RWG Technical

Oh great, now you put the pressure on me and made me nervous... thanks... Applying lume can be learned, but it's a steep and costly learning curve. I ruined more than one dial before I got the hang of it, and I would conservativly state that it took me a good number of dials before I really started to develop the sills I have now, over many months of practice. If Noctiluma was so great, it would be used by the genuine manufactures, I know of none that use it... I would say it took me a year before I felt I knew what I was really doing. TWP stated that he ruined 70 dials before he got it right...economics would say it's sometimes better to leave certain things to others to do. Sure I can work on my car, but do I really want to spend the whole day in the yard, or pay someone to do it for me, with all the correct tools, etc... while I ride my motorcycle and enjoy myself... I'll opt for the motorcycle ride. RG

Wrong. This is NOT the stuff I use, so don't make statements when you don't know the facts. I have always, and will continue to use, the same product the genuine watches use - Super Luminova. There is a reason you only see "L Swiss L" on dials and not "N Swiss N", it's called quality, you get what you pay for... RG

I would never consider myself a master of anything, there is always something to learn. But my hat is tipped to you for offering, and continuing to offer, USA based members, quality work and your skills. Your lume application is amazing. I am glad I could lend you a hand when you needed it, it was a pleasure. RG

Well with only that to go on, I'll offer the following: The crowns on the 3717 are poorly made, weak stem spring, as such they tend to not engage the stem very well. Time setting seems to not be a big problem, because your pulling on the crown, winding and changing the day/date, can be a problem if the crown is loose. So this could be the cause. Second problem is the date/day changeover gear on the Asian 7750, it is problematic. It's a design problem, and I have had many issues with them when servicing the watch. Sometimes pulling from the winding to the datechange position on the crown engages it, other times you have to pull the crown to the time setting position, then back to the date one to get it to work. These are REPS after all, and can, and do, experience problems...it's normal... Stephane may have been referring to you, but he used the term "masters" which as far as I am concerned, includes me. So I will wait for the response by he who makes the statement. RG

Please give us examples so that the members of RWG will not get scammed by the supposed "masters" of RWG... Making statements without backing them up, is pure BS, go ahead and give us the examples please. RG

Impossible to move the date disk closer to the dial on the modified Asian 7750(3). The three transfer gears for the 30 minute subdial are above the datewheel, you can't move it up, since the gears are in the way... Date disks are not interchangeable between movement calipers, they are all unique. RG

I think your right, I can't keep board names and email names straight either... RG

Not a problem...now let me think...what can I do to YOUR watch next time it passes throught the shop...he he he...the evil mind of a watchmaker...there is always a way... You would think it would be simple to remember the orientation of a CG, but I can't keep it straight. It turned out great in the end, I just have to paint over the cut off T Swiss T. RG

Not with a Asian 7750 as the engine, it can't be done. I think $300 for a ETA 7753 would be a steal, they are at least double that price if not more nowdays. This is a ETA7753, not a 7750 (which tends to be lower priced). RG

Ok, understood. I am not sure either if this gap is too large or not, wheather on the sides, or on the top and bottom. It does look much better though with the gen dial. I am still amazed that the dial and datewindow even come close to fitting and lining up, since the gen uses an in-house specialty movement. The fact that the dial feet line up perfectly, and the datewindow does work, is still a surprise to me. @ lordrasta One is on it's way to me soon for that exact upgrade (along with a dial etc), I have not had success installing gen omega bezels on reps in the past, but will soon know if it can be done on this model...stay tuned. RG

Very sorry to hear this tragic news. My condolances to you during this difficult time. RG

It's called using a watchmaker who can only specialize in so many things...meaning I can never figure out what direction to put these CG's on...handwinds up, auto's down...but not on all models... Of course everyone else knows how the CG goes on but me, but then again, I have the breakdown of every movement and the assembly procedures, and oiling charts, and specs locked in my memory banks. I guess there is no room left for anything else. And yes, the "T SWISS T" did get cut off, as I had to modify the dial to get it to fit into this case. As with the CG, I never noticed this, since there was no choice on how to assemble the dial and bezel ring. We'll come up with a solution to that issue, maybe cover it up, or something else...fix one item, create another one to correct. RG

Since I assembled it, I'll add my input. There is no gap between the datewheel and the dial, no more so than you would have on the genuine watch. You have the movement, the dial spacer, and then the dial, the same as on the gen. There is always a gap between the dial and the datewheel, otherwise the datewheel would hang up. But installing the genuine dial, does not add a larger gap between it and the datewheel. Another rumour put to rest RG

