OiRogers

Locally... I've seen one Pam in the wild... a 40mm, guessing an 049, on the wrist of a very attractive blonde driving a very expensive convertible MB with what appeared to be a very expensive set of rep *cough, urm....* you-know-whats.

No idea if the Pam was a rep... I was trying to figure out the pedigree of the *cough, urm....*

I've only had two folks approach and comment about the Pams on my wrist... both times with dignified politeness and questions about the model etc... Both lead to great watch conversations and two new friends.

I see probably 5 or so Omega or Breit watches for every Rollie I run across... and probably 10 Rollie for every "Other" Haute-Branded watch I run across.

I have yet to run across anyone wearing a Graham or AP... but I do have a line on a Gen Graham from a friend for well under 3k. Tempting.

comparing to the 026k rep on my wrist... that looks gen... several minor differences.

You might try emailing Tony @asian7750 ... I got an 005k last week I ordered less than two weeks ago, he may still have some stock of the 005k.

The 177l/M is another story.... We're all chomping at the bit for positive news.

As mentioned prior.... Analog Toothbrush. no battery worries.

and I think your compass is onto something... I'd be leery of using the safe for electronics and watches.

I'm crossing my fingers and hoping for Angus to whip out a Fiddy for us...

My EL/DSN/Cartel hybrid is good... But it could always be better.

and with the recent Pam releases, my hopes are high. a good 127, 187, 186 and some Pre-Vs would put a serious hurting on my bank account.

I have a pam212 domed crystal in transit, will tell you more when I will receive It (this week I guess)

Looking forward to feedback on that crystal... Domed sapphire with the AR they offer?

Just "rediscovered" a 212 I got in a trade a few years back, put a decent strap on it and I've been in love... I may have to grab a newer version and upgrade to sapphire. If not a 212, one of the other 2 subdial chronos is certainly on my short list.

Come on 329L!!!

It's getting closer to new GMT goodness on my wrist, I can almost smell it.

^^^ Typical 127 above. Still has blue AR coating, rounded CG pin, CG lever sticks out, Asian movement, inaccurate requlator, etc. Looking forward to a new version soon.

That watch is still far, far nicer than the majority of the 127s available...

They made a Ti/Steel bracelet years ago... I sourced one a while back off TRC... It fits my 177h... Wish if fit my 186

In any case, the seller should be avoided as untrustworthy.

If buyer 2 set out to grab the movement from under buyer 1 intentionally...s/he should also be avoided as untrustworthy.

If buyer 2 didn't realize what had happened until after the fact, but then offered the movement to buyer 1 at what s/he had in it at maximum, it's a mess; but buyer 2 is in a better light in my eyes. Not a saint, as I question contacting the seller with an offer after a sale on a rare piece... Chances of seller having more than one? Dang slim. So either way you go, buyer 2 has damaged their reputation, just to what extent?

On these rep forums (and the Gen ones too for that matter), we operate on trust. Once it's lost, it cannot be regained and the forums cannot function without trust.

It is a shame to see what greed will do to the ethics and dignity of some... True colors shining through and all that.

Yes that makes perfect sense. Especially with the practically antique 3gs I have.

The toothbrush is still a mystery though. A cursory googling doesn't turn up anything related to magnets and battery flattening. Although i found some stuff about forming a circuit with poorly insulated devices that could drain battery. Though it seems unlikely with a waterproof device (in my hardly expert logic) and would also mean the safe was faulty (they are supposed to be fireproof as well), and this has happened on a few occasions/different safes... hmmm.

Obviously your toothbrush is screaming power out into the ether as well attempting to download the latest set of instructions it is to insert into that implant the government placed in your jawbone....

I never had an issue with a hotel safe killing battery powered items, but I now carry a small safe intended for a handgun which has a steel cable that you can loop through a solid item such as a bed frame... I keep my spare watches and other small valuables in that when I stay in a hotel these days. Oh, and my toothbrush is analog, so no battery worries with it at all.

