archibald

Are kids still wearing these? When I was teaching school in the late 90's the alternative music kids were all running around looking like Elliott Smith, wearing wrist bands w/ ironic vintage T's and skull caps.

Sorry to offend anyone by continuing to worry about the date gap, but this business about it being unfixable has got me wondering. I'd love to see a shot of the dial side of the movement and a side view of the dial if anyone ever yanks their dial to lume or something. Extra gears for a date @ 6? That post got me wondering so I just lifted the dial off a 2824 powered muller w/ date at 6 and there are no gears above or overlapping the DW. Same goes w/ a 7750 base movement and a handwind poljot in my movement box, both w/ dates @ 6. Of course, there very well may be gears on this movement, but I'd probably take a look before I issued a pronouncement. I agree w/ T's earlier post that the gap has to do with placing a thin movement in a 16mm thick case. Got to make the crown line up, right? If they did make the dial thicker as someone else guessed, the problem will be hard to fix, but if the dial is standard thickness and there is nothing obstructing the DW the fix would be relatively easy, IMO. In the meantime can we go back to accepting eachother's OCD symptoms? Lord knows everyone I know who has posted in this thread is...er..a little on the picky side more than once in a while.

The only thing keeping me from pulling the trigger is the sunken date. Anyone care to hazard a guess as to why the date would have to be sunken...I mean, there's no transfer gears appartently since the PR is fixed and there's no chrono function. I imagine it's because the movement is thinner than IWC's and they have to sit the movement low enough to get the crown in the right place..

Aside from my Jimmy and gen CG's, I've had to sand down every rep CG I've ever used w/ a gen crown to make the lever work properly. This is because the rep makers usually set their crowns too far from the case, no matter the thickness.

As hard as it is to believe that anyone would CNC 700 crowns without having 1 gen in hand first, I'm not going to worry about it. @ 5x with 2 crowns jammed up side by side it's a problem. On a watch, on the the wrist this is no problem at all. Folks notice the thickness first--if they notice anything at all. The most important takeaway from this thread is that too many RWGers have forgotten that 0% of reps or rep parts can stack up to gen @ 10X magnification.

I've said it a thousand times and I'll say it again: DSN originally had one of the greatest ever ideas (and I'm sure at one time the best intentions) which was making and selling parts that fix the flaws present in the reps made by the "standard" factories. As it turned out he never had access to the skillsets and technology to pull even that niche off, but things really fell apart when he started offering complete watches. There's no crime in not being able to do something competently, but his current lack of customer service and general "f-youism" toward his customers IS wrong. How about we just stop buying his stuff? Simple as that, isn't it? DSN's orginal idea is still wide open for anyone in the right location with access to the right technology. IMO, anyone who can actually produce parts of equal quality to rep parts, but which fix the common flaws, will make nice little income for themselves. I really hope someone actually gives it a go.

I've had problem #2 w/ a known jimmy and a GMT rep, but I've never heard of problem #1 until now, which makes this a mystery indeed. If and when this CG gets reassembled (which it should IMO to fix the pin) you'll know for sure. The pin is the very best way to tell, unless, of course it's a frankenguard.

IMO, there's no way to tell from those pics, or from measuring, since there are variances in both finish and dimension between jimmy CG's, nor in my opinion is having to mod a CG to work an indicator of anything, especially w/ a DSN case. The function of a CG has far more to do w/ case, tube, and crown than it's "brand." Having dissassembled nearly every kind of crown guard ever sold on the fora I can give some guidelines that will help you determine 100% if you have a jimmy or not. 1)the only CG I've ever seen has as small a hole" (the measurement beween the case and the bottom inside of the CG) as a jimmy were the ones that came w/ the 222. However, that CG is thinner overall than a jimmy, width-wise. But since many CG's have had their bottoms shaved to work w/ various crowns, you'll also have to measure the total height. My suggestion would be to measure both the total height and the holes of various crown guards in your collection. If one of them has an almost identical height and width as the others, but a smaller hole, then that CG is likely to be a jimmy. (BTW, For what it's worth my hole-length (not height) measurements of jimmies have come out consistently longer than rep cg's and dadog13's pics measurements.) Another good tell is the case-end of the lever. The jimmy is more rounded when compared to the levers of the 2 CGs closest in overall dimension to jimmies--CG's from the the original "honpo" GMT's and the first version of the 222. The only way you're ever going to tell definitively, though, is the pin. If the pin looks like the pin identified as the jimmy pin in dadog13's pics, I'd bet my collection it's a jimmy. I've never seen a rep cg with the exact same pin. I'll take a guess and say the CG is a jimmy. No matter which CG it is, i'd have The Zigmeister redo the pin--whoever did it originally could have done a much better and less aggressive job (which may also be why Rob had to mod it to work).

