The problem with the perfect fake Rolex Daytona UK is that most anecdotes about the watch revolve around money, like this one. An Air Force man buys a Daytona 6263 in 1975 while stationed in Thailand. He pays $345.97 for it. Over four decades later, he watches Antiques Roadshow on television, where people bring in kitsch, art, and other stuff like timepieces to have them appraised by experts. He recalls the Swiss made fake Rolex he once bought that has been sitting in a safe-deposit box for ages.

The man has his practically NOS watch appraised. He learns that a best 1:1 fake Rolex Daytona similar to his with a “Paul Newman” dial, a watch that was nearly impossible to sell all those years ago, is now roughly worth $150,000 to $200,000. But the ex-Air Force guy’s watch is a cheap copy Rolex Daytona ref. 6263 with the much rarer screw-down pushers and “Oyster” on the dial.

In production from only from 1970 to 1971, his particular AAA replica Rolex UK is the rarest of the rare, And since his nearly NOS example has all the boxes and papers, its value could be as high as $700,000 today. That’s a “markup” of no less than 202,329%. Quite the (accidental) investment, I’d say.