tslims99

I am so so sorry. Wow, what a loss. I haven't been active on this forum in many years, but whenever I did stop by to check out what was going on, Nanuq was the one constant presence that seemed to be keeping this place going. This is terrible news. David, I hope that you and your family are taking care of each other at this time. My thoughts and prayers are with you all. 

2 hours ago, Nanuq said:

 

Holy crap, Woof! Whaaaaaaat??!!???

You can't just drop that without explanation. More photos!!

 

I second that.  dopeness.  milgauss second hand is so fresh.

Yeah...pleated pants are a DEFINITE faux pas.  As is a suit with more than two buttons.  Wearing suspenders with a belt is just clown [censored].

Welcome!

1 hour ago, Mike on a bike said:

  "I know I am opening pandora's box with this opinion, but I really think that once most people start owning gens, frankens and expensive Reps become almost ridiculous. "  That is a tough call I go back and forth you will see my decision in the next raffle. Do I put in a beautiful brand new gen (Raymond Weil Ti Freelancer or my Rolex 1984 spider dial Pepsi GMT) Now I can buy another Gen but getting all the Gen parts for that Rolex well that is very hard. As far as cost the same.................

That's a really good point Mike.  The hunt for rare parts is certainly part of the attraction for many franken enthusiasts.

Welcome back!

19 hours ago, imajedi said:

 

Step 1. Born with love for watches

 

Step 2. Discover reps and buy a bunch

 

Step 3. Start loving watches even more because they are now so accessible

 

Step 4. Start appreciating the details more and the flaws of the reps you own.

 

Step 5. Start building/buying frankens to fix the flaws

 

Step 6. Buy a gen because one of the reps you love has a flaw that can't be easily fixed

 

Step 7. Start appreciating the quality of the gen you own and realizing gen is gen.

 

Step 8. Start buying only gens

 

Step 9. Start buying vintage gens.

 

Just read through these and figure out where you are. If you are asking the question posed in this question you are transitioning from stage 5 to 6. Building an expensive Franken is just part of the process. It's neither right nor wrong. Enjoy the journey.

I have been waiting for a great post all weekend to piggy back off of.  I couldn't have said it more perfectly.  I agree completely.  

I had a conversation with another member a few weeks back about a topic similar to this.  My general opinion is that I won't franken anything anymore and I won't buy a rep out of the box over about $400-$500.  The reason for this is just as jedi has mentioned.  I have a hard time buying the reps of gen brands that I have owned in the past or currently do own.  I still buy reps, but I don't buy Omega or Rolex anymore because I have owned the real thing and felt the difference.  

Frankens to me are polarizing.  If you are really into it as a hobby and as a fulfilling way of spending spare time, then I think they are fantastic.  If you want to have a "vintage" watch that would normally cost exorbitant amounts of money were it a gen, then I think they are cool as hell and a fabulous alternative.  However, if you are trying to franken something so that you can make the watch appear so close to the original that even a trained eye would not be able to tell the difference, then I would suggest a re-examination of priorities. At that point I would suggest that one might be trying too hard to be something they are not.  Too much time and energy invested in a project that is simply meant to fool others, or prop up your own self-esteem in the company of others kind of says something...not sure what that is, but it says something.  That brings up another question, DO YOU GUYS READILY TELL PEOPLE THAT YOU ARE WEARING A REP, OR DO YOU JUST TRY TO STUNT ON PEOPLE WHEN THEY BRING UP YOUR WATCH?!?!?!  My answer to this question is that if someone simply says to me that they like my watch, I will simply say, "Thank you!"  But if follow up questions ensue, I feel almost obligated to admit that the watch is a rep - with only occasional caveats or special circumstances where I might play the subterfuge out a little longer.

Just my opinion.  Not saying that I have never built a franken - I have - but only one.  I just kinda felt like a fraud when I did it, and never built another one.  I know I am opening pandora's box with this opinion, but I really think that once most people start owning gens, frankens and expensive reps become almost ridiculous.  Cheers, gang!

20 hours ago, tobico said:

Get my seiko version from Andrew for your eye candy

Gen Panerai comparison

What are you, Castro??? Maradona??? 

