One of our main talking points this year for Watches & Wonders is the observation that many brands have pared back the number of releases, instead opting to concentrate on one or two SKUs. We saw this with Lange and the new Odysseus Chronograph, and we saw it – almost to an extreme – with IWC and the rebirth of the perfect replica IWC Ingenieur watches.
On Monday we wrote up a story on the new steel Ingenieur models – directly inspired by a specific vintage reference (the SL) conceived by Gérald Genta (father of the Royal Oak and Aquanaut).
While a reissue in theory, what I think these UK top fake IWC watches represent is a thoughtful way to integrate heritage into a wholly modern package. Vacheron’s yellow gold 222 from last year’s fair was a textbook reissue. The new Ingenieur is a heritage-infused reawakening.
The steel models feature pattern dials in white, black, or green blue. Holding those high quality IWC replica watches in the hand brings shades of the Aquanaut and certainly fits the modern trend of re-exploring the integrated bracelet sports watch. But it isn’t as though the Ingenieur has been missing from the IWC catalog for years.In fact, it’s been something of a neglected child before today– but one that previously packed tremendous value and was one of the least expensive IWCs available. That’s over now.
With this year’s release, IWC has put all of its W&W energy into the Ingenieur and positioned it in a new way. That means a price in excess of $11,000 ($11,700) in steel. And on top of all that, IWC didn’t just release a trio of steel IWC Ingenieur copy watches for sale – but also one in titanium, and boy is it cool.
It was a release that went under the radar and it wasn’t until our meeting with IWC at the show that we even knew that it existed. Stand-out features of this luxury IWC replica watches that separate it from its steel counterparts are its pseudo all-grey-everything aesthetic with a grey dial and dark grey-hued titanium case and H-link bracelet.
But it’s not just a titanium case and bracelet. It’s sandblasted, providing some nice texture. What this does, at least in my mind, is separate this model from the whole integrated steel sports watch “thing” because it’s not steel. In fact, it’s 45% lighter than steel. The titanium, especially with the treatment of the metal, gives this best super clone watches a distinct look – one far removed from the Jumbo SL days of the 1970s. It takes the Ingenieur and brings it firmly into the modern context. It contains all the new design codes present in the steel models including redesigned crown guards and the screws on the bezel which harken back to Genta’s design for the SL.
At 40mm, this is no small Swiss movements replica IWC watches but the size makes sense considering where tastes are these days. It’s also thin at 10.7mm and features both a closed caseback (housing the caliber 32111 with 120 hours of power reserve) and 100m of water resistance.
Of course, you don’t get titanium without a price premium. And here that makes this a $14,600 proposition, firmly placing the Ingenieur in a very different category of sport fake watches online altogether – one that includes models like Chopard’s Alpine Eagle.
Does that make the price too punchy? That answer lies in the mind of the individual buyer. What I do think is that this is a strategic move by the brand to reposition the model range, and no matter what the price is, I think this titanium iteration of the cheap IWC replica watches is the standout.
Between the ’70s Genta-centric heritage of the Ingenieur (and the design codes that come with it), and the classic Ingenieur logo on the dial, this fake watches shop feels steeped in its own history. And yet, with the checkerboard dial, modern IWC logo, and 40mm sizing, nobody is going to confuse it with a vintage watch.
What happens next with the model range is anyone’s guess, but IWC has made a statement with the Ingenieur (especially in titanium) that opens a new chapter for the model going forward.
