What Water Resistance Ratings Really Mean for Replica Watches?

One of the most perpetual interesting topics for discussion on fake watch forums, at trade shows, at watch shows, at watch meet-ups, and especially at any horological conclave you’d care to mention (real or virtual) is what depth ratings on watches really mean. You’ll hear all kinds of things – some say 100 meters is not enough for anything but showering, some say you should never shower with anything, even a dive replica watch, lest heat and soap do their devil’s work upon your gaskets, and pretty much everything in between. 
As it turns out, however, there are rather specific stipulations as to what the terms “Water Resistant” and “Diver’s Watch” actually means, and it may come as a little bit of a shock to learn that they’re not the same thing. Besides, that they’re controlled by two different standards – both of which are brought to you courtesy of the good folks at the International Organization for Standardization, which has been reading the riot act to its audience of member nations since 1947. The overwhelming majority of the world’s nations are ISO compliant and in a fractious, fragmented, fiercely fraught world, its edicts are the closest thing we seem to have, to having something everyone can agree with. Naturally, they’re headquartered in Geneva.
Now, if you know that the depth ratings of the replica watches are regulated at all, then you probably already know that dive watch depth ratings, as well as testing methods, and a host of other dive-watch relevant characteristics, are regulated by ISO 6425. We talked a bit about what this particular ISO means in a roundabout way in a recent story. Water resistance up to 100 meters is actually more than adequate for recreational diving. The watches are tested well past their actual depth ratings in the dive watch arena.
The actual text of ISO 6425 is only available via purchasing a single-user license from the good folks at the International Organization, and while the general outline of its requirements is covered perfectly in the Wikipedia article on dive watches, the ISO itself makes some interesting points.