American Ale: Dales Pale Ale. An explosion of dry-hopped goodness. The best by-the-pool beer of all time. I used to pick this up when I traveled out west. Brilliant idea to sell it in a can, which eliminates the #1 problem of microbrews, half-assed bottling. I wish I could get it locally. Dark Beer: Sierra Nevada Porter. Now a grocery store beer, but nobody has ever made a better American dark beer. I wish my ATF beer was something more obscure, but it isn't. SN porter is the best beer ever brewed. Belgian style: Celis Grand Cru, now brewed by michigan brewing company, but just as good as the old Autstin, TX brewery. I think Duval is the actual Belgian version. Made w/ some wierd stuff like orange peels and spices, but it's really good. English style ale: Not a big fan, but I had a great pint (or @ a brew pub outside of Portland on vacation a few years ago. Can't remember the name of the place but the ESB was great, had this wierd and great hay flavor going on if you're inot beer that tastes like hay, as I apparently am. Would love to find it in bottles if it's available. Fruit Beer: New Glarus Cherry Ale, the only fruit beer I really like, and it's in the top 2 or 3 beers of any kind I've ever had. The label says, "A little toasted malt and a 1.5 lbs. of of cherries per bottle makes it like a glass of chery pie." And it does.

I don't know Bacco Bucci, but I've bought one pair each of mezlan and pilner. Overpriced even at the 60%-off-at-DSW prices I paid. I thought I might be buying decent reps of high-end shoes (which is what both brands try to be) but what I got was the same mass produced out of low quality materials crap they sell at Target at 3 times the price.

With a couple days notice I'll hop on the Delta shuttle or if there are any other guys in the DC/VA/MD who want to drive up, we can drive up in a brand spanking new Navigator, or even ride the bullet train together.

If these sell for $1500, I bet you can sell as many pieces as you can find movement donor watches. I'll buy 2!

I think you should give it a try. As long as you have a CNC machine, why not try w/ a rep case, just to see if you can do it? IF you do a gen case please send one to archibald....I won't tell anyone @ Rolex!

They're clearly fashion watches, but who cares? So are Panerai. I'd love a U-Boat rep. I've designated my 6 watch box for so-ugly-they're-beautiful watches. So far I only have the B&R in there and the Graham diver on the way, but a Uboat would go in there for sure. Of course I want one of the ones with the ridiculous crown chains.

I picked up my 03T last summer primarily because it was the only gen dial franken I'd ever had the opportunity to buy. I'm still surprised how often I wear it--way more often than my gen 86 or near 1-1 005. There's something about the (I think) hand painted numbers that are just beautiful.

Exactly right: I just drove accross PA on Highway 90 on the Sunday after the 4th of July and you would have thought it was 2AM the night after a blizzard. I read an interesting article @ the Dr's office the other day in, I think, the Nation that utterly detroyed the 2 main arguments of the Oil Companies' PR shops: 1)That rising gas prices reflect higher oil and feul transportation costs and any extra profits are the result from marking up more expensive raw materials by the same percentage; and 2, that companies have a duty to their shareholders to make as much money as possible. From the oil companies' own finacial statements it's clear that the % markups jump every time the price of oil rises and it would be mathematically impossible to account for the profit they're making if the PR BS were true. I guess it's debatable based on your political views, but the article made a pretty good case that the extra profits amount to a redistribution of wealth much more drastic and much more "anti-business" than any potential tax increase conservatives could dream up to scare America with. High gas prices take money not only out of the pockets of the poor and middle class, but also out of the coffers of almost every non-oil related business in America and concentrate it in the bank accounts of the fraction of a percent of the population who make money from oil. Capitalism? Sure is. But income redistribution is income redistribution. You're either for it or not. If the government taxed $3.27 a gallon gas to 4.15 a gallon, say, in order to rebuild the country's crumbling infrastructure, free market conservatives would be up in arms. "Ruining the economy!!" "Taking food of the tables of hard working americans and senior citizens!!" "running small businesses into chapter 11!!" I guess as long as Exxon, and not the evil gubment doing everything true conservatives despise, it's AOK.

In order to make a watch manly enough for a guy like you, you'd have to find custom hands to fit the Crazy Hours movement pinions, make a movement ring, and since 50% of the crazy hours concept is the "misplaced" numerals you'd have to CNC a new top half of the sandwhich dial. Even worse, you'd have to actually buy the Muller, since dealers probably won't sell just the movement from a $108 watch. I've been wondering for a while if there is a benefit to having insufficient testosterone, and I guess here it is: I can just order a Long Island Crazy hours, which, if plated either in yellow or white gold (rhodium) is about the most accurate reps, regardelss of cost, ever made. Sorry about razzing you, pardner, and I know FM's aren't everyone's cup of tea, but it was just pretty funny the way you phrased that sentence.

