babola

Nope, he hasn't bought the 3,000 rep. He's a RWG forumer who posted the pics of the same watch 2-3 weeks ago on this forum. The original E-series mov't you see on those pics had been removed from his gen 113 (he apparently got bored with it) and installed into the rep Fiddy e0851 case. Everything but the mov't in that Fiddy of his, are rep parts. I still don't get his logic, after being called on it on a rep forum, he goes off and posts it on a gen forum ?! Stupid or simply reckless ? cheers, babola

I did mate, pure C3 'twas...and ended up looking too yellow, so I got it re-done in C1-70% / C3-30% mix and it's now looking 'right' to me cheers, babola

Agree V, but only to a degree. It's never C3 in its pure form, it's always mixed and pigmented with other lume compounds of diferent color. If it was pure C3 the indices will be yellow. DSN used to re-lume his dials with pure C3, resulting in nicely "aged" yellow dials on his 201/A and other pre-V "tritium" reps, but not that great on reps of Vendome era historics. Again, we have both agreed previously on the fact that consistency is not the strongest Panerai's attribute, so some slight color variations are definitelly possible, even on their L models. cheers, babola

Hmm, dodgy...I concur... babola

Cheers, PM sent... babola

Yup, the dial is quite a bit off. Dial txt is of incorrect font size shape and letter spacing. Numerals cutouts are also bigger than standard, resulting in 'recessed' 45 sec marker on the second subdial. Crown and CG lever are non-standard, strap buckle neither... Some of die-hard Fiddy rep collectors will "kill" for that caseback with a tottaly unusual serial, nice one for sure Mate, not trying to put you down or sometning really, but since you asked for opinions... This must be one of those early Fiddy reps before the rep manufacturers agreed on gen Fiddy standards and dimensions. The box looks gen, but hard to say for sure from photos. cheers, babola

No, I don't believe so...at least not in it's 'pure' C3 form. My Panerai AD currently has 005, the color of dial numerals and indices is almost completely white when not charged, and blue when charged, not green. I guess this blows the 'C3 theory' out of the water. Panerai had been using a compound of C1 C3 and other color pigments for their lume on 'historic' 44mm PAMs. The lume was never yellow-ish or green-ish when non charged, it was always closest to white color. It's also their in-house 'secret' so don't expect them to ever come public on this matter BTW, contemporary auto models usually come with slightly (but ever so slightly) green pigmented dial numerals and indices. Pre-H series subs sport slightly yellow color. There's currently a forumer here who re-dials his historic Pam dials in 80% C1 - to - 20% C3 mix ratio, IMO the closest lume color to gens. cheers, babola

Great job LP, that CG lever does look a bit off, I agree. What worries me more than CG and lever are the bar hour indices, they seem to be noticeably smaller than gens, and not very well lume-filled (the latter issue can be fixed relatively easy). Also, judging by the photos, the ones on rep seem to have chromed edges, while the gen comes with black...is that true, or is it just the photos ? Nice effort altogether cheers, babola

I think you're just being uber-anal this time Some of my reps have the same looking CG and crown, but wouldn't call them 'incorrect'. Besides, Andrew never said they've re-done CG and crown on this 92 rep version

Juriaan, thank you for your insightful comment...it makes such a great contribution to the current discussion. cheers, babola

Hmm, looks pretty good to me...what particular CD/crown detail is bugging you ? cheers, babola

Basically I share simmilar sentiments of V's... 001 and 002 (old version) are very, very close to 1:1, some 127s and 217s are closer to 'perfect' than others, 29/63 are also close, as well as the second generation 239 and 243 subs. The latest Arktos looks very nice, but without having handled one or heard some more from actual owners I'm not willing to make any definitive statements. 49/50 autos are not bad, but very innacurate in second subdial markers area. cheers, babola

Chronus mate...could you free-up some PM space in your mailbox... cheers, babola

You have a good eye for detail mate. Only a few forumers noticed so far what you just described above. Sausage dials PAM reps are not being made of the same quality and attention to details as they used in the past. Dials now come with green painted lume, on some of them it's so 'radioactive' green when not charged - it's not funny...this applies to 001/002 and 111/112 E,F,G-series reps as well as 000 & 005 Logos. I own 002B and 112E I both bought close to 2 years ago, the lume is white, and slightly green/blueish when charged, just like the on the gens. I also own the latest iteration of 001B - it's not even close ! Also it seems like PAM rep dial makers never managed to make close to 1:1 sausage dials, the main flaw being numerals and stick markers that are simply too thin. Just look at the 4 15sec markers on second subdial, on the gen the thickness is close to the main dial hour stick (bar) marker...on reps it's hardly half the thickness. All said, sausage dials are still WAY better and closer to gen's than the lastest H & I series 44mm sandwich dials. cheers, babola

