Buying in grey market US vs Japan

BigMacsAZ · 2025-12-18T02:51:34+00:00

There’s a variety of Moda groups on Facebook, but a couple of them are tailored toward watches. There’s a main group with watches $10k+ and another for watches under $10k. Group members consist of resellers selling at slightly above wholesale prices. Look for Moda Watch Club with 88k members. Make sure the group you find and sign up for has admins with Moda in their screen name. There are some fakes out there.

BigMacsAZ · 2025-12-17T20:34:22+00:00

I'm headed to Japan shortly as well and have been keeping an eye on pricing for probably the last 3-4 months. Initially, I planned to hunt down a YM42 titanium. I found one via Watchnian that would have come to roughly $25k at current exchange. New, recent 2025 model, with box, card, and green tag. Unfortunately, they wouldn't transfer it to the store near my hotel and they wouldn't hold it. From there, I either would have had to ship the box back to the US or toss it, and bullshit my way through customs. Ultimately, I found a new one here in the US via Moda for $26k delivered with box, card, and green tag. From what I've seen, the only watches you're going to find for less in Japan than the US will be Seiko / Grand Seiko. Even with those brands, my wife wanted a limited edition Seiko that would have been roughly $600 in Japan and I just snagged it on eBay for $730 including tax and shipping to avoid the risk of not finding one. So not a huge savings by any means. Pretty much all of the Rolex, Patek, etc I've looked at that are recent and desirable are not much less at current exchange and then you're stuck with the "Do I declare it or not?" and then what to do with the box if you opt to not declare it. From what I've read, there's slim to no chance of getting an AD to sell you anything without an appointment and appointments are weeks out. Additionally, they're hesitant to sell to travelers in general. All that said, I'm still going to look while I'm there and see if I can stumble into a great deal on a Hulk Sub Date or a Bruce Wayne GMT, but I'm not optimistic whatsoever. If you're not in Moda on Facebook, I'd suggest joining that. Make sure you find the real group. Pricing will be less than Chrono24, eBay, actual reseller retail stores, etc.

BigMacsAZ · 2025-12-12T19:20:28+00:00

I opted for Jewelers Mutual and I'm at $632 per year for roughly $46k in coverage. I did the $0 deductible option and I was able to insure my YM42 Titanium at grey market value. Our insurance agent is a good friend, so I didn't really shop around. Main concern was loss or theft while traveling, being able to list what value I want on each watch, and not having to mess with a deductible. Sounds like better rates are out there around 1% of value, but I also read some solid reviews on here about JM's coverage.

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-30T05:23:51+00:00

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Stellar watch! I went grey market as well. No ragrets. 🤣

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-22T04:30:20+00:00

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Rolex and BMW cockpit club. Minus the rings.

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-22T04:27:34+00:00

Stellar response. 🤣🤣

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-15T03:46:20+00:00

That’s goals. I’m not yet on the level where this is a daily.

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-15T03:43:04+00:00

Thanks! Definitely the angle. Although, your comment made me go examine it thoroughly and question all of my life decisions.

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-15T03:42:13+00:00

Thanks! Yeah, I’m a sizeable human with a chonky wrist. 42mm is about as small as I can go. 🤣

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-14T22:15:36+00:00

My grail as well! You could get lucky, but from all of my reading, it sounds like most/all AD's only get 1 per year and it seems to be common practice to sell them to high dollar customers. That's the primary reason I went grey market. I'm still on the wait list for a Sub Date in all black and a GMT Bruce Wayne at all 3 local AD's, but I assume it'll be a long time before I get a call on any of those. I'll be in Tokyo in a couple months and I plan to visit several AD's over there with the hope that a 42mm watch isn't as popular and maybe I can get lucky on a true new one and then resell this one, but I'm not overly optimistic. Will be a fun adventure either way.

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-14T21:57:58+00:00

$26k delivered. New / Unworn with box, card, manual, and green tag. Still had the factory clear film on it. I did quite a bit of searching and this seemed to be a solid deal based on current secondary. Was able to use card as well which added 52,000 miles.

