Finepics

Here is an ebay seller with Cape Cod polishing cloths for £4.95 inc postage - bargain!! http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...%3AVRI&rd=1

Holy [censored] - Aaron they are fantastic - wow, I can't wait to get them fitted. Thanks a million my friend. For anyone that has not seen this leather (except V who knows all about it) this is the famous Metta Catherina 200 year old Russian reindeer leather that was salvaged in perfect condition from a ship that sank in 1786. Aaron has made a 24/24 and a 26/26 - question is will the big one look better on a Fiddy or the 187?

You have to remember that your PC monitor is unlikely to be calibrated so what you see on your screen is not always the same as the actual colour of the photo - something to bear in mind when looking at colours critically.

Aaron is making a couple of straps for me at the moment - in a very special leather. I already have one of his straps (courtesy of Veni) and I have to say that of all the straps I have and have seen his are by far and away much higher quality. The finish and stitching is superb. Bob straps are ok but Aaron is in a different league. How are they coming along Aaron?

I am doing the crystals for this watch. Just done another 2 this week for my own projects. I get them specially made from optical plastic (not perspex but very similar) and then hand finish them to create a curved edge (they come with a sharp edge when they are made). To do it I need to have the existing crystal as my maker needs to set his machine by it. Cost is £85 shipped.

There are many variants of the Angelus 240 and one of them comes exactly as the version that Panerai uses. The plate over the bridge plates which has the three holes in the center is just for securing the movt cover. here is a page from an Angelus catalogue which clearly shows the different versions. Be aware that some of the desk clocks with the barometer (I just bought one) are not the same movt at all - this is a potential minefield!!! To make a running seconds the second wheel is removed then simply drilled and fitted with a post for a second hand (obviously not as simple as it sounds but is not difficult for a watchsmith).

Constantly on !!!

Shocking but not the first and certainly not the last!!

None - your observations with this dial are correct. You would be better of trying to source the standard rep dial (which is exactly the same size as the gen) as it is much better finished and the printing is crisper and whiter. Most of the dealers can get this dial for a small fee. You can level the markers with lume (I have done this) but it really depends which dial you are trying to re-create as to wether it will look the part. The other problem you will have is that it will only fit a Davidsen case unless you shave 1mm from the edge.

The Zigmeister - not sure if you are still around to read this but I apologise unreservedly for my remarks which were rather thoughtless. I seem to be getting into all sorts of trouble just lately and the last thing I want to do is fall out with anyone here especially you. The jobs that I referred to were not badly done - it was just they were the wrong colour. One of them I did not do or say anything about (the owner is unaware and obviously happy with it) but the other I did re-do as I was doing other things to it at the same time so it made sense to do it while the watch was apart. The owner knows and there is no need to say anymore as it was a while ago now. Please accept my humble grovelling apologies.

Its not the watch but the dealer that needs rating = 0 - why are you bothering with this site when all you need is here.

I wore my PVD PAM 28 in Watches of Switzerland (UK stores selling high end stuff) and the manager asked to see it. I had the new cyclops, Jimmy's CG and PAM crown, but the standard datewheel - his only comment was "Oh - it's an A series early watch, you don't see many of them - nice"!!!!!

Could be an Angelus indeed!! A word of advice to anyone looking for an Angelus 240 calibre - there are many variants of the same movt but the crucial factor is to look for one that has a winding crown/stem windwhich will be at the bottom of the clock (these movts were mostly used in small alarm clocks - how many of us now remember what our parents must have thrown out!!!). Many of these movts have a key wind and are missing the keyless works which really renders them useless for a watch as these parts are impossible to obtain.

