ryyannon

Ken, the significance of the Wempe Special is that your bank account will be significantly lighter once you purchase it. Aside from that, it looks like an irresistible piece for the bell, button & whistle crowd. Of course, I'm no one to talk. The day Josh, Andrew or Narikaa put together a decent limited series of 2533s, I'll be first in line. To each their own, and happy collecting! *And oh yes, before I'm definitively relegated to the Dealers' Black List Of SmartAsses Not To Be Dealt With, allow me to say that I do salute this unusual and very rare effort to put together something....well, unusual and very rare. Those of us with more than short-term memory will understand that this sort of thing happens only once in blue IWC Jones Moon Phase, which is to say, practically never. It's a good sign - especially once they jog up their brains and get thinking about the aforementioned vintage 2533s. After all, someone has to keep the flame going now that Watchmaster has become his own 'Ex'... Uhh, Do you hear me, Josh, Andrew, Narikaa et.al.?

Josh is still trying to resolve the problem diplomatically. It's more complex than it may seem, insofar as 'Frederic Bonnus' seems to be using his (mother? wife? friend?) as a front. The woman does not appear to be part of the scam and it would be unfair to make her life a living hell with constant calling. The guy in question - hidden away in a one-horse village in southern France - does not appear to be a big-time scammer. Could just be a wise-[censored] young guy using his parents' address as a drop. Josh's problem is not so much the money as the potential PayPal problems, so he's trying to work this out without totally antagonizing the guy - which is certainly the best approach given the situation. Having spoken at length several times with the woman who answers the phone, I'm convinced that she has nothing to do with whoever is behind this, other than being at the address where the watch was sent. @eddielee: can you find out in your own records if this is the same guy who ripped you off several years back as you mentioned earlier? This info might help in ultimately deciding how to handle the payback - if any is decided. Reality is sometimes more complex than what it appears, and the important thing is hitting the right target and avoiding - as they say - collateral damage to innocent people. Stay tuned for latest developments, and let's hope that Josh can come out of this with his PayPal account intact. This and this alone is the primary objective....

Well, that's only $67.95 too much. Could have been much worse...

Ah yes, the ever-lovely Folex Uber-Mariner! I guess you just can't keep a good watch down....

The biggest problem is you not doing your homework on this forum while looking for a quick Seamaster fix. Sorry, no sympathy today. I'm in a particularly unsympathetic mood. Consider the experience as the beginning of your learning curve.....

I'm not sure what you mean, Linder. But let's get some things clear: it's Josh's decision to release Boner's contact info, and Josh's only. In the meantime, I'll try to relay a telephone message to Boner to get him to drop the PayPal complaint: that's the most important issue at hand for Josh. If, within the space of 'x' number of days the problem cannot be resolved in a civilized manner - and depending on Josh's ok - the info will be posted here and you all can exercise your talents in performing dirty tricks to your hearts' content. I should add that for our native-French speaking members, a few anonymous calls to the French douane (customs bureau) concerning a Mr. Boner (we have his real name and address) who is importing fake French and Swiss watches from China will be suseptible to getting this jerk into a lot of hot water - whether or not anything can be proved. The customs agents here take a particularly hard-nosed attitude towards trademark infringement and have Gestapo-like powers of warrent-less search and entry at any hour of the day or night that even the police don't possess. Once again, I remind you that Boner lives in a village of barely more than 1,000 inhabitants - and there's nothing the French love to do more than nail each other to a cross for the slightest rumor. But until then, let's just hold off and be patient. Unless you've got something concrete, like Boner's forum ID, please don't bombard Josh with PMs and the like concerning this - he's got other things on his mind besides Mr. Boner, and will keep us all posted on the latest developments. Peace out, Brothers.

In this particular case, it's nothing else than a hick scammer in a hick town in southern France. Figures no one will see past his lame alias or even be able to find where he lives on a map, let alone speak French. I think he's got a surprise coming.....

