davewe

I think the Maxi Marine Diver is about the most beautiful dive watch in existence and to hear about such customer service is extraordinary. Of course, you could say that for the price you should get this kind of treatment but we know in the real world it doesn't always happen that way.

I own 2 gen Anonimos: The Militaire Chrono and Millemetri Trilogeo. Incredible casework!

Wearing this one today: 1943 Omega.

I don't believe that the PC analogy is a good one, and I work for that giant company that makes those pesky processors that run your PCs. Maybe a better analogy would be the 20 year battle between PCs and Macs. I'm a Mac lover, but often their alleged superiority was overhyped. And PC manufacturers and my software friends in Redmond used their dominant position to maintain the belief that only a PC was a business-worthy product. It's about marketing, baby. Sometimes the MBWs have been overhyped and sometimes they've been damn nice watches. A guy I recently met is a Panerai collector and interested in the rep world. I told him about a few of my panny reps (mostly sold now) including my Davidsen 201a. He remarked quite logically that no matter how accurate the 201a looks it would never fool a Paneristi. Why? Because it's a freaking 201a! The same goes for my DW Paul Newman Daytona. No matter how well modded it will never pass that I'm wearing a 100k watch. My stock options aren't that great! Bottom line for me is that if the watch is solidly made, runs well, is accurate and looks good, then I'm happy. The few reps I've kept meet those criteria. While I respect the skills of the modders, their interests are different than mine.

Man you got to work on the DRSD quickly. I had a feeling it got into the right hands. Dave

Here's a Bond sub you might not have seen. From Watchmaster 2 years ago. Dave

Thanks for all the kind words. I am touched. I won't completely go away - mostly lurk - though who knows when the call will pull me back in. And for those who purchased pieces from my rep collection - thank you for your words - and hard earned cash. I want you to know that I didn't do anything foolish, like spend the money on food or mortgage payments. Of course not. I spent it on watches! First I got a Stowa Prodiver and a Bathys 100 Fathoms. And today I scored an Anonimo Millemetri Trilogeo (I think there's a rep of this out there). http://gallery.mac.com/davewe#100104 And there might even be enough in the paypal account for 1 more of something. Life is good!

Over the past month I

This discussion hits home pretty well. I purchased several MBW and Watchmaster watches 2 years ago and have enjoyed them very much. This past week I put 2 up for sale. The first, the legendary MBW double red seadweller, flew out the door and had several offers within an hour. The 2nd was the modern seadweller. Imagine my surprise when I got slammed for it because there's now the "super" seadweller that's better (at least supposed to be). I distinctly remember posting pix of my new baby after buying it 1 1/2 years ago and getting emails from more than one guy saying, "hey Dave if you ever want to sell it..." But now it's a POS, so I've withdrawn the sale and will keep it. It runs to COSC standards and is waterproof enough to swim with. In the 3-4 years I've collected reps I've watch the whole MBW thing go up and down: who is he? (or is Maria a she), where is he, when will he come back (when he's been gone), yes he's back - hurray, to "oh, they're just the same reps as everyone else has." I'm sure that at times MBW and Watchmaster sold pieces that could be gotten by other dealers, but I'm also sure that there were times they were first. We'll never truly know because that's the nature of this business - it's got to be kept secret. I'm also sure that some dealers have a vested interest in making sure everyone believes that "we all get the same reps." All I know is that that POS MBW/Watchmaster SD is the only Rolex rep I've been confident enough to show to Rolex collectors who shook their heads in awe. I've used the same watchmaker for 10 years; a skilled but dour guy. I bring him all my watches - reps and gens. Never impressed. My MBWs are the only watches that ever made him smile in admiration. I think he likes taking them apart more than if they were genuine Rolexes. I made the mistake of showing him my DW Paul Newman and he practically laughed at me, remarking that it was "held together with glue and chewing gum." As you can tell, I've grown tired of the whole game . What started out as fun has turned out to be as often as not a "my watch can beat your watch" sort of pissing match. I own one more Watchmaster Rolex. It's a vintage Bond Sub that I got directly from Watchmaster, ex-Watchmaster, Kenzo - or whomever he is. It's a killer and I love showing it off. It's different that other Bond reps I've seen. But I no longer post pix of it on the rep boards cause i think that the moment I do some a-hole will go "that's the same watch that King sells for $99 and his bezel is better." Neil used to say, "hey remember, they're only reps." Too many of us have gotten away from that and as BB King sang "the thrill is gone."

Watchmaster vintage Sub or Muller Conquistador. Decisions...

I just received mine yesterday. It's really nicely distressed and I put it on my Davidsen PVD. I will be buying more. especially with the 35% introductory discount they are running.

Here's my LV Stealth:

If the watches are new, 15 seconds a day is not at all bad. New movements need weeks or even several months to break in. I wouldn't even think of having the watches regulated until then. Dave

I have this watch and bought it from Neil. While I agree with you and normally try for an ETA movement, the Asian auto in mine runs well. SInce the movement is never gonna look or function like the gen, I'd say save the money, spend it on a really nice strap and get the Asian auto. Dave