I remember that post, nothing like throwing it in someone's face. I would like nothing better than to see quality work being offered. Unfortunatly vaccum seems to be the only person I know who did his homework and learned the basics of the trade, before offering his services. I have to say, I have never heard of or saw anything bad come out of vaccum's shop...so it can be done, good work at a fair price - that is if greed is not the deciding factor. RG

Great review ssurfer. @ watchbuff As far as I know, the gen in lumed, including the orange one, here's one I lumed, sorry I didn't get a glow shot, although it's glows like the rest, greenish... As for how to go about luming it, either you do it yourself, or you get someone to do it for you. If you have never lumed, best to have someone do it for you. RG

Thanks, that's better... RG

Really great post. The really important part I would add, is that it takes a lot of research to know if certain genuine parts will fit the rep. Some parts fit without any modification at all, others need slight to major modification to fit, and other parts dont' fit at all, no matter what you do to them. Generally Omega parts (hands, dials, bracelets) fit without any modifications, certainly this is true on the PO series. I have installed a number of Gen dials, and they slip right over the movement and fit the case perfectly. The crowns and tubes can be replaced with gen ones, but require a fair bit of work to get them to fit. When it comes to other brands, it's anyone's guess of what will fit and what won't. As soon as you have to modify the gen parts to fit the rep, your resale possibility is gone. This would be the case with most rollie parts, dials etc, as well as Breitlings, some dials need to be modded to fit the rep case. Someone who is considering upgrading their watch, has to do a lot of research, and understand that some of the gen parts may not fit, even if someone else did the mod successfully. Even among identical watches, there are differences...don't expect your modder to know if your mod is possible, until he tries it out. RG

I have not gone any further into the watch, it was also lumed, so I am curious to see what I find when I take the movement out. This is only a heads up for members to ask questions and make sure that their watch isn't returned to them damaged following modding. Posting feedback is also important to keep the membership informed and protected. @ Stephane I was trying to figure out what happened to the post and why it's so wide...now I see the reason. It would be a big help if you made your signature no wider than X 800, any wider and it messes up trying to fit the post on the screen. As for the photo's, gone are the days in using a loupe on the end of my compact camera. My set up is very simple. I use an Olympus E-500, and the lens is a Macro 35mm (digital effective of 70mm), the camera settings are jpg at 1280X960. This allows me to shoot at the magnification I want to show on the forum, and each picture is cropped to fit a template of 800 X 700 since this size is perfect for posting on the forum. I shoot under my watchmaker bench lamp (colour corrected flourescent), and I always custom set the white balance before shooting to compensate for the colour problems of the flourescent light. The pictures you see are at 1/4-1/2 of the close up capability of the lens, it can focus at 14mm, or 1/2", simply amazing close ups. RG

Time to open our eyes to what is being done to some of our watches. Members of RWG need to start asking some questions before they send out their watch for mods and upgrades. I see more and more watches that have been worked on by hacks, people who have no clue as to what they are doing. Sure these modders can relume a sandwich or a normal dial. Reluming a sandwich dial is quite simple, a normal dial takes a lot more skill and practice (I guess this justifies the outrageous prices asked). The lume application is not the problem, although you have to ask yourself how someone who has been luming for all of a few weeks or months, prices themselves at a rate higher than professional shops like Everest Watchworks...interesting to say the least. The problems I see constantly is the lack of basic watchsmithing skills and knowledge. I have seen this before, RBJ being a fine example of someone who never bothered to educate himself, and caused more damage to watches from mishandling and mis-assembling, and lack of cleanliness (some damage was visible to the owner, most only visible with the caseback off). Owners who's watches failed after a RBJ shop visit, simply attributed the failure on the fact that they had a rep, and never made the association with the poor workmanship. RBJ did try and portray himself as a watchmaker by posting a movement servicing that his "friend" did up for the forum. Although he did indicate that this was his "friend's" workmanship and that his friend was a watchmaker, he never corrected member comments who though RBJ was the one doing the movement teardown and assembly. All part of the scheme to fool the masses, it worked, and continues to work today. The basic problem is that in order to lume a dial, or do any other work that requires disassembling a watch, you require basic watchmaking knowledge and skills. The knowledge I am referring to is the standards of workmanship, cleanliness, movement handling, what to do and what not to do, what to be cautious of and not, how to take a movement out of the case, hand removal and installation, tool use, etc, etc. What is happening is that these folks don't have (and probably don't want to spend the time learning) these basic skills. A finger in the wrong location while handing a movement can un-do the servicing and oiling, not to mention the acid on your fingers that burns into the movement over time. If you don't think that you need skills and knowledge to take a watch apart and re-assemble it for a simple job like lume, without causing some serious damage, then that fact alone tells me that you yourself are not knowledgeable in watchmaking. So please, if your going to send your watch out for mods, ask some questions, and ask for references. Here is an example of what I see all the time. And for those who think that I am trying to "out" the competition, as in the past - your totally wrong. As it stands, my days of working on these watches are numbered. See my signature... Have a look at the Set Lever screw, used to release the stem, if the modder can cause so much damage to something as simple as a screw, think of what they do to the rest of the watch. BOTH CG attachment screws were stripped. New crown installed, but too far from the case, it should be flush. As a result, the CG lever was cut down to a stub. This makes installation of the crown where it should be impossible, the CG lever is now too short. CG lever upgrade?? the old silicone in the hole trick, gone bad. Isn't this lovely, nice bend in the CG cutout from the poor workmanship of the forcing the pin in place. Here's the reason for the bend in the CG... Now what about that crown installation. Common watchmaking tells up to just keep adding "o" rings until the space between the case and crown is filled up...unbelievable... What else can you say after seeing this workmanship, and all I did was take the caseback and CG and crown out...wonder what else is there for me to see... RG

