ubiquitous

Dani, my friend... You are CRASY!! And, yes. We definitely need pics! I'm especially curious to see the 5218's!

Does it run fine with the crown guard lever in the open position? Quite possible that the stem is too long, and causing the movement to bind when the lever is closed. If that's the case, it should be a simple matter of trimming down the stem just ever so slightly. I've seen a few with this symptom...

...Or you can simply pull the crown/stem to the time setting position prior to releasing it from the movement. Voila... No more keyless works problems (this measure prevents it).

Must concur with zeiss. WM's custom made vintage 3646's and 6152's are quite honestly the best for vintage, bar none.

2 months?!? Sounds like you need to up your hourly rate, Eddie! All kidding aside, I cannot believe that someone would actually declare something as 'replica' on their customs forms! C'mon folks... This isn't rocket science.

Thanks, Doc. I typically run with the vintage or rep hollow link bracelets, so it's usually not a big deal. But in the case of my 16520, I need a modern bracelet, and hence the problem I've found with the 904L steel one that I have. I've had this problem prior with modern heavy link R*lex bracelets, but how easily the mind forgets once the problem has gone away (I haven't worn a genuine modern in years). I could always use a hollow rep bracelet and polish the centers I suppose (or stick it out with this solid midlink one that isn't correct for the watch ). Perhaps when colder weather comes around, I'll give the 904L a try again. Perhaps it is a matter of sweat and heat exaggerating the problem...

C'mon Kev... You know you'll be buying and selling again in a week! In all seriousness, I'm glad to hear that you've found what you've been looking for. And, yes... Sometimes it takes some money and time to figure out what you want, what works, what doesn't... But it's all part of the fun. Cheers!

It's very easy to change to the hollow link... Nice thing is that all the flaws are correctable with genuine parts (and in some cases, slight modification).

I'm working on building my own vintage GMT (1675). No worries about the hand stack on the oldies as they are the same as the 2836 (GMT Hand>Hour Hand?Minute Hand>Seconds Hand).

Oh yeah... This watch (as should all Rolex watches save for all full gold watches, YM's and 1165xx Daytonas) should have hollow mid links on the bracelet.

Yes- The ref is incorrect for a ss Sub. 16610 = All stainless 16613 = SS/18k Two Tone 16618 = Full 18k Solid Gold The 'W' serial places this model to be in the 1994/1995 production year, so the non-SEL bracelet, springbar holes in the lugs and T<25 signed dial are all correct for this model.

Thanks, Eddy! Yeah... The nickel is defintely causing me problems. I had this problem prior with other watches; the vintage Rolies are no problem since they used 316 also (Rolex changed over to 904L in the mid 80's). So... It's either vintage Rolex, or rep bracelets, or other brands that use 316 for me... Unless there is a way to combat this allergy?

CG = crown guards. These are the pointy protrusions that raise up on either side of the crown. On genuine, they carry a very distinct shape; the reps are only finally getting around to replicating the shape correctly. With regards to dial... It's not the dial color itself, but the color of the font printed on the dial. The genuine font is white, whereas the Idealwatches font is silver. In addition, some of the text is not lined up correctly. As for the crown- Here is what a genuine crown looks like: And here is a genuine crown and tube installed on my MBW vintage 1665: Note that the genuine crown carries a much larger I.D., the tube carries a much larger O.D., and the crown itself has very sharp teeth/ridges with a short profile. With regards to the pearl... Here is an OEM insert and pearl: Hope this helps1 Best, R

The topic of 'when it's all going to end' seems to come up every 6 months or so... Personally, I think it's a case of the Chinese government taking small action every so often to give the appearance that they are trying to do something to combat the replica industry for the big watch houses and their lawyers to see. After that, it's business as usual...

Same here... If I can find one...!

TZ has a neat-o Bell and Ross watch image on their homepage that displays the time based on the time you have set on your computer. I thought that was rather nifty

I dunno Kos... This is one black/silver subdial'd PAM I'd love to get my hands on...

Serial? Or reference number? I've only seen a few bracelets with the serial on the clasp... But typically with the bracelets, it's the bracelet's reference that's stamped on the last outer link (e.g. 93150):

Interesting... I've recently run into the same problem while wearing my franken-Daytona. The bracelet I had fitted is a genuine, and was causing some discomfort and itchyness to the underside of my wrist, raised bumps, etc. So, I had to get a rep bracelet (sadly, solid mid linked) which I have modified to work with the genuine end links and is now fitted to my watch. Today is my first day wearing it, so I'll see how it does. I have zero problems with my other rep bracelets (all 316), so I think this should work out fine. Doc- The SS that Rolex uses is 904L, not 440 904L contains 24% to 28% nickel content I believe whereas 316 has 9% to 13%.

Chris- Quite sad to see you leave I hope that all is well, and wish you all the best. R

I had one of these 16610's from Idealwatches, and I have got to say that it's really not that bad. Overpriced? Yeah... But overall, it's pretty nice; about on par with a TW Classic. So, with that said, might as well just buy a TW Cliassic! But anyways... The good: -Great case dimensions. -Deep rehaut. -Nice thick crystal. -Decent CG's. The bad: -Dial print is no good. Wrong color and the alignment of the text is off. -The crown is incorrect, and the tube comes without the outer gasket. -mediocre bezel insert and pearl -Lug holes need to be drilled for genuine lug bars Does your watch have the W860168 serial between the lugs with a 16613 ref? All in all, these are surprisingly good watches, considering that they come from a rather dubious source. What I find amazing is that Idealwatches continues to operate WITHIN the US, and has done so for a very long time. I would have figured they'd have been shut down a long time ago...

I'd love to get my mits on one of these... Sadly, I think my only chances of making this a reality is to just buy genuine...

They've turned into sub forums in the expert's forum...

Just doesn't seem to want to leave my wrist...

Wow! Great collection, Pugs! And, there may be an echo in this place, but I must reiterate on the comments about the pics! I think they're excellent! Well done!