Ronin

I could use 8 of these.

I'll 2nd Two-Tone anything. Sub's and GMT. Then Datejusts, probably gold. Vintage/Daytona would have been the special.

[edit] I think Freddy333 was actually in attendance and sporting his White Pan-AM 6542. He is just acting like he wasn't there... LOL

GQ/Esquire/WSJ would probably tell you to go small (normal 40mm or smaller), and/or vintage. Your grandfathers watch is trendy these days and a good conversation piece. Blue face watches also got a page dedicated to them in the last GQ.

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Love this watch. I just saw a GEN in a store window in Geneva a few weeks ago. (which was funny to see a German watch in the Swiss watch mecca)

I do wish they would get the size closer to the gen...

Love it, just Tweeted it to my followers.

Great review.

Request for one more measurement. What is the comparison in thickness of the fully assembled case's? Also, any shots for comparison of the non-crown side of the case?

Great job Angus!!!

Love it. The Jubilee is right at home on the GMT's

I just watched the Apple Keynote from Tuesday. They kept showing an empty chair that said reserved across it. I found that very odd. Either, they were planning a cameo by Steve before his health turned, or they knew and had the empty seat as some sort of reverent tribute.

The Keynote is available on iTunes or Apple.com.

Sad, sad day... Rest in Peace.

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/steve-jobs-apple-ceo-dies/story?id=14383813

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/apple-says-steve-jobs-has-died/2011/10/05/gIQALGtSOL_story.html

http://www.npr.org/2011/10/05/123826622/apple-visionary-steve-jobs-dies-at-56

Perhaps not a good place to wear a Rep either. Imagine getting mugged/targeted/killed over a Rep.

In short, know your surroundings and if you are going to be in a sketchy area or bad side of town, reach for the Seiko, Casio, unknown brand. It's funny, you would probably be safer in many instances wearing a Patek Phillipe, Vacheron, rep over a Rolex rep.

I had a "white face" version as well. And the white face makes these look [larger] like wall clocks strapped to a small wrist.

Great looking watch however...

Did you ask the seller about the number mismatch? Perhaps there is an explanation. 12 o'clock marker looks a little crooked but this kind of thing seems typical of Omega from my own experience. Otherwise it looks like the real deal to me.

First, make sure you are not confusing the watch serial number with the movements COSC/Serial number. They are two different animals.

I have had TWO gen chronometers get out of sync in this area as the result of warranty service. If you read the fine print, the COSC cert follows the "original movement", but if you take it back a week later and the "Service Center" decides to swap the moment because they are too lazy to really fix it, you are now SOL when it comes to matching COSC paper work. This varies by manufacturer.

My guess, is the original owner had an issue/problem with the watch. Took it in for repair, and some sort of 'swap' occurred. The owner, now gun-shy about his high end Swiss timepiece, decides to bail out and sell. -or- as mentioned, the jeweler screwed up in haste.

Based on CONTEXT:

1.) Interesting. That is making me think about something I had not though of previously. A lesser version of "Wow".

2.) Something does not look right, something seems off. Questioning something.

3.) Stalling for time. (e.g. Hmmm, let me check to see if I can come up the fund$ to pay for what you are selling...)

Very Nice!!!

Nice discussion, LK.

Here's a question, for the sake of argument: Say I have a gen vintage watch and it's missing the pearl. So I find a nice aftermarket pearl, vintagize it, and glue it on.

Is my watch still a gen?

Now let's say my insert with the new pearl is really nasty. So I find a good PMWF insert, age it slightly, glue in that custom aftermarket pearl, and snap it on.

Is my watch still a gen?

Now, I'm tired of the boring caseback, so I go looking and shazzam, there's a gorgeous COMEX caseback for sale. I snatch it and put it on my watch.

Is my watch still a gen?

I'm sure you see where I'm going with this. At what point does it stop being gen and start being fake?

Is a '66 GT Mustang without the Hipo small block still a GT?

Is it still GEN, ABSOLUTELY. Is it the same watch? Read this: http://faculty.washington.edu/smcohen/320/theseus.html

Anything mechanical, or with parts that wear out will inevitably require replacement parts. "Cosmetic" items like inserts, bracelets, (even crowns), crystals, DO NOT "disqualify" a GEN watch. Is a Porsche still GEN because you put different rims on it? Is a human no longer human because they have a prosthetic leg?

The funny thing, the ONLY place I notice this absurd behavior is in the "Rolex" world of parts and fan(atic)s. Would anyone question your Doxa if you had an Ofrei crown on it? As long as the watch case and movement have verifiable serial numbers, it should be free game. Dial's get into gray area. Hands SHOULD NOT. If Rolex stops supplying hands for a 15xx movement, aftermarket is your only option.

Fun...

So you were the guy that beat me by a few seconds to it.

Add some better Gen parts and

Absolutely Love this! I can't believe this is an off the shelf Rep!

Dibs if you tire of it...

A perfect watch for the occasion.

I know what you are talking about. Two ideas are:

1.) Applying heat to the 'case' while being careful to not transfer heat to the movement/dial. A soldering iron heating strategic points can make the case 'expand' just enough to release.

2.) Working 'in the air' upside down. Risky, and not very watchsmith like, but sometimes desperate measures... (This I have done).

And how difficult is it to obtain those 7956 retaining rings?

They show up from time to time on eBay...

..corected 150x Date (Thanks Alligoat)

@Ubi, what is your movement pictured out of?

All,

I was just PM'ing a member giving them a helping hand, and thought I would share this tidbit of knowledge in public as well.

This has been discussed before, but I figure the pictures will help.

The discussion is about What 1575 Rolex movement to transplant into a Yuki, Phong, even MBW with the LEAST amount of issues.

The short answer is you want a donor movement from a 150x Date or 1680, 1665, 551x to make life 'easiest'. (Beware eBay auctions with 1575 movements advertized as 1680/1675/551x as some are actually pulled from 160x DateJust's. Use the photos below for confirmation).

You CAN use 1575 out of a 160x Pie-Pan dialed DateJust, but you will want to swap the calendar retaining ring or GRIND it down.

Allow the pictures to explain.

Upper Left Rolex Package IS THE correct part. PN: 7956

This is the 1601 DateJust setup. Note the sloped shoulders.

Part 7956

Left is from 1601 Pie-Pan type dial, right is right!

See the Pie-Pan retaining ring is a larger diameter. You can grind it down 1mm as needed.

This is ready to slide flawlessly into my old Yuki.

To recap, there are 3 different Calendar retaining outer rings.

1.) For Pie-Pan dials found in 160x series Date Just (these have the sloping outside) (you don't want this, unless you do what I did. I swapped the part, or you can GRIND down outside shoulder.)

2.) 1675 GMT's had a flat version as well, but slightly different diameter. Ignore this since you probably won't find one of these.

3.) The one you want is the same across 150x, 1680, 1665, 551x. So a 1501 Date is the same as a 1680 if you are going for 1:1.

Hope this helps.