Jumbie

There is already fake medicine available. So I'm sure replica birth control is possible. Maybe all of those people who think contraception, etc. is immoral would like the idea. It might be along the lines of "commit the crime, do the time" for them.

I don't. I can barely dress myself. I really wish I had the ability to do what a few select individuals on this, and other, forum can.

Sorry to go further OT in this thread but I have read that several times now regarding the white BCE. Don't know how true that is but have seen it mentioned perhaps 3 times by different individuals; including someone who bought a TT because the dealer told him no white available. My heart is broken.

Wow, that's pretty bad. Rep clothing, watches, bags, etc. may be illegal and linked to organized crime but no one directly gets harmed by it. Things like this and toothpaste, etc. are just horrible.

You have some really great straps on your watches. I really like the MP ambra tan and the europelli vintage caramel shell cordovan. Black prada strap is also very nice. And, of course, the watch I've had my eye on for a while (I think I've saved your pics on my computer) the BCE on that gen strap. Just freaking beautiful!!!!!!!!!

I will allow you that pleasure. heh, like I said, I may have to eat my words. Great collection in that you posted. You have some really great straps to go with your watches. If you ever decide to sell that BCE, I'd be interested. I'm upset that I read they no longer make the white dial and that's the one I want. Will have to settle for the TT white/gold if not.

Maybe I'll be proven wrong but I bet that that does not happen to me. Quite frankly, I always wonder why people end up buying the "same watch". Many of the PAMs I see appear to just be subtle variations of the same. Some are more different than others in terms of having a date mag or being a chrono or Ti instead of SS, etc. but more or less they look pretty similar in style. I like the base PAMs the best from all the pics I've seen (only ever saw a Radiomir in person) and I have a fully-modded 112H on the way (or delivered already; as I'm away again) so I guess I'll soon discover if I have to choke on my words. To me, the beauty of Panerai is the large variety of straps out there and how easy it appears to be to totally change the look of the watch based on what strap you put on it.

This forum is more of an enabler than a support group. In my opinion any way. I mean, how many times have you seen a wrist shot or purchase review and thought "That's a nice watch. I should get that." I rest my case.

Hahaha Nice one.

Well you edited your post while I was typing up a reply to it. Will just add in a bit more below. I pulled that $200k figure out of referral to the recent news of the guy in Russia that lost (since found) his $200k watch in the river and is how I ended up with the 10% equivalent i.e. $20,000. The thing is that it's not specifically about just keeping time. That is a part of it, yes, but if watch wearers (members of this community and otherwise) were only interested in time-keeping ability we'd all be wearing quartz or digital watches. Most of us on here buy the reps for one or more of the following reasons: 1. Appreciate the technology behind the mechanical watch. 2. Can't afford all the watches they'd like. 3. The style/design/fashion/etc. of the watch. 4. The association/connotation of wearing an expensive watch e.g. the extra attention/service one might receive from being perceived as wealthy. So, again, it's not just about the ability of the rep vs gen vs rep with regards to proper time. Ideally, yes. And that's why I take heart in some of The Zigmeister's reviews that X movement is almost as good as the Swiss ETA equivalent and should last a lifetime if properly cleaned and lubricated. But that gets back to my previous response regarding availability of individuals to work on those movements over the course of my lifetime... It's something I think about. I admit that. But it doesn't factor that heavily into my decision because, as I said previously, even if the gen costs $1,000 and the rep $250 (ignoring all of my previous babble about The Zigmeister et. al. being around to service it) I'm still saving a whopping $750. To me, whether my income is $300k or $30k, $750 is still $750. It's not as good a deal as spending $250 on a "$10k watch" but it's still a deal. If I could be assured that price was directly related to quality, etc. I'd perhaps be willing to spend $1,000 on a $10,000 watch. That's still way under my self-imposed $5,000 limit. But that's not the case. That $1k is still getting me a replica movement that is likely a lot more troublesome that the real deal. Hence my decision to not just go by relative ratio of cost and instead choosing to have an absolute figure. Fair enough. I agree with you in a sense. But again, on the flip side something like my Tag Link cost me $239 shipped. Add to that an approximate cost of $230 to get it serviced by The Zigmeister (just to calrify, I have not yet because I just got it). Let's round up and make it an even $500. Suppose I could be relatively certain that there would always be someone around to service the watch every 5 years even if I had to ship the watch off to Uzbekistan. The gen only costs around $2k new and I don't know how much used, so let's say around $1200. I'm only saving $700 but the watch, for all intents and purposes, looks almost exactly like the gen (barring the date wheel and I really don't care) so that $700 is still money saved that could go towards something else because I'm perfectly happy with it. Uggh, I think I lost track of whatever the hell my point was. Hope you can follow my rambling.