It's all hearsay. The Maker told a Member no fix is in the works and the member tells us. I trust lani implicity, but can he assure us that if the maker were going to fix the problem he would have said, "Yes, I'm going to fix this problem. Tell your friends on the boards not to buy one of these until the next version comes out"? I doubt it. To be honest, and I mean no offense to anyone, maybe because I do PR for a living I put zero stock in leaks from dealers and collectors, because that's exactly what they are--strategic leaks by people with a clear agenda, selling us as much of their stock as possible.

I like the rep and gen better than the BTR even though the BTR has a cool movement. The only possible flaw I can see on the rep is the button parts of the pushers look a little longer on the rep. Could be the pics and could easily be fixed if it's not just the pics. As much as I hate high priced reps of gens that will be worth $1200 in a year, I may have to pick this one up.

The dial looks very nice, but that CG is still inexcusably poorly finished, IMO. It's a flat out instant tell to anyone who's ever seen a gen, even on the wrist. I'd love a 240, but the question is whether this rep would be worth throwing on a gen crown and maybe a CG from a 36. Anyone compared the caseback to gen? Engraving quality, # accuracy, etc?

Seems like everyone and their grandma has a CNC shop these days, but the issue is, and will be for some time, setup costs. CAD work is not cheap, tool path coding for whatever machine the CAD feeds into is not cheap, tooling up is not cheap. The quotes I got included disassembly and scanning of a gen CG, the CAD & programming work, setup, and the cost of a special tool to do the pins. The actual cost of the machining was a fraction of the per-unit cost. tootall's quote doesn't include scanning and CAD work (or else he wouldn't need the file) but if it did I bet that cost would be somewhere between 40 and 50 bucks per guard, which is what I was quoted by a high-end (lot's of DOD contracts for small runs of precision fasteners). Nobody's saying V is taking them for a ride--after all, he's the only one of us who knocked them out. I believe the disagreement is between "zero variance" and "slight variance."

Love the finish on those.

Yet another example of the disturbing trend of selling reps for 40% of a used gen (by the time you replace the strap, which IMO is a must.) I have no idea who's buying these, but when you figure in resale value the gen is a much smarter buy. Buy used, and let the guy who bought the gen new at the AD take the big depreciation hit and when you get sick of it sell for $1000. When you do that math the rep is not a good buy, however good it is.

Well, that was interesting. Took my 13 year old, beatles fanatic daughter to see the current cast of Beatlemania! play. I believe they're on an extended tour to promote the reopening of the show According to the program they scoured the US/Canada/and England for beatles look/sound alikes and these guys were the best but, here is my unbiased review (I was not paid, given a free ticket, or fed anny juicy info) in case they're coming to your town. Paul: Scary close. Definite Super Rep. Sounded about 98%, looked about 94%, played bass about 90% which means the dude can play. Did almost all of the between song banter, and did it beleivably. (I purposely got seats pretty far back to help suspend dispbelief even though the the show was nowhere near sold out and I actually was able to imagine what it would have been like to see the Beatles when he did "yesterday." Really has to be seen to be believed. John. Very near to Super rep quality, but no "Paul" Voice was about 95%, looked about 88% but was clearly not an experienced guitar player, maybe 80% of Lennon. (I noticed "George" played both the Harrisson and Lennon solos in "The End." "Ringo:" Looked just like him, say 96% with what had to be a prosthetic nose, and had the Ringo arm/wrist thing down. Drumming was solid also. Along w/ "george" he only sang one song "WALHFMF" and it sounded something like Ringo. Then again almost every drunk at the local Karaoke bar sounds something like Ringo. "George:" Clearly hired for his guitar playing which was almost unbelievably accurate. I'm sure all the guitar/cabinet/effect mods avbailable these days helped a lot, but this guy was cearly a student of George's playing, a talented player in his own right, and VERy well rehearsed. He didn't look like him that much, and sounded almost nothing like him when he sang "WMGGW", but the solos represented the best impersonation of any of the four. The show was what you'd expect. a few songs from each era, w/ costumes to match. video screens w/ short 60's stock footage montage between sets for perspective. Nicely done but not overdone "schtick:" mop top stuff during the early years set and more "socially aware" as the "career" progressed. They made good use of loops and backing tracks to do songs the beatles could never have played live "elanor rigby," strawberry fields" "ADITL" I'm not a hguge beatles fanatic, but I actually enjoyed it. If you have a beatles fanatic friend, relative, etc. I'd say tickets would be a great present.

Great piece....Oh, and w/ apolgies to my pals who'd absolutely love four more years of the last eight, we can get Barak elected...and yes we will!