A fake Lange 2 perpetual is a counterfeit build of the A. Lange & Sohne Lange 1 Perpetual Calendar, because the Saxon maker has never released a model called the Lange 2 Perpetual. The fastest tell sits in the outsize date: genuine apertures are diamond-polished, the numerals sit on a thin, perfectly registered disc, and both windows align level at the top right of the dial. Copies show a heavier date font, an uneven crossbar, and window edges that catch light in a dull, uneven way.
What does "fake Lange 2 perpetual" refer to?
Buyers and resellers use the phrase for any replica of a Lange perpetual calendar, most often the Lange 1 Perpetual Calendar alongside its Datograph and Langematik siblings. Genuine examples trade from roughly $90,000 into the high six figures depending on metal and condition. A first copy in the same silhouette sells for a few hundred dollars, and that gap explains most of the quality difference.
What gives a copy away on the dial?
Outsize date
Lange prints each digit on its own disc so that both jump together, and the font stays thin and geometric. Replicas often print both numerals on one over-thick die. Check the vertical gap between the windows and the outer seconds track, since copies tend to crowd that space.
Moonphase and calendar apertures
A genuine moonphase disc is solid gold with a hand-applied star field. Copies use printed foil or stamped brass that looks flat under a loupe. The weekday, month, and leap year windows should be crisp rectangles, not soft ovals with fuzzy borders.
How do the case correctors behave?
The real watch uses recessed correctors on the caseband, each operated with a pusher tool and each tied to one calendar function. On a copy, correctors are often decorative, stiff, or wired to a single friction mechanism. If one press moves several functions at once, the calendar module is not properly built.
What does the movement expose?
Saxon finishing is the hardest detail to fake. Look for a hand-engraved balance cock with floral scrollwork, gold chatons held by blued screws, and a three-quarter plate in untreated German silver. Copies use rhodium-plated brass, laser etching instead of engraving, and screw heads with flat machine-cut slots. Weight is a useful proxy as well, since a genuine perpetual calendar feels dense in the hand.
What price tiers exist for first copy watches?
- Entry copies, about $80 to $250: quartz or basic automatic, decorative correctors, printed moonphase.
- Mid tier, about $250 to $600: automatic with a working date and moonphase, still thin finishing.
- Top tier, about $600 to $1,500: clone-style calendar module, engraved bridges, closer case geometry.
No copy reproduces the instant-jump perpetual mechanism or the 21,600 vph beat of the L021.3 family. That functional gap is the most reliable difference of all.
Is buying a fake Lange perpetual legal in the United States?
Selling or importing counterfeit watches is illegal, and US Customs can seize shipments at the border. Buyers can face civil claims from the trademark holder, although enforcement against individual purchasers is uncommon. Treat any listing that claims a "Swiss movement in a German case" as a warning sign.
Quick checklist before you buy
- Date font weight and window alignment
- Corrector count and independent function
- Balance cock engraving versus laser etching
- Moonphase disc material
- Case weight and lug sharpness
Run all five checks in daylight and again under a loupe. A copy will fail at least two of them.