Pakz

Humm, there's a section in this forum dedicated to the trusted dealers... Most of them carry a large number of IWC. And most are the same, at the same price, all coming from same factories in China... The main difference will be with whom you have the better feeling... Myself, I'm a Josh aficionado, but that's really personal.

Well if/when it does (I have had "swiss" or "asian ETA" etc. movements crap on me... I'm still waiting for the first 21J to show real problems... ) you just get another DG4813 (in the $20 ballpark) in its place... But so far, so good... the thing ticks smoothly and keeps excellent time... I'd say fairly much within COSC specs' (But that's just pure luck, I know... ) And what with all the watches in my drawer, after those first two or three first months, it'll enter "the rotation" and won't be seeing my wrist more than one week per 2-3 months, I'd say... so no probs expected!

It does really look good... And me loving titanium... I may end up having to buy it!!!

Yeah!!! Great watch... I'm wearing it's very own sister right now !!

Well, the other topic on the 5th gen lume got me to go for another session... Took the time to charge it well (maybe not full but hey... enough ) First, the "classic" semi-low light shot... Then, in full dark:

Humm, niece piece! I'm jealous, man, yours has the crown sitting correctly on the case! Is the strap the "stock rep one" or have you changed it? (If so, I'm very much interested in more pics, of the strap, and where you got it from...)

I just shot a quick (30 seconds) video so that the curious can have a look at how the sweep is on a DG 4813 powered watch... http://img684.imageshack.us/i/t1u.mp4 PS is there a way to incorporate a video here, directly embeded in the post? what I've tried didn't really give positive results... like: <embed src="http://img684.imageshack.us/flvplayer.swf?f=Pt1u" width="640" height="380" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"/>

It does scratch... but not that easily neither... titanium is a fairly hard metal. Well, on my gen Porsche (beaded titanium is the "signature" for these), I use the blue/hard side of a two sided eraser, with caution, and the results aren't too bad...

To my eyes, on all pictures both the bezel side and the edges of the case are polished. Not the sides of the case, mind you, but the edges, really the smallish flat zone between top and side... And it definitely seems that it's the case as well on the QC pics...

Thanks... To me, half the pleasure in this hobby is in the sharing... helping others make a "good" decision, since information is not readily available!

Just had the courage. Grabbed my tripod for a quick "real standard lume shot"... Here it is...

Today, I changed watches, after more than a week of exclusively wearing the BR02... As stated, my rubber strap was dirty from the box, and even turning shiny in places... (shows a bit in the pics above) I was OK with that, thinking that maybe I'll get a gen one (they go for 60 something on the B&R online store). Yet, I had read that for rubber straps showing signs of ageing, an easy cure was possible. So I had to try... I took the stap off the watch and got it in really hot water (but not so hot that I'd burn myself putting my hands in there) and rubbed the things with my bare hands... That really did revive the rubber, except on one little spot, which I then rubbed with a little soap... The strap has really changed aspect, becoming more "rubbery", uniformly mat! So, no need to go gen on that yet!

Thanks, CPSNine! I'm glad if I could help you with your decision. As for the seconds hand, it sweeps in a fairly "continuous" fashion and does not present the type of "stop and go" behaviour that I've seen on my Myiota based Yema Sous-marine 300 (it doesn't have impact on time accuracy). I guess that's this kind of behaviour you call "seconds stutter"? If so, I really haven't seen anything of that kind.

