Short answer: a replica 5167G is a 40mm Aquanaut-style watch sold as a white gold piece, and that trailing letter is doing a lot of work. Patek's catalog white gold Aquanaut is the 42.2mm 5168G, not the 5167. The 5167 itself was catalogued in stainless steel and rose gold. So when a listing says 5167G, you are looking at either a factory naming habit or a custom spec, and that alone tells you how carefully the rest of the listing was written.
Why the 5167G Label Is Worth Questioning
The genuine 5167A wears a 40mm case at roughly 8.1mm thick, with a date at 3 o'clock, center seconds, and the embossed checkerboard dial the Aquanaut is known for. The white gold version in the real catalog is bigger at 42.2mm and carries a different reference number. A seller who insists a 40mm white gold 5167G is a direct factory match is either confused or hoping you are. Ask which reference the watch is copied from. A straight answer is a good sign. A vague one is not.
What the Rep Factories Actually Build
Movement
Most mid-tier builds run a Miyota 9015 or a Seagull equivalent: 28,800 vibrations per hour, around 42 hours of reserve, hacking and hand-winding. Top tiers use a decorated clone of the 324 S C with engraved bridges and a gold-toned rotor. The clone looks right through a display back, but it is not a Patek movement and no Patek watchmaker will service it. Expect a smooth sweep either way. Expect the clone to be fussier about regulation.
Case and Weight
This is where "white gold" gets interesting. Real 18k white gold sits near 15.5 g/cm3. Steel sits near 8. Some factories use tungsten alloy to fake the heft, and tungsten is denser than gold, so a tungsten rep can feel heavier than the real thing. Others just plate steel and call it a day. Weigh it. A thin plated case will also show wear at the crown and lugs within months, and once the plating rubs through there is no fixing it short of a re-plate.
Dial, Hands and Strap
The dial should have a deep embossed grid with a gradient that shifts under light. Flat printing, muddy lume, or numerals that sit proud of the dial are the usual tells. The strap is composite rubber with a raised texture and a deployant clasp; cheap versions feel like pencil eraser and smell like a tire shop. Genuine lume glows evenly and fades slowly. Most reps glow green-ish and die in an hour.
Price Tiers
- Under $150: brass or cheap steel case, mineral glass, rough dial print, low-beat movement. It looks like an Aquanaut from across a parking lot and nowhere else.
- $200 to $450: steel case, Miyota or Seagull movement, sapphire crystal on the better examples, decent dial texture. This is the value band.
- $500 to $900 and up: decorated clone movement, closer case profile and thickness, solid AR coating, sharp strap tooling. Still not gold.
Checks Before You Commit
- Ask for a photo of the actual movement, not a stock render.
- Get the weight in grams and the thickness measured with calipers. Over 10mm thick is a giveaway.
- Look at the date window font and alignment. Sloppy centering shows up there first.
- Check crown engraving under magnification, then check the caseback text.
- Ignore any water resistance claim unless the seller gasket-tested it. Assume splash-safe at best.
The Part Nobody Mentions
Importing counterfeit goods into the United States is illegal, and customs seizes shipments. Reselling one as genuine is fraud, full stop. A replica is a costume, not an investment, and it will not survive a service by an authorized watchmaker. Buy it if you want the look on your own wrist and you know what it is. Buy it expecting admiration from people who own real ones and you will be disappointed, because the first thing a collector does is pick it up.