DeeKa

Yepp fathers and sons...

Myfather gave me the vintage BMW when I had my license fresh as this one had the best craftmenship of metal around me - a car you can buy, a son not.

When marrying I asked for this car to be my wedding car as in early summer even in Germany you can hope for the open cabrio roof.

Two years later he sold it without even asking me if I would like to buy it...

Dee

Wooohooo!

Faster than the gen factory

Looks extremely promising.

I think the most complex part will be to crown and tube...

Dee

Oh, back in time, they had nice ads...

Dee

Use a loupe to magnify and then take a picture...

Dee

To make it easy, take the best loupe you have and count the dots in the coronet.

Compare it to this picture I took from a gen 2002 Ex1 - I used a Microscope

Also compare the overall dimensions of the single parts - in no area the dots are so close together that they build a line or solid area...

Dee

OK, pictures show it's not a gen...

The coronet is far too big!

Dee

To be honest the TD section might not be that easy to find since the section is called:

Watches, Clothing & Accessories

It would be easer if it maybe was named "Trusted Dealers" or something. That might help the new members.

+1

Dee

though many aftermarkets have the laser etching @ 6, so this is not a reliable indicator

But does any of these have correct size?

Dee

V1 to me looks more closed mouth and not as sharp.

V2 is too open mouth for me but has sharper outlines.

Dee

Take a lightsource to the side of the crystal and a good loupe.

Expect to search some minutes as the gen coronets are really small.

Dee

Oh crap, I want one of those so bad! Bakelite bezel? Tell me more. That dial is unreal good. Swiss rather than -T<25 must mean service dial? You are the GMT Master!

Nope, still a rep as it has drunken X! Would be with first series 1675...

Also the famous exclamation mark dials were only marked swiss.

Apart of the X extremely nice

Dee

44 is default Rolex replacement case number range!

So most probably a gen replacement case...

Dee

Not neccesarily as also Rolex still provides replacement cases which have a different serial number range...

Dee

I'm more of a NATO guy when it comes to my Rolexes, do you have any pictures of one on a light brown croc?

As I never had a TT 1675 I can't help you there...

Dee

I always thought my 16600 would be the watch I never sell, but due to some unforseeable events it left me even before other gens I like to sell...

Now I don't know and think I will flip around a little - but I'm pretty sure this little eyecandy will stay for long.

Dee

While sorting a bit my watch related literature I stumbled over the 2007 Rolex presskit of Baselworld and thought it would give a nice background for a quick shot...

Dee

Great deal - congrats!

If it shows that salvaging the bracelet is too much for you, others will try and this one also looks extremely good on a light brown croc strap!

Dee

Looks nice, I have not really paid much attention to the Roles DD reps but the black dial is really classy. It looks like you have a bracelet screw about to fall out in pics 3 and 4, I'd hate for you to loose it...

That's why I wrote "Just as usual on reps I had to fasten a few screws as one was just starting to pop out."

I wouldn't wear a rep out of the box without controlling all bracelet screws

Dee

VRF is safer than eBay or average Forum. Every post is moderated before listed, making it hard for reps to slip through. Still, do your homework.

If you are new to VRF the posts get moderated, but once contributing and reaching member status they will be listed immediately.

Nevertheless there are a lot of eyes looking at the offers and informing the mods as soon as something is not correct.

Dee

On the search for some reps to replace my gen collection I picked the Day-Date platinum version as the plain bezel and steel optics have a decent look. Some say it's easy to spot, but when I compare my platinum wedding ring, I can't see a difference to steel. Now the selection of the dial was not as easy. I don't like most moden dials which in my opinion are too overloaded. The current black dial with black numbers was my favourite until I saw this dial at a sellers website who didn't offer UK triangle shipping. It was the laquer version of the old 1803 onyx dial without any numbering or markers.

As I decided to order from Andrew (www.yourtrustytime.com) I dropped him a mail if he could source this dial and two hours later I got positive response. So I ordered the DD and a vintage Milgauss with UK shipping to Germany on Feb. 24th at 1 pm and payed via Paypal.

48 hours later I had the QC pics in my mail showing a clean watch with an amplitude of 299 and +/- 0 seconds per day. From one picture I wasn't sure about the date window framing being scratched but after some analysis of the lighting position I decided this came from a reflection which finally proved to be true.

As also the pictures ov the Milgauss were fine I gave the ok for shipping.

Tracking showed mext day posting and the way to the UK. With a day for re-packing and posting on March 7th I recieved the new tracking information and on March 13th the delivery was on my door.

18 days from order to the door is not bad if you take the slow intra-european shipping into account.

Safely packaged in a styrofoam box, in this wrapped in bubblefoil the two watches were further more individually packaged in a small plastiv bag and in this wrapped in plastic. So not much possibility for any damage.

I took the outer measures while wrapped as the lathe has really sharp edges, unwrapped it and put it on the scale.

The weight will be the most obvious thing to tell it's a rep as it's only 122g directly followed by the allpresent etched crown.

Also the markings on the bottom and in the caseback are not matching the model - markings declare it as a 18k gold watch while the smooth bezel clearly shows it as platinum model.

After unwrapping I opened the back to inspect the movement, a bit unneccessary as the second hand movement showed the correct asian ETA sweep speed, but I like to look at the movements of my watches. A bit strange wascto find a lot of little particles on the casebeck which looked like a blasting media. I wiped them from the caseback and found just one on the movement which I blew off. It seems that for this watch I should schedule a service to remove possible further media from the movement

The back closed again I adjusted time and day and put on the watch - the bracelet was a perfect fit out of the box. Just as usual on reps I had to fasten a few screws as one was just starting to pop out.

Now I have to observe if the timekeeping is as good as the QC measurement stated, but I think it will easily be within chrono level...

With costs of $240.50 incl. shipping it's surely not one of the cheapest reps, but compared to the gen with more than €45K a true bargain, even if in the combination with this dial a gen doesn't exist.

Anyway, for me it's pure eyecandy!

Dee

Today they're using solid links which gives them a heavier more expensive feel and also lasts longer.

I doubt that it lasts longer.

If a bracelet breaks the connecting pins are worn out but not the middle links.

The heavier the complete watch, the more wear it will produce to the pins...

Dee

Even on some gens the crown is a little off, so align the cyclops.

Dee

On the first attempt just lower the prices on this page by 50% to get him flooded with orders.

Dee

I prefer the first one - the color combination of the dial is great!

And for the second dial - structured dials as the sunburst or the tapestry are great!

Dee

Oooo flip out chainsaw!!! and 10,000 meter water resistance.

11035 meters to be in the safe side - the Mariana trench is 11034 and the ocean level might rise another meter

Dee