TeeJay

Stock photo...

TGIF, muchachos

From that lineup, it would have to be the BlackBay

As above, I figured out what I liked, and stopped buying stuff that other people liked. My first collection was essentially all the movie watches I thought were cool (with a few PAMs thrown in) When I sold the collection, I found myself sticking more to one brand: Rolex. Two reasons for this which I can identify myself, are:

- I'd got married and turned 30. I felt 'old enough' to wear a Rolex

- It was the brand on the last watch I did not sell, so I stuck with them (I've always been strong on Brand Loyalty, when I was younger, I would only buy Sony audio equipment, Panasonic AV equipment, Philips shavers, Gillette razors. Some would say that I was a chump taken in by branding and marketing, I prefer to think that I made choices based on product satisfaction...)

The way my collection's since been re-built, I can only put down to me having grown up and matured more as a person. I'm not trying to wear James Bond's watch to add a few inches, nor wear the latest brand to try and impress the women, I wear what I want for my own reasons and requirements While it is nice to get a compliment on a watch, it rarely happens Now my collection is based around what I'll be doing, I can go weeks/months without changing my watch, the only exception being Tudor Tuesday

[Edit to add]

I've also now realized that I don't necessarily need to buy every watch I like, if the watch(s) I have are more useful... Was just on the phone to my brother in Japan, and needed to work out a call-back time. A quick rotation of the GMT bezel to show Japanese time, and I was sorted. A 16800 wouldn't be able to do that, and I'd've been umming and ahing, to work it out, rather than just being straight on point... I'm now thinking "Do I really need to build a watch which I want, but don't actually need... " I take that as another sign of my views maturing, by being able to separate aesthetic desire, from functional requirement

To the best of my knowladge, the 16800, or at least some of the production, had rounded 3's. Someone check me if i'm wrong.

I think you're right there. I can't decase the old movement to check the datewheel as the current no-date dial is superglued in place. I'm sure that it has the correct shape 3s for the 16800, for some reason I thought it was flats rather than curved

Now that's a project. That's a lot of work for the dial TJ. Too bad Yuki's 16800 matte isn't available at the moment, or ever for that matter. Does your dial have "Swiss Made" or "Swiss -T<25"?

Yeah, it didn't work out so well with the paper stickers, as the edges started disolving with the varnish, but I think vinyl should retain its integrity, it's just a matter of cutting the shapes cleanly Sadly the dial would be Swiss Made, rather than Swiss - T<25, so it would never be a 1:1 replication (although ironically, the last budget 16610 I ordered did have the requisite flat top 3s and open 6s and 9s ) My goal is just to recreate the overall aesthetic, rather than being 1:1 When the spare cash is available, I might indeed have another crack at it

Dude, it's fine, just wear it and enjoy it

Tudor Tuesday as usual here, so I've been waring my Mercedes Snowflake (no new pics) Tomorrow, I think I'll wear LegendKiller's favorite, the Rolex Submariner PN (Plastique Noir)

Go for it TeeJay. Thanks for the kind words.

I have two routes for the 16800...

Budget 16610 with a swapped out bracelet is a given, but I can either:

Decase the dial, matte varnish it, recase it, and have a no risk circa 1983 16800 or...

Decase the dial, pull off the markers, replace them with custom made white vinyl stickers, lume the stickers, matte varnish it, and recase it for a circa 1981 (which ismy grail year...)

I have attempted Plan B before with paper stickers, the edges of which disolved when the varnish hit, making the dial impossible to salvage... I am very tempted to give it another go with vinyl stickers, but am concerned of another naffed up dial... Then again, I guess they say no risk, no gain... I know that if I 'only' go for the circa 1983, I'll only ever think 'what if..." every time I look at it

Yes i think so too for this build as you say a watch with a different flavor suites with the brandy harley insert which compliments the guilt dial nicely mabe i should call it THE BROWN BAY or THE BRANDY BAY !

The Tropic

That's just lead to a follow on thought... Throw it on a Tropic-style rubber strap... I think it'll look retro-tastic

Seeing builds like this make me consider tackling my planned budget 16800 again... Fantastic work, amigo

A-ha, it's that Mystery Clasp again!!! I knew there had to be some historical examples of its existence

Looking goooooood :tu: Kudos on a First Rate build. I love the look of the Black Bay, but did think that the red insert might make the watch less than subtle, so to see that with the brandy insert, the different flavor certainly gives a very casual and subtle result

Did any of you order something online?

I don't have the cash to order anything from anyone at the moment, so no. That's not to say that I wouldn't try them in the future though

Anyway what makes a dealer "trusted"? Do they have some agreement with RWG admins?

As far as I understand it, a dealer has to present themselves to the forum Admin and be vetted in terms of who they are, where they are, what they can deliver, and how they can be contacted/traced (by Admin) should anything go awry... I think that's a reasonable criteria to be allowed to 'set up shop' on the marketplace. My only issue, is that some 'trusted dealers' are not really that trustworthy, and despite complaints, are rarely sanctioned (although it has happened with some in the past, like EuroTimes and TTK)

I bet you this guy probably orders from the same dealers we use... Josh, Anderw, Angus etc. than marks up with 20%.

