boomer775

Mike - thanks for the suggestion - Checked with the wife on that, and wasnt a big fan... that said, she now says that she would be into a man's watch, but prob not any bigger than 42mm... the Kors watch she got was around the same size as a mens datejust...

To continue the discussion - also looking for another watch for th wife. She got a rose gold Michael Kors one, but its a piece of cr*p. - she wants a rose gold one, and is not a fan of big watches. she already has a ladies datejust and the chanel j12. thoughts?

Good luck Ken - looking forward to the site, but will need to figure out how to block it from the wife...

+1 on that. Have had Zig lume and service 3 of my watches and no exaggeration, it is like night and day, especially on the 7750 movements. Coming from the factory, every 7750 movement I have purchased always seems to have a "dry" sound (can't really think of a better word at the moment) when you wind them. After getting them back from zig - smooth as butter.

Just had Zig lume 3 of my watches recently and the work was absolutely flawless in every way. He must have a surgeon's hands to do what he does. Very professional and timely with communication on every step of the process. In the end, everyone has their favorite modder, but it's great to know we've got a number of guys who do great work.

All, rather than start a new thread, figured I'd add to this one. I had paid a deposit to Zig back in December to get on his wait list to service my SMP. Come Feb, he was ready to take the watch. I had some back and forth for a couple of weeks on the shipping procedures which had changed and what Customs forms needed to be included (was shipping from US). After we got that all sorted out, his assistant told me not to ship as he had to go away unexpectedly on business. That was early March, I want to say. Since then, I hadn't heard anything at all from them. I sent a few chaser emails over the last month, but received no response back from any of them. He's got no PM account either, so I'm SOL there too... I know Zig is a stand-up guy, so this has surprised me. Can someone pls PM me with how I can get in touch with him to figure out if he will still service the watch, or at least refund my deposit? Thanks!

Well, I need something to keep me entertained on the train home. It's either this or playing Angry Birds

Updated with frankens from the thread and a couple of new ones I thought up on the train ride home yesterday!

Welcome. Better to have this hobby/addiction grab you by the short-hairs than your wife, although #1 can lead to #2....

I like it - AKA the "George Hamilton" Franken

All, When I first started browsing the forums, I couldn't understand what the heck everyone was talking about with these Franken this and Franken that. Having seen and read about the many different derivations of the word, I kindly offer my own Noob guide to what these different Frankens are, as well as some new ones of my own that I feel merit mentioning. Would love everyone's input and some ideas on new ones that aren't on the list! Official Franken definition as supplied by Freddy: a franken is any watch constructed from a combination of gen parts & replica (non-gen) parts. Since such an assembly could no longer be termed either genuine or replica, the term franken, based on the Mary Shelly book describing a man ('monster') constructed from parts from other men, was ascribed. The standard ones that we see all the time: 1. Franken "Lite" - a watch with that's not 100% original, but has swapped out different rep pieces for a change of color (dial or bezel) or a diff bracelet 2. Semi-Franken - Similar to above, but contains some gen parts, i.e. a gen crown and tube on a UPO 3. Super-Franken - Lots of gen parts, and perhaps one of the following - Zig Lume, Chief AR, BK datewheel overlay 4. Ultra-Franken - Getting close to a gen in terms of parts content and mods, has the gen bezel, dial, crystal, perhaps a caseback - 85% there 5. Uber-Franken - Damn close to gen - most likely all work has been done by one of our trusted experts/modders - 95% there 6. Grail Franken - 99.9% Pretty much indistinguishable from a gen and is the owner's pride and joy, as they have spent countless hours and cash to make it happenADs can't tell the difference. Only a serious change in heart or fund-raising for a gen will make him sell this puppy. Now, for some lesser-known frankens..... Enjoy! 1. The "Cherry" - Your first attempt at modding a watch. A little awkward, maybe painful, but in the end, it felt good. You just popped your cherry 2. The "Stankin'" Franken - You are traveling and about to go through Customs - "Is my Franken going to get outed?", you worry... You make a quick dash to the restroom and pull a Christopher Walken - sticking your watch where the sun don't shine. You may have avoided detection this time, but you ended up with one stankin' franken 3. The "Jager" Franken - It stated out innocently enough - rep watch, some gen parts and a bottle of Jager. You ended up with Submariner with a yellow dial a purple bezel (The previously unknown, "Lakers Sub") and a guy named Fred sleeping on your couch 4. The "Diaper" Franken - A feeble attempt at best, and you try to pass it off as a gen. No one is fooled - they know you are full of sh*t 5. The "Jesus" Franken - You built it, it died, and mysteriously came back to life 4 days later..... Divine intervention, or just a coincidence? 6. The "Madoff" Franken - You got some great deals on some gen parts - actually great deals on a lot of gen parts. When you finally add it up at the end of the day, you didn't really get a good deal. You realized that you could have bought a lightly-used gen with all the cash that you spent. 7. The "Couch" Franken - you spent too much of your time and money on this and the wife is [censored] - you're sleeping on the couch, dude 8. The "Divorce" Franken - Too many Couch Frankens will lead to this one 9. The "Pussy" Franken - After #8 happens, you head out to the bar with your watch. Some hot blonde with double-D's notices it and says "Frankens make me moist". A couple of martini's and a lot of cash later, you are balls-deep, thanking God that you spent the extra cash to get that Zig lume... 10. The "50-cent" Franken. Any and every franken that doesn't start with, but ends up with, some sort of sparkly mineral on it. Your friends call you a chick, but hey, "50 rocks this one!" 11. The "Bacon" or "George Hamilton" Franken - A franken watch with a nice sun faded dial 12. The "Michael Jackson" Franken - any watch starting off with a black dial and ending up with a white one 13. The "Fatty" Franken - Much like a fat chick; fun to ride/wear until your friends see you Let's come up with some others to add to the list

Although I can appreciate the honor of awarding the eagle scout, nothing beats my morning glory after a cup of coffee. You just can't top the "that's right, I did that" feeling...

I think they sent it in a PDF file, so I'll see what can attach that to a post

Damn - wish this was out there this past weekend when I was cursing to high h*ll when I couldn't get my UPO bezel back on. Will try this trick tonight! Thanks Ronin!

+ 1 on that - Dealers are more likely to go out of their way for someone who has purchased multiple watches from them than someone who has only purchased one. I have found this to be especially true when you need a replacement rep part that is hard to get. If you've spent a good amt of money with them, you'll be surprised how easy the hard-to-find replacement parts are...