Yeah, DSN's "new" case issue (crown/stem placement in the case) is known factor, Jay. Sorry someone didn't clue you in on what to expect beforehand. Personally, I think his PVD "normal" cases are the lesser of two evils in this case. He stated in his Pre-V dial thread that he was not going to attempt to create an accurate Pre-V case. That said, it doesn't have anything to do with all the other issues you had with your order.
My last order from DSN arrived DOA and I had to return it at my own expense, but he *did* ship out a replacement watch right away, vs. waiting for the dead watch to return (which some dealers have done in the past).
Sadly, a lot of DSN's projects are 7 or 8 tenths of the way there, but none of them ever get to 9/10ths. His QC seems to be on a downward slide, and that is concerning...