3 is my favorite... 4 looks great closed. 1 does't look shabby either...

I really need to get some deployant straps... My clasps are all still on the old rubber diver straps rotting away in the parts bin.

Wind with the lever open, your putting undue wear on the crown, stem and winding train otherwise.

The hand wound 6497/6498 series will always feel much different than a 7750/other auto movement... Look at the movements side by side. Notice how much larger the parts in the 6497 are. Notice the giant click wheel on the 6497... That much louder / easier to feel click is normal.

And as to Lume... The baseplate of the dial has depressions where the Lume is applied on the Gen (at least as I understand it) and the rep dial is flat, hence the incorrect Lume and "Flatter" looking dial.

Synthetic sapphire

The link is good info Maxman, but the problem lies in how some dealers use the words... Some use it to denote mineral glass still.

The Lume dots between 0 and 30 look off.

I like the watch... A few changes such as GMT hand frozen at Off and a proper Sapphire crystal and I'd grab one and relume it myself.

A long time ago TTK broke down his cost vs the passed on "Retail" cost of the pieces he was sourcing. There is no question in my mind that the Factory is making obscene profit overall... CNC machining is just getting cheaper and cheaper...

Dealers are also making a very comfortable margin... I'd guess it becomes a reasonable margin when customs losses and reshipments get factored in.

Now my question... Who takes more risk? The factories with physical space and tooling and inventory? Or the dealers who source and ship internationally? If/when the local government decide to offer up some sacrificial lambs to show how tough on piracy they are, who do they grab?

I'd be curious how many Canal St subs are made for every "good" rep made....

We may be a relatively closed system for he factories and dealers to skim money from, but I'd be willing to bet we are not the largest target market.

@Praetor... I think this is more of a "Start" than an end all, be all...

What other Double Tourby is on the market in the lower end of the price market? 2k is roughly entry level Swiss... Even with some rough finish, it is an impressive feat, that much you must admit. Certainly I'd snag the Patek over a Seagull given my druthers, but that is not quite a fair comparison.

Look at some of the super reps on the market... Virtual ties in quality with watches selling for 20x and up... The Chinese watch industry could gain some serious ground with tech like this if they got some designers to make new watches rather than clones and homages.

I get the odd feeling the next few decades will be interesting.

A true double Tourby movement selling under 2k USD (assuming I did the Yuan / USD conversion properly...)?

That is a shot across the bow of the big name Swiss brands.

The trade name may leave a lot to be desired.. But a true double Tourby under 2k? You got my attention.

Simply stunning!

Has that GMT been repped? That is tempting.

Not saying you did wrong mate. just my .02cents.

Out of curiosity... Is it possible it stops running because he's hacking it? Do we know what position the crown is in to make it stop running?

That was my guess,Tony or Ufanta....Canal st subs are not that bad.....

My money was on Ufanta... I erred in getting two watches from him. Both proved their worth as targets for high power rifles... That was about all they were good for.

Looking at OPs ad, the crystal is visibly off.. But as a seller, I would have mentioned that to "hold the hand" a bit of newb buyers. Only thing that would concern me is the claim the movement is stopping at certain angles. Would indicate a potentially fatal problem. My first IWC 3717 did that on arrival... Died a week later. The "trusted dealer" and I agreed to never exchange funds again as a result of that fiasco.

My suggestion? offer the cost of replacement A21j movement or a return.

The 2893 is certainly of the better / best options for a GMT. As a side note the A21j of unspecified model has proven to be a horrible GMT in the two that darkened my doorstep... It was a faux GMT at best and one of the two lasted about three hours. The other is still kicking, but it was a pain to get regulated and has never functioned to my satisfaction.

Other way around actually, case and caseback are TI and bezel is brushed SS.

Ah, that would certainly make more sense... Would age nicely as well.

I'd say rep based on the blue of the chrono-second hand... might be the lighting though.

I'd require many more shots of a watch before I considered paying gen price. Heck, I'd require more photos before paying the rep price.