shultz

Hi there, I am thinking about the purchase of a Cartier Santos chrono with swiss 7753 mvt. As this titem is expensive I would be happy for some information by the owners of that rep. Is the dial spot on? I can't judge it by just comparing pics from the net. The rep dial seems to be white but the gen silver?

Nice combo, mate! Actually I am thinking about purchasing another SA with blue dial in addition to my black one. But these gen dials are pretty expensive...

Congrats! You were faster than me I am still waiting for my oceanracer strap because I ordered this fro my Sa as well. As I am wearing my SA on an aligator strap at this time I am thinking about the oceanracer on my 6.75. As soon as I am getting the strap I will post pics!

It is actually a genuine Breitling date wheel. I was a lucky guy t o get this by chance by a watchmaker. The only "obvious issue" on my chrono is the polished screws on the bezels. But you have to come very close to notice this. I love the V1 case because the bezel comes with the correct open 4. Here a close shot of the dial and date: And a wristshot:

Hehe! You're pretty close. Actually this is V1 with gen swiss 7750, gen dial, gen hand set and gen date wheel. Took some time and nerves to get all these parts together for the final Franken Avenger. But this watch is worth every cent!

Thx a lot for your kind comments It was a pleasure to write this down after that long time of absence! As I am a watchmaniac I couldn't sit still and went for an alligator strap. Took some quick pics in the office this morning. Looks not bad, what do you think? Matches a suit as well as jeans and T-shirt: And some wrist shots: BTW: I went to my AD this afternoon and actually the only dial "issue" is the raised markers. The silvery sub dials with concentric rings are pretty much close in colour and "performance"

Pleasure!

