breukelen

Love those pics!!! Thanks for sharing and for the advice. I'm in Saigon now

I'll be arriving in Ho Chi Minh this week and will have plenty of time explore the city, particularly District 1. Specifically, I wanted to know if there any good watch shops (both gen or rep) that are worth looking into? I'm a PAM guy but love vintage Rollies. Unfortunately, I know absolutely nothing about them and what to look for, despite having read that there are some highly sought after parts/cases only available in Vietnam. There's a thread on RWG about this and I jotted down the names of a few shops. Once I get there however, I really don't have a way to judge what's what. As far specifics go, does anyone have any sort of primer as to what to look for in VN made rep parts and cases? Also, if any of you have been to VN or SE Asia, I'd love to hear about your suggestions for a good time (food, sites, islands, etc). Thanks.

Avitt is a great guy. Thinking of doing a genuine PVD service with Rolli the next time just to compare... is Rolli still doing this?

Thanks. Yes the case is an Avitt job... better than the best

... in the same photo, but not on the same watch Just wanted to share a few quick snaps of my relatively new pick-up next to an older sibling. Seems like everyone around here is falling hard for the 312. Pardon the nasty glare on the crystal... if you want to see a MUCH nicer representation of this watch check out Silverspeed's photos HAGWEE!

Looks great! Is the xtal on the TG treated as well?

I've seen the real thing and even on the gen its very difficult to tell. In my eyes, the rings are not grey, but a black color with a glossy surface finish, causing a reflection of light which makes the rings appear grey. In fact, the only very minor tell is that the rep lacks the faint-appearing concentric rings in the subdial. Here's a very good macro of the dial:

Thanks for the FYI, The Zigmeister. Aside, it is such a shame that there are some real primadonnas out there ruining it for the rest of us when you make things difficult like this, given that The Zigmeister is one if not the only modder out there who is able to perform specialty services like this.

I already have one of FGD's first gen dials... it's crazy to even think that he could improve on that version. They're seriously that good. Either way, I'm looking forward to picking up a second gen dial. Not to steer this thread off course, but I have a silly dilemma... what is a better fit for a PreA watch using a Fu case -- a Fu crown guard or an Angus 111e crown guard? The Fu crown guard I have doesn't appear quite as flat as pics of the gen PreA, while the Angus crown guard is completely flat on top. Anyone care to chime in? Thanks!

A guy on the 'risti board DLC/PVD coated his 212 case as well.... but I really like your version a LOT more with the blackened lume! In fact, Bonati should tear a page from your book -- its perfect. It also reminds me of the all-black Hublot or the Sinn U1 stealth pictured here:

Thanks - I posted details in your thread. If I'd known that DSN was going to come out with his own version, I probably would've waited. All of the parts are from DSN except for the dial, movement and case. Vac did the lume job. There is a Lello dw and I reworked the crown guard, lug pins, etc. It was definitely fun putting this one together - but the last time I do this much modding unless its a historical PAM

Way before DSN came out with his 089, I modded the heck out of this one from the cartel dealers (and spent too much $$ and time doing it): DSN minute & gmt hand, DSN caseback & sapphire, Vaclume C1/C3, Lello DW, polished cannon pin, reworked cg and sanded lug pins, and Rex serviced & regulated. If I'd known DSN was gonna release auto PAMs, well it would've been a different story. It runs like a top though!

Looks great, oncyte! I posted mine too, although its not from DSN http://www.rwg.cc/members/PAM-Anthracite-D...tml#entry624520

Picked this one up well over a year ago. This one barely makes it out of the watch box, but after seeing oncyte's 089 posted, i thought I'd bring it out of hibernation today sporting dark blue gator shoes. My photo skills leave something to be desired, but you get the point... enjoy!

First of all, kudos to FGD for these amazing dials. Seriously, I'm astonished at how beautiful these dials are and the attention to detail is absolutely second to none. As some of you know, the stock FGD dials have a metallic looking finish which is visible in certain angles. As The Zigmeister and some other modders have done, I used 3 coats of (Tamiya TS-80) clear matte spray to make the dial appear more matte and less shiny. The results were perfect. The spray work resulted in a uniform, matte black finish and didn't change the finish of the existing paint on the dial. Sorry, no pics just yet Although when I installed the dial into the watch, the dial then appeared slightly grey in some light and depending on the angle. The lack of AR in the crystal definitely gives this illusion. So my question is... do any of you modders use an additional coating of perhaps a semi-matte or semi-gloss spray to get the dial to appear more black? Or better to leave it the way it is?

