babola

Hmm, the crown on the left looks more like aged Ti than PVD I agree with what you said about rep PVD being more durable, I never had a gen PVD watch, but I know my standard rep 9B PVD hasn't lost it's appearance even after some minor bumps and scratches. I wonder how deep/thick the PVD coating on these really is. So I guess it must be true, the PVD finish we get on our rep Pam PVD models is real PVD, just different flavour... I also wish it wasn't that jet-black in color, but as I said above, I was told it should wear off with time...the only problem is time is something I don't have much these days, LOL ! cheers, babola

Just to add some thoughts to the mix...I've spent quite some time (and effort) in finding out about PVD methods used on reps by larger rep factories, and form what I gathered from different sources (all based in China and south-east Asia) - I can say I believe it's the REAL PVD. It differs greatly (or not so) from the gen Panerai PVD simply due to the surface the PVD is applied onto. The rep PVD cases are S/S (as most of you know) and are brushed (just like PAM 250 for example) before they undergo the PVD process. And they swear it's REAL PVD! They also tried with polished S/S cases and the result was too shiny look. The reply I got from few sources is very similar and states that S/S case brushing process is simply much cheaper even in China than bead blasting - the finish of the gens. Also they said getting that subdued matte gen PVD finish was always something that bugged them for some time and so far they haven't been able to achieve it, simply because of the brushed finish and surface characteristics of the brushed case. So it looks like it's all due to cost savings on bead blasting and proper preparation of the case surface before the PVD process. I was told that the initial DLC/anodizing shine and appearance will wear off with time, and get very close to the PVD finish found on gens. Well, all I can say is - I have had 009B for 6 months now, on and off, and I can't tell the bl00dy difference between the finish it came with and the current one - to me it looks exactly the same. Maybe I should start wearing it more often and start brushing it against some rough objects There you have it, just my 2 cents... cheers, babola

Guys, please don't get me wrong, the crowns are most likely the best PAM crowns we've come across so far, and definitelly worth the investment...all I was saying is that I do not believe they're genuine Panerai product, that's all. cheers, babola

I share the same sentiment...not sure how nobody questioned originality of these so far here in this thread Knowing how hard is to get a single gen spare part from Panerai let alone such a big number, the person offering these "gen crowns" could have only 'sourced' them if he's found himself in Neuchatel factory and nicked a few (or 50 !!!). Come on guys, let's be realistic about this, the crowns could be spot-on and extremely well made, but genuine they ain't ... sorry cheers, babola

Yup, one for me ... cheers, babola

According to Flavor Flav who's recently acquired both 111H and 138G...the lume is C3/C1 mixed, not the pure C3. I have also noticed (looking at the latest batch of Pannerais in my AD shop) that the color of un-charged daylight lume on hystorics is much closer to white now, than it used to be in the past on 'sausage' dials for example. The one I found particularly enticing was Base Logo (PAM000)...the color of painted indices (lume) matched the crisp white dial Luminor Panerai txt almost perfectly. Go figure...I still believe Panerai changes the lume 'mix' from few serie to another few, juts to keep us all amused...and confused cheers, babola

I guess you were unlucky with that serial, I've got 3 S/S solid casebacks that came on 001B, 002B and 009B, serials 1176, 1700, and 1139...so I guess I was at least just a bit luckier in that respect. 001 is still tops the list in 'poopypants' post in my case. With some extra $100-150 (depending on a modder) you'll end up with one of the closest ever PAM reps made. Also crowns and CGs that came on those older 001 and 111 are much closer to gens. 005 comes close, but with that skewed logo, it doesn't do it for me. 111/117H are both poor cousins of 001B and 111F series reps...the issues have been written about to a large extent here and on other forums. cheers, babola

He just made an uneducated guess, Bruce. Don't worry about it, it takes much more of a real 'Paneristi' to be able to spot a rep 112, especially after those mods being done to it. Enjoy your 112, it's one helluva watch cheers, babola

Now you've been uber-picky ...but so am I ! All long-arrow 005s (reportedly only 70-80 of them that came with 195 dials) should have long horizontal bar in number '3', AFAIK the bar became shorter only recently in I-series and onwards. I've got tons of pics of G & H-series 005s all of them with long number '3' bar. BTW, the numerals also became thicker and whiter in recent series. cheers, babola

Just on the note of different movements, my AD tells me Panerai changed from OPI/OPII to OPXI mov't (S/N reg, CDG etc) from their 000 and 005 H-series onward. Only the first G-series of Base Logo and Marina Logo should come with OPI/OPII...I guess that makes it even more interesting to gen collectors. And if you happened to be lucky enough to get one of the first 80 'long arrow' 005 G-series - even better! cheers, babola

DSN casebacks fit other reps perfectly. Use Western Union, you should be fine. regards, babola

He definitelly does, just flick him an email...great guy to deal with ! cheers, babola

Flav, you rock I'm just a bit surprised you didn't go extra mile to 'vintage-ize' that crisp white dial txt, time for your signature "2-day coffee dip", maybe? cheers, babola

@FWATCH Is that 22 or 24mm PVD buckle ? DSN's jobbie as well ? Nice touch ! cheers, babola

Yup, noticed that as well, 111H of mine is green when charged although Flav's photos always show blueish. @rolli I use 2 different mixes (via The Zigmeister and Flav), 2/3 C1 to 1/3 C3 for older series up to H-series, and 4/5 C1 to 1/5 C3 for the latest sandwich H-series reps. The color match is close to perfect. No yellow/green/beige color when non-charged...just nice slightly off-white ivory color. cheers, babola

Not worse than gen PAM241, actually spot-on, IMO. Autos normally have thinner crown and larger CG gap to allow time/date setting. Go to Panerai official site and compare cheers, babola

That's correct. H-series OPXI Swiss ETA with CDG bridges and dagger S/N reg has been out few months now. E-series Swiss ETA OPXI is about to follow suit, also confirmed by one of our respected dealers. cheers, babola

Groovy baby - totally ! babola

Flav - You're on fire, my friend !!!! great stuff ! babola

Correct...must have been sourced from the same factory. You'll recognize DSN crown by the stem bit, it's spring loaded and installed into the solid part of the crown. Gen crowns are spring loaded as well. Definitelly good quality part, except for the accentuated bevel cut that makes it look visually thinner than gen's. cheers, babola

Thanks for the info Vac ! cheers, babola

This proves again that consistency is not Panerai's greatest strength A colleague of mine has a gen 111F from 2003, the dial and hands are white as snow !? They match the dial txt white color to a tee. It's after I saw his PAM that I changed my view on lume mix Panerai uses on their historics...definitely not pure C3, at least not on the ones I've seen so far. mind boggles... babola

Really ? So how's the 3rd different from the 'longer cannon pin/hour wheel set' we use for recessed pin upgrades ? Thanks mate ! You learn something new every day :-) cheers, babola

Definitelly the biggest visual contributor to the 'thin crown' appearance would be slightly accentuated crown bevel angle and cut, IMO. I played with two rep crowns some time ago, both 1.9mm, one with the larger bevel, another with almost no bevel at all (maybe they forgot to do it in the factory, or was a test one-off run), and the visual diference it made was amazing. The one with smaller bevel looks dead on with the gen. Also the gap between the crown and the CG wasn't that noticable anymore, somehow. cheers, babola