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Showing content with the highest reputation on 01/11/2017 in all areas

  1. Early vintage PAMs had Rolex movements. Here is a good page on some history of PAMs http://paneraiworld.blogspot.com/2007/07/the-history-of-panerai.html?m=1 Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk This movement is a Molly engraved with Rolex. You can get them for around $100. They are Russian movements pulled from old pocket watches. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    2 points
  2. I use 1.2mm, then very slightly polish/ lightly sand the fat bars on the trunk to fit. I'd rarther do this than have oversized lug holes, but that's just me.
    2 points
  3. Here's the movement photo Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    2 points
  4. This vintage GMT really is all I ever wanted from a watch:) Some more 2016 pics:
    2 points
  5. LOL, Paul was one of the early dealers around 2005-6 - he'd have crazy sales- that was back when you could get a DRSD for $139 with a swiss eta and it even had a working HE valve. The bracelet was hollow link and pretty nice- had the clasp with the Rolex crown on the side like this one
    1 point
  6. I use #55 (1.3mm) because replica bracelets are usually out of spec and need the extra wiggle room. Putting a slight bevel on the inside of each lug hole also helps guide the spring bar. No bevels on the outside of the lugs. Not ever. Putting a couple layers of masking tape over the lug holes before drilling may keep shavings from scratching the lugs. Poke a hole in the tape to make it easier to center the drill. When a drill bit stops cutting, change the bit, do not force it. "For replacing the loose as hell cartel bezel, you can buy a Swiss made bezel and retaining ring combo on eBay. I think it's the same as Clark's because you have to polish it." Clark, watchman408 on eBay and ST are all the same. I have had much better luck with these bezel kits than MBK, various cartel etc. watchman408 has one now, item number 122299989474 $79.00 free delivery
    1 point
  7. Dial is from Bigwaved and caseset is a River welded lug. If you contact him he can build almost any dial for you. Case you can buy from River. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    1 point
  8. It was a rep #3 strap from m2m Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    1 point
  9. Happy to provide help, but please confirm that what I uses is correct with others as well. These work for me. Lugholes - 1.4 mm, #55 US Gen tube or Athaya? Athaya takes a M3 x 0.35mm tap size. Recess - less precise. Slighlty larger than tube threads so it sits down a bit. Bezel - there is a tension ring that you just put some kinks or bends in to make it firmer. Address the inner crown guards when you replace the crown tube.
    1 point
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  11. All I can say is WOW ! that is truly a beauty ! hold on to that one ! I had a chance to hold an original PAN AM GMT a couple of Christmases ago. One of my old mans Pilots, father used to be a pilot for Pan Am back in the 60's and he handed the GMT down to him. He was at aChristmas party a few years ago at my parents and I noticed it on his wrist. I was in awe and had to ask about it.. when he took it off and I saw the Pan Am on the back I kind of got a "holy F$^k" feeling overcome me lol it was truly something to hold something like that and to know the rarity and how much it was sought after.
    1 point
  12. Screw the bevels, any piece that old will not have sharp bevels, especially out at the ends of the pieces that get the most buffing from shirt sleeves. Look instead at the lugs and the gap where the end links fit. Those are darn sharp edges there. Think about 40 years of wiping it on your pants or shirt sleeve... those would be a little rounded over. Same goes with any sharp edges anywhere. Great piece!
    1 point
  13. 1016 on loan from my friend. An old JMB build with a facelift and a gen bracelet.
    1 point
  14. Fron ToroBravo`s Enviado desde mi MI 5 mediante Tapatalk
    1 point
  15. While it's true a timegrapher numerical readout is a average of each of the readouts it can be adjusted so it take a sample every 60 seconds all the way down to every 2 seconds, Every 2 seconds may not be real time but it's not real that bad and it tell you everything you need to know. But the timegrapher also shows information on beat error and rate error in real time by watching the grapher part of the timegrapher, Each dot being displayed is just one beat out of 28,800 beats in one hour or 16 beats in 2 seconds (if the watch in question has a beat rate of 28,800 bph) so if beat rate (the line going up or down) or beat error (the lines getting more or less wider apart from each other) are all over the place you will see it in real time on the graph as the dots being all over the place on the screen and that will definitely have an effect on amplitude and not in a good way, But if the timegrapher is showing the dots in a nice very consistent line or lines (lines if there is a beat error) you know the amplitude is going to be consistent because your not going to ever have inconsistent amplitude that's all over the place without it having a effect on ether beat rate or beat error or both and the same goes the other way around, that effect will show up on the graph and all it takes is some experience to recognize what the graph is showing you........
