rmcsherry

I just wondered if anybody has had experience with selling a (gen) watch in the UK? I just bought a watch off of eBay from a trusted seller I've used before - due to his poor listing, it sold for £220 (the retail on it is £7,500+) - I'll post more details when it arrives. The thing is, I really don't like the watch - I bought it because the strap alone is worth more than I paid! Avoiding eBay, are there any places I can sell this in the UK (preferably a walk-in store) - I had a look at www.watches.co.uk and am very wary of them at the moment, although a part-ex for a gen Panerai would be very nice! It's an obscure brand, so a high street watch specialist may not be interested. Any ideas?

I give up! The closest font on my computer is Bell MT, once it's reproportioned it looks as close as I can get - in Illustrator you can convert it to an outline and modify the points to make it exactly the same as the one Cartier uses. This'll take a while, I'm not sure if I'll get time this week to do it (I don't even like Cartier anyway!!), I'll keep you updated with any progress.

Even the press releases use the other font for the logo - I found several of them, but all use the script. http://bor.x-cago.com/bmg/20050428/pages/0...28-01039001.pdf Keep looking!

Illustrator CS2 has those kinds of things built in, but they're not that effective. I had a quick search and couldn't find anything, but usually when I need a logo in vector format that's difficult to find, it's possible to search in Google for a pdf that contains Cartier in the title (for example). Often companies use press releases / brochures that have a vector logo for printing, so you may be able to find one that has this style Cartier logo? In Acrobat, zoom in on the logo and if it's a vector, the lines remain sharp - then save it to your computer, open it in Illustrator and copy over the logo and you're done. That's the easy part, it's finding the pdf in the first place that takes the time!

I assume you meant the watch - I take it this is the 'Explorer' triple padded strap from Watchworx / The Strap Shop (UK)? I was looking to get something similar for my PO - but with Orange stiching like Kaneda mentioned (no luck yet!). A few of watches on their site are fake, I noticed a fake Ikepod whilst looking for the watch you mentioned; although surely there aren't that many fake Seiko's out there?

I've got a tidied up vector version if you want? Send me a PM with your email address and I'll send it over!

...done!

I don't think that one's got the date module, but thanks for the offer. I think it is the same as the Omega 3220, you could put it into an Omega Speedmaster?

My first rep was a Fiddy, and I don't regret it. A 44mm is more of an every day watch, the Fiddy stands out like a sore thumb if you've not got sleeves on! If it's your first Panerai you can probably afford to get a cheaper rep - it's pointless spending $400+ on the 'ultimate' to find you don't like it on your wrist, whereas a $150 rep will give you a good idea of what suits you, and what it is best to spend the rest of your money on in the future. Unless of course you've been reading the forums for too long and already obsess over the crown thickness and canon pinion.. in which case spend away

I've got a gen case with crown and pushers, gen strap - unfortunately I've only got aftermarket hands, and no crystals as of yet. It'll be an Ikepod Hemipode Grande Date, I'm taking my time and looking around because I don't want to spend too much on this project! I'll have a look into the 2894's and see what I dig up. Thanks for the advice.

Thanks for the repies. I had a look at watch trader, and at Angus's photo album - the only ones I could find were ETA 2893-A2 for a Tag. Ubi, you say you can find movements with the DD fitted - I assumed it was a major movement overhaul to turn it into a DD 4500, does that mean I can source a module to add to / replace components from a standard ETA 2892-A2 movement? Thanks for the reply - I apologise if I'm a bit slow, I'm still learning when it comes to watches!!

It's a common problem, Finepics is located in London and is very helpful, I believe he does crystal swaps - maybe try sending him a PM? I've never tried to get a new glass for a Fiddy, but I assume Davisden will be your best bet to source this kind of thing from.

I'm trying to get hold of a Dubois-Depraz 4500 / 4900, which is based on an ETA 2892-A2. It has hours, minutes and seconds at 3, 6 and 9 with a 'big date' at the 12 position. I've checked the usual sources for movements, and can't find any - the only 'donor' watches I've found have been Corum, Gerald Genta and various other premium brands. Are reworked movements like this available seperately, or can we only stick to base calibre ETA's etc?

