babola

Not that bad at all, The Zigmeister could fix you up with a replacement crown tube, and the case can be re-finished to create flat base for CG feet to rest on. I know of at least one person that can do this for you, he has been doing this in the past to fit diferent styled CGs and cases together. The bezel looks the right shape and height for a pre-V case, xtal is slightly recessed than it should be, IMO. Case side edges could be a little sharper, to me it looks like they're rounded, especially lugs and 4 corners, but that's really nitpicking. While it does require some case re-work, for $80, it's a great find and provides for a good base frorm which to start off, IMO. cheers, babola

So the 201 dial comes with engraved dial txt and logo stamp ? Cool, looks kinda nicer than just painted over IMO.

Nice strap and even nicer 87 wear it well, babola

That's what I thought. I wonder what kind of watch you actually receive once the $245 payment is sent over ;-)

Looks like I was wrong... http://www.21replicawatch.com/Panerai_PAM00098.html

No, not yet repped.

Just remember the 104 is your ordinary run of the mill, garden variety auto Pam, nothing to write home about, really. It's a nice watch, no doubts about it, but whether it's worth spending up to 1/3 of its second hand price or not is something you will ultimately have to decide and feel comfortable about. As Ubi mentioned above, one should really be in love with the model before deciding on spending a "little fortune" on gen parts for a franken. Rep will always be a rep, franken a franken, both can be made very close to gen counterpart, but neither will ever be as good as gen (unless the franken is made up of 100% gen parts). So as long as you can live with this and enjoy the watch for what it is without comparing it with the gen, you'll be fine cheers, babola

Nice strap, agree about the keeper That Ti case is looking fantastic, did you oxydize it or just left it to wear and tear over time? cheers, babola

Fiddy geek signing in... Just to add few more "hard core" bits to this great conversation. Take this as you wish, this is just a view from a person that owned 5 different Fiddy rep versions from '05 until now. My 6th Fiddy verion is now a mixture of what I personaly believe to be the best mix of rep Fiddy parts from the last 3 years of manufacture. I was lucky to be in Hong Kong during the opening of Panerai AD there last year. There they had both the original Fiddy from 1950-es as well as a shadow Fiddy from 2002 (no serial on caseback). I actually held the new Fiddy in my hand, and tried to sponge in as much as I could in those few minutes. Anyway, this is what I found works best as the 'ultimate' Fiddy rep combo. Again, this is my personal opinion, as a person that used to OCD over even smallest bit when it comes to these watches. FYI, the picture in my avatar shows the 4th Fiddy of mine, which is now long gone. Preffered specs: - EddieLee Fiddy from 2005 as a base. These were copied from the genuine piece, and came in two versions, with squared ETA6497-1 bridges and very first edirion of ERAIPANERAIPAN E-series mov't decorated bridges. I bought the suare bridges version, guys like BBB (Big Brad) on RWI bought the one with E-series. While he's not active in rep fora anymore, you still can see his Fiddy pics over on Dark side. Ehat is so great about EL's Fiddy? Well, as I said it's repped from the genuine Fiddy, all the dimensions are spot on and visually fit the genuine article. His dial was closest to 1:1 of any rep Fiddy dials produced afterwards. An his case is spot on, no re-brushing required here. - Relumed EddieLee dial to C3 (if the base paint on the bottom brass disc is white, or whiter mixture of C1/C3 if the relumer decides to apply the lume directly to the brass disc without lighter base color. This is simply due to the fact the lume is opaque, and will ultimatly show the base underneath. Hands relume as well, of course. - DSN Fiddy hands are actually a tad nicer and closer to gen, and if you're not bent on reluming the hands these come already spot on. However I suggest matching the lume color and intensity of the hands and dial. - Either EL or DSN version 1 or 3 Sapphire. EL was great, and if you have one there's no need to look elsewhere. DSN V1 and 3 are great, correct distorsion break point and lesser amount of A/R blue/purplish hue applied. Version 2 was bad, it made the dial actualy look smaller as it would tend to "squeeze" the dial numerals and marker towards the cebtre of the dial, as well as leaving a misty appearance alongside the xtal edge where it joins the bezel. My avatar shows the Fiddy with DSN v2 xtal, as you can see the dial appearance is sub-optimal. Any xtal you choose would definitely benefit from Chieftangs single-AR treatment, as the AR is better and the hue much lesser in appearance. - For visual atractiveness and closeness to the gen, E-series Asian 6497-2 mov't if you can find one these days, these were the closest to 1:1 withthe gen, but now very difficult to procure as new. For that gen mov't feel and satisfaction, Swiss ET 6497-1 E-series mov't with "incorrect" looking balance wheel spokes and incablock anti-shock assembly. Again, just as Asian ones these are now long gone with the wind. Alternatively use what you can find, really... - caseback and crown/CG...well, this is the bit that you just have to accept as the fact. Casebacks have been made in 3 serials so far, e0851, e0117 and the third of which the number escapes me at this moment, but the engraving along the rim was much wider and deeper compared to gen. Rep crown miss 4 teeth compared to gen's, and the CG while very 1:1 is a little slimmer at the outher edge (part where the lever pin sits). My Fiddy is now a mixture of the best parts described above, it wasn't an easy feat and it will only get tougher for peeps getting into the game these days, but the ride was both frustrating and enjoyable So there you have it, this is all my personal experience as I said, took a long time to get there but I'm now more than happy with Fiddy rep I currently own. cheers, babola

