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Freddy: It's great to see the 1950s pair in the same shot. Flex: Wonderful effect on the Belmondo! Last day in Rome. I call this series 'Rolex Pontifex'.

Hi Marco! Last day in Rome for me, unfortunately, then I'm off to Naples for a few days. With my luck, I'll probably drop my Space-Dweller into Vesuvius!

Maybe the ADs consider $36 to be a crime, and these hunks of plastic actually have a production cost of 80 cents each.

I love it when a long-exposure shot comes together! No tripod, no Photoshop--just a G9 plunked on a post and pointed at the Arch of Severus:

Happy to be able to provide Justin with Tudor support:

Sorry to hear that. I ordered two of these bracelets -months apart, for Explorer No. 4 and for the DW 7032- and both accepted 2mm springbars. I also thought it would be relatively easy to widen the loops, on account of the detachable endlinks. (Unlike the Yuki 7205

It

Bear with me: I was confused by what day it is! Monte Carlo back in action, thanks to the very nice Roman sssurfer.

Kindness! After my agony in Bologna, I asked for help through RG's 'Discussioni in Italiano' forum. That's not a knock against RWG; they just have a much more active Italian community over there. Several members suggested I contact sssurfer, and he was quick to respond. We met up this morning outside one of Rome's Metro stations. From there, he took me to his watchsmith who did an excellent job of repainting the Tudor's running seconds hand, crimping it so it doesn't fall off so easily, and reattaching it to the movement. We also had a bit of a mini-GTG, as I brought along my travel rep collection, and sssurfer brought a six-pack of his favorites. The man loves his Panerais! All of the watches in the box were excellent, but sssurfer's PAM 28 Power Reserve stands out as a real work of art. It has to be seen to be believed! sssurfer was friendly, smart, and very generous--a true gentleman. I did not know him before I asked for help, but I am now strangely happy that my Tudor crashed into the pavement in Bologna! It was a real pleasure to meet him in person.

Space-Dweller on vacation:

Thanks for the compliment! I try my best to make my hideous watch look decent in pictures.

Beautiful Rose, Justin, and I agree with Freddy: Black leather is the way to go with this one.

At that price, I'd take it! At $40K, well... I'd have to sell off part of my antique car collection. (It's a garage full of Chevy Corsicas.)

Don't have a cow, man, but I keep seeing Bart Simpson in that coronet!

M: Already arranged for some help in a few days, thanks to sssurfer in Rome. Hopefully, I won't have much trouble navigating the streets to find him!

I was similarly suspicious some months ago, when 7836s started popping up far more frequently--and still selling at $300-500! Not nearly as rare as these Big Logos, but their appearance preceded the new 1655s, and the appearance of rep 7836s from various sources. Good for us, bad for the big-bucks bidders...

That looks fantastic, offshore! More pictures, please, and let's see the 'Doxa' text, too!

burnz, if you know of a reliable supply of reasonably-priced gen T128s (yeah, right!), please let me know! My watchsmith brushed it on a polished, but I'm sure it can be done by hand. An essential step, in my opinion.

If I recall correctly, there were also Poljot-based Daytona and Autavia reps at one point. Rare as heck, unfortunately, and the quality of the dials and case weren't too hot, either! It would be nice if someone were to offer a case that would fit a 3133, but then again, even these movements may not be cheap enough to make the effort wortwhile.

I would like to respectfully disagree with siesta181 on the relative costs of 30/45-minute 7734 movements. Over the past year, I have not observed significant differences between the selling price of a 30- and a 45-. Other factors -i.e. condition, watch model- usually play a bigger part in determining the price. It cost me more than $60 for the two necessary parts, and labor may not be cheap, as it involves a tear-down and reassembly of the chronograph components. I believe that $60-100 would be better spent on the correct movement to begin with. That said, a 30-minute counter will work fine on the Monte Carlo. The only difference is that the counter indicates in increments of 1.5 minutes e.g. {0,1.5,3,...} If a 30-minute movement can be found cheaply enough, and you don't mind the watch looking slightly off on every other minute that the chrono is running, then go for it! No other movement will fit in this case, unfortunately. It bears repeating that the Poljot 3133 will NOT work, despite appearances. My avatar is the evil frog archaeologist, Dr. Rene Belloq, arch-nemesis of Indiana Jones. Personally, I think he's just misunderstood...

Great job on the "old" lume, Chuan!

Thanks, but if this is the worst thing that happens to me on this trip, I'm doing OK!

One of the springbars had a weak pivot; pull it hard enough and it would pop out. Unfortunately, I didn't realize this until the bracelet was pulled by one of the straps of my backpack! The endlink came off and the watch smacked into the pavement. Damage: Subdial hand popped off, scratches on the crystal and case, very big ding on the crown, but the watch is still running well. Oddly enough, I had the same "silver lining" thought that dluddy did: Good thing I wasn't over water or leaning over a balcony! Currently calling on the rep Italian scene for help, so I can get it repaired before I get home.

Shame I missed you by a few days, donerix! Unfortunately, I dropped the Monte Carlo later in the day!