jmb

I knew that the 2836 had been copied for some time but didn't realize the ETA 2824 had been until one of my parts sources mentioned it so I ordered one, along with some 2836 movements. Although I can occasionally service a movement without loosing any springs I am far from being an expert watchsmith so these observations are strictly from a layman's perspective. The first thing I noticed that was different from my Swiss versions is the anti-shock spring. The ones in my Swiss movements can be "unclipped" easily to remove the balance jewel but I'm not quite sure how these would come off without mangling something! The second thing is rather subjective but the ETA and model number stamping doesn't look quite as deep or defined as in the genuine article. I put it (and the clone 2836s) on the timer and they consistently ran slow and the beat error was higher than in my Swiss versions. This should be able to be adjusted. Finally, the winding feel is not as smooth as in the Swiss versions. Overall impression is that the general fit and finish appears to be good and I didn't find any hairs or other chunks of debris in the works so that's a good thing! For about half the price of it's Swiss counterpart (~$60 opposed to ~$120) it looks pretty good.

This one, out of the box, is +3 sec over the past 24 hours...

I hadn't seen this before I posted about it. I'm checking into the possibility of getting the individual components for this...

Clark has "pearl dots", I'll try to take a pic and post...

It appears that good ol' Tony has jumped on the Tudor bandwagon and has three versions of the quartz Tudor Heritage on his site. This looks identical (other than color) to the example I reviewed a few weeks back. http://www.watcheden.com/tudor-sport-collection-working-chronograph-with-black-dial-s-s-i-81183-p-1.html

Clip the dial feet and stick it to the movement...

Yeah, M, it is quite a monster compared to an Air-King or Prince Oysterdate! The vintage ones just feel rounder and smoother than the modern ones and it wears pretty comfortably. Oh, and the insert snaps in, no glue. I'll probably give it a little Gorilla backup but I think this is the first rep I've had that didn't have a glued in insert!

Yeah, you are probably right. Next time I have it torn down maybe I'll take a file to it...

I dunno, some folks around here would consider your post-crash insert as being "lightly vintagized"! I'm wishing I would have ordered the 5513 instead of the 5512, now... I like the simplicity of a non-COSC dial. At least my attempt at a 14060 has a simple dial...

I'm not real wild about the crystal. I suppose it would probably look a bit better if it was "lowered" a bit so that the "dome" blends into the insert but I'm not really a big dome fan. I'll probably eventually put a T19 on it...

Preacher, grab one of those and I'll hold off making one unless the $1 ring doesn't work! No way I can compete with that price...

After looking at the several reviews of this watch I decided it was probably worth that much in parts! My ultimate plans will probably put a 2846 and Snowflake dial in this case but in the meantime I'll just "age" it for a while. For the most part I don't buy reps anymore. If I want something I scrounge the parts and build it and this is in fact the first rep I've bought in about a year and my first purchase from Josh. Normally "budget" watches have plastic movement spacers and other corners that have been cut, not so in here! I was pleasantly surprised to find the DG movement centered with a brass movement ring and secured with case clamps/tabs and screws. The case clamp screws had extremely shallow slots, so much so that it was hard to unscrew them, so I replaced them with better screws upon reassembly. Case back has very smooth threads and unscrews/screws in smoothly and the groove for the case back O-ring is machined into the case back instead of the case. The band is reasonable, with hollow mid-links and the usual sharp edges and loose screws. Every screw was at least 1/2 turn away from being tight! My biggest gripe with the case is the short CGs, not much can be done about them other than putting a spot of weld on the tips and re-working. I suppose the CGs could get like this on an old well used watch that has seen a lot of buffer action. Even putting the crown on a diet doesn't help much. One other thing I thought odd is that the case is marke as a 5513 and I ordered a 5512 but I suppose it wouldn't be unheard of for the factories to use the same case for both. The crystal retaining ring, it's great! The crystal retention ring is machined like the gens and MBWs I've copied with an angle cut on the bottom edge instead of a "step" like the PT watch. The tension washer looks to be stainless steel instead of brass which might account for the somewhat less smooth rotation I am experiencing on this. The movement displays the DG logo/mark and appears quite clean. I put it on the timer and it was at about +3 sec/day face up and a beat-rate error I can live with. I had intended to just wear this for a while but you guys are such bad influences I could only take about an hour of the tiny lug holes so it hadda come apart! I de-cased the movement, drilled the lugs to proper size, blended, and re-polished the case sides. I then drilled out the band and the end-links. When reassembling I replaced the standard spring bars with the more correct ofrei units. I then planned on replacing the crown but found I was out of "good" 7mm Trip-Locks so I chucked the fat crown in the lathe and took off about .010" or so then milled off the top of the tube a corresponding amount. The result is a much better looking crown but the unfortunately, as mentioned before, it did little for the CGs. OK, 'nuf jackin' my jaws so here's a couple pics after the two minor mods: Here it is right out of the box, notice the itty-bitty lug holes. Here's what it looks like under the hood. A good close-up of the crystal ring. Put back together. At least the clasp has everything spelled correctly!

You are correct, I've had to build my own...

Trying out my new Cartel 5512 while resisting the urge to rip it apart and "do stuff" to it...

Still wearing one of my favorites...

Small and simple...

I should know in a few weeks...

All right, Kurt, now I'm feeling blue...

Rat ba$tard...

By jove, I think he's got it!

I guess SOME people just don't understand what "straight-on" meanz....

It's a mind bogglin' thang!!

Aw, c'mon! You can "make" them parts fit if yer determined enough!

Piano, tuba, and stereo...

I put a different movement in this one this afternoon so I guess I'll wear it tomorrow for "testing purposes".