If price is not a factor, the ETA 2892 (as long as it's really an ETA), or if price is a concern, then the ETA 2824. RG

You just don't get it do you...he's not overcharging, he's a scammer. There is a difference. Have a read of this post, and maybe your eyes will open. The scammer at work, click here Be sure to read all the way to the end for the so you can see the real "Joe" that we have come to know since he joined RWG1 in Jan 05. Some of us know the truth, one day a golf club polisher, the next a self proclaimed watch expert, others like you and your bud HK45 will never get it, I wonder why that is? As for the work that was done, have you even looked at the pictures diesel posted, or are you blind to that as well. Do those CG's look different to you? Does that look like a gen crown, oh wait, Joe said that you can't install genuine crowns...well I wonder how I do it all the time...and so do others...oh sorry, I meant to say "smaller more like Genuine Crown"...what a crock... Does that crystal look genuine to you? Case refinishing? Really? I see nothing, see above link for comparison and what $75 gets you. $100 for that dial refinishing? and an extra $50 if you want it to "glow". Polish and oil the bracelet, well at least Joe got the "oil" part correct. Etc, etc... @ diesel, sorry to hear about the whole situation, you got taken sir, and for that I am truly sorry. I hope this is the last we ever hear of Joe, but somehow I doubt it, not with people like seank1 who are promoting and encouraging members to get scammed. I take it your in the EU, if there is anything I can do to help, let me know. RG

@ Diesel. This is an absolute disgrace what taken place, but I am shocked at your response and lack of emotion. You seem to accept the fact that this is totally acceptable. Let me tell you that this is not acceptable, and I can't believe your fine with the whole situation. Relume, aftermarket crystal and CG shaping, for $645 and 6 months of waiting, if I was you, I would be [censored] off as hell...totally unaceptable, and I have to say, an absolute rip off. I am sure that since you sent the watch off in March until to today, you have read and seen enough on these forums to know your were bent over and Joe didn't even use vaseline. There is a good reason Joe was banned from this forum, your detailed analysis and rundown of events, simply goes to confirm it once again... Why in the world would you accept that 6 months and $645 is a reasonable price to pay for your results. Unbelievable. I am shocked at your apparent approval of this whole episode. None of this is normal, or acceptable, anyone who has sent stuff to Joe, given all the insight and truth that has come out on this forum in the past year, gets what they deserve. I just hope new members can see how unaceptable this is, but if they can't, all the more power to Joe, he's laughing all the way to the bank...and then some... RG

Most likely the hairspring has a couple of coils touching each other. It may correct itself on it's own, or maybe a swirl in the palm of your hand while running, or when stopped if that doesn't work. When the watch is stopped it doesn't take much movement to get the coils to touch each other due to movement. When it's running, it's much harder to get the coils to stick to each other. RG

Although they do help, I don't see anything wrong, the balance cap jewel is in place...so not sure what is going on. You'll have to get a watchsmith have a look at it for you. Sorry I can't do more from where I am. RG

Wow, not everyday that this happens. Too bad you did not get a picture of it on your wrist, bragging rights and all. RG