Nope and nor will I ever. $5k is the most I would ever consider spending on a watch. We're going to have to disagree on that one. But let me explain why I said what I said. Yes, there is going to be variations in watches. Someone may get a rep SFSO that works perfectly awesome and keeps time within +/- 2 seconds/day and I may get one that breaks in 5 hours. So in that regard, a rep is not a rep. However, the main point for me is what happens when The Zigmeister, for example, decides he's had enough and packs it in. There's still FF, rbj, etc. that does work on reps but these individuals are few and far between. So in X years, if no one's available, all of us with reps are SOL if anything goes wrong unless we happen to have the skill set (and most do not) to fix said problem or, more likely, service the watch. With a gen, this is not an issue. There is always going to be someone available to do the work as long as you have $ in hand. Fair enough and I understand the point you made below. But that's another reason I will never spend exorbitant amounts of money on a watch. I like time pieces but in the end, they're "just watches". It may be blasphemy for some members on here (from the posts I've read) but I will happily wear a Timex, Fossil, or quartz watch if I like the style. I like the "prestige" and connotation of $$$ of being seen with a(n) [insert expensive watch here] but, to me, that's just a bonus. The main reason I have X watch on my wrist is because I like the style.

I go by absolute price. A rep is still a rep no matter how good some of them may be. It's still a bit of a crap shoot in terms of longevity of the movement, crown tube, etc. What if the gen costs $200k? Going by the 10% goal some have quoted, that's still a $20k price tag and you're probably not getting any better quality than a $150 rep of some other watch. I absolutely refuse to pay the $500 price tag for some of the "super reps" such as the HBB. The gen may be $10k or so so it's still a significant savings but I'll still spend $250 on a rep of a $2k watch over that any day. In addition, I'll then consider adding some mods such as AR crystal, lume, gen hands (maybe) and servicing (most likely if it's something I plan on keeping). That can bring my price tag up significantly, but I wouldn't mind because I'm actually getting some quality for my money. If the higher priced reps came with better QC, parts, etc. I'd be okay with it but they don't seem to e.g. .The Zigmeister's opinion of the HBB or the many faults I've read with the Cousteau Diver. In the end, I consider a sale of 35% off the price tag of any product or service to be a pretty good deal so no matter how cheap the gens of some of the $200 reps I'd buy are, I'm still pretty good to pay those prices and don't fact in the "Well I could buy a used gen for "only" another thousand bucks".

Starts changing over on mine at about 11 p.m. and is done right around midnight. You should not change the date on the Asian 7750 between certain hours. I forget which they are (something like 10-3) but read The Zigmeister's post on "Care and feeding" of watches for the answer.

I was going to suggest this very thing.

Hardwood = good. I don't need to floss any extra. Actually, as long as it's kept neat I don't care. Don't like it when I need a machete or a native guide to get through the jungle.

My rep has zero lume on it whatsoever. Nada. None. Zip. Don't know about the gen.

I don't mind a bit of hair on a woman's arms as long as it's not a forest. Hairy pits or legs is a no no for me though.

Congratulations!

I was going to say that it's just you but beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder. She's definitely not ugly but I'd put her at average at best by my standards/preferences.

I've bought from Jomashop as well. Speedy delivery. Only thing, like mentioned, is that because they are a grey market dealer you need to do all warranty work, etc. through them.

I went into both a Tourneau and a Mayor's in the last few days (wearing my blue Tag Link). 1. It's not the most expensive watch. Quite at the bottom of the barrel in fact in terms of cost. For example, a guy was inquiring about a $45k Patek while I was in there. Yet, the sales people were kissing my ass and offering me drinks, etc. and trying to convince me to buy the $7k Breitling I am absolutely in love with. 2. While it would have been weird for me to ask to see the same watch I was wearing in order to compare them in my hands, looking at the blue-dialed Tag in the display case, the colour looked spot on to me.

Yeah, I've always found it odd that kenberg's a mod here and has a "section" but you have to go to TRC to see/buy his stuff. However, it's only $5 to get a one-month subscription so you can just factor that in to your costs if you know you're gonna buy something. You'll still come out way, way ahead of the game. I saw his items recently and it's pretty nice. Bit more limited than I expected; especially in the shirt department. But he has a large selection of some very nice-looking suits and some great ties. Lots of cufflinks, etc. although many of those aren't to my particular liking.

Nevermind. I got it out. Don't underestimate the power of a push pin, a paper clip and some pliers. FWIW, I pushed in the 3 -> 9 direction but I don't think it really matters with this bracelet as it wasn't a split pin.

I might hit an AD on Friday to check it out. Was going to do it in the Puerto Rico airport but my flight was delayed and I had a tight connection. Will let you know.

Hi guys. I have the PDF guide on how to remove the bracelet. The thing is that I don't know which direction to push the pins out that are near to the clasp in order to get started as there aren't any arrows indicating the direction. Do I push from 3 -> 9 or from 9 -> 3? Thanks. *Corrected typo in title.