Great pics.  I like the gen Pam better too.

Welcome, sir!  Enjoy our lunacy!!

This has been on baltimore craigslist for a few weeks.  Even better than the ebay guy we all trolled recently.  I dunno what is worse - the ebay guy and his $4500 YM, or this guy selling banged-up swap meet replicas for $125.  You make the call...while laughing of course.  They are "quality" rolex replicas, after all.  

GANG!!!  The seller removed the item!!!

I wish I could find out why.  Somebody needs to do some recon.  Email this clown and find out why.  I want to know if it is because ebay forced him to take it down, or he made a deal with someone off-site, or if we just harassed him so mercilessly that he finally relented!

Either way, glad I don't have to look at it anymore.  It was such a train wreck.

6 hours ago, Max72 said:

 

That is really baffling, they should have enough evidence to shut him down. Some poor sod will get burned....

 

eBay makes a good 9% commission on sales though so that's why they might let this [censored] run and then, when only somebody starts to cry and opens a case they apply the buyer protection that will take a few weeks to resolve while the $$$ sits in eBay's bank account generating interest until they issue a refund

 

Sent from my iPhong using a rep app

Sadly that is exactly what will happen. I've reported the item twice, and also emailed ebay telling them how much of a joke they are for not taking it down.  It's not coming down.  Either they are taking the [censored] out of this guy too, or they just want the $450 they will get when somebody gets burned.  It's quite unfortunate.

1 hour ago, tyrantblade said:

Regarding actually owning any genuine watches, i have 2

The significant one being my Avenger II Seawolf 

 

Dude...we all know about your freaking Seawolf.    It's a hideous watch.  Give it a rest.

17 hours ago, Max72 said:

 

I can't believe that POS has watchers for that watch, can't they just look at a gen picture and compare? That guy needs his ass kicked

 

Sent from my iPhong using a rep app

The photocopy is the best!

I didn't go past the first 2 pictures, and just saw it LMAO

Sent from my iPhong using a rep app

I know, Max.  That is by far my favorite part too.  It really makes me giggle. 

his response to me...

my response to him...

This is his response to me...

And my response to him...(pardon anyone who is offended by my racial undertones...see point #2.  Trust me, I am an equal opportunity bigot.  I hate everyone equally.)

This is the message that I sent to him...

My fellow brethren and sisteren,

I've been researching this for a few obsessive days.  Here are the facts (not unlike Avenger II Seawolf facts...Jebus, what a shitty watch.) on both gold plating and this particular model in question.

The first thing we need to realize is that sites such as PC and PT list gold plating levels in two forms of measurement: Mils and Microns - one is english, one is metric. Most models will list the gold plating levels in mils, and most decent reps claim that there is .5 mils of gold plating.  Using the chart below (which I have also hyperlinked), we can see that .5 mils is equivalent to, roughly, 12.5 microns...

http://artisanplating.com/measuring-layer-thickness-on-gold-plated-surfaces/

This is the gold plating chart as required by United States commerce laws... 

The watch in question claims that it has 25 to 30 microns of rose gold.  The video on the PC site shows Joshua using a Karatmeter to test the the purity and the level of plating on the watch.  The video shows that the gold is 78% pure (which is basically 18K) and that it has a thickness of 25 microns.  I exchanged emails with Joshua asking him to elaborate on the 78% claim, and he said that as the machine shows (?), the gold is 78% pure. This watch, as we have already discussed, is almost $900, shipped.  

I really hope Joshua isn't reading this - he has always been really good to me - because this is the thing...If you will notice on the PC site, there is another 18K rose gold calatrava, with the same movement and features, that costs only $308 and claims that it has .5 mils of gold plating - or, as we discussed, about 12.5 microns.  If you look at the photos on the site, as well as the QC photos, you will notice that the watch is basically THE EXACT SAME THING, just different photos.  The only difference is that the $308 version was released in April, and the $838 version was released in November.  Using our basic calculations from the chart above, the $308 version has 12.5 microns of plating (5x the amount to qualify for Heavy Gold Plating).  The $838 version has 25 microns of plating (10x the Heavy Gold Plating requirement), or twice as much gold as the lesser priced version.  So, for an extra $530, your are getting a extra layer of gold on your watch that is about as much as a thick coat of varnish.  

