andreww

To all my friends and to the management of RWG, I wish a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

That really is a beauty, just wish my wrist was big enough.

Adding ram won't void the warranty. Don't buy ram from apple, but be careful what you buy. Macs can be extremely fussy about ram, and it can cause some annoying issues.

Is it a stop watch?

gen

Not sure what you mean by that FM. As far as I know the UPO uses the same Tap 10 stem as the gen.

Timewalker chrono has been on my "list" for quite a while now. I really think that it is an awesome design, the only MB that I would even consider. I think that a lot of members have a stigma about the sunken datewheel issue on the modified 7750 watches however, and no matter how good it is, it will never be a big seller.

Well I made it through the first day without winding. Took a little self control when I looked at my box last night and saw that two of my autos had ground to a halt. I threw on my Navitimer and played about two hours of guitar, mostly Alex Lifeson riffs, so it should be good for a few days. Then I quenched my "winding addiction" by throwing on my manual wind 192 for today at the office. I keep telling myself I can do this!

yeah, I'm well aware of Zig's "the surgeon general" warnings about winding. But, like smoking, its a tough habit to break.

Nope. The SA V1 could accept a gen bezel very easily as the bezel screws were functional like the gen. The new V2 has a press fit bezel like the Skyland and the bezel screws are just for decoration. So much for J&A's claim that all parts are interchangeable with the gen

I've been collecting automatic reps for five or six years now and my collection is at about a dozen watches. My main watchbox has six slots that are filled (my daily worn pieces) plus the one on my wrist makes seven. For a number of years I have been hand winding each of these watches before bed every night to ensure that whatever piece strikes my fancy is always at the ready. I've not had any movement issues as of yet, but I am constantly noticing the screw downs on the crowns are getting less and less reliable (especially the Omegas). I've decided that its time to put an end to this destructive behavior, and have vowed to leave all my watches to grind to a halt. I will choose the next day's watch every evening and bring it to life with a gentle shake, and adjust the date and time. Something tells me that this behavior pattern may be a lot harder to kick than I think, but I see it as "tough love". Hopefully I'll be increasing the lifespan of these watches, but only time will tell. I'll let you know how things work out. Anybody else kicked the habit?

I believe it screws on. There should be threads on the end of the rod that is sticking out of the case, and internal threads inside the pusher. Take it to a watchsmith if you cant manage it, should be an easy fix.

I think the datewindow is a big giveaway on this one. Note only is the datewheel sunken (expected as Italiano pointed out) but its quite a bit smaller than the gen. I was checking out the gen on Friday and the date stands out because it is big and easily readable. This was to be expected, if you have seen what the front of the modified 7750 looks like you'd know why. Aside from that unavoidable issue I really think they've done a great job with this one. I do believe that the dial should be a "true" white though.

I've yet to see any rep pearl that even comes close to the gen. Omegas are always too low. Some of the new Breits look fairly good, but when compared side by side they never look perfect. When I study gens, I always note how perfect the pearls are, especially on Breits. The edges and fit of the crystals are always perfect. Rep crystals always have rough edges and are sometime not set level.

Awesome watch, congrats!

I get a lot of PMs and answer them all. Usually get a thank you as well. The only PMs I get tired of are the ones for TrustyWatchguy that are mistakenly sent to me. I answer those as well though

The inserts DO pop out, especially in water. The crowns strip frequently. My PO's have been my most troublesome watches.

Actually, the stock is one of my jewelers screwdrivers. Basically, I cut off the head then about half the handle. Mounted that in the chuck of my dremel and began shaping it. Once shaped, I cut off the end bit and then punched out what was left of the screwdriver tip. Kind of a waste of a screwdriver, but they are precision made with the hole absolutely centered. Good steel as well.

Thanks Hyster, I used steel and made sure that I left it brushed. On such a small piece you can't see the difference. Titanium is very hard, which is the reason I gave up trying to drill the bezel a little deeper. Also, something that I discovered, the cleaned titanium instantly begins to turn black when epoxy is applied. It was very important to get the pearl to fit snugly into the recessed area, as any gap looked awful with the blackened epoxy peaking through.

Chrono Avenger for both days.

Here is what the pearl looked like Here is the modified pearl Its not 100% but its much better than it was. Unfortunately the recessed hole in the bezel is very shallow on this model, so the entire pearl assembly ends up being less than 1mm deep. Even at that it sits a little high, but until I get some more precise tools, its as good as its going to get.

I've been wanting a Graham for years but feel that these oversized versions are too big for my wrist. Hopefully they will rep the 42mm versions sometime soon.

I have used one of those LCD screen wipes on a Planet Ocean dial and it worked quite well. I assume its some kind of alcohol based product as it evaporates quite quickly and doesn't leave any residue. Worth a try.

Just wanted to relate a couple of experiences I recently had. Story 1 I've owned a Panerai 192 Tantalium for about three years and have worn it quite regularly to the office. I received a few favorale compliments on it when I first got it, but nothing in at least three and a half years. After recently having the great thrill of being able to try on the genuine 192 (Only 300 of these in the world) I immediately began searching for a strap similar to the camel colored deployant that was on the gen. I had no luck, in fact I'd actually been keeping my eyes open for one of these for years, until I was contacted by a kindhearted RepGeek who happened to remember that I was searching for this strap. He had found a beautiful Toscana, exactly what I was looking for, and actually ended up purchasing it and shipping it to me (what a great community we have!). Anyway, after taking the opportunity to polish the bezel, I mounted the strap and wore it to work the next day. Within a couple of hours a colleague commented to me that my 192 was the nicest watch that he had ever seen me wear! Story 2 My Breitling Chrono Avenger V2 is a watch that I've owned for about two and a half years. Never received a comment on this one even though it has been worn quite regularly. Recently I decided that I could no longer live with the oversized crappy looking pearl. The pearl is a glaring tell on this particular model, so I ripped it out and started from scratch. Using my Dremel as a makeshift lathe I constructed and installed 3 different pearls before I finally got it to where I was happy with it. During its construction I took many trips to the AD to study the genuine. While there I became aware of several other subtle differences, mostly on the bezel. Crispness of the rider tabs, incorrectly polished areas, and the direction of brushed surfaces were the things I paid attention to in particular. After each visit I would apply what I had seen to my rep, using flat files, sandpapers, and my trust Dremel. Today was the Chrono Avengers maiden outing after it's makeover and while Christmas shopping in a sporting goods store over the lunch hour I was approached by a young sales clerk who immediately said "that is a beautiful Breitling you have there". So there you have it, two watches that have garnered no attention in years of combined use only to be immediately noticed after some very subtle modifications. I have always been the kind of guy that could live with minor flaws, but I'm beginning to realize that sometimes these little imperfections can keep a good looking watch from being a great looking watch! Maybe others, even though the may know nothing about a particular model, may be able to sense what is wrong in a watch's design? Anybody else had a similar experience?

I agree that chargebacks should be a last resort, but if the dealer refuses to do anything about this, what option does he have? The "B" is a minor issue IMO, but if he want to sell the watch at some point its value will surely be impacted. The "B" is important enough to be listed as one of the selling points of the watch, so if its wrong, it should be fixed. Filing a chargeback may have its own repercussions however. judging by the price I can only assume that it came from J or A, so doing a chargeback may get you blacklisted from any of the cartel dealers. Also, if you are not careful, a chargeback can cause problems for our whole community. If the dealer doesn't make this right however, you have my blessing.