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Disclaimer, My photo skills are crap, Sorry Where do we start? When I first started on reps I always shied away from Rolex because of the new bling image, but I got educated along the way, I leaned of the time when this was the watch for real men of the age. People who took life to the limits in the direction they chose, and the watch they chose was one that would survive as long as they did and may be longer. I am not Steve McQueen or Jacques Cousteau I know these are not 1680s but the heritage is of the vintage Rolex and the persona of the wearer But I have had some excitement in my life, done a few wild and stupid things and I still do, and the watches that those people wore survived, they wore Rolexes! Then they were new and the best available (opinion not fact) at the time, They looked good and were true tools made to a standard rather than a price and made to last! Heck they have even been worn by our favorite agents until they sold out to Omega. Last year I retired from the Military after a long career and got a real job, I found I had a little bit of cash that I could spare and thought I would get me a white 1680, and It took a bit of looking to find the right one but in the end I did. Yes I wanted a luminover service dial and hands because I want to wear it and it to be usable all the time, I got lucky as I still have the silver date wheel and it all looks like almost brand new, that’s because it has just come from the RSC which is also why I can be pretty sure that the comparison is of a genuine watch with genuine parts, a comparison of two watch's that are about as close as I can get them with in the realms of sensible price rep building and without going all out franken, My rep has not been artificially aged since I built it the year before last and the case was not brand new when I got it, I don’t polish it every day but I do wear it in the garage, garden, hot tub on the bike in the car and to work, it looks about right to me for a looked after 30 year old watch. The Gen is one of the later versions Late 70s and according to the paper work the date wheel is original so if you like the silver DWs there is the provenance to have one on a later 1680. So what do the comparisons show then, data is below and I would say they are close enough to be with in different batch or machine tolerances almost, the differences are impossible to spot on your own wrist. Please let me know if you want another angle measured wont you. Work performed on MBW case Crown guards front, rear, inside, outside tops and bottoms (more than once) Crown seat lowered Lugs drilled 1.3mm Dial opening opened by 0.2mm Case polished 90% of the serial numbers ect have been worn away by strap and end link movement 93150 MBW rep bracelet smoothed, polished and re-brushed Gen Crown Gen Tube Clarks 127 crystal Not sure on the combination of the bezel now as I have had a few and this combination of retaining ring washer and bezel works and looks best Insert ??? but it clicks in to the bezel like gen Pearl cartel budget vintage sub Movement 21.600 bph 2846-2 with a white MBW overlay like a service one would be, hacking lever added (because a 1575 can be a hacking movement. I am still thinking about removing the quick change for the date and making it single position but not sure whether it is worth making a movement less useable is a good idea. Dial and hands Tritec re-lumed MBW white dial with unknown hands, I was just packing my spares away the other day and I had been reading what Highoeyazmuhudee (name far too long and hard to spell) was saying about them and since I have been looking at the gen then the difference is quite glaring. Well I noticed these in a tube in my rolex spares box and thought” hello they look better” and they do! Just a touch too short in the hour hand area but with a better sized circle. Where they came from???? I can only think of clarks as that is where I last got hands from, but I cant be sure on that, oh and the seconds hand belonged to set I took off as the one in the new set, the tail was too short to eclipse the center of the merc star and the center where the tube fits was too small. My impressions of the rep to gen Well I know all the ins and outs of this as I built it, I would like to have a better movement in there where the date wheel turns the correct way, but is it worth the expense?, well from operation feel and time keeping front, no it is not. The watches feel the same they act the same. To confirm this I was having a very small GTG with a member here who can join in if he likes, but when I gave him both the other day, I am not sure what the thought initially but I did not tell him one was a gen I assumed he thought they were both reps and he did seem a bit shocked to find that one was still under guarantee from an RSC, that tells me that from the look and feel they are pretty close. The little differences that are still possible to solve Well as you can see the clasp is not that close to the gen, but a gen clasp is not cheap, The end links could be better and the right number, and the last link on the bracelet should be folded sheet rather than solid. The biggest tell apart from the dial (and I still think the MBW white is one of the better ones) is the inside of the crown guards, I don’t think at home this could be solved, they would have to be milled to keep that circular look like the gen has, but from the front and sides we are good. Is a gen crystal needed, NOT AT ALL, the clarks is perfect! So apart from replacing more parts with gen parts like the insert ect I am not sure this could get a lot better for reasonable money. Now the comparison shots Hands with the better ones i found Face on Individual Gen Modded Rep Crown side Gen on top Note the round form of the inside of the Gen crown guards that once you open the front of the CG on the MBW you lose 9 side gen on top Note differences in the location of the adjustment holes in the clasp! Siht out of focus shot of the CGs but you can see the inner shape Shows to me that 1.3mm drill bit is use for the lug holes is spot on. Case back Lugs The rep is on the right and you can see that the RSC polished lugs look thinner Difference in the clasp gen is on the right and is a later version 93150 with the lines on the fliplock, not also the softer shape to the bracelet links CG and crown height profile, note the MBW did have the slight droop to the wrist side before i removed it copying another CG picture before of an early 5513 i think Gen on the left And from the back A daylight lume shot (dont hear that every day) And the money shot no photo shopping, watches were running just go to a dark room point and shoot! Guys and Gals (if we have any females) i hope this was usefull and may help you in your builds and i think it shows what is possible with a bit of work and some thing to compare with. Any one in Europe got a spare Ofrie pearl as this one is off centered?

