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Well I finaly got around to re-stitching my Maratec strap with blue thread. I ordered the 277 and the 415 string from Thread Exchange in two different colors. I could only get the Royal Blue in 415 and I had to get the Bluebird in 277 as they don't offer it in 415. After looking at both the Royal Blue was more the color I was going after but the thread itself did not look like the 277 thread. The 277 looks more like braided string which is typicly used on watch straps and the 415 looks like just string if that makes sense. So here are the quick and dirty pics, sorry they look like crap I am at work without a decent camera or lighting.

ANy links to this 'Tatty" velcro strap?

I was not aware of the problems with the Vector, a friend of mine had one through 4 operational deployments and never complained of any of thoes issues. You could always go to a G-Shock Pathfinder which has the compass and is solar powered meaning no batteries to worry about.

http://www.suuntowatches.com/Suunto-Vector.pro That would be my pick if I was going backpacking in a 3rd world country. Bulletproof, built in compass, Alt. & Bar. Not flashy enough to draw unwanted attention but nice enough to barter with if push comes to shove.

Here are my thoughts. If you spend your money on a rep for extreme activities you are basicly asking for trouble. Kind of like the guys asking about bringing a rep out diving then get mad when they were supposed to have 5 more min in their tank only to realize the tank if empty. If you are going into 3rd world countries what are you going to do if your rep breaks? Even with an ETA inside of it what are the chances of finding a watchsmith with both the parts and skills to fix it? So unless you bring a few reps to swap out as they break you will be there wishing you bought a clunky piece of plastic. Trust me I have been there and done that...nothing and I mean nothing beats a G Shock when it comes to taking abuse. For $150 you can get a rep that might give up the ghost in a few weeks or you could get a Casio that your great, great, great grandchild could be wearing that same $150.00 G Shock 100 years from now.

If you are looking for something that can take a beating there is no other way to go. Casio G-Shock or a Suunto, for wilderness the Suunto Vector would be great with the compass and altimeter built in. For rough use you shouldn't have to look any further than what the guys in theater are wearing. If it can handle a war zone it should suffice in non hostile enviroments. To be perfectly honest a Gen B&R, Breitling, Omega, ect..ect.. can not hold a candle to the G Shocks or Suuntos when it comes to hard use. Moreover I would never expect a rep of one to even come close. I think I spent $65.00 for my G Shock 6 years ago and it is still going strong, a few scars that add character, but it has been through some pretty rough $hit and it just keeps asking for more.

Has anyone put this to the test on an out of the box Davidsen Pam? I know 3 atm is not that much but should be good enough for swimming.

I don't think drilling it out will work, the screw is bigger than any pin you could probably find. It IS a screw which is not true to gen, gen should have pins not screws. I think the best approach would be to contact one of the dealers, they might be able to source you a new bracelet. The other option would be to get the bracelet free from the half link. Then you could use a dremel to cut up the 1/2 link enough to allow you to get a set of needle nose pliers on the screw to back it out.

Looks great. Wayyy better than the V1 finish. On a side not where did you get that strap?

Thanks guys. That puts my mind at ease. I was thinking I did it wrong as the gen crystal went in alot easier than I thought it would. On a side note the gen crystal does wonders for the watch. It is night and day I can't stop looking at it. I know chief's AR makes the crystal dissapear but I love the indago hue the gen crystal throws onto the dial. It really makes the dial pop.

Last night I swapped out my rep crystal for the gen crystal on my UPO. I know there is a white ring (not sure of the correct term) on the rep crystal which stayed in the case when I removed the rep crystal. All I did was put the gen crystal on the case and pressed it in. Now I am wondering was I supposed to take the white plastic ring out and put it onto the crystal before I pressed the new one in or is the way I did it ok?

Never really been into Airsoft as being from the US I can and do own the real thing I would suggest looking for something based on the M4/AR-15 platform. Most of the higher end airsoft rifles are based on the real deal and as such the M4 is the easiest and most egronomical platform I have ever used. Not bulky, easy to reach controls, lightweight(in comparison), and compact for easy manuverability. On top of that the M4 platform, even in airsoft, is a very popular weapon that easily lends itself to modifications. For example they make a copy of the AN/PEQ's(IR laser and illuminator) that you can attach to the forearm rails which contains an extra battery pack for the gun, they also make a copy of the SOPMOD stock which houses batteries for the gun as well. With a flat top your sight options are limitless you could use Airsoft knock off scopes / red dots all the way up to the real deal.

I would think that the blob lume dots that are not lined up inside of the lines on the Skyland would be far easier to catch than the pearl on the SOSF. I compared my SOSF side by side to a gen and the lume markers on the dial are pretty good on the rep, well on the rep I recieved at least. You are correct. The list today is totaly different than the list from a year ago, as such the list a year or even 6 months from now will be different from the one we are all thinking about now.

Ebel 1911 Discovery Omega SMP Chrono Breitling SOSF Breitling SO Heritage Thats just off the top of my head

While not great this is 200% better than the Red's original rep. http://www.jpc8118.com/00omde01001-hour-vi...836-p-4473.html

Update: Well I recieved the strap and it looks great on my watch. I also recieved 2 different blue threads from Thread Exchange Now I have hit a wall on the transition. The thread that is in the strap now looks like braided thread, very similar if not the same as kite string. The thread I recieved from Thread Exchange does not look like the braided thread. Anyone know where to pick up colored kite string?

