Your Rolex watch has been running for years, but you’re the responsible type. You change the oil in your car every 3,000 miles and rotate the tires. You check your furnace every two years and paint your house every seven years.
The same goes for your fake Rolex. About every five years, you need to clean it, lubricate it, and condition it to factory specifications. So you take it to an authorized dealer to have it serviced, and they certainly do a good job. This delicate work includes polishing the case. Your watch looks and runs like new.
But here’s where the controversy begins. The situation just described scares some collectors. You see, the scratches and dents, the darkened and faded bezels, the warm patina, and all traces of the watch’s life are now completely gone. And for many vintage watches, the value is a considerable part of the equation. So, should a Rolex replica watch be polished or not?
Whether or not to polish a watch is a difficult personal question – much like deciding whether or not a person should get a facelift or use an anti-aging skin cream. Car collectors must also make decisions about whether to keep their vehicles in top shape both cosmetically and mechanically; however, there seems to be more of a unified consensus when it comes to cars than watches.
Let’s take a closer look at the automotive issue. If you’ve ever been to a classic car show, you know that everyone is huddled around that ’55 Chevy or dated Ford Sunliner that is either original or perfectly restored. In either case, the paint is gleaming and the engine compartment is immaculate. Everything else is a work in progress, and owners will say so because no car owner wants to admit that their car is worn, scratched, paint-dropped, rusted, or ugly.
Yet, among these people, you’ll find one of them – the owner of a 60-year-old car – wearing an old Submariner or GMT-Master watch with a scratched case, an elongated bracelet, and a faded bezel. So what’s the reason? Why is a 1955 Sunliner different from a Submariner of the same year? Why would a connoisseur treat the care and maintenance of one any different than the other? So, when you take your Rolex in for service, should you have the case polished?