    1 point
  16. I'm just going to give a 'small' review of the 42mm and 45mm Ceramic Planet Ocean reps. There is a lot to cover with these and I'm sure there will be comparisons next to the gen in the coming weeks. I'll let those who have lived with the gen for a while give a more thorough comparison and correct any errors here. Mainly I'll just give a rundown of the rep quality with some comparisons to gen, and also how is fits in with the current quality of reps and the old PO reps. The Gens 45mm and 42mm. These don't need much of an introduction, anybody who has any interest in Planet Oceans will have heard all about them by now. 42mm Gen 45mm Gen The Reps 45mm and 42mm Reps 45mm 42mm 42mm (next 6) Down to the Details: The Bezels: The bezels themselves are pretty solid with good feedback on each click. The teeth are pretty accurate to gen. The gen finishing is probably a little more refined on the coin edge but these are pretty well replicated. The bezel inserts seem pretty good in colour and texture. Correct colour as gen. It's difficult to see in photos but the 45mm bezel seems to have a little more attention to detail in the numbers, with them being closer together and more compact as gen. The 42mm seems a little more spread out (bigger gap between the 4 and 0 for instance) and the 5 in 50 just seems a little too big for the 0. It is minimal but it is there. It could be a little neater on the 42mm. We'll get onto the pearl later 42mm 45mm The Dials: Both dials are very nice, the 45mm has a little bit more attention to detail again in the logos and markers than the 42mm. There isn't much in the difference, but the 45mm has slightly cleaner and crisper cut to the hour markers. The hour markers on the gen have a slightly bevelled edging with the 45mm having a slightly steeper bevelling than the 42mm. This is replicated pretty well on the reps, the 45mm has the edge in the slightly sharper cut markers and lume infill than the 42mm. The dial itself on the gen is almost black grainy matte finish. The reps are matte black/charcoal, a little bit more drab than the gen, they lack that very slight pop that the heavier matte grain gives on the gen but again it's close. Omega lettering is simply better on the 45mm rep, it has a much more accurate to gen shape and size, the 42mm seems to be a bit blocky/bulky with the bulkier O being the main standout. It's thicker than the gen or the 45mm rep. Why this is I do not know, since the gen 45mm and 42mm share the same logo/lettering size. They could've just used the logo from the 45mm rep!.... but again these are very small parts, nobody is going to really notice unless examining closely. No happy feet this time on either, except for the odd one that escaped into the wild during QC. The hands seem accurate, it had been mentioned at one stage that the 42mm had a slightly too long hour hand. I'm not so sure, I've examined gen pics again and it is minimal if it is, certainly less than a mm. It isn't noticeable at all. The dial print quality is pretty good, with the 'Seamaster' lettering in red and the print of the other lettering being crisp and clear. The Datewheel. The windows are accurate, with the 42mm having no chamfer and closer to the 3 marker, the 45mm has the correct chamfered edging and is spaced correctly. The date wheel itself is slightly off the gen. Font is correct, it is a touch too weak though and is white on black, the gen being a raised glossy silver on black. Not a massive difference but still could be better. Gen dials: Gen 45mm Gen 42mm Rep dials: 42mm Rep 45 mm Rep 45mm 42mm 42mm 45mm 42mm The Case and Caseback: The case on both 45mm and 42mm is pretty accurate, the brushing lines and polishing lines on the case are probably not as crisp cut as gen but not too much of a difference. The case sizes are pretty close to gen in height. I don’t have a calliper close by to measure but doing it the crude way the 42mm rep is about 16mm in height and the 45mm is 17mm in height. The gens are 15.7mm and 16.5mm respectively. Just to note the 42mm wears fairly tall, this is a similar case to the gen which when comparing to the old PO is almost top heavy. Gen Case and LHS Rep Case and LHS Gen Case and RHS Rep Case and RHS The crown/He are fairly accurately sized and finished this time. The 45mm crown being wider but less tall than the 42mm, as is the case on the gen. Also the markings on the He and crown are fairly accurate. What is more concerning is while the 45mm crown screwdown felt really solid with about 8-10 half turns, both 42mm didn't, with about 2 half turns on the silver 42mm and 3 half turns on the red 42mm. Why is this something that could possibly be a concern later?? Well anyone who is familiar with the older