How do you determin the thread size? I have been using my google fu to find the thread but not being able to hold them both in my hand to compare I will need to figure out how to order the proper size. Also I am seeing waxed thread. It seems like that would be the way to go considering the hell I will be putting this strap through. So should I go waxed or unwaxed?

Well I think the fascination is two fold. One, how far ahead of the times they were with both weapons and aircraft design. Two, what they could have been capable of had the war dragged out a bit longer. Some of the weapons and aircraft they were designing could have turned the tide of the war in their favor, and when found a good bit of this experimental arsenal was pretty close to completion. Lets say the war did not end when it did and some of these weapons had been put to use, we could all be speaking German. On the other hand this experimental weapons program could have very well been the fall of Hitler's Germany. When you put too much time, effort, research, and hope into experimental weapons maybe you start to loose sight of fighting the battle of today with today's technology. Maybe they got that "in 6 months when the _______ is ready we will use it to make up for our shortcomings today" mentality....that 6 months just did not come fast enough.

I don't think the stitching will be too difficult. My grandmother was a professional seamstress and I did manage to pick up a thing or two from her. The main problem I am having is finding the proper thread. Are there any online places where I can buy thread made for things like this?

I just ordered a Maratac Elite strap for one of my tool watches. http://www.broadarrow.net/elitesamp2.jpg However, and it must be my luck...errr lack there of, they do not make it with blue stitching which would match the blue dial on my watch. I went ahead and ordered the one with white stitching with the thinking that maybe a blue sharpie could help me turn white to blue. THe more I am thinking about it this will be subjected to sweat, regular water, saltwater, and who knows what else. I am thinking it would only be a matter of time before the blue sharpie looses its luster. Next idea.... Why not just pull the white thread out and replace it with blue myself. So anyone have any clue as to how hard this could be?? More importantly anyone know where I could source some blue thread that would be good to use for a watch strap. Thanks

I will admit up until just now I never cared for the Datejust and Day/Date style. This one is very nice looking. Just asking because it very well could be the pictures and their respective angle, on the rep the space between the black "Chapter Ring", if you can call it that, and the rehaut. It seems to be a wider space than on the gen. Again I am asking because it could be the pictures but the gen looks like there is a very small probably less than 1mm between the black and the rehaut?? Still stunning watch just the right mix of class and sporty

You know I never thought of that when it came to our rep trade. I know I buy and sell guns in the US which have to be shipped, I always state their value and insure them for almost double their acctual value. If someone paid me for the item I have to have enough insurance to give them their money back, then I also need enough insurance to either make what I wanted to make in the sale or replace the item itself so that I am not left ass out. For example you sell a $400 super rep for $350. Now you have to insure the package for $750.00 plus any and all shipping cost meaning what it would cost to have another $400 rep shipped to you from a dealer ~$30, plus the shipping you just paid for. SO you would really have to insure that $350 sale for close to $800 to cover all cost involved if the package is lost.

You are correct, however I think as it applies here it means anywhere that the package does not have to go through customs so Hawaii and Alaska are included. I know as a buyer I would prefer a US sale for less risk and quicker transit times. As a seller I would also prefer a US based sale for the same reasons. From a sellers prospective when I sell something I want it to get to the buyer and I want them to be happy, even if they fully accepted any customs risk I think I would still feel partly obligated if anything were to happen to the package. With that, while the buyer may have accepted the risk 100%, it would still be a risk for me as I would be compeled to make some form of gesture to make things right. As stated earlier I can mail a package to anywhere in the US from my desk, leave it with my secretary and it would be on its way. Shipping outside of the US requires me to use up well over an hour of my time driving to the post office, standing in line, and trying to explain to the post man that I need a customs form to send a package outside of the US. On a side note I think you will find alot of the people that put CONUS or EU only in their sales add would be willing to accomodate shipping outside of their comfort zone. For example if I had something marked CONUS only and someone from EU pm'ed wanting to buy it. If they were someone who has been here a while and knows full well what they are risking(customs seizure, long transit time, lost package) I would not have a problem with it. I think the fact that I put CONUS in my add would discourage all of the noob's from other countries from trying to buy it if that makes sense. How many times have we seen noobs initiate paypal disputes and start threads on here complaining and bashing people over things like customs seizures or lost packages and or long transit times. I know if I purchase something from over seas I am looking at atleast 7 days and I would not really be worried until I started to get closer to 20 or so days. Some people start freaking out if more than 3 or 4 days pass.

redwatch - I own a PC not a Mac....why do I feel as if I am starting out at a disadvantage?? teebs - any suggestions on the software. Thats mainly what I need, getting the camcorder hooked up to the computer is the easy part, the hard part is making it all work. zzipy - Thanks for the link lots of helpful info there

I have a Panasonic Mini DV Camcorder. To run it to the TV there is a simple stereo jack that has RCA's for audio and video on the other end. I am trying to figure out how to get the things I have recorded on the mini dv tapes onto my computer. My son has started walking and we have been videoing the crap out of him. I would like to get the videos onto my computer so we can send them to my mother in law. I know the camcorder has a mini usb plug on it that resembles the plug on my blackberry and most motorola phones. I have not tried to hook it up to the computer yet but I may use my blackberry's USB cable to try it tonight. Anyone have any idea how this works?