Hello Gang, just to inform you, I received the two TC Bracelets today. So the bracelets are nice for the money. Like a Mix of Noob SEL's and WM9. The SEL's has a three piece construction , not bad at all. Shape is nice. Links are of good quality a bit sharp on the edges. The clasp is also nice and looks the same like WM9. Engravings are crisp and nice. I measured the SEL's and they are both 20mm. That's good. So the problem with the small gap is not the bracelet it's the case in most cases. On my WM9 the distance between the lugs is 20,45mm on one side, on the other it's 20,3mm

1680

243L

This one has been on the wrist for a while now.... Maybe time to mix things up tomorrow...

Pam 390le....http://www.yourtrustytime.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=37_55&products_id=9144 Sent from my SGS2

PM's sent!

lol.. relax folks.. was just giving my personal opinion Thanks Calatrava for such valuable overview on PP. Cheers,

Wow, I don't know where to begin. Patek pioneered the wrist-watch (1868), and received patents for the keyless watch (1845), perpetual calendar (1889), double chronograph (1902), gyromax balance (1952), first quartz watch (1959)... the list goes on. Look Rolex has its own share of horological achievements, most notably for the first truly waterproof and dust proof watch, but both Patek and Rolex are unjustifiably overpriced, and much of this is driven by marketing. It's fine if you think a Patek is overpriced, but most watch experts would consider the Patek Calatrava to be the quintessential dress watch. By their very nature, dress watches are supposed to be understated and elegant. The price is in the quality of the finish of the case, and the movement. Maybe in your social circle, the Rolex is the undisputed crown of achievement, but there are many who would consider a Rolex to be declasse, and this is why Carla Bruni gave Nicolas Sarkozy a Patek Philippe to replace his gold Rolex Presidential when they got married. Look, it's clear from each of our respective avatars where our tastes lie. I'm willing to concede that a Patek is overpriced but I don't think it is any more overpriced than a Rolex. I think you're primarily responding to the genre of dress watches in general, and I assume they don't appeal to you. But not every $20K watch has to be a 18K gold watch and bracelet, or something studded with diamonds, to justify its cost. The reality is that all luxury watches are overpriced in their own way, and indeed, this is part of their appeal.

Ladies and Gents, Does any one know of a source for High Quality Patek dress watches? I have been looking for years and coming up empty. Surely with such a simple watch as a hand wind or auto Calatrava, some body would make a High Quality and accurate rep. If the movement engraving is too complicated than a solid case back with no engraving (like the older Pateks) will do the trick. Another option is the SWISS ETA movoment with silver movement and gold rotor as in the high quality Aquanaut will work too. Quite perplexed with this one. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks & regards, Sam