fletch512

Only thing I can see is that the gen has 4 minute markers between the 5,6, and 7 hour markers. The rep only has 3. Everything else looks good. I'm sure the lume will suck, of course.

Trusty's old style VCO is even more expensive than Silix's new version. Anyone want to help a poor brother out and point the way to a dealer with a reasonably priced older version?

Yeah, I agree. The same old one step forward, one step back. Beveling is too wide. No mark over the "e" in Geneve. Hands are wrong. Font on "Automatic" seems a bit off.

Seconds hand was jerky when I got it. Then it died.

Like I said, from a rep perspective: same Asian 7750, same case style, same datewheel, rubber instead of steel band, etc. Sure, the bezel rotates, which is nifty and all, but I'm just saying lets have some perspective here. No question the gen Cousteau Aquatimer is a cooler watch than the gen GST chrono. However, you know the rep's going to have poor lume, a problematic Asian 7750, and problems with the datewheel. You know this because that's the same problems all the other IWC reps have. So add in the cost of re-luming, servicing the movement, putting in a new datewheel, just to get this rep up to par. All on top of what looks to be a very expensive rep. So again, why is everyone going bonkers over this watch?

What's with all the hype? Isn't this watch, from a rep perspective, just a more colorful GST chrono? Except it won't have the steel band and yet cost a whole lot more? Don't get me wrong; I'll pick one up if the price is reasonable, but with all the attention this thing is getting, you'd think it was a perfect AP ROO or some other holy grail watch.

I think he meant that he didn't advise buying the swiss movement. Those are indeed expensive for the power reserve. I have two asian 21j movements, and they both work great. Couldn't be happier.

Will this be produced with the numeral marker dial in the future, or just the stick marker dial?

I personally didn't like the Raymond Lee insert. While the pearl was fine (by that I mean better than the one that caem with my watch, but not near gen quality), the markings on the insert were still off-center and not any better than the insert that came with the watch.

Well, after a little under a week, my watch kicked the bucket and went to watch heaven. The watch worked fine in the beginning, although the rotor was pretty loud, and crown winding didn't sound very smooth, either. The seconds hand was a bit jerky and the watch lost about 5-6 minutes per day. Finally, friday night the watch stopped working altogether. I've contacted Jay about getting a replacement, so we'll see how that goes. Anyone else having a problem with the 7750 movement? At the very least, it sounds like it could use some oiling.

Or a bad year for IWC, depending on how you look at it.

For those that got the panda version, do you have concentric circles on the subdials? Somone posted a close-up pic with the circles, but mine doesn't seem to have them.

My sub-second hand is quite jerky, as well. You think oil will fix the problem?

It boggles my mind why people still cast aspersions at Neil. It's quite obvious that the same group of moderators and RWG/RWI/TRC… supporters will rush to his rescue no matter how valid the grievance with lavish praise normally reserved for spouses and close relatives. On the other hand, a quick search on this and other rep sites will show that Neil has garnered more complaints than praise. Moreover, the amount of complaints is totally disproportionate to his sales volume. What this all means, I do not know. If I were a conspiracy theorist, I would say that certain people affiliated with this and the other sites support the dealers unequivocally and try to stifle any dissent. These being the same people that praise each new watch no matter how glaring the faults. But then again, I'm not a conspiracy theorist. I do know that in post after post, Neil has proven himself to be a rude, disingenuous wretch of a human being. Those that so vehemently support him do so at the risk of their own (and the site's) credibility. And remember, your money is your only real voice in this business. If you suppport Neil's antics, by all means buy from him. But there are many other dealers more deserving of your hard-earned cash.

I think I like the back of this watch more than the front.

Yes, circles within circles. In this instance it's in reference to how the subdials look. The gen has concentric circles in the subdials.

I'm in for a panda version.

Here's the main difference that I can spot between the gen and rep versions. And, since no one has mentioned it, maybe it's not that big of a deal. The external ring on the gen has three small markers between the longer markers, so that the space between 5 and 10 (10 and 15, 15 and 20...) is divided into 20 segments. On the rep, there are four small markers between the longer markers. Thus, the space between 5 and 10 is divided into 25 segments. I don't think anyone would spot this flaw unless they have been comparing picks for half an hour like I have.

If you can source OEM dials for the FM Conquistador, I'd be interested. PM if it's a possibility. Thanks.

I totally agree. Anything meaningful from these threads became lost a long time ago. I've continued reading them for the sheer amusement of watching Neil feed off his own anger. You just don't see people's true egos exposed like that in real life... people are restrained by the usual social factors. Only on the net...

