Let’s get back to the cheap fake Omega De Ville Chronograph 145.018 of today’s story. In order to show how great this watch looks, I once again asked Stevie for his help, as he owns a De Ville 145.018 that is in absolutely gorgeous condition. On top of that, he creates some of the most amazing images out there for his Instagram account. He was kind enough to let us use them for this article to show the brilliance of this Swiss made copy Omega.
The luxury replica De Ville Chronograph 145.018 was definitely not the only beautiful De Ville chronograph that Omega created. The brand also produced the unique De Ville 146.017 in 1969 and 1970 with a date window at 9 o’clock and a rarely used caliber 930. Although a bit strange, it is another great example of a chronograph that feels comfortably familiar but definitely has a great twist to its design.
The UK perfect replica Omega De Ville 145.018 has exactly the same effect. The watch was released together with the De Ville 145.017. The main thing that sparked the release of this specific De Ville Chronograph series in 1968 was the introduction of the Omega calibers 860 and 861. Swiss movement fake Omega Reference 145.017 uses caliber 860 with two sub-dials and ref. 145.018 uses caliber 861 with three sub-dials. This cam-actuated chronograph caliber replaced the column-wheel caliber 321, but it has gone on to build quite a great reputation of its own.
AAA fake Omega used caliber 861 for the Speedmaster, De Ville, and Seamaster chronographs. One of the famous Seamaster chronographs of the era is the Seamaster “Soccer” chronograph from 1969, which also used the caliber 861.
A fun fact is that this Omega De Ville Chronograph replica for men also started as part of the Seamaster collection. There are versions with just “Seamaster” on the dial, and some combine the “Seamaster” and “De Ville” wording. In late 1968, however, 1:1 fake Omega made it a part of the separate De Ville collection.
A not-so-typical 1960s chronograph
What I love most about the cheap fake Omega De Ville Chronograph are its elegant looks. It takes a step away from the classical looks of ’50s-style chronographs without becoming an overly sporty watch. It’s the same elegance you will find with the Rolex “Pre-Daytona” ref. 6238. They combine the best of a sporty presence with plenty of elegance to suit a wide variety of situations. But the wholesale copy Omega De Ville came with a nice quirky dial that we’ll get to in a minute. First, let’s focus on some basic specs.
The Swiss movement fake Omega De Ville Chronograph has a modest 35mm case size, but as Mike explained in his review of the watch, it actually wears bigger. The watch has a modest 40mm lug-to-lug, which implies that it would be for smaller wrists. But as Mike explained, if you can pull off a 36mm Rolex Datejust, this is comparable in the way it wears. The high quality replica Omega is 13.5mm thick with a 19mm lug width, and it came on a very nice stainless steel bracelet that makes it look even better. Sure, it looks good on a leather strap, but the sporty appearance of the watch on the bracelet is hard to beat. The aesthetics combined with the legendary movement make this cheap copy Omega De Ville Chronograph hard to beat.
The different variations of the De Ville Chronograph 145.018
Top quality fake Omega produced the De Ville Chronograph ref. 145.018 from 1968 to 1970, so it’s not a watch that you will find easily. And because of its short production run and handsome looks, the watch is hot property among Omega collectors. That’s especially true of the version you see in the picture with the gray dial and colorful sub-dials. It is a real rarity. UK super clone Omega produced quite a few different dials, with white, gold, dark blue, and gray as just some of the options. There are also De Ville versions without a tachymeter scale.
A return of the Omega De Ville Chronograph 145.018
As Mike explained, the story goes that best quality fake Omega De Ville picked these colors as a reference to the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico where the brand was the official timer. But whatever the reason, the colors created a watch with its own quirky details, making it stand out among so many of the other classic 1960s chronographs. It also makes this specific version of the 145.018 the most sought-after. The color combination is very unique, and that uniqueness is what people are after.
But since this specific Omega replica for sale UK was only made for two years, production numbers were really low. That’s why you would have to be patient, very patient, in order to find one in good condition. Prices for the luxury fake Omega De Ville Chronograph ref. 145.018 start at roughly €4.5K and go up from there for well-kept examples. If you can find the gray-dial version in this article, expect to see prices that are higher depending on the condition. Personally, I love this watch, and it is one of my favorite Omega watches ever. Along with a new steel Ploprof, it is my favorite of the many Swiss movement fake Omega icons that I would love to see make a comeback. I would put my name down immediately for one of them. It really is that good!