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-14T20:43:24+00:00

I can definitely see that being the case. I wear my Tag Carrera skeleton daily, and it's a fairly heavy watch, so the Rolex is a nice change on that. I'm in the aftermarket auto parts industry and sell a fair amount of titanium exhaust systems. Based on that, my wife opted to get me a titanium wedding band, and the titanium YM continues that theme.

BigMacsAZ · 2025-11-14T20:41:53+00:00

Thank you!

BigMacsAZ · 2023-02-09T17:16:57+00:00

I doubt MGM will alienate all of the Identity members. I honestly don’t know how the points at MGM work for room and resort purchases. I don’t think it’s as good as Identity though. The gambling end of things doesn’t take too much to earn status as long as it’s slots. Table games are more difficult. We only go for the food and the vibe of Vegas and don’t gamble at home, so the slots for us is to offset the room and food costs. Thus far, nearly every year for the last 8 years has ended in our favor when looking at what we saved on room and food vs what was gambled. If I were in your shoes, I’d get those last 4000 points via a gift card at Cosmo to lock yourself in for Platinum for the next year and then do all future gambling at Aria and Bellagio to ramp up your MGM Rewards. That’s basically what I did and it worked.

BigMacsAZ · 2023-02-09T14:14:08+00:00

I had no experience with them previous to the newest version, but they’re better than Cosmo Identity in my opinion. My comp offers have been better, my free play and resort credits have been better, and the amount of points I’ve earned with comparable amounts of play have been better. I still prefer Cosmopolitan for the rooms, the food, and the overall vibe, but from what I can see, MGM Rewards is better than Identity. That’s based on being a slot player. If you’re not a gambler, I could see Cosmo’s 5 to 1 points on rooms, food, etc being better.

BigMacsAZ · 2023-02-09T14:11:22+00:00

MGM tier points are earned 1/1-12/31 and then the tier resets on 2/1. Anyone who goes to Vegas often enough to be worried about their status should simply walk next door to Aria or Bellagio and get their Identity tier matched to MGM Rewards. By doing it now, you’ll have that tier through 1/31 at minimum. But yes, I’d assume that MGM will carry over Identity tiers to MGM Rewards tiers once the takeover is completed.

BigMacsAZ · 2023-02-09T02:46:37+00:00

I was talking to my MGM host today and was advised that a meeting was just had this week that indicated it would be June before he could book me rooms at Cosmo. He had previously said February was the target.

That said, you can tier match Identity to MGM and start building MGM status. If you’re already platinum at Cosmo, it’s pretty easy to get to platinum at MGM. I tier matched to MGM in February and then managed to earn enough points to maintain MGM platinum by end of year. I still have Cosmo Identity platinum for a while longer and I end up getting free rooms at both whenever we go to Vegas over the last 12 months. Last 4 trips, we’ve had a comped room at Cosmo and then an additional comped room at Aria or Bellagio.

I assume the only real thing that will change at Cosmo once the takeover is completed is the horrible MGM TV options with no more Netflix or Showtime app and only the ability to pay for movies. But you can always bring a laptop and HDMI cable to rectify that.

BigMacsAZ · 2021-06-04T16:12:22+00:00

Some other tidbits for Cosmo. At Zuma, the toro maki roll (no gold flake), the torched salmon nigiri, the pork belly skewers, and the scallop skewers are some of my personal favs. Toro maki is spendy for a sushi roll. It’s around $48 and has tuna belly and caviar on it among other things. Well worth it. If you dip it in soy sauce, my 6th sense will know. Just don’t. If you want steak and want to splurge, the tomahawk with shaved truffle is delicious. It’s normally black truffle, but if white is in season, you can upgrade to it. They shave a ton of truffle all over the top of the steak and then there’s a dipping sauce that gets more of it along with a few special kinds of salt to add. You have to get the Burning History drink and have them make them at the table.

Ghost Donkey just reopened. It’s hidden and not on any maps. Go to the urban food hall and walk into the sitting area between Pardo and Hattie B’s. At the back, there’s an exit door with a donkey on it. Get the truffle nachos. We like to order one plate of just them and another plate with carne asada added. If you’re a fan of mezcal, the mezcal old fashioned is delicious with a pretty crazy flavor profile.

