korneevy

...Was in a photo mood tonight and decided to take a few shots of some of my collection pieces...including my (current) favorite 115 on gen asso, a pleasure to wear. 114 has made it into rotation a few weeks ago after god knows how long in the box - now on gen asso as well:) And 029 is a fav auto hands down, an amazingly well built piece, and I love the stock rep strap, after some mink-oiling and twisting/rubbing it got very comfortable and goes extremely well with the 029..so here you almost have it - my weekly PAM rotation menu:)

As they told you on RG, this is an easy fix, most likely the stemis too long...I'd fix it myself - it should take like 30 mins tops rather than sending it half way across the world and then waiting ofr another 4-56 weeks for them to return it.

Hello folks, I have been a PAM fan for a long time, and I am thinking of testing out the new waters of AP, and have been catching myself thinking of getting a classic RO in 38mm or jumbo one in 39mm size just to get me started and get a feel of the watch and its style. The reason for a 38 or 39 mm choice is that in worst case, I can always gift it to my g-friend and she can pull off this size without any issues. I also dont do mega-jumbo watches over 44 mm or rep chronos as a matter of principle and dont like display CB for the obvious reason of rep movement being wrong on too many levels. After reading up on AP on various forums and some here and looking at a few options from dealers, I've come to realise that the choice is rather limited in RO classic range, and most carry this sort of watch in various dial colors (not sure if the photo will show so below is the URL): http://www.1-pc8838.com/ap10025-royal-automatic-white-swiss-28242-p-1652.html In PAM land, there are lots of diferent versions of the same watch (H-fac, N-fac, ultimate, V3, superlumed, etc etc) but I am a bit surprised that the offerings in the classic RO are limited to just one maker + one model only? Am I looking in the right places? I've checked all usual suspects (Josh, Andrew, Angus, even SIiix) and they all seem to carry this exact model, albeit with some minimal price differences. Now, if I do go with this exact watch, do you care to share your opinions or point me to a thread where it was discussed before as search returns a million of irrelevant threads... Basically: - How good it is OTB in your opinion? - Verdict on the movement - is it gen ETA, condition, need to service upon arrival? - What are the glaring issues with it (if any) and what needs to change(such as date-wheel?)? - Any addtional mods to make it nicer (e.g. re-lume)? - Any cnances of doing away with the metal bracelent and installig a nice leather instead? How hard it is to remove the bracelet? Is it easy to source a decent replacement leather strap? While browing for othe roptions, I come acros this one, which looks ideal (size, closed CB, leather strap) but it is offered by some dodgy site and it appears none of our dealers carry it: http://youtu.be/zdX-3YjhIsw Can you suggest where to source this one? Probably most of these are lame questions but dont shoot me down on the spot - if you could point me in the right direction to dig these up, I'd be very grateful. Thanks in adavance!

I would not say jump, it simply moves in 1 hr increments and you need ot hold the watch close to your ear to hear a click then it moves while setting...and yes it aligns well with the markers. Read my review of the dissected 029 to learn more about the guts of this really great rep..

One on top appears fake to me, but who knows, they are now so close in apperance but qulaity is still very noticibly different in rep straps...

No issues whatsoever with the Swiss one I have in my 029m had it inspected and serviced by a watchmaker and it runs to 2/3 secs per day. Not sure why bother with the swap as it will be a pain in the [censored] and require new case, new handset etc.

From my expirience, HB ones have a better power reserve by about 6-8 hrs over LB ones, at least across my collections of 10+ Unitas-powerred reps...other than this, I cant see any advantages and the swepp thing is really up for a debate...

I think you are talking about the Asian Clone. The swiss movement in this watch does not advance in 1 hr intervals and is moving slowly between hr marks and can be set any way you want which is not the same as the Gen.

