deltatahoe

great collection b16a2 you must be thrilled with your new aerospace

I might be buying a few straps [...] and thought I might as well get them from Ofrei

i'm curious -- what straps (for what watches) are you looking to buy?

great write-up ziggy

btw, you didn't mention in your post -- did you get the seconds hand running smoothly on the watch in question?

deltatahoe

anyone solved blue's clues?

holy crap

my thoughts exactly

wow -- sounds like you're in between a rock and a hard place.

given it is your boss, if he really wants his money back, i'd send him the cash no questions asked (shame on him for blaming you for his stupidity and expecting you to pay him back though).

then i'd shoot josh an email letting him know the situation....he's figure out a fair solution -- he always does.

good luck getting this resolved

deltatahoe

wow -- looks great.

mind telling us what you did to it?

deltatahoe

actually my experience is that most people dont really care about watches at all [...] much to my perpetual frustration.

i couldn't agree more. i've found the only people who notice watches are others with nice watches (and occasionally fashion-conscious girls). was on a plane waiting to get off recently and noticed a pilot with a breitling emergency. i was wearing my iwc pilot's watch (3717) and he DEFINITELY noticed it. it's fun to have people actually notice your watch.

deltatahoe

i think all of us feel a little guilty about our watch buying habits at one point or another....i guess i'm lucky that i don't have a wife or gf to answer to at the moment. i am a little concerned though that my next gf will be totally shocked by my watch collection. i'm crossing my fingers that she will somehow love my watches and appreciate how they are each different in their own way (even the PAMs, which several of my friends think all look the same)....

nice collection

let's see some shots of the daytona & royal oak offshore(s?)

i always enjoy hearing these stories. i spotted a rep pam 112h on the bus this week (saw the recessed cannon pin immediately), but the guy got off the bus before i could strike up a conversation about it. oh well.

deltatahoe

if i could only choose one i'd probably keep the chronomat evolution (good choice on the white dial)....such a beautiful watch

great group shot by the way. i'd like to do something similar once i get my PAMs back from ziggy

As I said above, precicely what is wrong with it?

you actually answered this yourself (but left out that it's a mineral crystal and therefore will get scratches over time, which is probably the most relevant point)

the HE is too high... The bracelet clasp (which will be removed anyway) is too flat... There isn't any AR coating... The mechanism is unknown...

for me, this is the biggest point....why get a crappier watch when you can get a much more accurate version for $33 more, not to mention the other considerations.

Why would I expect the RWG member to make things right? That's an utterly ludicrous point to make.

the whole point of this forum is to help ensure people don't get ripped off. something goes poorly, people post about it here and it gets made right. my point was that you won't have that protection buying from an off-forum dealer.

Also, something that is being forgotten, is that cqout is an eBay-like entity, and the dealers there would be accountable for any poor deals.

if you think you'll be getting a refund from cqout from a misrepresented replica watch, i think you're fooling yourself.

I'm only trying to throw options into the mix for people. If they aren't going to be welcomed, then I simply won't bother in future.

i think you'd find a more welcome response here if you were to buy the watch from the dealer, take pictures and write a review about your experience. even then, given the lack of formal relationship with this particular dealer and the board, i think you'll find that most people here would rather stick to our trusted collectors than save $33 for an inferior product. maybe i'm wrong.

deltatahoe

andreww already mentioned this, but i'll go ahead and reiterate/expand upon his point. if you want to get a good value on a PO, buy the ultimate PO lite from josh/trusty, which is $128 and has the exact same case/construction/dial as the ETA ultimate PO, with the only differences being the datewheel font and the movement.

sure, it's $33 more than the $95 PO(S) that you linked to, but are you willing to save $33 dollars for the following:

i) inferior quality watch (mineral crystal, no mention of AR coating, wrong HEV position, crappy bracelet)

ii) buying a watch from a relatively unknown dealer (see iii-v for more)

iii) hard to be sure you'll be getting watch shown in picture

iv) probably zero aftermarket service (ie. no replacement watches for crappy pearl or stripped crown threads)

v) if the transaction goes poorly, i doubt the RWG member who told you about this dealer is going to make things right

just my thoughts...

deltatahoe

absolutely. i'm not trying to fool anybody but myself; it's an interesting conversation to have with folks. i've actually helped two people from my work choose a rep.

also, kind of hard to explain these packages that keep arriving from china

have fun with it

deltatahoe

i was wondering the same thing earlier today....i find it kind of odd too

can we get any thoughts from the mods/admin re: whether or not this a good idea or not?

deltatahoe

interesting seller....i agree w/ chief3630....i think they are reps (the seller doesn't state in the auction that they are genuine)....

the breitling crocodile straps do look pretty nice though....would be interesting to get one just to check it out (i don't believe our dealers sell higher quality rep crocodile breitling straps, do they?)

plus, the guy says he has a 7-day money-back guarantee (no questions asked) and 100% feedback....

just my thoughts,

deltatahoe

josh (i believe trusty too) has one he just added....the eta 2893 is a (relatively) expensive movement, so you'll see a material difference in price between the 2893 and the modified 2836 movement models....

Anyone else get the vaseline/oil trick to work?

Even with oil...I can't get these 1.80mm springbars in...think I need the next smaller size down.

i'm letting the wound on my thumb heal before trying any more springbar tricks on this one (lube or no lube). i was able to get the springbars in 90% of the way using needle nose pliers (without lube), but the last little bit was just impossible. i'll report back once i try again...

ummm....if he's blocked you, i'm pretty sure he won't see your posts either (not positive about this, but think that is the case).

deltatahoe

To get the larger spring bars thru you just need a little lube.. KY, Vaseline, Oil.. what ever your preference.. those spring bars will slide in like... well you get the idea

i can't believe i didn't think of this....i spent a good portion of last night frustrated as all hell trying to get my new 1.8mm springbars in that strap, and managed to poke a hole in my finger in the process

thanks for sharing the simple yet brilliant advice

deltatahoe

i have 3 pams with the asian 6497 and haven't had any issues either (knock on wood).

thanks sssurfer. are you planning on putting an AR coated fiddy crystal in this watch by any chance? would be good to confirm if this would work with this particular 203 case.

deltatahoe

interesting. for my dollars, i think i'd stick to the original version. the orange is just too extreme / in your face for me (i feel the same way about the orange PO)

deltatahoe

wow. great post ziggy -- the fact that you didn't dismiss "the technician's" suggestions out of hand and actually tried (and documented) his method speaks volumes about your character and work practices. it must have been satisfying to reinforce your strongly held beliefs regarding doing a job the right way...

you are an invaluable asset to this forum -- as you mentioned in your post -- it is really difficult for us watch newbies or someone who brings their watch to an "experienced" watchmaker ("the technician's" boss has owned a "watchmaking" shop for many years i believe?) to know the difference between a REAL servicing and a swish & dip.

will be interesting to see a response from "the technician" on this one.

deltatahoe