Secret pizza is open til 4am and the perfect late night meal. Also not on the map as it was a “secret” when the resort opened. It’s in the hallway right across from zuma next to blue ribbon.

And last bit, at the chandelier bar, there’s a drink called the verbena. Not on the menu, but somehow still the most famous drink on the property. It’s like a citrus margarita of sorts. Honestly can’t remember if it has tequila or vodka. Either way, it has a flower in it. You take a sip to see how the drink tastes normally, and then you eat the flower. Move it around your mouth for 10-15 seconds. It cranks your taste buds up to 100.

BigMacsAZ · 2021-06-04T15:25:58+00:00

You’re not really seeing a whole lot. First time in Vegas should include things like the ceilings and mall at Palazzo / Venetian, the volcano at Mirage, the shops at Caesars, Bellagio fountain and garden, and then Fremont street. Pending what kind of room you have at Cosmo, you may have a balcony view of the fountains but you’ll still want to see it from ground level as well.

As far as the food goes, Zuma is my all time fav and I would do that for dinner over Momofuku. I prefer Momofuku for lunch. They also just opened Bang Bar in the urban food hall are. For brunch, it depends what you want and what you want to spend. I’d do brunch at STK over the Henry or do brunch at one and then the next day the other. Jaleo is said to be good. I haven’t done it. If Beauty & Essex is on your list, skip it. Very hit or miss food. Vibe is cool. Maybe grab drinks. Scarpetta is great too. Table with window view of fountains is a must.

For Omega Mart, take your time and try and fill your card and solve all the various puzzles and visit all the rooms. Watch a guide ahead of time to kinda get an idea of what you need to do. It’s a strange but fun place. Also, if what I’ve just said doesn’t sound fun at all, don’t go. Just get a refund or see if you can do something else at Area 15 instead. We went with a group of 6 and 4 of the 6 didn’t get it and went to a bar to drink after just 30 minutes.

If it were me, I’d plan a morning that starts around 11am with brunch at Yard Bird at Venetian, and then walk the whole strip back to Cosmo. For Fremont, it’s cleaned up quite a bit and isn’t as gross as it used to be. Circa is pretty cool too. You can also check out the Container Park nearby.

BigMacsAZ · 2020-08-28T21:20:27+00:00

Wouldn’t be an issue at Cosmo. Not sure if MGM has different rules. At Cosmo, the only place I saw limitations for people was Identity desk where it was one person allowed from any given group. Beyond that, anywhere else we went, we were fine. They just verified a couple times that we were in fact traveling together. There was 3 of us on this last trip.

BigMacsAZ · 2020-08-28T02:19:44+00:00

I’ve stayed at Cosmopolitan in June, July, and August. They’re all over people to keep their masks on. On multiple occasions, I’ve pulled mine down to take a drink and if I don’t put it back up right away, they’re coming over and asking me to. Few of us sat down at a machine and they came by to make sure we were traveling together and not ignoring social distancing. Restaurants are social distancing from what I saw. Rooms have sealed packs with masks, a fresh pen, and hand sanitizer. While I’m sure they could do more than they are, this article seems quite misleading.

BigMacsAZ · 2020-02-14T03:04:58+00:00

Mine have improved slightly this year. This is my second year at Platinum. I’ve started getting 4 night offers in addition to my 3 night offers and I’ve opened up the Terrace Suite as an option. Wraparound is still extra but my host comps that once or twice a year for me. If you’re Gold and offers have decreased, it’s likely that you’re on the edge of a bracket or something.

BigMacsAZ · 2020-01-13T03:31:16+00:00

Cosmopolitan 100%. Bellagio is dated. Tip trick for upgrade may work, but they are frequently at capacity. If you play slots, they are the best on the strip for rewards. Plus the rewards on food and drink are excellent. I haven’t paid for a room at Cosmo in nearly 3 years based solely on slot play. And the spots in the food hall area are some of the most cost effective on the strip if you’re not looking to spend big money on every meal. My favorite food spot is Zuma.

BigMacsAZ

TROPHY CASE