So after having long hesitated between "da big UPO" and " the small 5th gen 42mm", I've decided to go "small" and get the 42mm Then came the time of hesitating between Swiss ETA, Asian clone ETA or DG 4813... That one wasn't easy, yet based on my experience that supposed "Swiss" were rarely that, that Asian clones were not necessarily great and that I've always had good experiences with "21 jewels" movements (actually better experiences overall than with the more up scale movements), I've decided to go for the cheapest, the DG 4813 (if it craps out, I'll replace that with another of those cheap workhorses... ) Then came the colour problem. I wanted something that was a change, was different from my other watches, gens and reps. So the orange numbers on the dial were a given. The colour of the bezel was not as simple. I tend to prefer fairly classic, not to "show-off-ish" watches... yet, I though that the orange bezel was not too garish and a welcome change relative to what I have. Last was the question of the "shoes". Well that one was fairly quickly solved... I'm a bracelet guy, mostly, and when I go straps it's either rubber or because it's a dress watch. That PO is anything but a dress watch, even if it's smallish size makes it wearable with a suit, and there's no rubber directly available for it at my usual trusted dealer, Josh. So yeah, all that to say that I went for the 42mm 5th gen PO, orange bezel, orange dial numbers, on ss bracelet, powered by a genuinely Chinese DG 4813 (beating at a slightly too fast 28.8k), from josh. - Overall impression is great. Watch case is very well finished and well repped, same for the dial, bezel, etc. Pearl is fairly convincing if a bit too recessed. (maybe some lacquer on top, or something, could really make it perfect... ) - The AR, albeit a bit too purple, is rather good, one of the best I've seen on a rep, and well on par with what can be found on many gens. - The logo is correct, no happy feet, but a tad too close to the "OMEGA" name. - The hands are a little bit dirty, nothing really bad, but on close inspection that is perceptible and doesn't really scream "gen"!. - Crowns are a bit too tall (both the real one and the one for the He valve) as per the gen, but in the real it's nowhere as bad as it seems on some photos. - Case back is great, with the seahorse having the same 3D/roundedness the gen has, and is, in the flesh, way better than what shows on most pics. - Bracelet and clasp are good. OK, the first link has this "gap" problem, but unless you know what to look for, it's not a problem. Only real concern (but that may well be said as well of real Omega bracelet) is that resizing it is a real pain, even with adapted tools... The pins are sometimes so well set that the link comes apart before the pin agrees to move!! Overall, having owned 2 gen Omegas, 1 still in my drawer, and having more than a few friends having some, this watch could pass for a gen easily if said gen is not alongside. As for the movement, well, it sweeps smoothly (too smoothly compared to the gen which beats at 25.5k) keeps great time so far -I'm on a basis of loosing 1 second a day from when I got it, 6 days ago- even if that's not a long enough time span, etc. etc. We'll see in the future how the thing goes... Now, pictures ! The traditional wrist shot: And finally the no-less traditional lume shot: OK, this one is fairly poor, even if the lume really seems quite OK on this watch. Thing is, I was lazy and didn't feel like getting the tripod out, so I had to raise the ISO and have a short exposure...

No probs... Plus, if you're lucky you may well get plenty of quality (wrist)-time from this watch, even if it does not get the real movement... Wear it in good health!

In case you want to replace the "crappy" (well, they're not so bad, particularly if you consider the price) movement by a gen one, you're pretty much screwed... The size and all are going to be very different, so dial, hands, crowns, tubes, etc. will probably not fit directly, unless very heavily modded... You'll probably end up have to "franken" everything, just keeping the case rep. If you really plan to change to a "gen" (or at least a real swiss ETA, correctly refurbished) movement in the future, you'd better go for the "ETA" version of the watch as the sizes of movement and all will then be quite similar.

I haven't really tried using the adjustment, and I don't really want to use that thing (even with my not perfectly aligned bezel)... I've read/heard that the entire contraption is damn fragile... however, yes, the bezel rotation "thingy" screws in. In terms of cheap versions of that watch, there are two, it seems... The one I got, available from Josh (at least), which is the "swiss" version with the ETA replaced by an authentically Chinese DG4813 movement (beats at 28800 bph, some have expressed doubts about its reliability). The other cheap version has the "slow" 2813 movement and a (far) less convincing case and all... and just goes for like $30 or $20 than the first.