I'd pay a 20% increase if it meant 24-48 hour EU delivery

[Edit to add]

Why do you assume that he has to order from the Cartel? Do you think they're The Source of the watches? Do you not think that a seller could simply go to the Factories (as the Cartel do) and order a quantity of watches directly himself? Maybe he only orders minimum amounts rather than keeping a load in stock, I don't know, but I don't see any reason to assume that he's buying from the Cartel (As if they're the only source for good reps ) when he could be going directly the source, and simply be pricing himself that 20% higher due to faster delivery times...

+1.

Bought the torch for curing UV adhesive when fitting new crystals, but most of the time it's used to charge up the lume on my bedside table watch.

I get some strange looks from my wife when I lick the crystal in the morning and then polish it with my (clean) socks. Morning rituals......

You're not really Jeremy Kyle are you?!?!

Well Dutchy, you might have some good dealings with this guy now, but how trusted dealers proof themselfves is with warranty and aftersale service. Most of these guys like for instance Zander have almost no warranty and almost zero after sale service and repair facilities.

...

So for me being a former reseller, I would advice our members to stick with trusted dealers and not do too much business with resellers who have not proven themselves....

I'm sorry, but I have to call bullshit on this... 'Trusted Dealers' means nothing. Trusted by whom? By the admins of this forum? By people who have had good dealings with them? I'm sorry, but that means absolutely fuck all... Andrew and Josh were BANNED at one time as dealers on RWI because the admins felt that they could not be trusted, yet they are still 'Trusted Dealers' here, so who is right and who is wrong? Just because a dealer is not known to the forum, it does not mean they cannot be trusted... At one time, WatchEden was not a 'trusted dealer', and now they are... At one time, EuroTimes was a highly praised 'trusted dealer', but now he is not, as he imploded from an inability to keep up with the demand (and demands) of forum members... Of course, people are free to buy from whomever they feel the most comfortable with, and they should always go with who they feel is right, but at the end of the day, dealers will not become trusted by the community as a whole, if no one is prepared to give them a chance, and that's never going to happen if the peanut gallery just chimes in "Stick with the trusted dealers..." like a parrot every time an off-forum dealer is mentioned, even when they've had no personal dealings or even knowledge of said dealer. In my 'off forum purchases', I've never had significant issues, and all those were remedied by the sellers to my complete satisfaction. Every transaction I had with Silix was a nightmare, resulting in receiving an un-ordered item instead of what was ordered, an un-QCd item which was clearly faulty (and a replacement with identical faults) and items which simply never arrived... Oh yeah, that's real trustworthy...

[Edit to add]

That's not intended as a personal dig at you, just the situation in general...

like a lot of watch things....you might hate it or love it...totally made by hand...Silver,,,takes a few days just to make one....wotancraft...he makes some pretty nice straps too.....

This is the thing with watches... When I wore PAMs, I never wore any of the 'busy' buckles like that. But. As an artist, I can appreciate the craftsmanship which has clearly gone into making a first rate piece. The fact that it's Silver, just adds another layer of awesomeness Congrats on the 15 years, here's to the next 15

I actually reckon Romney might pull it off. Obama seemed to have seriously fallen out of favor lately (but how he handles the Sandy Affair may swing opinions his way again...)

I'm no stock broker, but I keep reading people saying that Silver is the commodity to invest in (I don't understand why, as Gold and Platinum are worth much more, but that's what I see folks saying )

Glad you like it

No no, it was just random in his email signature thingos...being new, not wanting to step on toes etc etc....no biggie. All is good, all appears fine to me, and was just after a second opinion is all - no harm no foul as they say...

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Ahh, that's quite different to an actual "Do Not Do This!" warning message Even without seeing pics, I'm sure the watch will be fine, they (almost) always are, there's really no need for worry when buying

But TeeJay- Back in 2011 you said............(read my signature)

And on that one we agree. The reason noobs become experienced is by doing their own due diligence, not bringing bloody QC pics onto the forum and getting others to do the work for them!

I actually hate QC pics, because it is something that leaves the door wide open to lazy dealers supplying any old photo.

There is no way you can be sure you get the watch in the photo, short of having your name engraved onto the dial.

In the replica business it is a too simple job to swap any item in or out, to suit any purpose..

Offshore

Oh yeah, I totally agree and stand by what I said, people that beg for QC pics are pussies Buyers should do their research and know the watch they are ordering enough that they can give a personal yay or nay on a QC pic if one is provided, but what I really don't like seeing, are these posts where dealers suggest that if a person was to post the pics for advice, that it may have an impact on their transaction/relationship. And of course, there was that instance about a month back where someone was sent pics of a Tag, had issues with the offered watch, so requested a different one, and they got sent different photos of the exact same watch, but from a different angle

Ahahahahahaha, what a fucking pussy to tell you not to post the pictures Did he threaten that it might 'harm your relationship' if you did? (I've heard some dealers threatening that in the past...) And people wonder why I distrust the trusted dealers I'm sure your transaction will go smoothly, enjoy the piece

I agree, with Noel, the hairspring may be magnetized (or simply sticking) It's not 'normal' for a new watch to do that, but it's not unheard of either... I've never seen a crown fall apart like that, so interesting to see... As for suggesting a dealer, you might as well take your pick of any on the list. They'll all have access to the same stuff, just minor changes in price point and differing amounts of communication contact. Josh is probably The People's Favorite, so you might as well go with him...