freddy333

All I know is that whenever I see that picture of Avitt's beauties, all I can do is weep & cry. Oh, and the watches they inspired

Compare Rolex's history to Panerai's. Panerai is the new kid on the block, especially from the general watch-buying public's point of view. If the wearing of pocket watches on the wrist are still in vogue 10 years from now, things may change.

Hard to tell, but the seller looks genuine & the watch is beautiful. He/they have a good, albeit somewhat limited history of selling high end watches. The current bid, $59,950, is definitely on the high side, but not beyond reason for a 6265 with paperwork & in that condition. I would, however, require clear pictures of the movement prior to transferring payment, or an agreement by the seller to have the watch authenticated (or allow the buyer to have it authenticated) by Rolex prior to final sale if pictures are unavailable.

Strange. My original MBW hour hand was convex and it looked wrong as soon as I received the watch. Both of the gen 1665s I have handled as well every gen I have seen on TZ over the years (I have several gigs worth of TZ pictures archived on my hard drive) has flat Mercedes hands. This was one of the main reasons I swapped the MBW hands out for the Clarks. I am looking through Dowling's book now and, while I do see a couple of red Subs that might (based on the light reflections) be curved, all of the Seadwellers (1665s) appear to have very flat hands. Nanaq - You have a gen Double Red. What say you?

I have never seen a rep folded link bracelet for sale. Mine are all gens. I bought 1 on the bay earlier this year for $125, but I got lucky (there were no other bidders) & it needed a bit of TLC (grinding/bending/polishing/buffing). But, in the end, it turned out pretty nice. All the others came from Andy (timeman.net) and ranged from $250 (well worn) to $330 (for near mint). The 1st 3 DWs (top left) in this picture all have 19mm folded link 7835 bracelets with 357 end links that came from Andy. Folded links are all I use with my modded vintage pieces (the 2 6238s in the picture are stock reps with their original cheesy-looking riveted bracelets, which will definitely get changed out for gen folded links if/when I ever mod them).

My 1665 has a set of Clark's hands, which has more accurate minute & hour hands. But the second hand is a bit too long. I noticed this when I was fitting the hands. I think the original MBW second hand was the correct length, but there was something about Clark's that I liked better, so I decided to live with the mm extra length (and slightly shorter tail) (Picture taken on a slow flatbed scanner, which is why the second hand appears bent) By the way, that 1665 from doubleredseadweller that you used to compare second hands is one of the watches I used as a model for my watch.

The gen crown/tube should fit, but you will probably have to tap the hole to fit the gen tube (since the threads often differ between the rep & gen tubes) To make the task easier, you might also pick up a Rolex tube tool (this fits into the splines inside the Rolex tube & makes installation a very simple process, but rep tubes usually do not have any inner splines, so I usually use a small 3-sided jeweler's file wedged into the original rep tube to remove it) I would use a small dab of GC Hypo cement on the tube threads to add some additional sealing between the case & tube Install the tube snugly, but NOT tight or it will break/snap off in the case. This is one of those things that is impossible to explain. If you have never installed a tube before, I would try to locate a scrap case and an extra aftermarket tube from ofrei.com (they are not that expensive) & practice on that before risking damage to your rep. Experience is the only way I know of to learn the difference between properly snug & too tight.

Congrads, nice watch. I have the silver dial version. If the factory would just go back to the original 3/6/9 index markers they used on the earlier versions (which were accurate) these would be even nicer. Decided to stick with the datejust for another day

Odd, I have always thought that just about everything EXCEPT a suit (or other formal clothing) works with a PAM. And Swatch makes watches of almost every conceivable size, shape & color, so you should not have much trouble matching your watch to your stubbies (or LV bag).

I had a similar issue awhile back, so I polled several female friends and these were the 2 most popular (and sought after) watches Any Piaget This one even comes with boxset & papers Or Dior Also comes with boxset & papers Of course, your wife's taste may differ, but I think either of these are good, safe bets.

I am better with vintage models than modern, so I am probably not the best to judge these. But I think the watch on the right is the lesser of two evils, so to speak. The watch on the left has a very poor bezel pearl, the rehaut looks too deep (the distance from the crystal to the dial) & the lume portion of the minute hand is too wide. The crown on the watch on the right is much too wide, but a better bezel pearl & more accurate hands than the other watch. One of the other members who have more experience with current models will probably be able to give you more useful input. For future reference, the 1st thing you should do when you want to know how accurate a rep is is to go to your local AD (authorized dealer) and try the real thing on. There is always a difference in fit and finish between a gen and EVERY commercially made rep watch. After that, go to the company's website and familiarize yourself with the appearance of the watch from the comfort of your own PC (without the glare of store lights & sales people). It may also be helpful to peruse the archives on timezone.com & collect pictures of the model you are interested in so you can compare them to your reps. It is always best to know the real thing before you even begin your search for a copy. This will save you alot of time & money.

