weekly or more..... it has shown zero wear and is quite resilient.

Mathematically, on paper, the vacheron is a nicer piece with “complications” (gmt, am pm, date, switchable straps, etc).. brilliantly finished movement as well.

I didn’t make a mistake in passing that deal, but welcome thoughts. I think I’d have had to pay taxes, but I said no. If I wanted an overseas, I’d just buy it outright, the black or grey. Not much into the blue.

You made the right call in my opinion. I understand that VC is holy trinity but is the least known member. The pepsi is an absolute classic you should hold on to in perpetuity.

[Blah114aa]

I appreciate the thoughtful replies. One day, I’ll own an overseas but there’s something special about the pepsi to me. It really doesn’t get enough credit. It might be scarce or rare in ceramic, but it’s a home run piece. As is the hulk for me.

I guess the reason for my posting is that I was actually surprised they offered that deal. Normally I would’ve expected them to ask for $5000 “on top of the trade” or something ridiculous like that. I think the deal would’ve been a fair trade for both parties which really shocks me! Normally, they’d want cash plus trade. Granted, this was contingent upon my sending the box and papers, which I have of course. I’m not sure had I agreed to the deal that they wouldn’t have changed the terms (I need to be more trusting), but it would’ve been a fair deal. Just not right for me. Kudos to Wempe. I guess they’d have asked 20k for the pepsi.

I ate at Sarges deli and a guy stopped to talk about my pepsi as well. He had a two tone black sub that was nice. I like that the pepsi doesn’t attract attention unless people are into watches. It’s not “blingy” in any way.

[DaytonaSubmariner]

I the end, you like what you like, no matter what.
I'd stick with the Pepsi myself over the VC.

[locutus49]

I would have done the trade but with the proviso that Wempe add 5K cash. That is probably less than the profit they would make in quickly flipping the Pepsi, for which they undoubtedly have a waiting list. All Wempe did was make an intitial offer. Your job is to make a counter offer. I like these kind of negotiations but they are not for everyone.

[h20addict]

Originally Posted by Mystro

The solution is a diverse collection. Rolex is a great watch but far from any brand I would devote my entire collection to. I found I appreciated my Rolex watches more with other brands and Vice versa.

Can we put this as a banner at the top of the forum homepage?

I could not agree more with this statement. I have a hard time agreeing with those who devote their entire collection to Rolex only because "its Rolex and there is no other option"

That said OP you made the right choice, if the Pepsi sings to you than you most definitely made the right decision.

[tbk]

I wouldn't have made that trade either. There was a joke back in the day that the way you pronounce Vacheron is "50 percent off". Even though they are part of the big three, they have never seemed to be very popular. The dual time has a JLC-designed movement, which is a great movement, but not an original in-house design. I'd take an AP or a Lange any day over Vacheron (prefer their designs, too), but that's just my opinion.

[wach16]

You did the right thing with adding the AP offshore vs. trading for the Vacheron in my opinion

[Bob62]

Originally Posted by h20addict

Can we put this as a banner at the top of the forum homepage?

I could not agree more with this statement. I have a hard time agreeing with those who devote their entire collection to Rolex only because "its Rolex and there is no other option"

That said OP you made the right choice, if the Pepsi sings to you than you most definitely made the right decision.

To each his own. There are too many Rolex models I desire before owning any one of anything else.

[Blah114aa]

Originally Posted by locutus49

I would have done the trade but with the proviso that Wempe add 5K cash. That is probably less than the profit they would make in quickly flipping the Pepsi, for which they undoubtedly have a waiting list. All Wempe did was make an intitial offer. Your job is to make a counter offer. I like these kind of negotiations but they are not for everyone.

Well said. I was so shocked I didn’t think of that.

[Blah114aa]

Originally Posted by tbk

I wouldn't have made that trade either. There was a joke back in the day that the way you pronounce Vacheron is "50 percent off". Even though they are part of the big three, they have never seemed to be very popular. The dual time has a JLC-designed movement, which is a great movement, but not an original in-house design. I'd take an AP or a Lange any day over Vacheron (prefer their designs, too), but that's just my opinion.

This is a key point. I think JLC really plays behind the scenes for patek, AP, and vacheron more than people understand. I know vacheron has horrendous depreciation.... proof of this is on chrono24 and other sites.

As said, I added an AP the next day by chance. It’s amazing we even found the AP dealer, by chance. We were walking by and saw it. It was very strange.

[Chewbacca]

Good choice and comments.

Do what’s right for you.

[dnd2984]

Op I personally think you made the right choice! Enjoy the GMT.

[AK797]

The VCO is nice but I understand your choice, I bought a 2nd gen black one last year but it didn't last a month with me, had just a bit too much going on with the guilloche dial, MC bezel and bracelet.

[Nikrnic]

VC is the sleeper of holy trinity and blows Rolex out of the water. I don't blame you for passing on that deal but I'd say stay on track to get one down the road and dont follow the blue dial crowd. I'm looking to get into the brand myself with a 3rd gen Overseas and am just being patient right now by not buying anything else and also not to selling anything in my Rolex collection to get there.

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[Vipes]

Originally Posted by subtona

If it was a good value for you the nice people at the AD wouldn’t have offered.

Haha, exactly! OP, you did the right thing.

[Fleetlord]

Choosing to stick with Rolex, in this scenario, is absolutely the right move.

VC is a fine watch to add to a collection, but not at the expense of a Rolex such as the Pepsi GMT.

[Blah114aa]

Originally Posted by Nikrnic

VC is the sleeper of holy trinity and blows Rolex out of the water. I don't blame you for passing on that deal but I'd say stay on track to get one down the road and dont follow the blue dial crowd. I'm looking to get into the brand myself with a 3rd gen Overseas and am just being patient right now by not buying anything else and also not to selling anything in my Rolex collection to get there.

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I visited vacheron in manhattan.. they had a Black dial dual time they’d just gotten. This is a brand new release and it wa stunning. They claim I was the first person to hold it. It was still wrapped. They also let me hold a blue dial same model that somebody was flying from London to buy. Also under plastic. I passed on the black dial because of the AP, .. I loved it, though. I have to say it reminds me of a milgauss for some reason, from afar.. I was the first customer in North America, he claimed , to hold the black dial dual time. Whether that’s true or not I don’t know. It was a Sunday and they aren’t normally open on Sunday’s, at Madison ave. Nice people. Security guy also was nice.

[ap1]

Which AP. Grats

[5pastfive]

I have the privilege to own a half a dozen Rolexes SS GMT and Sub from 1961 to 1995 but I love also some fine watchmaking like VC, Lange and Parmigiani. It adds diversity to life.

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[Blah114aa]

Here’s the AP