tomhorn

Your main alternative is to source all the parts yourself and then send to someone to build the watch for you (assuming you don't want to do the build yourself). You definitely pay a premium in many cases for Phong's fully done offerings, but then again you don't have to do the work. Personally, I love the hunt for parts and the fact that in doing so I don't have to drop a huge chunk of change all at once. I do get the appeal of a ready-made product though.

Watch Bitz has a sub forum here. Good quality kits.

Turning the big '5-0' this year and am putting together a few adventures to go on to celebrate. Need some help with travel planning and hoping some 'locals' can help me out. July Want to do a quick tour that lets me go to Wimbledon, a stage of the Tour de France and to see the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona. I think I can fit them in one window with some careful planning. Think I have a place to crash in London, but need to figure out how to get to the other events. I know the Tour starts in the UK, but I want to see one of the stages in France. July 8th is the first of those from Le Touquet-Paris-Plage to Lille. Arras to Reims is July 10th, which gets me closer to Paris to fly out. Wimbledon ends on July 6th and the San Fermin Festival starts on July 6th. September Want to attend the Ryder Cup (starts 9/23) in Scotland, and probably catch an EPL (ideally Liverpool) game on the same trip. Any hints on how to make all of this come together are appreciated!

You have a lot of good projects/parts there. If cashflow to finish things is the issue, you should probably sell off a lot of it and just concentrate on finishing the 2-3 that would make you happiest. I'm sure there would be plenty of buyers here.

What would probably help is if you put this in the "Want to Buy" section. Of course, you do have to be a VIP to post there ...

You can also find a donor watch. Ebel and Movado also used them.

I have better watches, but am not good at the 'self-wristy'. Gen TAG Classic 2000, 6.75" wrist.

either way, I don't think the Tropic 12 will fit. You could always remove the cyclops from a 117 and polish, but hopefully there is a direct swap.

Well, the Tropic 117 is the proper crystal for a 1500, but it has a cyclops. Tropic 12 was the proper crystal for a 5500 Air King, but I'm not sure if it would fit the 1500 case.

Is it just me or is there still plastic on the bracelet? Screams fake for all the reasons above.

Why do you think we have a trusted dealer's section?

Have you checked with any of the trusted dealers?

Amen to that ... if you'll pardon the expression ...

I have no need or desire to tell you the details of my whole hour, day, week, month, year, or my whole life. I can tell you the details about my last cheap minute. I spent it typing a response to a forum member that really doesn't deserve a response to his ramblings. I explained myself perfectly. Just because you don't agree or can't comprehend what I've said (I'm guessing that English isn't your first language) doesn't mean I did not explain myself. My mind is probably far more 'broad' than yours is. I can actually wrap my mind around the concept that there is no one 'true' religion or basis for faith, and can accept anyone's right to have their own version of it. Including you. I also trust my path more than the one put forth by someone who throws around the words idiot and crippled to describe someone he has never met, just because he doesn't believe in the same things. The same way I trust my path more than any other religion or faith that believes it is the only 'true' way to believe, and anyone who doesn't follow it is 'doomed.' Since you believe all of us to be idiots, then why are you here? Probably best to go find like minded people to discuss your beliefs with since you are so unaccepting of people that don't agree with you.

Well, I care (I did write it after all) ... and perhaps you should look up the word sarcasm ... Having said that, I have always believed that faith is a highly personal thing. I would like to think that I have a good relationship with my 'creator' (for lack of a better word). I don't need a 'religion' to validate me, my existance on this rock we call Earth, or my belief that there has to be a higher power out there that created the existance I am currently experiencing. My faith leads me down the path of trying to live the best possible life I can, for me, my family and friends, and for society in general. Do I succeed 100% of the time, no, but that doesn't stop me from trying. I hope when my existance is done, that my 'creator' says 'You did good, kid.' I feel sad for anyone who really believes that there is only one 'true' religion, and that everyone else is 'busy foolish and totally idiot'. Unfortunately, you are not alone in that misguided belief. I hope for their sake, the 'creator' enlightens them so they understand that there are many paths to happiness. There would be a lot fewer wars if there was more faith and less religion in the world.

