freddy333

The case looks great, so the metalized pearl (which is wrong for this watch) should be removed or replaced. Are you going to do anything to enhance the patination of the dial & hands?

I have a couple single lens loupes, which are probably easier for most. But I find it easier to flip 1 of the lenses out of the way when it is not needed as opposed to having to switch between loupes. 1 or a combination of these 2 lenses is sufficient 90% of the time. For serious close-up work (oiling pallet stones, escape wheels, indexing mechanisms in Accutron, etc), a microscope is easier anyway.

(click pic for link)

Assuming you have more than 48 hours left before the paypal deadline, send him 1 last email, explaining the situation (cordially & in simple English - remember, alot of Asian sellers rely on translation software, which often outputs less than inteligible prose) & giving him 48 hours to respond. Then, since it is mid-week & there are no Asian holidays to keep him from responding that I am aware of, if he fails to reply with something reasonable, you can then say you gave him every benefit of doubt. By the way, recently, I have discovered that paypal treats rep watches just like any other purchased item, in that they will act on the buyer's behalf to refund your full purchase price in the case of a rep watch seller that either fails to deliver (as in your case above) or ships a watch that differs from the watch pictured/described on their website. Now, I would not assume that they will always help every buyer in every situation, but, in my case, I am batting 1000. In the past 6 months, I have had to inituate 5 disputes with (non-RWG) rep sellers over fraud or bait-&-switch tactics &, in each case, I have gotten all of my money back & paypal was well aware of what I had purchased. The trick is to do your due diligence before hitting the buy button. That is, email the seller & ask him to verify that the pictures & description on his website are of the exact watch you will receive &, if there are any details that are especially important to you (for my project, case size was all that mattered), indicate those specifically. Then, copy all of the seller's pics to a folder on your computer along with a copy of the webpage itself. Rogue sellers have a habit of changing or removing webpages when they get asked to verify details. This way, if there is a problem with the sale, you can make a pretty substantial case against any defense a rouge seller might come up with during a paypal dispute. Good luck.

Should you be afraid to wind it (slowly, 40 turns)? No. But the movements (engines) in nearly all rep watches are used &/or unserviced, so, if it is a watch that you plan to keep for a long time, I would have it professionally overhauled (disassembled, cleaned, oiled) as soon as possible. Then, like all mechanical movements, it should be overhauled every 5-7 years.

Your call & no guarantees of a positive end, but, were it me, I would give him a full 2 weeks after your last communication before going to Paypal.

A.260 (or 630), which is a smaller version of the A.296. By the way, I am not seeing any of the editing tags while writing or editing messages today. And, as you can see, the quoted text is not within the usually quoted section. I wonder if something got lost during a recent forum upgrade?

If you like her face, you will like her innards even better

Canal Street has never been known for anything but Canal Street quality reps.

I have never tried switching, so take this with a grain of salt, but I believe the hour wheels (as well as the chrono hour wheels) are the same & interchangeable.

I seem to recall seeing them for sale at 1 of the watch parts supply companies. You might check ofrei, borel & the UK house whose name eludes me just now.

Correct. The part can either be replaced or repaired (with a rivet).

The printing quality is not very good, but, otherwise, the dial is called a meters 1st 5513. Nice work.

Certainly. Take it to a watchmaker who works on rep chronographs.

Many of today's reps are good enough to fool the average watchmaker or gen owner as long as they cannot open the case. Once the case is opened, most professional watchmakers can easily tell the difference.

The end links on these bracelets were not designed to be removed. It can be done, but it is not easy & often results in damage to adjoining links. I have removed links from 2 rivet bracelets, but both ended up with misshapen links. So, to reduce the likelihood of damage, I would recommend taking the bracelet to a watchmaker or jeweler who has the appropriate skill & tools. If they have the correct replacement rivets, drilling out the exiting rivets is always the best way to go &, if done correctly, does not result in visible damage to the bracelet.

2 options - either drill out (& replace) the rivets or bend open the links.

An old episode, but still entertaining.