I posted the same one a couple of months back from aspire... a few people suggested it was a 2006 limited edition - but I've not seen it on the OP site yet. I guess fantasy is the probably your answer!

Thanks a lot - I'm sure it'll be months before I get one that's right, but I'll definetly be needing some help from you along the way!

Thanks guys, I wasn't expecting that many thorough answers. I've been looking on ebay - I've got 3 Angelus travel clocks and a vintage Rolex on the way for less than £30 for all of them! I doubt any of them are what I'm looking for, but the resale value should help to fund the vintage project. I'll let you know how I get on, and many thanks for the useful information so far.

I'm thinking of starting a vintage pam project, and would like some advice on the movements. I wanted to do a PAM203 but the Angelus movement will be too expensive for me to take on. I'm not expecting a vintage project to be cheap, but wondered if a Marina Militare project may be more straight forwards?! I've been having a look for a while at vintage Rolex movements, Cortebert 618's and Molnija movements and can't decide on the best way forwards. A Cortebert would be preferable to Molnija because I'm not keen on the bizaar Russian engraving, but the price can't really be justified as they are basically the same movements from the same tooling. Is there any advice anyone can give me on starting such a project - I'd rather get the movement sorted out first, and then invest in a decent case / dial. Thanks for reading.

Thanks for posting it - it looks interesting. As you say, it's not a C.240 but nice nonetheless! Do you reckon it'd be a lot of work to fit to the right dial - I'd got a PAM 203 project in mind, but moving the second hand is going to be expensive.

Thanks for that - I've tried asking sellers to remove the back, but all seem very reluctant! I'll keep an eye on the one at RWI - I'm bidding on a couple at the moment so will see how they go first. Thanks again.

Thanks for that. I'll keep an eye out and let you guys know what I find out along the way!

I'm after a decent PAM 203, so I'm looking to start off with finding a stem wound Angelus Calibre 240 movement. Every one I bid on, I miss by $1 - and frustratingly, an Angelus hand wound clock sold whilst I was on holiday for $23. Before I spend a fortune on the wrong movement, does anybody have any advice? I know some of the barometer setups have key wound movements, and to be careful as there are so many angelus movements available. I've seen some Angelus movements in old Tiffany alarm clocks, are there any other brands that use them or is it pot luck? I guess finding a decent one for a low price is like finding rocking horse s**t, but I figured it's worth a go. Finally, once I have the movement, is it going to be difficult to add a second hand at 9 and fit it to a dial with the correct hands? I'd get a jeweller to do it, but I have no experience of this kind of thing so am out of my depth. Thanks for reading.

Thanks. Excuse my ignorance, I'm obviously having a stupid day. I was slightly put off by the rubbery squeaking when I turn it clockwise, I assumed I must have been doing something wrong (I guess it needs some oil and a service!) I take it the 7750 has a function to prevent you from overwinding it?

How is it best to wind it? I simply unscrewed the crown, and turned it about 40 times in an anti-clockwise direction - yet this doesn't seem to be working; it keeps stopping. Any ideas?

I had a feeling you'd be the first to reply. Thanks for that, it's certainly easier than hand winding through 72 hours! I assume the chrono problem is no easy fix, hence why there aren't any 'stickys' suggeting remidies. Oh well, it's still an amazing watch.

This probably doesn't warrant a new thread, but I couldn't find the answer using the search. I've just got a IWC GST Ti from thomasng, who delivered it very quickly and is a great guy to deal with. Cosmetically, it's perfect - he was selling it at a reduced rate because the chronos don't work; it seems this is a common problem with A7750's - is there a simple fix, or would the movement need to be replaced / overhauled in order to get it working? The rotor seems well balanced (and heavy!), when I move my wrist you can feel / hear it moving for about 5 seconds, it's bizaar (I've had autos in the past, but this is my first 7750). If anyone knows how to change the day, could you let me know - I've tried pulling the crown out different amounts, but it only seems to change the date / time. The last thing is the crown feels very loose when it's unscrewed, I know this is also a fairly common problem with GST's, but are there any ways to tighten it up at all? I'll probably get it serviced sooner or later, but I wondered if there are any 'quick fixes' in the mean time? Cheers.