I've got the guy's telephone number and have called several times: it would appear that he's running a scam (never answers, is never home: a woman answers saying he's not there, doesn't know when he'll be there, doesn't know anything about problem, etc.). I've been in contact with Josh on this, and will try once more and leave a message for him to drop PayPal complaint. If no action taken or in case of same stupid response, and with Josh's permission, I'll post all the contact info here. I think a day and night carpet bombing of telephoning (politely, guys - we don't want to upset these good folks) asking for 'Frederic Bonnus' (it's an alias, by the way) will not make these people's lives much easier. Especially if it's drawn out over the next five or six months, and particularly at night. Especially if you just let it ring and hang up before anyone answers. No need to even speak French. Costs nothing. Drives people nuts. This [censored] lives in a little town of exactly 1,100 souls. News gets around fast. I could also eventually post the numbers of the local police, the Mayor's office, all the official local government agencies, etc. The whole place should be buzzing within the week. Hey, did I just write this? No way! Someone must have hacked into my account and is giving out these terrible methods. It's something that ryyannon would never do! So stop using my name, whoever you are! Please, no PMs or messages, I won't respond to this infamy. Stop it immediately, whoever you are! Addendum: Josh has asked to hold off until the problem is definitively solved one way or another. If it doesn't work out for Josh, he says that the guy 'is all ours'. A bit of patience, and we'll see.....

Will keep you posted by PM, Josh.

I agree with everyone about everything. I'm such a nice guy that even I don't believe it....

I still advocate charging a modest annual subscription fee. Aside from helping with the RWG cash-flow, I bet it would solve a lot of the recent problems our dealers have encountered from members here. Of course, that wouldn't prevent the same people from screwing things up for the dealers via other forums, but it's a step in the right direction.

As a matter of fact, we do. I'm sure it's not blowing his cover to point out that he's selling a (rep) Omega here in the members' area....

No offense meant, Woody - just couldn't resist... :-)

I'll try to ask this in the most tactful way possible, but do you ever smell the....umm.... strap.... when you're NOT wearing it?

That's terrible news, and I'm sorry you had to go through it. The upside, of course, is that you came out of it with your head still atttached to your body....people often get killed or badly hurt for much less. I can only hope that the guys are apprehended by the police and that you manage to get your stuff back. A similar thing happened recently to one of our Paris members, who lost some expensive cameras as well as being physically aggressed. Once again, count your blessings: it's only stuff; it can be replaced. Your life is a one-time-deal. Hope you feel better soon - there's a natural period of rage, shock, depression and general emotional trauma, but that's part of what happens when the ugly side of life reveals itself unexpectedly. Best wishes!

Tour de Fraud? "I don't want to sound like Oliver Stone, but it raises some questions in my mind as to what's going on here.'' http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...&refer=home Testosterone Used During Race Wouldn't Have Helped, Experts Say July 28 (Bloomberg) -- Testosterone, the human hormone now linked with American Floyd Landis's Tour de France win, wouldn't have helped his performance if taken during this year's prestigious bicycle race, experts said today. The hormone helps athletes train for races by enlarging muscle fibers over weeks of training, according to two American doctors and a consultant with the Montreal-based based World Anti-Doping Association, which has coordinated control of performance-enhancing drugs in Olympic-level sports since 1999. ``This effect takes several weeks to come into play,'' said Charles Yesalis, a Penn State University professor of health and human development, in a telephone interview today. ``I don't want to sound like Oliver Stone, but it raises some questions in my mind as to what's going on here.'' Landis, 30, whose hormone levels were found to be elevated after the 17th stage of the race, passed tests on six other occasions during the three-week event. Landis, who denied dosing himself with the hormone in a news conference today, would become the first winner of cycling's premier event to be stripped of the title for drug use if a second test of his urine, taken at the same time, confirms a violation. Those results may not be available for at least two weeks, according to the sport's ruling body. Testosterone ``increases the cross-sectional areas of the muscle and the size of the muscle fibers,'' said Timothy Foster, a Boston University School of Medicine professor of orthopedic surgery and sports medicine, in a phone interview today. ``It's not something that happens overnight.'' `Short-Term' ``Testosterone doesn't help in the short term,'' agreed Steven Ungerleider, the Anti-Doping Association consultant, in a telephone interview today from Eugene, Oregon. ``None of the synthetic derivatives of testosterone would help in the short term, you have to go on long-term cycles involving a strict regimen.'' Ungerleider's group was formed in 1999 with support from the International Olympics Committee to help coordinate the fight against performance-enhancing drugs in sport. Illegal in the U.S. save for sanctioned medical uses, athletes can definitely gain an edge using the hormone over several weeks, the experts said. Hormones are naturally produced substances in the body that turn on genes in the body involving the size and shape of organs such as the breast, brain, skin and heart. Testosterone can lead to bigger muscles, and better muscle definition. Levels Higher in Men Men's testosterone levels are usually about 300 to 1,000 nanograms per deciliter of blood, about 10 times greater than those normally found in women, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