Hi folks, my latest purchase after a long break in watch collecting is the new Super Avenger rep. I almost pulled the trigger on the real deal but then - after a few cheap looking rep releases - the current SA rep version appeared in the market. Boom! I didn't trust my eyes when I saw that rep the first time. Almost all of the issues of former versions seemed to be corrected: The hands are longer, the sub dial hands are silver, the dial has got correct sub dials, silver with concentric rings, the pearl is done nicely with a frame and last but not least the correct date font. So I didn't pull the trigger on the gen but on the new rep. My order took some time because I went for a dealer who did a QC. But it was worth the time because I received a pretty nice item which seems to be without technical issues so far. The new girl is on the block for just three days but I took some pics for you and would like to share some information. This is not a brilliant technical review but perhaps it will help you to decide whether to go for this watch or not. The case: Heavy! It is a solid stainless steel case, diameter is ca. 49mm (case without crown guard) and height is ca. 18mm (in total: case back to crystal). No sharp edges at all! I am positively surprised because I am owning two swiss 2824 Heritage reps and both have got damn sharp lugs which are killing long sleeves as well as leather straps. The workmanship on the SA case is simply perfect and despite the heavy weight of the watch it doesn't feel uncomfortable at all. As I don't have the technical equipment unfortunately I can't judge water proofness. Crown and pushers: As you can see the crown and the pushers are well made. No sharp edges (not even the waffle pattern on the pushers) and nothing is wobbling. The crown shoes the "B" very clearly. Crown screws in smoothly and the stem is tight and doesn't wobble when setting the time or winding the watch. Only (minor?) issue: By setting the time the minute hand "jumps" a little when pushing in the crown. It needs some "fine motor skills" to deal with. But I have got some gen 7750 watches in my collection showing the same effect as well. Crystal: The crystal is a slightly domed sapphire crystal and ar coated both sides. There is no distortion and therefore together with the very good ar coating you can clearly see the dial and the deep rehaut from different ankles. My first impression is that the ar quality is as good as the ar of the first batch of the swiss 2824 SOSF. My SOSF was my daily beater for over a year I spent a rough time down in Africa. It is still part of my collection and the ar doesn't show just a single scratch! I can't judge whether the ar on the SA is that durable but the anti reflecting effect is great. So no blue tint but "working" ar! Bezel and pearl: A few months ago I purchased a new gen SA bezel considering a SA Franken project in the far future. When I received the SA rep I noticed just minimal differences. I tried to remove the rep bezel to swap for the gen. But the bezel screws are sitting damn tight and one of these is spinning and I can't screw it out. So I decided to leave the rep bezel as it is. As you can see from the pics the difference between gen and rep isn't obvious for an external viewer. So actually a swap isn't necessary. Pearl comparision (gen is uninstalled): Figure engravings: "B" engraving: And - very important- the rep bezel sits tight and turns smoothly without sticking or hacking. The triangle/ pearl aligns perfectly with the dial triangle at 12. I counted 120 bezel clicks and it is a pleasure to play with the bezel and to listen to the clicks The pearl is a big improvement compared to the other so-called ultimate and super reps. Even the SOSF which is one of the best reps ever obviously has got a wrong pearl/ frame. The pearl on my rep is simply great The dial: You may remember the first SA reps. These haven't got silvery sub dials with concentric rings. Just plain and white. And the figures weren't correct as well. The new SA rep comes with a dial which is a copy of the current gen version. It means slightly cut 7, 8, 10 and 11 and - remarkable- the bigger wings emblem. The figures are not applied but seem to be punched from the dial's back side. They are looking great, not ugly rounded just sharp like applied. The basic dial (I went for the black one) is matte black. The ar coating takes away the reflections and it is a pleasure to see the very nice contrast between the silvery sub dials with concentric rings and the matte black dial which looks like black velvet. The hands: Another improvement. The hands of the new SA have got a nice length and wideness. The lume looks like SL C1 (white) but actually it is the standard CN quality. The sub dial hands are silver like the real deal. The lume: As said before: CN standard. Just like a dieing torch . The rep lume is considerably raised whereas the gen dial has got flat lume dots. But no big deal as I am going for a re-lume together with the next service. Raised lume dots: Date font: Finally! What an improvement. Remembering and of course more than appreciating the work of our members here printing correct date wheels for us I simply must say that no modd is necessary on the SA. The date font is one of the best I have ever seen on a rep out of the box. And the date is perfectly aligned as well. I wish that quality could be seen on other reps (non-Brtlgs.) as well. The movement: The movement is an asian 7750 with 28'800 bph. Chrono function and reset are working flawlessly so far. The watch winds up smoothly. It is running fast 5 secs. per day which is not C.O.S.C. but tolerable ( I am a purist and like watches within the 1 or 2 secs. range more but 5 secs. is not bad for out of the box). Please note that I am wearing this baby for just three days, now. We will see how the mvt. is running in a long term test. The rotor doesn't make a remarkable noise. To be honest I like the loud "sssrrrrrrr" when I am shaking or turning my 7750 watches. It doesn't bother me at all I simply love it ! My new SA rep is the only watch in my collection with an asian 7750. All other watches do have gen 7750s. Amusingly this SA rep is the most noiseless! The bracelet: Not comparable to the gen bracelet which has got a remarkable strength. The rep bracelet seems to be lighter than the BCE or the SOSF bracelet. I am owning both of them and after comparing weight and size I unfortunately must say that the SA rep bracelet doesn't impress. Bracelet: As you can see I went for one of my BOB 24mm straps. It is a very strong and rough looking buffalo strap with black edges. A perfect combo but I will try different straps in the next future. I think this rep is worth to get a gen leather strap sooner or later. Finally a wrist shot (my wrists are rather slim): Kind of bold isn't it? And ready for some leisure spent together with my dog out in the woods: My conclusion: This rep is one of the nicest out of the box reps I have seen (go for a seller who is offering and actually doing a QC!). It plays in the same league like eg the SOSF or the "ultimate" BCE. I am a watch purist but actually the only modd which seems to be necessary is re-luming the dial and hands. In general a mvt. service is recommended unless the QC is done and the mvt. is lubricated and well adjusted. I hope you enjoyed my little review and I could share some impressions and information

I asked one of our trusted dealers for dials of the asian version with correct printings and a date wheel as well for assemblage to my swiss Heritages. But by the meantime I have been told that a swap (asian dial on swiss ETA 2824 version) doesn't work. Just to keep those of you informed who are considering a modd.

