Katerchen

thanxs @all for your words... yes, indeed this one was a "hard one" and i was in contact with him minimum +1 year before i decided to give it a try with the handsset for kruzer because i looked for a ro dial. Inside of WIS-circles he is very well known (thats all i can say) and on my hunt for some parts i ran at least for 3 times over people that either told me - they got their parts thru him or directly from him "if mr.x cant get i cant get them as well" I suggest that all new AP dials and rarely other AP parts popping up on the net especially germany or on the bay where ordered thru him. I asked him too but there is no "proper" occupational titel to the work he does - he is no AD, he somewhat "grew" into this field ordering parts from the swiss manufacturers for service work done by others and watchsmiths he knows. I guess his knowledge for Timepieces of AP, Patek and VC was the reason why he has this position - at least 2 times he pointed out that the ADs and watchsmiths mainly dont have a clue when it comes to ordering replacement dials, hands, crowns etc. and he is the proxy assuring them that they get the right parts from manufacturer. Too bad, i rarely had so much fun discussing this and that - this was an "inside" interview that had to be recorded, typed and pinned for the members of the board i couldnt restrain and almost felt off my chair when he remarked lapidary "They have no clue..., you can walk right thru their door wearing a rep and they wouldnt notice the difference...!" Maybe this wouldve been no such thing as a "one-way-road" leading to this person if interest would be mainly be in parts as rlx or omega that are somehow easier to get elsewhere. If it comes to AP, Patek and VC he is the man. I will contact him again (for sure) it turned out that we also have common acquaintance outside watch-biz and watch collectors... a friend and customer of mine is known by him. For the future and if i would be able to source more thru him, it depends on how our relationship can grow - i definitely will keep you updated. Someone asked for similar contacts in UK? I dont know, but its no bigger problem to ask him if he knows someone working in a position like him based in UK. Glad if i can help... Regards George

nipping on a screwdriver (drink) at the moment...

just something id like to add: the "this-and-that-aint-available-theory" is simply not true - talked with my contact and he told me that its almost possible to order "anything" just a matter of $$$ and waiting time. Of course i have to convince him that it is "necessary" for him to order something for me... Man i wish i couldve done pictures - for. ex. i saw about 30 - 50 Offshore Dials all queued up inside a folder for reference and ordering parts... i said tachy scale hard to get - reply: not for me... He wore 2 watches right a patek nautilus left a lange&s

@pastorius did you order? just wondering why you are so "picky"... you are somewhat right about the screws but what you get is exactly what paul posted in previous pics - the people saw what they will pay for. You might ask Paul if screws of old batch/first run AP mbk model were still available - he has good contact with producer. George

Welcome bunch and the "leisured classes" of RWG - especially the AP lovers Was hunting down a few gen parts for years now, suddenly a known contact "opened a door", this turned out to be a "gold-mine"!! I cant be more precise - but i bet that some of you wouldve creamed your pants (as(s) i did ) having experienced what i just saw... I couldve build me a few gens just from the watch-parts and spares i saw shortly - new out of the factory and used/overhauled parts. Might be able to source some more parts again - no promise - "bulk" ordering not allowed. And @kruzer - i will send you the ROO handsset, pls contact me for details. Here we go... Gen crown for an AP RO jumbo c-serial - no engravings Gen handsset for AP RO jumbo c-serial Gen dial for AP RO 14802ST jumbo jubile

I guess Leo has his reasons for not telling

Any updates from persons standing close to him? @narikaa pls keep us informed. I hope hes still around somewhere... arguing with dead isnt that simple. I miss some battles we had Regards George

i recall... no mods done expect to the screws and delivered with the closed case back. b/r George

@pho great writeup & blast from the past george

Knowing from my brother in law who has diabetes too i know that this illness is a struggle... I never had any transaction with Neil. I can second the impressions of many members, he wasnt always "easy" to handle when of different opinion... Nevertheless i hope the rumours about him passing away where not to be affirmed yet Now would be too soon to die. Best wishes! George

Pls dont take it too personally its just (sometimes) i love crabs... maybe we can get friends anyway. Peace Bro! George

Welcome to this wonderful place!! And a WARM Welcome to you Mr. Crab!! Cheers! Bikini-Bottom-George

