nonskeder

In the past RBJ has always done right by me. He was up front on how much he charged, communicated well on the cost and time frame of the projects. I have had him do many (lost count) MBW subs. Some had the full meal deal and others were smaller projects. The work was always what I expected for the money paid. In other words good! He also helped me me out when another mod guy by the name of Base ruined a MBW red sub. Was able to use most of the parts of the watch to put on another project. I have found him to be honest and like others have said a good guy. As of late I have not been able to break the code to get in touch with RBJ. My last email about doing a project went unanswered. I have tried to call a couple of times but get a machine so I will not try again. I would use Joe again but if he is to busy or sick to talk then I will send my business else where. My next two projects will go to Europe. The work from what I can tell is first rate and the prices are better. Have had him do one project and so far the customs issue has not been a problem. As a after thought I think that the mod thing is going to slow down as the products from the dealers gets better and better. The Rolex sports watches are getting so good that very little if anything has to be done at all. Cases, dials, fonts, CG's ect are getting so good that there is no need to send them off. Just look at TTK's $100.00 black sub. What a great watch and to think we (myself) paid hundreds to get a watch that was just a little bit better or the same just under a year ago. There will always be the little things that drive us nuts and the mod guys will have us forever but the damn things (watches) are getting closer to the real deal with each day passing. We can now get a watch serviced, mods done, from a dealer and it is a one stop deal. Sounds good to me. Just think what will be around in a year. John.

@Linder--Im in! @Tribal-- Was not aware that there was a rep made that had all the "right stuff" would love to see a pic and know who sells it. Thanks in advance, John. PS: I should have asked this first. Is this a watch that is for sale from one of our dealers or something that you did a custom job on?

I have the same watch from EL and MBW. both are good sturdy watches but scream REP with the horrible HEvalve. They are so close to getting it right that Im surprised it hasn't happened yet. Once the makers get this watch sorted out I think it will be a huge seller. You cant go wrong with Josh and yes it (the perfect SD) will be a nice watch that will last a long time.

@jnkay: Good job. I bought a gen no date sub while in the Caymans. I was with my daughter and went for a swim with a non modded MBW Comex. When getting out of the water I noticed that the MBW had leaked and was fogged up to the max. My daughter asked me on the spot why dont we stop at the Rolex shop and get you a real one? So we did and the no date sub is what caught my eye. I am now saving up for a gen SD. Will get a older used one as I like the lug holes on the outside of the case. I am real hard on watches so a well cared for used SD with box and papers seems to be the best way for me to go. You will never be sorry for buying a gen. Now dont get me wrong, I really like the MBW subs and SD's I have. Most have been modded by RBJ and water-proofed. They get most of the wrist time. I take the MBW watches when I travel. Would rather loose a rep than the real deal anyday. Even with the MBW quality all one has to do is wind a rep and compare it to a gen and the verdict is clear. The fit and finish of the gen just cant be duplicated at this point in time. Now if I could get the gen date sub along with the SD I would have it made. Take care and stay well, John.

fendushi: Nice watch. I lived in Indonesia for a while myself. Flew the Haj for Bouraq Indonesia Airlines out of Surabaya. Loved the country and had a ball. We were using 5 leased B707's and flying out of Jakarta, Surabaya and Kuala Lumpur. Only did it for that one Haj season of 1978-79 and wished we could have done more of it. We also did charter work for Merpati, and Bayu Indonesian Airlines. None of us knew anything about watches back then but a few of us did buy some gens. I got a Tudor no date sub in Singapore but mostly we bought Seiko world timers. Take care and stay well, John.

@chrono&bruce: Couldn't agree more. I mean how hard can it be to do it the right way. I would be all over a modern SD with the right valve and the TW case ect ect. As I said RBJ and I tried to source out a correct valve to be put in a EL or MBW modern SD. Could not find one as a stand alone valve. The other alternative would be to buy a watch with the correct valve and see if it could be matched up to a MBW, EL or other TW SD. Buy two and end up with one mostly correct SD. The sacrificial watch could be used for spares. Did not want one that bad as I do think they will get it right in the near furture. Given enough time I think that Josh is on the right track by providing watches that are moded and serviced from the get go. Maybe with enough input he will make a proper SD with most of the bells and whistles. I think it would be great if we could get the "perfect SD" from him or another dealer. CG's, dial, movement seviced, HE valve ect. I would be glad to pay more and not have to worry about the mail issues ect. One stop deal sounds good to me. I dont know about the rest of you but I am getting tired of waiting for the watch (mail and custom problems). Once watch is in hand, sending it off to get serviced, water proof checked, mods done, and the wait and mail dance starts again. Ok the air is getting thin on my soap box so I will stop the rant. Take care, John.

The vintage SD does have the small HE valve pictured. All my research of gens shows this valve and my MBW watches have the exact valve. As for the modern SD to the best of my knowledge no one has the right combination as of yet. The fantasy valve is on my EL and MBW modern SD. Good solid watches but the valve is a dead give away. The correct looking valve (as on the gen) can be found on many rep SD's but the case and just about every thing else is wrong. The Chinese reps have the valve down and the TW best have the correct case ect. It would seem quite easy to get this one rep down right but for some reason there just is not enough interest in the project. I have asked Maria (MBW) about this and his response has been that he is sometime out on getting a modern SD that has the quality he demands. He to the best of my knowledge will not sell a modern SD at the present time. I think that in a short time (with demand) that a correct SD will be built. That is what happens in rep world. In the meantime if one could source the right looking valve and put it in a TW best SD you might end up with a fairly accurate rep. Joe and I talked about doing this but he could not source out the right valve so the project died. Still dont know if the Chinese valve could be made to fit a TW case at this point. John.

