Ronin

Just saw your Crystal question. I got lucky on eBay with the Gen, still in the bubble, service crystal.

There were Mark VI service dials as such. However, Luminova, etc. That auction does kind of stink. If it were a "service replacement" it should be nowhere near as badly aged as that. (Image is NOT hot linked to DRSD, rather re-hosted)

JJ, that is an informative post. I do appreciate VRF and ourselves for helping point out the differences between OE Rolex and Aftermarket. < begin rant > However,the use of "Fake" in the post is rather disconcerting. Seriously, they are 'replacement' hands, or 'aftermarket' hands. I mean really. I would venture a guess there are quite a few "Gens" out there that were serviced by independents that could have these hands. I am getting rather bored of judging an entire watch (Gen), based on some part that, god forbid, did not come from the holy land of Rolex. Parts that are either 'user serviceable', or 'indie watchmaker cost savers' should be embraced by the Rolex community for keeping their watches alive. (Disclaimer: I totally understand wanting a Safe/Winder Queen that is unmolested, but for the average person that wears their watches, come on). Calling a (Gen) watch a fake or a rep, illegitimate, or sub-standard because it has things like: aftermarket crystal, inserts, pearls, bracelets or even hands is just dumb. That's like saying your car is no longer legit because you put aftermarket wheels on it. Forgive the rant. I have been watching the prices of "Gen" Rolex Bracelets on eBay, and if I had a (Gen) daily watch that took a 9315, I would sooner and proudly wear it on an MBW/Rep/Aftermarket bracelet before dropping $800+ on a 40+yr old used POS Rolex bracelet. (Gen Vintage Rolex bracelets look cool, but in reality they are crap this late in their life). If some VRF/TRF guy called me on it....F-them. < end rant about nit picking, thanks for humoring me >

It just dawned on me. Someone needs to send the author a link to Bob's $65,000 Rolex eBay auction.

Yep. With "Blogs" everyone thinks they are an expert or journalist. I much prefer to be a forum loud mouth than a blogger...

White Christmas

But it is the Best Edition!

Very nice E. Remind me again who Trevor is associated with? Watcheden seems to have dozens of Dunhill, Dupont, Cartier rep lighters.

Only if you chew on it. The whole "Lead based paint" thing is a bit ridiculous. It is only a hazard in large quantities of ingestible, breathable doses (sanding old paint, demolition, etc). The reason for the panic amongst children is-- kids are dumb and put shit in their mouth and chew, thus the Matchbox car argument, or window sill worry. Children are more at risk as they are still developing. Hell, there are hundreds of thousands of miles of Copper pipe delivering drinking water that were soldered with 50/50 lead based solder. But the dilution and ppm is small enough not to worry about it.

I agree with the above so, I won't restate that. However, a couple more reasons that I believe contributes to this new -vs- old, or should I say modern -vs- vintage is this. Modern watches feel like they are exercises in "Marketing". The new bigger, blingier Rolex's and Breitlings have the feel of being designed from the Outside-In. Contrast that with the original Submariners and Navitimers where the function and design trumped looks and even marketability (Original Daytnona's). In the end the looks did work out and we love those watches today. They are simply more organic. Inside-Out design. As far as beat up, I actually do prefer the "recently serviced vintage look", but am open to the beater look as well. I think this also applies to old cars. There is something special about slipping into something like an old Porsche 356 -vs- its modern counterpart. The smells, the materials used at the time, etc....

Stainless steel is more or less stainless steel. I am not aware of many lead painted reps out there. At least on the skin touching side. Silicon straps are hypo-allergenic. Titanium is hypo-allergenic. Rubber....meh, probably no different then a Seiko strap. Leather, people have been wearing dead animals dyed with color forever. Unless you plan on eating the watch, I think we are safe.

Great suggestions. I do have a Zippo, and think I will order a Imco since it is very inexpensive. These are lighter fluid based unfortunately. Any Butane based rec's?

Thought I would ask around these parts... Although I am not a smoker, I am in the market for a nice lighter. I know I can find reps of Dunhill, Cartier, etc, but I am open to something more common, affordable, and possibly available locally in stores. Thoughts, links, advice welcome. Thanks in advance,

Great looking suit Andy.... Classic. Great Price!

Any French members out there with access to a news stand? IIRC in the "show credits" for House, Hugo Boss is usually mentioned.

That is awesome. Did Rolex ever do that? If not, so what, great mod/fantasy!

No just the frontal flash. ;-)

Quote from my wife: "She's hot, I'd do her".....

Yowza! Maybe we should introduce our wives since we are practically neighbors. We can take turns with the video camera. LOL...

[ Putting on Tin-Foil Hat ] The reason this information is not readily posted is we really don't want to publicly air our tips for this sort of thing. I am sure a member or two here work for the 'bad guys'. While asking this question is a GOOD thing, I would recommend replying via "PM" if you wish to help out the OP. The only tip I can give is, be as vague/generic as possible without flat out lying. [ Removing Tin-Foil Hat ]