I suggest this ***inger MUST be from "Trollh�ttan" @PrDubis i really hope you will get your watches back!! We have no place for scammers like this in out community! George

@rek001 You can do this ----> Ive posted this tut long ago - me think randy/ubiquitous did a quite similar modjob on his AP jumbo like me. You can ask him too... anybody with a steady hand and a dremel can perform this mod! I didnt cared so much about size, but the watch wear A LOT more comfortable when the clasp sits more "face to face" to the case... Believe me. B/R George

@panoris the thanks should mainly go to Paul and to Leo for having "the balls" on unveiling the true source of some of the mysterious so called MBW watches... this was about 3 years ago. The demand on these high grade watches (mainly vintage rlx) accepting genuine and OEM parts was so high on the rep boards, that many people either choose to loose some money on a transaction, than to complain about a dealer "where is my watch?". I remember many others having lost money - yeah seizure by custums IS a risk, but we will never know in all cases WHERE the money went. Secondly the prices went up up up, there were just a few people on the boards having access to these watches as f.ex. maria, luckyy, watchmaster,... in the end ttk stepped up as a supplier. Although there has been a lot of harsh words, fighting and even banning - i guess it was just about "the right time" to unveil the source to the unaware members and dealers to break this thing and to give us the chance getting these watches at moderate prices and maybe at a more reliable "ordering service" from the dealers. And @Paul you allways do risk some criticism when you manage things in a group buy combined with some modifications involved! I think you involved us in a fair and honest way during the process of this project - and let me just guess that the main reason that maria or one of his followers showed up here might just be that he wanted to offer the members of his board "the same watch" respectively a "new" version also with modified silver-screws You see we are somehow all connected like a big community due to our interest in watches and good reps but when it comes to topics such as "money" and "market shares" there is fighting... Best Regards George

+1 @leonado ...there have been updates on some models. Having 4 RO mbk jumbos 1 - WM9 George 2006 2 - Used "original" MBW bought around 2003 3 - direct from the "stall" Nahpiek - 2006 (thanks Leo) 4 - direct from the "stall" Nahpiek - 2007 i can say that there is virtually NO big difference - all watches are quite the same! Only differences i see is: Dial texture/layout shifted a little bit from older Modells. Some newer modells have different hands (more flat) and some have (as posted by rolexfinder in the beginning of this thread) different screws as first batch. Maybe i can see also some differences in the design (AP engraving and shape) of the crowns used now... the watches ARE definitelly from the same producer as the so called mbws. Remeber we have some collectors or dealers (whatever you call them) but only thing they can do (also Maria) is "cherry pick" some watches, do some QC about them, maybe order with or without ETA and thats it! The sellers DONT produce them, thats why you only bring confusion when you call them "made by mbw/maria" or made by WM9/George or sometimes back they were also called Eddielees because they sourced them - they didnt produce them! The "silver-screw-issue" is really a matter of taste. And you can say whatever you like about the outcome - ugly - beautiful - whatever... True is that Paul DID involve the members into the process and keeped them informed. To me that means that you couldve also said "no, thanks" if the posted pictures of the "prototype" didnt suit you. I didnt order one because i was in doubt that the screws of the "old batch" RO jumbos were replicated properly by the stall. I think they installed existing silver (steel/chrome) screws into this jumbo - thats the reason why you have something like a gap surrounding every screw. I measured and found out that the silver screws smaller ROs are about 1.8mm size and the screws in the jumbo about 2mm size. But what do you want? The people wanted a good and durable solution to their demand of silver case screws and this is what they got! I suggest that if they were able to get ahold of the screws (bras) used in the older Jumbos and silver plate them, the outcome wouldve been not so durable as the result of Paul! Make a search here and youll find plenty of pics of this model. The reason why the bras didnt botherd me that much is that Nahpieks bras screws are manufactured (or polished?) in a way that they do reflect pretty much and it depends on the light and surrounding whether youll notice a more yellow cast on them or dark, or a lighter yellow cast as on some WG models! Ive talked to several people (ADs) and other collectors about this issue. Shortly ive been told that AP increased their amount of Palladium on newer Models (AP 15300ST) on the Screws and the rhodanized finish wasnt applicated that much on older models before, thats why the screws on some older ROs appear to be more yellow than silver. But thats a different story... George

congrats on some outstanding reps

great work

Man! Saw THIS today... this IS NOT acceptable!!! 600 USD for... iwould feel like george