For vintage subs and SD's MBW from my experience are indeed the best. For the modern sub MBW then any TW best. Modern SD's is more troublesome. The EL and MBW are very close with the edge given to MBW for a slightly better dial. Both have the correct case but have the wrong HE valve that is a dead give away. The CN has the correct valve but the case is way wrong. Hope this helps, John.

@Joe: Hey Joe that watch sure looks familiar. You did a great job as usual. It is on my wrist as we speak. Dont know which one of your jobs is my favorite. It used to be the MBW red sub or was it the MBW Comex. No it must of been the white dial no date sub. Ah what the hell I like them all. Thanks again, John.

Ubi is right on about the vintage SD. If you can get a MBW. The modern SD with the correct HE valve has a bad case and visa versa with the one's that have a correct case and back. Hopefully that enough interest will develop so a rep can be made with the right stuff.

Panerailord: Know the feeling. Having said that my reps get more wrist time than the gens that I own. The upside to reps is that you can feed the compulsive addictive side of yourself. What better self abuse than going thru the hoops of trying to figure out who has the best sub? Then there is of course the shipping, customs, and all sorts of delivery problems. And the buzz of getting the near perfect rep that has some kind of factory defect that forces you to send it off to you favorite watch guy. And while its there why not do the mod thing to it so it will be perfect (sort of). Sooooooooo you buy the watch, wait for delivery, do the mod thing and poof your into it for about a grand. But it is the near perfect rep. But it gets better. Now you need the newest and latest whizz bang edition of what ever watch you covet next. When I bought my latest gen Rolex in the Cayman's, I thought I was done with the rep deal but Noooooooooooooooo! I had to do it again and again. I have 3 projects going on now. Two MBW's at Joes and a MBW red sub with Palpatine to turn it into a Tudor. After this Im done with it forever. No I mean it, I really do. Finished for good, this time is going to be different. Only gens from now on. But on the other hand the new Explorer 1 and vintage model of the same are pretty nice. NO NO NO I cant. This is all a bad dream, I know I will wake up soon.

Just got off the phone with Joe. He is still sick (you can hear it in his voice) but slowly on the mend. Joe called me to inform me of progress with a project he is doing for me. I know that his customers have been worried that they are going to loose out on their watches but I feel that all will be well. Joe will get to them all but he has to maintain his health to do it. He is on the mend but still has a way to go. Hope this helps.

Wow: This has to be a day of strange dealings. On the dark side Klink went off big time on The Zigmeister. He or the mods deleted the thread so Klink was saved from a lynching but none the less he is in for a beating by those who saw it. Now to Joe. From my dealings with Joe it has been on the up and up. Had him do several watches for me. Have to admit I have had Mods remorse from time to time. I dont think the new reps really need a thing done to them with the exception of a better pearl. With the reps getting better and better I think that doing mods on reps will be a thing of the past. I have never had anyone ask about a watch I was wearing weather it was a rep or a gen. That tells me that the only ones who give a damn are watch geeks. With that being said I think (remember I have done the mod thing big time) that mods in general are a waste of time, money and worry. There are shipping issues, workmanship issues, ect ect. In the end no one will know the difference unless you run into of a fellow watch geek member. I have been full circle on this mod thing. Now I no longer need the perfect watch. Dont have the passion for it. It has been said all befor that a rep is just a rep. Amen brother! I have emailed and called Joe without getting any response from him. He has two watches that are to undergo the dreaded mod deal. Will I ever see them again. I really dont know. If I was to bet on it I would say he will come thru. I do think that he is sick (maybe sick and tired of the watch thing) and he has been down with whatever he has. He has always treated me fairly and the work has been very good. Damn I would like to get the MBW white vintage SD from him but who knows. Watch guys come and they go. There is probably RBJjr waiting in the wings to take over as we speak. I do think that we need a good watch repair guy at arms length. That would be The Zigmeister. He has worked and seviced watches for me and has been great to deal with. With the mod thing waining IMO sevicing will be more important than making them look OK as they look damn good now. Just think how good they will be a couple yrs from now. OK the air is getting a little thin so high on my soap box so I will end it. In the end I think Joe will come thru on all the work he has taken on. I hope he is on the mend. Is there a future for mods? I think less and less as time goes by.

A MBW modern sub. Also have Palpatine working on a MBW red sub which he is going to turn into a Tudor date sub. Trying to find the right dial is the hold up for now. Joe is doing a MBW white vintage seadweller for me with all the bells and whistles. Cant wait for him to get better so I can get the watch, it should be a stunner.

Anyone heard from Tommy lately? His mother died recently and Im concerned that he is not doing OK. I have tried to email him and PM him but to no avail. As those of you who know him understand that he is very prompt with a response. The last I heard from him he was looking for a couple of gen Tudor dials for a MBW-Tudor project that we were going to do. Both of us were pumped on the project and he had already done several mods to a MBW red sub that I supplied to him. After the dial swap I think we were just about finished. I am not concerned about the watch as it can easily be replaceed. I am concerned about Palps well being. It is not like him to drop out of sight. I know that the loss of a loved one can be devestating to say the least. Just found out my younger brother has lung cancer (stage 4) and I am scared to death for him. Tommy took the death of his mother very hard as any of us would. I hope he is on the mend and not is serious trouble. Any input from the members would be helpful. Also if there is anything we could do for Tommy would be appreciated. Thanks in advance, John.

Go for it RBJ. Glad to see you here.