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dbane883

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Posts posted by dbane883

  1. Hey guys. Thought I'd drop in to say hello. Also wanted to share some analysis of 20mm spring bars I've "discovered".

     

    For the past couple of years, I've sworn by ST (Startime) spring bars. Unlike most rep and aftermarket bars, the springs don't crumple, the ends are nicely rounded, and they are made in Switzerland. They really are terrific.

     

    But I have an account at a part supply company called Beco-technic in Germany. I've ordered stuff from them a few times, but never thought of trying their spring bars until my most recent order.

     

    To my surprise, they are superior to ST bars and I suspect genuine Rolex bars are made by the same factory.

     

    Side by side, the ST bars are nearly identical to the Beco-Technic (BT) bars. The ST bar ends are rounded, and the BT bar ends are conically tapered:

     

    6aa427bd5c7ed38724f38091a86e169e.jpg

     

    Now here is a comparison of the BT bars (on the left) and gen bars (on the right). Both ends are conical:

     

    9aa6ad4ad0986207d0d2b15c1653ea9e.jpg

     

    Keep in mind, that these observations are based on a random and very small sample size and no two spring bars are identical .

     

    Now here is a shot of all three together (ST on left, BT in middle, Gen on right:

    7541d10f71efe79a430d66145b951a62.jpg

    f19f318f8d6a31008ce5de0dccf852be.jpg

     

    Conical or rounded, I don't think anyone will care. But a more important contrast is the strength of the internal springs. I've always found the ST springs are "noisy" when compressed. The BT and gen are much quieter.

     

    Further here is some VERY unscientific measurements of the force required for full compression (using a kitchen scale).

     

    The gen bars, are not new, but measured 506 grams on the scale; equivalent to 4.96 Newtons (if my math is correct. I have a Physics degree but I don't remember jack [censored]):

    2005127ff86114ab2c741c327cbc9057.jpg

     

    The brand new BT bars measured a whopping 580 grams (5.68 N):

    3e9f2b185a45fbcadefb19c401f2d7a2.jpg

     

    And finally, brand new ST bars averaged 380 g (3.72 N):

    4013e5b6808649691fc190e08dff116f.jpg

     

    Had the gen bars been brand new, I imagine the springs would be slightly stronger.

     

    At any rate, I think my go-to bars from now on will definitely be the Beco bars.

     

    If you try to order from them, keep in mind you will need to be approved. Also, I had a lot of trouble accessing their website recently (www.beco-technic.com). I'm in Canada and could not load the page for unknown reasons. So I changed my IP address to Germany and it worked fine. Odd.

     

    Frankly, I think 20mm ST bars (or equivalent) are just superb for any watch that accepts them. But the BT's are as close as I have ever seen to what you would get from RSC.

    • Like 6
  2. I've bought crowns/tubes from Phong before and none came in blisters. I think the pics of the blister packs on his website are for reference only and/or dramatic effect.

    Also, these old crowns were made of a brass core and then wrapped in stainless. So the mere fact that you see yellow is not an immediate tell in my books.

  3. Not sure what's going on with the designers at Rolex these days.  Maybe they need new crayons.  But I think the rumored lineup for 2017 is a bit of a head-scratcher.  Blue text on the SD4000c?   I could possibly see it as an homage to the first Single Red 1665 from the late 60's, but why make the minute track blue as well?? Not sure that makes any sense.  If used as a tool watch, I think the blue minute indicators would be harder to see than the white.  Odd.

    RPR_2017_Rolex_SEADWELLER_Anniversary_zp

    Perhaps the most sensible decision is coming out with a SS version of the coke GMT.  I could live with that.  Oh, and the DSSD to be discontinued (thank god as I was never a fan).  

    http://rolexpassionreport.com/20205/rolex-news-for-baselworld-2017/

     

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