Looks gen to me... why do you doubt? George

getting more and more interesting rite now... this is 10 years ago. And what about if this rep was somehow "put together" from different reps or factories as this watch is a franken? I suggest this one wasnt "out of the box" from the beginning...

hmm... so you guys think this could be TW best make... where these available back 99/98? just curious B/R

Ive read the whole thread TZ now interesting I am far away from beeing an expert on Rlx models and reps but in that case id like also to hear what our "Experts" say about Rlx-Reps back than in 1999 and if this watch (in TZ thread) could have been a particular rep of a source known to oldschool members? Reason i choose to say something here is because of an assumption to this rep and why i dont believe this watch to be necessarily of CN make or assembled in CN... What some members stated inside this thread reminded me of an incident i experienced back in '99: Never having seen or touched a thing as a replica-watch before, a co-worker of mine proffered some counterfeit watches to me asking if i would be interested in getting one. He had some rlx, breitling and tags inside a box. This guy had some work experience abroad in mid 90s because he was selling and installing air conditioning units mainly in saudi arabia (dubai) and asia. I guess it was Electrolux but dont blame me im not sure... The watches looked good to me, price was cheap so i choose to pick up my first rep - a white dialed quartz TAG chrono. Having so many questions about where he got them bla bla whatever, i decided to have a cold beer and talk with him after work. So, this guy told me that he got his watches mainly from dubai (doesnt mean they were necessarily made there) and also told me about gold market, jewelers , gen and rep rolexes in Dubai and that he would NEVER buy a Rlx from there even if someone would give him $$$ as a present to buy... I said why? And this is where the "tale" beginns. He said (and this is exactly what this guy on TZ wrote) that for some watchmakers in Dubai it aint no big thing in getting a genuine Rlx movement and letting the case of the watch/bracelet etc. replicate as close to gen as can be and than sell the "franken" watch as a gen one, with papers, box, stickers etc. etc. I asked further and he said, this is mainly the case for Solid-Gold Rlx replicas. He also did tell me about some cases where a watchmaker couldnt confirm that a watch was counterfeit because of gen movement and good overall replicated (or aftermarket??) case etc. and they first heard that the watch IS counterfeit when they returned or send it to Rlx headquarters for Service He said he did saw some of these watches in Dubai in person but never bought or intended to sell something like this for a profit. I asked him about whether these watches where produced/replicated also in arabia but he couldnt confirm or disclaim that it wasnt like that! He just said that he suposses especially the gold ones to be of arabia/dubai make. Is anybody maybe of the oldschool members down here also familiar with things like that or was it just a "tell-tale"?? If things like this did really happen - maybe we got a case of a few "high grade" non-CN frankens produced in the orient on the market?! Regards George

Glad to see the project did finally achieve some results @cosmos it may depend whether you do "judge" this replica more from the front (15202ST-like) or first from the back (more 15002ST like) ok pls forget the E-serial engravings on back... Another thing i just want to add especially for the people who are sceptical about pulling the trigger on this one or not is that you do really receive a watch (mbk jumbo) with a feel and finish second to no existing AP RO or AP RO jumbo rep to the day! This rep has been one of my daily beater for a period of 3 years and more now... All i can say is that the fit, finish, feel and endurance of the watch are outstanding! Compared to a "standard" CN 36mm AP RO and a smaller 36mm 14790ST rep (said to be TW made) this mbk Jumbo takes the cake... Far better clasp and bracelet than CN 36mm Versions (mine was twisted and broke just after a few days of wearing) beautiful brushed and polished metal on case - just minor scratches after years of "desk diving" - Maybe the screws coloring is more a matter of taste to some but also dont forget and bear in mind that you really receive a rep that "feels and looks valuable"! So if you love the design and look of the Royal Oak THIS is the rep 2 go!! Regards George

DAMN!! BUSTED... I saw a big white booty... err mean beauty I guess i should contact a psychiatrist! And yes, damn Freud was right. George