Let's put it this way, an older/vintage gen Rolex Oyster bracelet has hollow middle links made of 18k gold. There is about $600 worth of 18k gold in that bracelet - SOLID 18K gold.  With this $838 Calatrava, we are LUCKY if the extra 12.5 microns of gold plating that the dealers are claiming equates to about an extra gram to 1.5 grams of gold...or $40-$60.  Hmmmmm....This is why I recently ordered the $308 version 

As an addictive rep owner, and gen Rolex owner, I will not buy a rep over a certain $$$.  For me, that dollar amount hovers around $500-600, and it is reserved for only the rarest and most worth finds.  I usually stay in the $275-$400 range.  At a certain point, it just makes no sense to pay that much for a rep - just save for the real thing, you won't be disappointed!  Nearing $1000 for a rep straight out of the box is ludicrous.  Especially when this is the type of watch that you only strap on for special occasions.  If you wear a Patek on an everyday basis, and your name is not Charlie Sheen or John F. Kennedy, then you are a tool.  And if you are wearing a rep Patek at gatherings where there are people that can actually tell the difference, then you are an even bigger tool.  

The fact is, I just sold a TT sub that I purchased four years ago from Joshua, and in those four years, I wore the hell out of it.  However, the gold plating on the clasp - although worn - was still gold, showing no steel underneath.  It was advertised as .5 mils plating.  If I can have a sub with .5 mils plating last me several years in the spot where it gets worn out the most, then .5 mils should be enough for a rose gold Calatrava.  

My feeling is that the boys from China got themselves a new Karatmeter and are using it as they should - to try and maximize their profits.  They made an investment in their business, and they are hoping that is pays off...and I am sure that it will!  There will be plenty of people who don't read this post and who will shell out cash for the $838 version.  More power to them!!!  It's an outstanding gimmick for those who don't have research accumen.  I feel bad because "gimmick" is the word I used with Joshua when asking him about the machine and the model in question, and in his response he claimed, "It is no gimmick."  I'm sure he begrudgingly smiled, though, when he saw me order the lesser priced version

Nice pics!  Yachtmaster was the first rep I ever owned.  Wear it well!

I'm going to stay away.  The V6 orange strap version of the RO Diver (non-chrono) just came out as well.  It's got it's flaws as well, but it's only $348.  I think for the money it's a better buy.  And yes, I like orange.  Gonna pick it up.

Hi, tyrant.  Call me Tim.  I've been a member of this forum for 7 years, although I mostly lurk..  I own AP, Panerai, PP, Breguet, IWC, Hublot, and Rolex reps.  I love reps.  They allow those of us who are not affluent the chance to stunt on sucka fools with dope watches that are nearly indistinguishable.  That is why we are all reading this.

However, I recently bought a gen Rolex and became a member of a few forums.  I have recently started posting there, and have met interesting people and gained valuable information about watches - much as I have done here!  My point is...I WOULD HAVE NEVER EVEN DREAMED ABOUT JOINING THOSE FORUMS UNTIL I ACTUALLY OWNED A ROLEX MYSELF!!!!  Sure, those forums are great places to grab information about and photos of gens so that we can compare our gens to reps, but why would you create a username there, let alone start a thread there when nobody even knows who the heck you are?  As one person said earlier, if you just want people to listen to you talk, use facebook.  Or post something in the off topic lounges here.  Although I agree that you really didn't do much wrong, it's still not a good look.  Ya know?

just hit 50 hours. I am totally stoked. What a nice timepiece!!!

who serviced your 390 for you?

I recieved a Pam 390 from Josh about 2 weeks ago, and have been very satisfied with it thus far. I decided to do an engine check to see what kind of reserve the hand wind movement possesses. Gen panerai watches have a reserve of 50 hours, and I was interested to see if my rep could stay wound for even close to 50 hours.

Well...I am very happy to report that I gave my Pam 390 a full wind 48 hours ago, and it is still keeping perfect time! Way to go Josh! I will not hesitate to pull the trigger on a another Pam in the future!!!

I'm pretty noob, but it looks sweet to me!