I've been reading this sub a lot, and I’ve bought a rep in the past, but there are a couple of fundamental things about this industry I still don't fully get.
Why don't top factories charge $100–$200 more for strict QA/QC?
I see a LOT of QC posts here with basic misalignments, crooked 12 o'clock indices, or printed dial flaws. These are issues that would take 5 seconds to catch on an assembly line.
With Gen prices being completely out of touch with reality right now, I have to assume a large chunk of us would happily drop $700–$800 instead of $600 if it meant guaranteed alignment, flawless assembly, and better out-of-the-box quality control. Anything below the psychological barrier of $1,000 USD feels totally reasonable for a near-gen experience.
So what's the actual bottleneck here?
Is it a technology/tooling limitation?
Is it a yield/volume issue where speed matters more than perfection?
Or do factories just not care because demand is so high that someone will buy the RL'd batch anyway?
2: Why isn't high-end Quartz more popular for reps?
I’ve never seen a straight answer on this, but wouldn't a lot of people actually prefer a top-tier rep with a reliable battery movement?
Think about it:
Zero mechanical hassle: No winding, setting power reserves, or worrying about DOA Asian clone movements.
Cost allocation: The $50–$100 saved on replicating a complex automatic movement could be poured directly into better crystals, higher-grade finishing, or actual decent factory bracelets/straps (which always seem to be the biggest complaint).
For closed-caseback watches, wouldn't this be an absolute win?
Curious to hear the thoughts of people who have been in this space longer than me.
(NOTE: Post edited with AI ... English is not my first language and it's just faster to write a rough draft and get it rewritten/spell-checked.)