Shades of the recent lambasting I got at the TRC seem to be creeping in here a bit so let me explain some more - I have had many happy customers as well as a few bad ones. @V you asked me to rush your jobs for a cheap price - I explained at the time that I was not happy doing that and the use of superglue to re-assemble the dial after luming meant that some glue vapour had marked the dial. I also had to re-assemble the watch very quickly, and package it up to send back to you, so the glue leached out vapour whilst in the post and left the marks on the dial. This was an issue that only affected the sandwich dials and I also accidentally left some tiny scratches on one of them (you would not believe how easy it is to mark a dial). @The Zigmeister - I have always had the highest respect for you but, don't take this the wrong way, do not sit there taking a holier than though approach saying things like "I never leave a mark on my dials" as if to say that you are perfect - well I have had to correct things for other members that you did wrong but I would never have mentioned them to anyone (I have 3 specific examples) so cut me some slack here please. What The Zigmeister says about the gold hands is true "As for the hands, you will get minor scratches, but if you consider that you have to physically remove the lume with a knife, and handle the hands, there is no way to not have Minor scratches..." - they are plated in 24ct gold which means the plating is very soft and marks very easily. There is no way to polish them if marks are there (and they often come marked and damaged - see the marks and crap on these hands and the minute hand has an imprint from the second hand tube which I had to prise apart when it was sent to me). The pics show a new set of hands as delivered from a well known supplier. And has been mentioned painted hands do not suffer this problem. @Chad - The lume will look fat because you have a powder that is mixed with a solvent /binder varnish that is then painted over the original numbers/letters on the dial, it is very thick; try picking up a dot of lume, that is the consistency of honey, with the tip of a pin and place it accurately on a dial marker that is .0 something of a mm!!! You will find it is not as easy as it might appear. The lume thickness is sometimes more than ideal because of the nature of applying it by hand. The Swiss watch dial makers have screen/pad printing machines that do this in one click of a mouse - The Zigmeister and I apply this by hand - there is a big difference. Also, as I already explained, I use Super Luminova so the glow is exactly the same as the gen because it is the same!!!!! Really speaking if you want perfect looking numbers etc in daylight then buy a gen or get a rep but do not lume it. If you want it to be more like the gen (and I am talking PAM's here as the lume is what they are reknowned for) then have it lumed but accept that under a loupe (in most cases) it will not look like it's been applied by a machine. Look: we are dealing with reps here, most people looking at a watch will not be wearing loupes so will not see some of the things we do. Unless you are trying to pass it on as the real thing (as does happen and these enhancements only help increase the value!!!) stop looking too closely and enjoy the upgraded watch - remember though that it is a FAKE whatever you have had done to it.

Super Luminove is the registered trade mark of the active component which is the rare earth (I can't remember!!). Anyway - when you see L on a dial that means it has Super Luminova. This is the product that bothe I and The Zigmeister (and others) use as it is available on the open market. The material comes in a large variety of daylight colours but all glow green (or you can have blue and red) in low light/ They are charged by being exposed to light and remain readable, but not brightly shinig like a torch which is only for the first few minutes, for around 8 hours or so. So the gen has super lume and the rep can have superlume - its merely a case of using the colour that the gen has!!!

What a nice tale. Just goes to show that individual humans do display extraordinary lengths of altruism. I think the nice thing about all of us and owning reps is that we are not wrapped up with monetary values of them, and I think that makes us appreciate them and the real thing even more, it removes the snobbery that is associated with the gen owners sites.

Leitztozeiss - I got myself two of these babies now and they do run sweet. The tick is more refined and they ooze quality!! Look out for my 2 new projects which will make an appearance sometime soon. One is a Radiomir but not the usual ones, the other might be featuring an 8 day movt and some very unusual hands!!!!!!

Jeez - a lot of vitriol flying around lately !!

Not all the 036's come with the decent crown. I have seen one that comes with a SS crown and recessed pin!!! This debate has dragged on for a long time - the issue was never the thickness of the actual crown but that the bevelled edges were overdone making the teeth too narrow, thus making the crown appear narrower. Personally I am happy with the 2.0 Palp crowns as the .08-9 difference was not noticeable enough to worry about - but the 2.1 crowns?

Actually I have a complaint - I got my tracking number from Andrew last night - checked it and bugger me it showed as ready for delivery - today. I have to complain that this is far too quick a service - I've a good mind to send them back!!! Glad to hear it's all sorted. I have had a couple of tough lessons myself recently - sometimes swallowing one's pride is necessary for the status quo.

Oh my god - what happened to your girl!!!

Personal projects don't count!!! Nice one there Ubi - sure is a sweet little engine that one!!

Admin - I am very saddened by your departure and I thank you for your very complimentary words. I wish you all the best for the future and hope that life will maybe take a better turn and you feel settled again.

It certainly seems unlikely that they would be sourcing a genuine El P to use in a rep - no-one here has heard of it so I would ask them for photos of the movt before you make any decision. One way to check would be to get a pic of the older PAM60 - 40mm flyback and overlay them in Photoshop to see if the sub dials match up.

What a bloody shame - Andrew (like all of us will say) has been nothing but helpful to me - in fact so helpful that one of my current projects could not go ahead without his help!! Sorry that you have to put up with this crap and I hope there is a positive outcome (at least with PP)