Short answer
The IW329094 sits in IWC's 3290 reference block, the 42mm steel Aquatimer Automatic family. That means a screw-down crown, 300m of water resistance, and an outer ring that drives an inner dive scale rather than a bezel insert, which IWC calls SafeDive. Genuine examples sell for several thousand dollars. A first copy runs about $150 to $450, and nearly all of that spread sits in three places: case finishing, bezel feel, and the movement inside.
If you remember one thing, remember this. On this reference the bezel action and the crown threads give a copy away faster than the dial does. Check those two before you look at anything else.
What the reference actually is
A stainless case around 42mm across and roughly 14mm thick, with brushed flanks and polished edges. The crown is screw-down at 3 o'clock, guarded, and the caseback is solid and engraved. Inside, IWC uses calibre 30120, a modified ETA 2892 base. That detail matters more than it sounds. Because the base is an ETA design, a copy maker can drop in a real 2892, a Sellita SW300, or a Chinese clone, and the case will still close and the hands will still line up.
The dial side is typical of the block: applied indices, a date at 3, a printed minute track, and a fair amount of anti-reflective coating on the crystal. Confirm the exact dial colour and strap for your specific variant against IWC's own listing, because this number family has carried several boutique and limited editions that look similar in photos and are not the same watch.
Where first copies get it right and wrong
Case and crown
Good copies get the silhouette right. The lugs curve the way they should, the crown guards sit at the right angle, and the brushing direction matches. Where they slip is the crown itself. Threading feels gritty on cheap copies, and the crown often sits a fraction proud of the guard. Screw it in and out a few times. If it catches or wobbles, walk away.
Bezel and inner scale
This is the tell. On the real watch the outer ring turns with weight and stops with a firm click at each marker, and the inner scale moves exactly in step. On a weak copy the outer ring spins too freely, the inner scale drifts a degree or two behind it, and the grip notches are shallow. Ask for a short video of the bezel being turned. Most sellers will send one.
Dial, hands and lume
Applied indices should be flat and evenly polished with no glue residue at the base. The date window should be crisp and centred, not ragged at the edge. Hands should be cleanly finished with no burrs. Lume is where cheap copies fall flat: charge it under a lamp for 30 seconds and see how it looks after 20 minutes.
Movement
A $400 copy usually carries a genuine or near-genuine ETA or Sellita automatic with a decorated rotor. A $160 copy carries a Chinese automatic that keeps time well for a year and then does not. Neither is a serviceable IWC movement, and nobody is pretending otherwise.
Strap or bracelet
Rubber straps are easy to copy well. Bracelets are not. Check end-link fit against the case, the clasp engraving, and whether the links rattle when you shake it.
Price tiers
- Under $150: pass. The bezel is usually fixed to a printed ring and the case feels light.
- $150 to $250: wearable, decent dial, basic automatic, wrong crown feel.
- $250 to $450: the sweet spot. Good case, working inner scale, ETA-family movement.
- $500 and up: you are paying for a story, not a better watch.
What I check before paying
- Photos of the actual watch, not stock images, with a date card in frame.
- A video of the bezel turning and the crown being screwed down.
- Case size confirmed with calipers in the photo if possible.
- Water resistance claim treated as marketing. Do not swim in any copy.
- A return window in writing, not a promise in chat.
Wear notes
At 42mm this wears like a real dive watch. It is thick enough to catch a shirt cuff and heavy enough that a bad bracelet becomes annoying by noon. On a 6.5 inch wrist it sits at the edge of reasonable, and I would not go smaller than that. The rubber strap version is the more comfortable of the two and the harder one to spot.
The legal side, briefly
A first copy is not the genuine article and cannot be sold as one. Customs in the US and the EU seize counterfeit goods, and reselling a copy as genuine is a separate and much worse problem than buying one. Buy it as a look, keep your receipts honest, and do not try to pass it off.