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Where are the dealer photos? Link?

Thank you, Montydog! The material looks thicker than I expected. I'm assuming "Scholl" is the UK version of "Dr. Scholl's" products we have here in the UK. Do you think there's something special about this "Pressure Point" product, or do you think any sort of padding would do the job just as well? Thanks again.

Montydog, That would be fantastic! Please post a pic when you can. I recall some people saying they sanded down part of the clasp, but I was afraid to take a file or sandpaper to this expensive rep. If you're in the US, please let me know exactly what brand of padding you used and where you bought it. TIA

VERY nice. I want one! Don't care for a rubber strap, however. Is it available with a bracelet??? How much?

That's not too bad looking for an inexpensive rep. Do any of our dealers carry it?

I just got my HBB (SS version). I'm disappointed to find that when wearing the watch, the beautiful deployant clasp is very uncomforable. The little metal [censored] on the bottom of the clasp rubs against my wrist and digs into it just enough to drive me crazy. I know others have had this same complaint, but I don't recall the solution. I've tried wearing the watch a bit tighter than normal and a bit looser than normal - nothing helps. I recall someone saying they either filed or sanded down that [censored] to make it more comfortable. If anyone has had success with this, please post detailed instructions on how you did it. Is the gen clasp like this as well?

Awesome Rob. Keep us posted.

I just received a response from Angus regarding the seconds hand in this movement. He gave me permission to share the information in this thread. "I have contacted the factory already, the second hand is jumpy because the second hand is long and big, the geunine is also jumpy, you can check out the gen, the second hand is modified same as the genuine, the factory has all the ETA movements modification graphs and it will not be wrong." In response to my follow-up question asking exactly how the seconds hand is powered, he writes, "I can tell you the movement uses transfer gears to run the second hand (I called the maker when I received your first mail about this)." Has anyone who already purchased this model compared it to the gen? Is the seconds hand noticeably more "jumpy" on the rep in comparison to the gen? Perhaps they're both like that! I tried on a gen a few months ago at a local casino. I honestly don't remember much about the seconds hand, but then again, I wasn't consciously looking for problems with the watch either.

You're right. Hacking it would still stop the chrono seconds. Someone's just going to have to take one apart to get a real answer. Or, someone could just ask Angus...

I believe the maker claimed the 7750 was necessary in order to put the datewheel in the correct place near the edge of the dial. However, the makers of the $100 version somehow managed to accomplish that using the smaller 21J Asian movement. For the price, it should really have at least a 2824 in it. The gen uses a new derivation of the Valjoux 7750 known as the "Valgranges" movement, so the Asian 7750 would be the closest movement to the genuine. I think the real problem here is in the execution, not so much with the A7750 movement itself.

I hear what you're saying, but I think the second hand problems could just as well be caused by a poorly executed transfer gear powered by the 9 o'clock seconds subdial. The jerkiness symptom people are describing has been compared to the IWC porto chrono. That model uses transfer gears to run the second hand off the 9 o'clock subdial as well. If the chrono module is removed from the movement of the XL, I don't know how they'd get the chrono seconds function to run. Is it possible to hack the seconds on the XL? If not, that lends support to your theory (i.e. the chrono function runs constantly, independent of the movement). If the seconds do hack, I think it lends support to mine (i.e. the seconds are powered by the 9 o'clock subdial, which does hack on a standard 7750).

Has The Zigmeister or anyone else actually examined this model and determined that the second hand is, in fact, running off the chrono function?. Logically, I can't figure out how that would work. If the second hand is running off the chrono, then wouldn't it be completely independent of the rest of the movement? I thought the whole chrono module was supposed to be removed from the movement in this watch. Isn't it more likely that the second hand is running off it's normal 9 o'clock position through the use of a transfer gear? Perhaps the problem is with the alignment/design/lubrication of this new transfer gear mechanism? If that's the case, then perhaps it can be fixed? What are the Panerai's with the same movement like?