Not sure which I like more -- the watches or the picture? All 3 are outstanding.

Great idea, but I wish you had posted this here earlier. I already have a previous engagement in the area, but having just been made aware of the GTG I do not know if I will be able to make it. But I will try. Can you post the original message here?

A good rule of thumb to use for a for-profit business is to charge approximately 3 times your total cost. So if a job costs you $25/hour (whether that is in parts, supplies or labor), you would charge the customer $75. Of course, you have to filter this general formula to fit in with your local market & competitors' pricing.

While it is, technically, not legal to purchase or own contraband goods (like replica watches that bear a trademarked name), it is outright illegal to sell or distribute them and most countries often do attempt to take legal action against the sellers/shippers (due to the costs to bring the suit, they often only do so when a large number of watches are confiscated). So I suspect the letter you received is more of a formality sent out to scare the buyer and, hopefully, get him/her to stop buying more contraband goods (like replica watches). But I do not know the laws in Sweden and they may differ from those of other countries. So it is probably a good idea to see if you can find out what the law is regarding the purchase of replica watches in Sweden. 2 ways to do that are to check with a lawyer or search google. In fact, you might even search google for the text of the letter you received (be sure to enter it into google's search box exactly as it appears in the letter). Chances are that other people received the same letter and posted stories of what they did and what, if any, the repercussions were.

JoJo -- In spite of the sapphire glass and the unneeded metal surrounds on the dial markers, you did well. Very well.

Although I have not purchased any new watches this past year, I have completed a number of major rebuilds of older and/or project watches that some might now refer to as new watches. But I have taken note of a number of beauties that other members have added to their collections. 2008 should be a very interesting year, indeed.

The movement will probably need to be serviced to fix the problem permanently. But try pulling the stem back all the way out and then pushing it back in. Try this 2 or 3 times if it does not work the first time. That may get it going for awhile.

When I used to dress more fashionably & brand-aware (think Bruce Willis/Daniel Craig), my watch collection tended towards modern/high tech (think AP Royal Oak or Panerai/Ferrari with more black dials). After I developed a more classic style of dress (think Cary Grant/Sean Connery), my watch collection also took a turn towards the classics (think steel Rolex or Calatrava Patek with more white dials).

Gio - New, the crowns always fit tightly to the case. But the models I used (& the look I was after) were all freshly serviced (by RSC) gens that had their crowns & tubes replaced. Although most service crowns fit like the original did (close to the case), I have noted a good number that sit away from the case (with a small gap below them when screwed down fully). Here are a few of the freshly-serviced gens I used as models for my watch (watch on right had just been serviced) I generally purposely install crowns on Rolexes with CGs this way so the watch looks like it was just serviced. Since most reps get tossed in the bin when they develop a problem, I think this gives the watch some added credibility ('if the owner actually spent the money to repair it, then it must be the real deal') (I have posted my gen models for this elsewhere) On the other hand, I always install non-CG crowns as new (so they screw down close to the case)

I bought a (5 line) chrono bridge, but have not installed it. You need to either swap the cap jewels from the existing bridge into the new one or install new ones. Considering I am the only person who will likely ever see the inside of my watches, I have not been in any rush to put that much effort into it (or risk having to deal with the additional problems of misaligned chrono gears). But it is on the todo list (near the bottom). I removed most of the mirror index markers with tweezers (they were relatively loose) and a couple difficult ones with a razor blade, but they all came off very easily. But if I have learned anything in dealing with these kits, it is that no two procedures ever go exactly the same. So proceed with caution & get yourself a copy of the bible

How will the Newman dial look on a 7750? I have never seen one in person, but it should look something like this (I borrowed these pics from Honpo) I have had to realign some of the little mirror index markers on each of the V72 dials I have (V72s at each end) Fortunately, it just takes a good loupe, a tiny dab of cement (I used clear nail polish) & alot of patience. The 'glue' that looks like it seeped out from under the index markers is lume and you should research gens (try TZ or antiquorum) before you begin construction or modifications. The crystals are very good (they look alot like the original domed T21s that most of these 62xx Daytonas left the factory with, but they are rather brittle & tend to crack easily), but I like to replace them with the newer, beveled gen T21s, which is what Rolex currently fits during servicing & I believe they look better than anything else (including the original domed T21s). In the picture above, the 2 Newmans are fitted with the beveled gen T21s while the 7750-powered 6263 in the center still has its original (domed) rep crystal.

Nice work, Archi. I have also tried (and failed) to produce something similar on brushed metal. So if someone does perfect one with flat-top 3s for a Seadweller, consider me counted me in (in advance).