Then you aren't trying very hard. Reading the posts in this thread, coupled with the search function on this forum and Google would get you all the information you need to know in less than 2 minutes. I know this because that's how long it took me to find them, after knowing nothing about the 16263 case prior to your posting it. Given that you have already spent money on a 2836 and dial, you need to find a 160xx case. End of story. Stop looking at (and asking about) anything that is not one of those (16013, 16014, 16030). If you had not already bought parts without knowing what you were doing, you would have more options. That's why everyone is telling you to do research, and that you need a plan going into the build so you don't get stuck with parts you can't use.

Digest this and then get back to me ... http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2522482/Is-universe-hologram-Physicists-believe-live-projection.html PS ... thanks for spamming the board. PSS ... if I had to give up illicit sex, gambling, drugs and meat, I'd rather be dead ... or a hologram in a different dimension where all of these are allowed ...

TC Yachtmaster is the best choice. Plenty of threads posted about it.

Mini rant coming your way unfortunately .... With the dozens of threads on franken DateJusts on this forum, why start a new thread? All the information you need is already out there. Normally you're only going to get generic answers to a thread like this, because the members all know these questions have been asked/answered so many times. Now that I'm off the soap-box, I'll help a little since spoon-feeding seems to be necessary. 1) Since you 'have no clue where to start from', mymanmatt is your best source for a pre-built, everything's done for you, franken DateJust. Contact him, and you'll get a quality piece with no effort on your part. 2) If you really want to DIY, you should read (at a minimum) these threads: http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/158976-diy-how-to-make-a-frankenjust/ http://www.rwgforum.net/topic/152469-franken-datejust-journey-finally-complete/ And pretty much any of the other franken datejust build and/or sales threads will have complete build lists, including all the parts lists you need. 3) If you don't want to go with a gen case, JMB has a rep case for a 2824 movement. It takes gen parts. IMO it's the best choice. 4) Gen cases are hard to find, but there are several on eBay right now. Some priced OK, others, not so much. Patience is needed when shopping for parts. 5) The movement you buy depends on the case you use. It will either be a 2824 or 2836 (ETA or clone). And this is not directed specifically at you, but anyone who wants to embark on a franken project of any kind should always do a ton of research on what they are trying to build. It's a very rare occassion when someone would get an idea to build something that one of the other members has not already tried. There will always be posts with the information you need to succeed, and more importantly what not to do. Sometimes avoiding the common mistakes that can happen with a project is the thing that keeps things from going off the rails and adding unneeded costs that could have been avoided.

I wasn't speaking about this piece specifically, I was referencing the comment made by his jeweler friend.

Sorry about that. I had both forums open. It's a good reference for building a franken PO. While you are waiting, it says Dial #1 for the white numbers.

With these (and DateJusts) he is correct. If you want to bling one out, it's easier (and cheaper) to get an aftermarket dial and/or bezel where the diamonds have already been set, and just replace the originals. It can hurt the value (depending on the quality of the work) but one can always put the gen parts back in when it comes time to sell. As I said before, cracking the caseback will tell you alot, but I'd also have the stones independantly appraised. They are probably fake too. Your jeweler friend should be able to help you sort it out.

I think at one time they were their own fashion house, but Nordstroms bought them and they became their in-house brand. They outsource the manufacturing to a third party, and you can probably find the same shirt being sold to several other stores as a house brand also. Repping a house brand doesn't make a lot of sense, IMO. There likely wouldn't be enough of a market for it.

I don't have time to look for it, but awhile back someone posted a complete parts list for Omega PO's. Oh wait, I found it. It's a sticky in the Omega section. http://www.repgeek.com/showthread.php?t=6261

Yes, you will have to pull the parts together on your own and (since you are asking the question I'll assume you will also have to) send them to a watchsmith/modder to be assembled. To do it correctly, you had better start searching/reading. You will need to learn a lot about the parts you need to collect, where you can get them from, and how much you should pay. If you don't have the time or the energy to do the research, forum member Concepta was putting together a few of these for people at one time. You might want to check with him to see if he can still source the parts and get one built for you. Having someone else do it for you will cost more, but it's easier. All up to you.