Released in 1972, the replica Audemars Piguet Royal Oak is still one the most classical watches of the decade, if not of the century. This long-lasting legacy testifies to the talent of its designer, Gerald Genta, who was hired to come up with a watch that would bring new attention to Audemars Piguet at a time when quartz was the cool newcomer. And the Royal Oak definitely succeeded; the watch has had great success, right down to today. It also introduced the idea of a luxury (and very expensive) sports watch in steel, a category that Patek Philippe would join in 1976 with the Nautilus, which was born from the very same designer. 
As can be seen on the caseback, the watch here belongs to the A-series, which is the first batch of 2,000 replica watches produced, and the most coveted by collectors. These can also be recognized by the AP logo placed at six o’clock; the logo would eventually be moved to 12 o’clock in the later C-series. The crown is correctly unsigned; an AP logo there would have indicated a service part. The case and dial show a bit of aging but this is to be expected, and wear is even throughout. So, just like the same case, you should expect some stretch from the original integrated bracelet. It is photographed in the listing in an Audemars Piguet box, but this is not the original box.
Piaget Replica Watch with Beta 21 Caliber
You might remember the history of the Beta 21 movement from our previous Quartz Week. It was the first commercial quartz caliber made in Switzerland, developed and adopted by all the big names in watchmaking, replicas from Rolex to Audemars Piguet to IWC. Piaget was of course included, as the company was involved extremely early on with the CEH (Centre Electronique Horloger), which was in charge of the research. Beta 21 movements offered great accuracy but they were completely on the chubby side, which explains the big profile of the cases housing them, as can be seen on this Piaget – far from the thin dress watches that the company produced in the previous decade.
This model is undoubtedly the most common Piaget to feature the Beta 21 (it was the one presented in Basel in 1970) but other shapes existed, as a fake watch formerly owned by Andy Warhol testifies. The multi-stepped case intended to give a more dressy feel to the massive case (measuring 41mm x 33mm) in 18kt gold as you would expect from cheap Piaget (the brand had sworn to only use precious materials for its cases since the mid-1950s). The tiger eye dial is very much in accordance with the vibrant designs of the time, and seems free of any cracks or fractures. Note that the quartz caliber was recently serviced, and is said to work flawlessly. Last but not least, the box and papers accompanying the watch are described as original, which would make for a nice full set.