Just back from S. Africa I took some quick shots for your pleasure. All these items (except the new SA) were reliable fellows during my stay down there in the wilderness. Enjoy: SOSF (1st batch, swiss ETA 2824, fully modded by Rob) and SA on ostrich Breit style strap: SOH (swiss ETA 2824 out of the box) on BOB carbon fibre strap and SA on BOB buffalo 24/24mm: SOSF, SA and Ti Avenger: To be continued....

You're absolutely right! BTW: The new rep dial is very nice. If the raised markers should bother they can be re-lumed easily for less money than a gen dial. I compared the new rep to a gen at the AD and the only obvious "issue" is the raised markers. Here's a quick pic of mine:

My 6.75 came with a damaged (?) ar and the mvt. didn't work reliable. I went for a complete service (Rob) including re-lume and an ar by chieftang. The watch looks great but an obvious issue compared to the real deal is the slightly sunken date window. Nevertheless I am lucky guy because the colour of the date figures are not red but more brownish like the gen. A great watch for the money but some modds and -of course- a service is highly recommended!

I am owning two "swiss" 2824 Heritages (bue and black dial) and the mvts. are running reliable. Only issue on these versions is the date wheel and the incorrect dial printing. To be honest the Heritages can't keep up with my modded SOSF (swiss 2824 version) But all in all these are great reps, no doubt!

The MB Star chrono is one of my favourite reps and I am considering a purchase. I have seen few posts but I am missing a review. Does anybody own that rep and could share some knowledge eg reliability, function of the GMT indicator, function of the "date" button? Thanks a lot

Just ordered my black dial SA from PT/ UK. I already have a gen bezel in stock but actually I think a swap is not that neccessary. Of course the lume can be fixed and the man for that is The Zigmeister. For the strap: I am going for the new oceanracer rubber strap with that new deployant clasp instead of the Breit diver which I use to wear with my Ti Avenger. Can't wait to receive both the SA and the strap from silix. I will take pics for comparision asap. But be patient, PT just orered from the factory and then he does the QC for me before sending the new babe to my place

Just orderd mine from Precious Time in UK. He ensured me that he is able to deliver the new "ultimate" version (silver subs, nice pearl and all that stuff). We will see, just pulled the trigger it will take some time to get the new babe in. Will keep you updated

Theo, I can't confirm the long response times. I went for Jay for the last seven watch purchases and at any time he was quick in responsing. He also is very reliable in after sales services eg non-working watches or whatever. I ordered two heritages -black and blue- just after the release. Now I pulled the trigger on the ocean rubber strap. Can't wait to see it on my black Heritage

Just ordered mine from Jay (silix). It will take some time to arrive because he let me know that he is currently out of stock (clasps). I will post pics and a review but -as said- it will take some time.

Wow! When the 7750 with running sec @ 3 has been released I crossed my fingers for a release of a flying B rep. Now it is out, wow! I went for the Bentley 6.75 which has been fully modded by the meantime (The Zigmeister who else ) and can tell you that the movemetn -once serviced- is running like melting butter....

Compared to the gen it seems to be remarkable higher. I wanted to purchase the Heritage chrono right after its release. But when I saw the proportions I decided to go for the three hand version with 2824. This is a quite decent and reliable watch.

An old asian 7750 for a gen 7750 is not a big deal. The Heritage chrono comes with a 21'600 asian 7750 which makes it comfortable to get the hands assembled. But due to the inacuracy of the watch (bezel height etc.) you probably should think twice before spending a further money...

@ rob May I ask you whether the bezel swap is an easy fix? I am owning a brandnew gen bezel and I am considering a rep purchase to build up a Franken SA as well.

I have a brandnew genuine SA bezel in stock and I am considering the purchase of the rep to build up a FrankenSA. Is the bezel swap an easy fix? I didn't order the rep yet so I have no clue at this time. Perhaps SAFranken owner can help me out? Thx a lot.

In fact I like the watch as well. But that hand granate lever which is supposed to be a crown guard or somewhat has got a size of a watch itself.....

I am considering the purchase of a Datora rep with black dial. I did my homework and watched almost all of our dealer's pics to get an idea whether the subdials are silghtly recessed and do have concentric rings as the gen. But I can't figure it out by the pics. I would be happy if Datora owners could post a high res pic of the dial (black version) or tell me how the subdials are looking. Thanks lot.