Yep, it's really a classic and a looker! I'm very glad I've bought it! Anyway, since you have one (well, let's say two... ) can you tell me whether the "gap" between case and crown (best seen in the last but one pic, here) is specific to mine or a general flaw of these reps? And are you using a replacement strap? if yes, which one did you chose?

Thanks... I hope that the movement is going to last long enough... Anyway, I've always had fairly good experiences with these movements, even if they're prone to quirks that make you think they've got a problem. I find that the BR02 is just the perfect day to day beater... in terms of looks, it's good looking but doesn't jump at the viewer as a "pricey watch", still those who know better well... know better! And since it's a very good replication, well unless you have time to judge the lume (and the gen has a not too fantastic lume, so even then... ) and have a gen BR02, it's hard to call the rep... Yesterday I checked a gen in the window of an AD... no visible difference. Put mine in my pocket, went in, tried on the gen... well, same feeling, weight, etc., only the rubber in the strap is a tiny bit more supple... And as for the movements, it's keeping time very accurately so far... just loosing a handful of seconds a day. I'll probably vary a bit the night resting position to see if I can compensate for that...

So I've finally pulled the trigger and gotten myself a nice Bell & Ross... A BR02, steel on rubber, from Josh. After intense reflexion, I've gone for the "lite" model, supposedly same case as the "swiss" but with a "genuinely asian DG4813" instead of a more expansive option that may well end up being the same or worse Anyway, I've had it for 4 days and have worn it constantly ever since... The watch is quite beautiful, rubber strap comfortable enough, but arrived a bit dirty. As for the movement, it's lost like 6 seconds overall, and the seconds hand sweep is quite smooth. We'll see how it stands the test of time, but I've always had good experiences with 2813 and 4813 and if the movement craps out, I'll be able to replace it (or try to... ) for cheap. To the photos... now, the classic wristy: and the no-less classic lume shot: At this point, I should mention that AR is average (thick crystal doesn't help, I guess) and lume is OK but not great...

I've received from Josh, just 3 days ago, my first IWC rep, a FA Jones. It's not the viagra version (I wasn't sure of how the blue would look in real life, and how it will stand the test of time). A very classy, although biggish, dress watch. This black and white on black strap seems to me as the best coulour combination for "dressiness". The watch looks great except for some really minor details: - the crown does not get down to the surface of the case, there's a small gap. - the enamel (I guess) on the dial is not perfectly smooth... Nothing you can see even from very close, you need to check carefully the reflections from a given angle, and that looks like the crystal is a bit dirty, so no biggy. Strap is so-so, but being in black that's not as bad as many of the rep straps. So I'll probably wait a bit before offering that beauty the real croc strap it deserves Anyway, here are the pics Playing on the "black and white contrasty watch" aspect: lighter pics:

Cool and kinda promising for me... I've got one pumpkin 5th PO in the mail, so... that's nice!

Thanks for the info... Anyway I was not going to go for a swim without a check first. And I do take the words of our dealers for what it's worth... marketing. I've had many great transactions with Josh, but I don't really expect him to provide me with a really serious check of water tightness, and even more, if the watch is deficient on that point, I'm not too convinced he really does work on it for solving the matter ! I'm a bit reassured from your opinions on that... Still would like even better if someone could share some experiences from their actual watches in water! That'd be a great piece of info for me and everyone planning to get one of these babies.

I'm on the verge of ordering one (most probably orange bezel and bracelet) but I'm wondering about the "watertightness" of the watch out of the box... From what I've seen in the various pictures here, the He valve does not sit completely on the body: is that a potential source of leaks? OK, I know that you shouldn't really expect any real waterproofness from a rep, but many are usable for the occasional bath/swim... Is it the case of the 5th generation PO? Thanks for sharing your experience regarding that point!

I'd say gen... But it's a good idea to have it by an AD... to be safe. Anyway, great looking watch, a "modern classic"... I'll soon get a rep, and probably a gen at some point in the future