Yup, you've got exactly what you ordered...his item description is sometimes innacurate, but pics show the model you're getting...at least that was the case with my previous purchases from him. It pays to double-check with Paul before you order, I know I do, since getting it re-placed or $$ refunded after sale is a mission in itself. Look at the bright side mate, at least you've got the correct movement for 005, although released in 2004, Panerai kept the "old" OPI/OPII movements in their 000 & 005 Logos, instead of newer G & H-series CDG, S/N OPX/OPXI. Post a WTB on trading forum, somebody might have a spare solid S/S logo caseback. cheers, babola

I preffer Greg's Primo Tan over his Crazy Horse. The latter is softer, but quite "busy" compared to stiff and 'flat' finish of the former. They both age very nicely, and with one application of mink oil on Primo Tan you'll get a strap that's "out of this world". Greg's straps are thicker than Don's in average...so choose carefully, and suitable to occasion. Don's new California Tan is my fav...although in general they're a class under Greg's, IMO. cheers, babola

There you go mate, straight from the horse's mouth: PAM 00036 Movement: hand-wound mechanical, Panerai OP II calibre, 16½ lignes, 17 jewels, bridges personalized PANERAI. Glucydur® balance, 21,600 alternations/hour. Incabloc® anti-shock device. Power reserve 56 hours. Chronometer Certificate (C.O.S.C.). Functions: hours, minutes, small seconds. Case: diameter 44 mm, brushed titanium. Bezel: brushed titanium. Back: see-through sapphire crystal. Device protecting the crown: (registered Trade Mark) in brushed titanium. Dial: brown with luminous hour markers and Arabic numerals. Small seconds dial at 9 o'clock. Crystal: sapphire, made from corundum, 3.5 mm thick. Anti-reflective coating. Water resistance: 300 metres. Strap: leather with titanium buckle personalized PANERAI. http://www.panerai.com/s_page.xpd?id_lingu...able_popup_w_se cheers, babola

Check the PAM036 specs mate, A-series, A/R crystal... babola

And it really made my blod boil mate...there's a particular RWI member that posts on both gen forum and RWI, trashing and bashing everyone that posts a rep related message on a gen forum while maintaining high spirits and glorifying reps at the same time on RWI... He knows who he is...and he's stupid enough to use the same name on gen and RWI forums but normally posts as 'anonymous' at the gen forum. dodgy, IMO babola

Reps or gens ? Could you be a bit more specific... Basically all Vendome PAMs (1997 onwards) should come with A/R coated crystals, without any visible A/R tint. AFAIK, none of the pre-Vendome PAMs had A/R (201/A, 202/A, and 203/A for example), but I could be wrong. Reps are a mixed bag when it comes to A/R, it pays to double check with your dealer first, as some models come in both A/R and non-A/R 'flavour'. cheers, babola

LOL - Il Fidderino ?!?! Your Fiddy must be turning into a Latino ? cheers mate, babola

Rolli mate - you rock ! I'm glad to see you managed to source the 000 with an updated dial and correct logo shape - excellent piece (amongst plethora of others, of course ) cheers, babola

The latest 111H/177H, the same ones sold by most of our dealers currently. For me it was an impulse buy some time ago, and I even liked it (111H) at first, before I started comparing it to a gen 111H. The list of obvious and some not so obvious 'imperfections' is too long to display here, so I won't event give it a try Yeah, I know, my detail-obsessed nature is a curse rather than blessing, especialy when it comes to all things reps :-) cheers all, babola

Just my 2 cents on this if I may... Jimmy Fu's case is most likely a copy of a "closed S/S back" genuine Panerai 44mm model from 1997-2002, as more specifically known as "pre-A, A, B, C and D-series" Marina and Base models. They all came with straight body sides between the lugs, without the cutout to accommodate bigger (fatter) straps. From the E-series to the latest H/I/J Series gen Marina and Base case come with a cutout on the case, with slightly elongated lugs, with lugholes drilled in a different spot. Why they've done that I'm not sure, I don't believe anyone would know buth the original designers of the recent PAM models themselves. Then in 2005 the case design changed again to pre-E series, i.e. without the cutout (H, I and the latest J Series), however they left elongated lugs. I've handled gen 001C with 'straight' body (no cutout), and 111E with a 'cutout'. I've also seen gen 111H without the cutout. We all know consistency was never at the top of priority list @ Panerai, and this little case design feature just confirms that, once again Mind boggles. cheers, babola

So Shasta's decided to "play" a little game with us here What he's ommited to disclose is the fact the movement is a genuine E/F/G Series OPXI Panerai. Maybe he's just sitting and waiting on how many of us will spot this little fact Nevertheless, quite a lot of good work went into making this 'ultimate' 127 - I congratulate you on your efforts...having been there myself I know exactly what you have gone thru, mate. The only 'minus' to the config is the case, as Olreon pointed above already, it's slightly wrong, 0851/1950 case with wider sides than both 0117/1950 rep and the genuine, but that's not such a big deal Cool one, babola