Pretty much similar thoughts and experience. One has to remember that DSN is pretty much alone there in his quest, he doesn't deal with mainstream rep manufacturers and distributors and tends to use diferent case/dials/parts makers. He is just different, and his stuff will always be different, sometimes better sometimes worse compared to 'mainstream' reps and in respect to closeness with gens. Many times he will be at a financial loss, as the minimum case production runs with his maker is 500+ pieces for example. When the case doesn't turn out good like his first ver of pre-V 5218/20X earlier this year, it's him who's taking the brunt. At least he is the one willing to make it right, and always listening for suggestions. I know he's not big on PMs and email replies, but rest assured he takes it all in for considerations, and time, resources and money permitting, he will try to push the envelope further. There were many unsatisfied cistomers of his but on the other side many very satisfied. Using blanket statements against or pro him and his business is just not the best way to address any issues one has with his service or quality of work. To name the few just as FGD above did...001/004A+B T-dial from 2005, 1st and 3rd gen Fiddy sapphire xtal with correct distorsion "break" like and lesser purple/blue AR hue, Fiddy hands, PAM232 Rad hands (short Fiddy hands), Luminor hands in general, 232 Rad dial V2, RXW case replicas, vintage dials, domed plexis, latest crowns for 44mm Luminors, updated 7750 DWs with thicker font, PAM10D Base dial V1, PAM10D caseback with 1:1 numbering/milesimation, latest non-A/R sapphire for pre-V, pre-A and A-C series 44mm Luminors screws, CGs, casebacks, pre-A caseback, spare parts...etc...the list goes on. I'm not standing in DSN's or anyone's defence here, just stating my personal experience with DSN, and clarifying few points. If you don't like his stuff, don't buy it noone is forcing to do so, stop whingeing and choose an alternative Pam rep source of your preference. cheers, babola

Excellent result R! Love it!

Cool, see if you can source B1176/3000 001 B-series caseback. I know it's the well known rep serial, but is also one of the best ones made. 111F from 2005 is also great rep, I'd put it in the same category as 001B. I'm guessing yours comes with A/R-ed xtal? If it does, one more reason against transferring this 111 into 001 Tritium Whichever way you decide mate - good luck! babola

Sql, you say you would like to turn your Pam1B into something closer to gen, not sure if you already know but that 2005-'06 PAM001B rep is one (if not THE one) of the best and closest 1:1 44mm Luminor reps aver produced. Also, the DSN A and B series closed casebacks while very good, they're not on par with the good old closed 001B rep caseback, neither in engraving fit/finish nor thickness and required height. If I were you I would leave it as is, really. I'd rather try to find parts and bits for another T-dial Pam, and have best of both worlds But that's me, and you might have some other ideas and prefer some other models. @ jitai, it's hard to beat that old-school DSN T-dial, good catch!

Considering the fact non-decorated ETA7750 mov'ts are selling easily $400+ these days, t'was a great buy at that price, IMO.

Both open and closed 6 are correct. Open loop number 6 on PAM104 is 'anomaly' which was present only during the first 2 edition serie. Since then the closed loop 6 became a norm on 104, so nothing to worry about.

Wow - non alarm Angie !!! Ok, settle down now, babola...;-) That big mutha CG deserves a special mention , as well. Love it mate, babola

Loose when closed against the crown, or just limpy feeling when opened ?

While that can mean a lot of money to the rest of us, if you're from Euro zone e500 isn't that much cash, really. :-(

Could be as easy as keyless works screw that gotten loosened up (unscrewed from the clutch on the dial side), or simply needs to be re-seated properly. While this would be reasonably easy thing to check and rectify for a person that's done some basic mov't tinkering in the past, I'm not sure how handy you are with the watch mov'ts in general, so it may be a good idea to take it down to your watchmaker or jewelerly store to have a look at it.

Looks like e0117/1950 case, indeed. The e0581 case can be spotted from quite a distance thanks to the extra width on 4 sides of the case.

Nice result G, and having that particular dial at your disposal certainly helped making it one of the closest 1:1 127 frankens so far. :-) Enjoy it, babola

Thanks for the info on DSN auto cases, M BTW, your cyclop definitely added a new dimension to my 27A Lello DW ;-) and I know it wasn't an easy task for you to manufacture them. Thumbs up to The Zigmeister as well! cheers, babola

Fiddy crown is quite small and grip surface on both sides of CG it gives you is slightly limited compared to other 44mm Pams, so will normaly require few more wind times. Give it some 60+ winds and you'll be fine. If you're still left wondering, remove the CG, and wind it up with full unobstructed crown rotation. As Kruzer stated above, it's impossible to overwind the 6497 mov't.

No, not that wrong. It's only "wrong" if you're start counting the teeth. T48 is more correct for sure, But 99% Pam reps with factory crowns would benefit from upgrading to T60. I still see that as an upgrade, budget one - yes, but an upgrade nevertheless.