I got my PAM 29M with Swiss movement from Josh today and proceeded to disassemble it right away to get the movement serviced and also to check the quality of parts and assembly...thought some ppl might be interested to read this hence decided to post my impressions. This post wont have any photos as I dont have a decent camera and trying to take shots of tiny parts with a phone camera didnt produce any spectacular results so you going to have to trust my word on this one, sorry! Just a side note - I have had a dozen or so of recent PAM reps from H/N factory and also a couple of used base Gen PAMs that I opened myself to study the guts before selling them off so I have seen a few insides of both best reps and gens. Frankly, after taking this 029M apart I am stunned - if I didnt know these parts were rep parts, I would have been 100% fooled into thinking this is a gen part out. My watchmaker was also shocked then I brought it in disassembled - after inspecting the parts, he said he had never seen a fake that well-made before. Obviously, the movement is an immediate tell but with a closed CB no issue there... The quality of manufacturing and tolerances on these parts are best I've seen - everything fits together nicely, all parts are polished, brushed or decorated to gen level and where required, stamped with great level of attention. Case is very very good. Bezel has a good shape and the depth of engravings for GMT numbers appear to be identical to Gen based on the photos Ive seen. Case-back is surprisingly heavy and engravings are deep and crisp. Swiss-made engraving and swirl-like decoration on the inside of CB is a nice touch. The movement is real Swiss (confirmed by my watchmaker who will do service on it) with Chinese GMT module which appears to be well manufactured from the first glance. Movt is 100% unused (could be NOS?), surgically clean and rotor is very quiet. Even movement screws and clamps are a level above anything else I've seen - great profile, excellent machining, fits right in, leave a very confident feeling that the movement is secure. The spacer is super solid, nicely decorated, snugs very tightly around the movement... just awesome. GMT hand does not jump on the Swiss movement in 1 hr increments as I hear it does on the Asian clone (but I am unsure). Date changes at 12-00 spot on. Better date change than any of auto reps I have ever handled. Cyclop is dead-on centered and appears to be of correct magnification. Dial, hand stack, lume etc - you have seen them on other folks' photos. Under a watchmaker's lupe, dial looks pretty amazing - no sloppy lume bits, very crisp print, solid text with no missing paint, date wheel is nicely done with proper font and 100% fit to the dial text color. The seconds hand on mine is - very slightly - bent but unless under the microscope, one cant see it so I decided to leave it as it is, after checking that it does not impede on others hands...in my opinion it points to the fact that dial and hands installations are still done by hand rather than a machine...which means that it is best to check the alignment yourself as there could be variation in how well they install hands-stack and ensure hands are moving freely, not touching etc. Crystal is the best I've seen in person esthetically - even better than many mid range gens such as Oris, Hamilton or alike - fits the bezel very nicely and flat with the case, fully pressed. I was considering taking it out and replacing with proper gasket but after checking the case for water resistance (passed to 100m), decided not to bother. It has a bit of a blue-ish AR on it under certain angles. I also assume it is a double-side AR which may lead to issues in the future but in person for now looks stunning. It does create an impression that there is no glass, specially in evening lighting. CG is excellent. Nothing much to say - fits the case effortlessly, no gaps, nice fat screws and the lever as tight and as flush as the Gens I had. Polished to a very high quality, pin is super flat. Top-notch job here. Even the brown calf strap it come with is worthwhile keeping! This is normally one accessory that goes right into the garbage bin when I get one of these PAM reps delivered but this one is really, really nice. Obviously, the length is still too short (WHY do they make them so short, WHY???) but by losing one keeper, it fits ok and feels like a $100+ strap, no plastic-y shine to it, very subtle color. Good quality stitching with straight lines and embossing with OP on the underside on this one. Buckle is a regular H factory quality so not much to add... Basically, this is a super rep in every dimension of the term. I am unsure of some little details in terms of accuracy of replication but from the quality of manufacturing prospective this wins hands down over any other rep in my watchbox. WOW!

Hmmmm...how about going to the nearest watchmaker - preferably one of those who can service watches and not just change quartz batteries - and asking there? This is the simpliest talk on the planet, really! Or just buy Cape Cod set on ebay and polish away. It is heaps cheaper to do it yourself but can get addictive. I polish my watches twice a month now...

I am not too sure about rep deployants, really. I've had a few and none of them felt comfortable for my very average size wrist. Both felt a little flimsy and I never felt safe wearing anything decent on them. Turned out to be for a good reason as after 4-5 times one buckle become quite loose and started to open 3-4 times a day. Trashed them both and never looked back. Tang is the way to go for me and I prefer the new style ones as pre-Vs are way too big and also cut into skin.

Wow! Thanks so much for these guys...love Simona stuff

Hello, I am about to start building my first a pre-V 201A project with top parts and would really like to get a proper pre-V style strap to go with it. I am looking not just a buckle but the whole strap as I somehow think they were made differently back then and appear thinner than most after market straps, running at 3mm or so and many also had just1 keeper that was of a narrow cut. So far have failed to find anything that looks remotely similar to the gen Pre-v straps. Any clues where to look for those or recommendations? Thanks in advance

Hi all, I recently picked up a great old- school 115 Destro sausage dial from Goin and had it relumed by him, along with a set of hands. Attached is the pic of gen - really nice! While the package is enroute, I have been looking around trying to see where I can get a decent case set for this beauty ( I already have a high beat latest platinum Asian Unitas waiting for it), and so far had no luck sourcing it from the usual sources (Puretime, PerfectClones etc.). In line with my previous experience, PT is dutifully ignores these emails and Josh @ PC is quick to respond but cant source one from the factory(( I dont know if any other TD deal in spare-parts? DSN? Any thoughts are appreciated. I come beginning to think that my best bet may be is to get a homage case-set from Jackson or Getat and then pick up a decent case back in due time if/when it becomes available. Any ideas as to which one on Jackson's site is the equivalent of 115? I would also want "real" CG - not the one that is just turned upside down - any ideas where to buy it from? All help is appreciated, very excited about putting this together... Cheers