How much Gold worth in a full gold rolex

[AK797]

Originally Posted by Sammk

How come? lets say for example the SS is retailing for $8000. So if the gold watch is to be sold at the exact same premium as the SS it would sell for $8000 + $4000 (cost assumption of Solid gold value), which is $12000. Instead the soild gold models are retailing for $30,000. The Movement of the watch and the making is exactly the same of the Gold watch as the SS watch. So you can see how much more premium they r charging on the Gold models.

I believe the cost of steel used in the subc is only a few hundred pounds as opposed to a few thousand for the gold so the retail price on steel is 10-15 times the cost of the steel, whereas it is around 4-5 times that of the gold's.

[T. Ferguson]

Originally Posted by Sammk

How come? lets say for example the SS is retailing for $8000. So if the gold watch is to be sold at the exact same premium as the SS it would sell for $8000 + $4000 (cost assumption of Solid gold value), which is $12000. Instead the soild gold models are retailing for $30,000. The Movement of the watch and the making is exactly the same of the Gold watch as the SS watch. So you can see how much more premium they r charging on the Gold models.

I'm not convinced that's the proper way to look at it because you are questioning the premium you pay for the gold over it's cost compared to the price of the steel watch but you are ignoring the premium you pay for the steel watch over it's cost.

Say a solid gold Rolex retails for $40,000 and has only $4,000 worth of gold in it. So you are paying a premium of 10 times the value of the gold. But if that same model in SS cost $9,000 and has only $90 worth of steel in it, then you are paying a premium of 100 times the value of the steel. If Rolex were to charge that same mark-up on the gold watch it would MSRP for $400,000.

On that basis which watch is the better value? You are paying a much lower percentage premium for the gold than for the stainless steel. When people lament the premium Rolex charges for gold they are ignoring that it is less than the premium they charge for stainless.

[SALTY]

The multiplier over raw material cost does not work in regards to comparing SS with gold. After all, the watch must be made of something.

Rather than FRN, pot metal, aluminium or a host of other materials available for watch case making, SS seems to be the default material for most quality sports oriented watches. Therefore, as if by default, SS becomes the something that watches of the Rolex type are made from and therefore becomes the baseline for comparison with "other" materials.

[Speed]

Would you prefer Rolex made watches out of wood?

[T. Ferguson]

Originally Posted by SALTY

The multiplier over raw material cost does not work in regards to comparing SS with gold. After all, the watch must be made of something.

Rather than FRN, pot metal, aluminium or a host of other materials available for watch case making, SS seems to be the default material for most quality sports oriented watches. Therefore, as if by default, SS becomes the something that watches of the Rolex type are made from and therefore becomes the baseline for comparison with "other" materials.

The whole point I'm making is that this exercise is sort of meaningless. Whatever material a Rolex is made out of, Rolex charges a hefty premium over the cost of that material, it's not confined to gold. But if you are going to look at it that way (premium over cost of material) then compare apples to apples. On that basis, compared to 904L Rolex is giving you a heck of a deal on a gold piece. In other words, I don't think it's fair (or accurate) to say a gold Rolex isn't worth the money because they are charging you a premium over what the gold cost them.

Now, if you want to make the case it's not worth it because they take a bigger hit on resale, well that's an entirely different argument. But even in this many make the mistake of comparing resale prices to MSRP and not what you can actually buy the new watch for if you are an astute customer. Take a look at what a BNIB YG GMT or Sub sells for on here and you'll see what I mean.

The bottom line is the prices Rolex charges bears little relation to the cost of the materials used. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts and all that.

[locutus49]

I agree with your posts. They are insightful.

Originally Posted by T. Ferguson

The whole point I'm making is that this exercise is sort of meaningless. Whatever material a Rolex is made out of, Rolex charges a hefty premium over the cost of that material, it's not confined to gold. But if you are going to look at it that way (premium over cost of material) then compare apples to apples. On that basis, compared to 904L Rolex is giving you a heck of a deal on a gold piece. In other words, I don't think it's fair (or accurate) to say a gold Rolex isn't worth the money because they are charging you a premium over what the gold cost them.

Now, if you want to make the case it's not worth it because they take a bigger hit on resale, well that's an entirely different argument. But even in this many make the mistake of comparing resale prices to MSRP and not what you can actually buy the new watch for if you are an astute customer. Take a look at what a BNIB YG GMT or Sub sells for on here and you'll see what I mean.

The bottom line is the prices Rolex charges bears little relation to the cost of the materials used. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts and all that.

[Sammk]

well yea i guess ur right if you look at it this way

Originally Posted by T. Ferguson

I'm not convinced that's the proper way to look at it because you are questioning the premium you pay for the gold over it's cost compared to the price of the steel watch but you are ignoring the premium you pay for the steel watch over it's cost.

Say a solid gold Rolex retails for $40,000 and has only $4,000 worth of gold in it. So you are paying a premium of 10 times the value of the gold. But if that same model in SS cost $9,000 and has only $90 worth of steel in it, then you are paying a premium of 100 times the value of the steel. If Rolex were to charge that same mark-up on the gold watch it would MSRP for $400,000.

On that basis which watch is the better value? You are paying a much lower percentage premium for the gold than for the stainless steel. When people lament the premium Rolex charges for gold they are ignoring that it is less than the premium they charge for stainless.

[T. Ferguson]

Originally Posted by Sammk

well yea i guess ur right if you look at it this way

In any event, it looks like you've decided the premium is worth it since you now seem to be trying to decide between the green and black dial 116718.





Thank you, John. Much appreciated.

[Tools]

You're right, such comparisons are meaningless..

Jewelry, or most luxury goods, are seldom sold on the basis of the value of their materials.

A gold bracelet for your wife (or yourself) may cost many times as much as a Rolex with a fraction of the gold involved, or another brand of watch with more gold content may be half the cost..

Luxury goods are sold based on their marketability and the price a buyer is willing to pay - period. It has very little to do with what it is made of.. A canvas purse can cost more than a Sub..

[Keith1]

Originally Posted by Tools

I don't have one of the new solid bracelet Presidents, but let me give you the values of one before 2010 and you can do the math..

Taking out the movement and popping off the crystal, the gold value of an 18k Rolex can be determined as follows: Weights have been calculated at .750 pure gold

. Mid-case weights 18.5 grams = 13.875 grams of pure gold.

. Case back weighs 7.21 grams = 5.41 grams of pure gold.

. Bezel weighs 5.30 grams = 3.98 grams of pure gold.

. The bracelet weighs 68.85 grams= 51.64 grams of pure gold.

Question Larry, What is the weight of the movement & crystal, or what is the total weight of the President you wrote about? Thanks!

[Sammk]

Haha well i was going to do that anyway :)

Originally Posted by T. Ferguson

In any event, it looks like you've decided the premium is worth it since you now seem to be trying to decide between the green and black dial 116718.





Thank you, John. Much appreciated.

[brandrea]

Originally Posted by Racerdj

Interesting topic, but I don't plan on melting mine down to a gold bar in the future.

exactly