PO's, specifically the 42mm V5 will be aware that the tubes were really prone to stripping. I certainly hope this isn't the case here, but these 42mm screwdowns have a striking resemblance in feel to the old version. Not the best, considering most reps I've tried recently were substantially better in this regard. The caseback is a strange one, I'm very happy with the rotor, I'm not too fussed about the eta 2836 masquerading as an 8500. The 8500 is obviously a masterpiece of design and finishing. We have nothing in the rep world that can compete with it on any level. The rep looks pretty good when viewing it through the display window, it's never going to pass for gen, but the rotor Geneve waves and engraving look pretty cool. The liquid metal on the 45mm caseback was a mistake, and adjuste dto fiye' on the movement holder was interesting, but again this is something which can barely be seen with the caseback on, and then only if you are really looking for it. In truth, these are minor issues, the front of the watch is much more important. Gen Caseback Rep The Bracelet and clasp: The bracelet has some very good and very bad aspects. Good are the endlinks which are very nicely cut and fit snugly to the case. The screwed links are are great and feel pretty good quality surprisingly. I was sure I'd strip one or two during resizing but they actually screwed in pretty well and felt pretty close to those on my gen AT. Time will tell if the threads hold out and it might also be a good idea to use some threadlocker if using the bracelet long term. The clasp doesn't jump out at me as being great quality, it's rather crudly cut and in some way almost feels cheaper than the rest of the bracelet. One of the 42mm clasps will not stay closed, the other 42mm is more solid and works fine. The 45mm clasp seems a little more solidly built. Gen Bracelet: Rep Bracelet: The clasp: The clasp engravings aren’t the best. On the gen the 42mm is obviously a little thinner than on the 45mm. On the reps the engravings are a little shoddy, with the 45mm being engraved too deep, but still looks good. The 42mm is too shallow and not bold enough. Gen 42mm Clasp: Gen 45mm Clasp: Rep clasps: The AR, Pearl and Lume: The AR on the 42mm is unusually good for a rep, it’s actually pretty close to my old gen 2500 caliber PO. Maybe just a slight bit less transparent, but it is very low on reflections and it looks to be some of the best AR I’ve seen on a rep. The gen has a slightly more bluish tint but it is close. I’m not sure how durable the 42mm AR will be long term but it certainly looks the part. This above makes it all the more perplexing as to why the 45mm then has no AR at all or very very minimal inner AR. I’m still trying to make out what it is! On some views it looks to have a very slight bluish tint on the inner part of the crystal. That could be just reflections from the gasket though. Either way, the 45mm AR is non existant. It is neither close to gen or even the 42mm rep. I’m not even going to speculate as to what happened in this case. I’m sure the details will come out in time but it is something that needs to be corrected. Rep 42mm Rep 45mm Comparing AR The pearl: The pearl is better centred than it used to be, at least on the 45mm it is. On the 42mm it still has a tendency to be a little lowish in the triangle but they are both a huge improvement over old PO’s. It’s still a little too big in diameter vs gen and is more flush to bezel in some cases than others. The better placement itself just improves the look immensely. The Lume: The lume is pretty good actually, I’m sure the strenght on full charge is not as intense as the gen but they’ve done a pretty good job, with the correct lume colours in the right places. The addition of the good AR and superlume helps make the dial pop much better than the previous PO. Gen Lume: Rep Lume vs Old gen PO Some thoughts and conclusions: Overall this is a nice rep with some great features such as screwed links and good endlinks, AR and superlume, but it is let down by just a lack of attention to detail that could have made it a fantastic Omega rep. The missing AR on the 45mm and the clasps, and some dial/bezel details on the 42mm could have been improved prior to release. It’s still a great purchase and no doubt many will be very happy with it. For the price it has a great deal of features that you’ll be hard pushed to find outside of the rep world. I guess the newer reps on release in the past year with finer attention to detail and better finishing have raised the bar significantly. This doesn’t quite reach those heights but is still good value for money and looks a quality piece on the wrist.
    1 point
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