Using an adhesive would work just fine, just make sure the adhesive sticker isn't too thick so the hands can clear the dial face. The correct way to do this is to get a backplate from a sandwich dial and glue the FGD dial on the backplate. The 111/112H backplate usually have the 2 feet to attach it to the movement.

My guess is that the tip of the escape wheel did not snap off, I'm just not putting it back together properly. Any advice for you repair gurus out there??? This is my same exact problem here.... http://www.rwg.cc/members/eta-2824-e...el-t69773.html

While disassembling an Asian 6497 movement, I *accidently* removed the small top plate whose jewel holds the escape wheel in place. In doing so, the mainspring became completely unsprung. As you can imagine, the hour and minute hands go spinning like crazy... and the 10 or so hours left of power reserve is all gone. Luckily the hands didn't scrape the dial. Now the problem is that the escape wheel seems doesn't seem to be properly seated. The wheel isn't quite engaging the pallet lever or the fourth wheel very well, it's either one or the other. When I wind the crown, it keeps winding and winding and there is no tension build-up to indicate the mainspring is being powered up. Then I noticed that the cause might be due to the escape wheel's top stem which doesn't appear to be seated very well into the jewel of the top plate. So I disassemble, align the plate/jewel, reassemble, and repeat that... no luck. I then stick a tiny screwdriver in there to wiggle the escape wheel and there is a tiny bit of play on its axis. Is the escape wheel suppose to sit this way or has something broken off on the stem, like a pivot of some sort? I don't have any photos of what it looks like, but if anybody has a pic or full top to bottom diagram of what the escape wheel for the Asian 6497 movement looks like, can you post it? Thanks in advance.

Total perfection. The JF case is stellar!

I've been lurking around these parts for a while and finally decided to upgrade my membership today - finally. Anyway, I would like to lavish some praise to those members here who really have some incredible pieces, particularly those who have recreated some very historic PAMs using 1:1 fabricated dials, crown guards, crowns, etc. In fact, this has caused me to "reset" my watch buying habits after taking a whole new interest in these Pre-A/V watches. With all these great parts (sometimes) available from FGD, V and T, it's hard not to resist not making a near-perfect recreation, so the question now is what should to build - 002, 009, 202a, 201a?? I'm going to stop looking at gen purchases in this economy, however, there is one gen that I do really really want to replace the sub I just sold -- a 243. 44mm 1950 case, chunky bezel... this thing is the irresistible. Hopefully I won't find a good deal.. and PWC over at RG will deliver me a rep 243 so I don't have to go buy the real one. Damn this watch thing. So, time to move things around in the watchbox to make room for some Pre-A's and V's and hopefully not a 243. This one is now gone, 25F on GSD strap, but here is the last (horrendous) pic that I took of it.

WOW - as good as it gets! I have to ask - where on earth did you find a gen dial??

looking forward to hearing more about this piece. sorry, have to ask... what is a graphite treatment?

Just picked up one of the newly updated 212 reps. The new version is a real stunner with an excellent and very accurate dial. The printing on the rotor on the back stinks, but who's gonna see that? The only real noticeable flaw (to me anyways) is the incorrect tapering of either side of the crown guard where it meets the chrono pushers. Many of you 212/253 owners know what I'm talking about here. Below is a pic of my 212 rep courtesy of my dealer. Notice the point where the crown guard meets the pushers. The pic below that is a fellow member's 253 rep with the correctly sloping crown guard. So here's my question -- if I can find one of these cases with a perfect crown guard, will the dial and guts on my new 212 fit???

Perfect - thanks for replies. The watch is done now

Have been going back and forth with Vac this afternoon about the correct lume colors for the Arktos 092. I'm almost 100% certain that the hands & hash marks around the subdial are pure white (or is it an off-white color????) while the rest of the dial including the markers and numerals are pale green. The 2 different lume colors appear this way in the photos of the gen, but sometimes lighting and angles can be misleading. Obviously, Vac is going to go with what I want -- but I don't want to make a costly mistake here Arktos owners & experts please chime in? Here are some links & photos of the gen for reference: http://www.network54.com/Forum/353390/mess...BNIB+(epweber3) http://www.thewatchquote.com/Panerai-Lumin...tos-No_4058.htm