It should be VERY simple. The case and bracelet on the current Mark XV rep are actually the correct size and lug width for the Mark XVI. All they would need to do is rep the dial and hands. I think the gen even uses the standard ETA black datewheel. Of course, they royally farked up the XV, so why should they get the XVI right?

Holy rubbish. Now I know what people mean by "sunken datewheel"! Is the gen that bad too?

I noticed that the $100 version is in its second generation, which uses a 7750 as well (with an engraved rotor). The fatal flaw in the $100 version is the wrong color date wheel. But aside from that, it's going to be hard to justify charging that much more for this new version unless it offers something significantly more than a corrected date wheel. The stickers on the rotor will not help either.

Where is the Chopard already available? What is the price???

I appreciate all the input from everyone, but no one has really responded to my actual question. Two different dealers have specifically told me that they expect a price drop in early April. One dealer even told me thirty days ago that I should not buy it because they price would be dropping. Now that 30 days has passed, I'm wondering when it's going to happen and what will be the new price. Right now it looks like $389 - $450 or so is the price range for the SS. Has anyone else heard anything from our dealers?

More than one dealer has told me that a price drop on the HBB is "just around the corner." With the release of the new ceramic versions, and the HBB's becoming available from more dealers, it looks like this is beginning to happen. Has anyone else heard anything about how much the price will drop, and when it will happen?

Thanks for the tips The Zigmeister. There's just one thing I don't understand. I have not even attempted to remove the movement, but it appears to fit very snug in the case. I simply don't understand how it's physically possible to remove the movement with the two chrono buttons still attached. I would think there should be a way to remove the two buttons BEFORE the movement could even be removed from the case. Am I missing something here? I should note that this is the SS version of the GST. There's a great thread by Takashi on RWI explaining how to decase the GST movement. However, Takashi had the Ti version of the watch. In his photos, it's clear that the chrono buttons on the Ti version use a different mounting scheme. They are clearly part of the case itself. On the SS version, the buttons are separate and can fall off. See the attached photo of my watch.

I got the caseback off. That wasn't too hard, although the rubber ring popped off with it. Not sure if that will cooperate when I try to re-install the caseback. Looking at the movement, I can see the pins from the bottom. I tried using a tool to hold the pin steady while I screw the button on, but it is very difficult. I cannot get the button all the way on the pin. It is still far too loose. Is there a trick to installing these buttons? I fear that if I keep going without some guidance, I risk damaging the watch.

Richard, Thanks for the prompt and informative reply! I'm no watchsmith, but I think I can handle getting the caseback off. I assume all I need is a caseback remover and a pair of tweezers to hold the pin? Both were included in my el-cheapo watch repair kit.

After much begging, I finally got a replacement chrono button for the one I lost on my GST. Now I just need to figure out how to install it! The post on the watch is obviously threaded, but I can't figure out how to get the button on there. When I twist the button to screw it onto the metal post, the metal post twists along with it! Is there a trick to this? Do I have to dis-assemble the watch to get this re-installed?

Are you serious? Do packages shipped to China get stolen/confiscated that often? I'm shipping from the US to China. I thought the USPS required foreign post offices to take precautions with Priority Mail packages. If they don't comply, the USPS refuses to ship Priority to any of those countries. Has anyone had a Priority package to China go missing?

Why would there be a legal issue sending a gen (or even a rep) watch to China from the US???

What is the common wisdom on the best method to ship a watch back to China for repair? I had a watch with an ETA movement stop dead after wearing it for just 8 days. The dealer says to send it back and he'll replace the movement. I was planning to ship back only the watch head (no bracelet) in one of those flat-rate USPS Global Priority Mail envelopes (costs about $5 US). I've used this shipping method dozens of times before (admittedly not for a watch and never to China). It takes about 5-8 days to reach most countries and has so far been 100% reliable for me. I was going to write "Broken watch for repair" on the customs form, with a value of $20. Is this the best way to go about this?