Thank you for taking the time, Finepics... My particular vintage was done by Watchmaster in a 45mm Radiomir case with a California dial. No problems yet, and since I'm aware of the issue and take care not to manipulate the crown too harshly, I keep hoping that there won't be....

and then, in the very middle of all this confusion, in walks Mahler........ Naw, forget it. I'm for putting this story out of its misery with artoero's (or was it roed's?) ending. Finito pour moi.

A point well-taken, ubiquitous. I think it all depends on whether the individual in the bed is wearing combat boots or not. Not to mention packing the celebrated ten-inch putz. But I do seem to hear a chorus of plaintive voices in the stairwell intoning: "Where's my watch....where's my watch?"

The incredibly beautiful girl slowly opened her eyes, and whispered..... "No, actually I'm TTK: You're still dreaming you stupid sod! Now get the hell out of MINE!"

@finepics et.al.: The Superglue trick sounds like the quick fix of the year for all of those stripped crown tube problems. But my problem is that I can't quite visualize it: let's imagine a vintage Panerai with a screw-down crown (I have one, and I'm dreading the day when I have to confront this issue). First off, what do you mean by the 'hole' that you drop a bit of Superglue into? I'm assuming that the crown is still attached to stem, and the stem is within the case. In the event that the crown somehow strips itself right out of the tube (thus revealing a 'hole' where the crown used to be) will squeezing a bit of Superglue down there and then re-inserting the crown really work? Even though it may sound like it, I'm not doubting that it does - it just really seems a bit abstract to me - especially given the mechanics involved in (a) winding the watch (one click on the crown up) and setting the hour (a second click up). I would also imagine that the Superglue would gum things up to a point where it would be impossible to either wind the watch or set the time, given the necessary 'vertical' mobility of the crown-and-stem mechanism. Without going into full-color schematic explanations, could one of you provide a quick summary of what you actually do? Thanks if you manage to answer this question, which I hope will not be harder than fixing the crown itself....

Yep. They even took the Christmas banner down.

It has less to do with politics than with physics (as the masterset of politics and everything else), but my feeling is that at any given moment, we're about one nanometre away from the apocalypse. Such a delicate balance.... By the way, for those interested in seeing how bad it can get, just follow the link: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/rnr/ Just out of curiosity - and because I consider this one to be more or less of an absolute - if anyone knows of a forum they consider even badder, I'd be curious to see it. Rather than polluting our own, feel free to send the link to me by PM....

Way edited.... Controversy? WHAT CONTROVERSY!?

A lot of members have unpleasant memories of these discussions getting turning into flamefests on the old RWG board. It's not so much a question of friendship or emnity as of heavy bad vibes hanging over the forum for days after. There are a small minority of people who get carried away and say things they probably wouldn't in a face-to-face confrontation. I rather liked the extreme combat atmosphere of the old board, but now that I've been accustomed to Admin' and the Mods excelllent stewardship, I must say that I wouldn't like to see the new RWG go down the same road as some of the threads took on the old board. And in the end, what difference is it going to make? Other than upsetting people and displaying our own biases and loyalties it's not like we're actually going to change anything. There are lots of other forums for those interested in endlessly debating who threw the first stone - RWG is pretty unique in that about the worst weather we get is an occasional icy or scorching blast of indignation from TTK, or some idiot with a freak post on how to bypass selling fees. RWG has become a shelter from the storm, and I'm starting to like it that way.... My two cents, obviously...