I have to hand it to you Neil, your ability to childishly insult people is formidable. I was hoping to be done with all this, but I just don't like bullies, so I need to put you in your place. Enough of the revisionist history, let's deal with the facts. Fact #1) Dealers can charge whatever they wish. It would be ludicrous for me or anyone else to tell a merchant what they can or cannot charge for their goods. It's their own business, plain and simple. Fun Neil Quote #1) "I'm not in isolation in this point of view.....believe me...there's a storm gathering.....!" Fact #2) Neil did not just say he was raising his prices. Rather, he said that he and the other dealers were getting together to raise prices as a group. However, some people felt that the reasons he gave for the need to band together and collectively raise prices were suspect. Fun Neil Quote #2) "So it's time for you guys to fasten your seatbelts and hang on....it's gonna be a rough ride........and the ticket prices ARE going to rise......!" Fact #3) In his first post over at the RWI thread, Neil claimed that prices need to go up because "watches coming back with crowns screwed up with pliers.....screws chewed to hell.....watches that have been sent back as not working.....only for my watchsmith to tell me there is nothing wrong with it.....not to mention the watches I've replaced and never received the originals back......the list is endless..!" It's hard to believe that dealers are swallowing the cost of watches intentionally damaged by the buyer. If they are doing that, perhaps it is wiser to change such policies rather than expecting other customers to shoulder the bill. Later on, in page 5 of the thread, Neil changes his story and concedes that scammers are "only a small percentage of the problem." Fun Neil Quote #3) "if you don't believe that buying a replica which has between 95-99% of the original isn't worth 10% of the price....you better buy braces and a belt to hold up your trousers.....'cos yer ass is gonna get spanked soon.....the 'glory' days are coming to an end......make hay while the sun shines.....you guys have had it good for a long time......!" At 10% of the price, can you say hello to a $500 sub? Fact #4) The other reasons Neil gave for raising prices in the first page of his post is that he has to absorb customs losses and theft from carriers. Others in the thread pointed out that this has always been a fact of life, so why raise prices now? Why form a cartel with the other dealers to raise prices? Moreover, these losses amount to a miniscule fraction of transactions. Several people in the original thread pointed out that they bought dozens of watches and/or spent thousands of dollars, yet never had customs confiscate a watch or the carrier steal it. Certainly if EMS wanted to steal something, they could find goods more profitable than fake watches from China. Do a search on your favorite website for stories about customs confiscations. You will find almost none. Yet people post on a daily basis about how quickly and securely they received their merchandise. Fun Neil Quote #4) "You got one thing right......WE dealers are doing you a favour...there are things going on in the background that you guys are not aware of.....but believe me when I say we ARE doing you a favour......it's not beyond the bounds of possibility that you MIGHT just see most of your favoured dealers here disappear" If you think Neil's not making a healthy profit, take this into consideration: There are something like 1500 members of RWI. RWG claims something like 8000. And then you have TRC, RWG2, WT, who knows what else. All serviced by roughly the same 6 or so major dealers. Now imagine each member buying two watches on average, some buy many, some buy none at all. I'd imagine the average may be higher, but I'm being conservative. AT RWI alone, that's 3000 watches, or 500 per major dealer, give or take a bit. And let's say the average profit per watch is $50 (that may be a conservative estimate, remember the IWC Jones which has been sold anywhere from $220 to $108 for the same decorated chinese movement). That's $25000 profit per dealer. Expand that out to the rest of the watch trading sites, and even if you take into account same members at different sites, that's still adds up to a lot of money. So that's how it all started. Since then, Neil has been trying to backpaddle and make it sound like he was the victim. Truth is, he made some outrageous claims and then compounded it by being rude to people who raised valid points. Sure, raise prices if you need to, but if price is actually dictated by overhead, as you claim, why the need to form a cartel? All of you here have been enjoying reasonable prices for your watches because of competition and market forces. Take that away, and you might as well go back to the $1000 Grade A Swiss Rolex Replicas of the old days. Do not let Neil delude you, that's what the discussion was really about. Of course, once Neil started making personal attacks and changing his story, the discussion got sidetracked, just like he's doing here.

Neil: You know full well that I, and many other people, attempted to rationally discuss your desire to hike up the prices on RWI. Let's not pretend that didn't already happen. If you instead prefer to sit behind your computer and call people stupid, then troll away. I'm not taking the bait. I just thought some people would find the discussion on RWI illuminating. Anyways, I'm going home for the day, so feel free to call me stupid as many more times as your heart desires. It's really not as bothersome as you seem to think.

Have you learned nothing? It is exactly because you called people "stupid" and "lumping f**k" and "narrow closed minded" that people started getting so upset on RWI. People that send you their hard-earned money don't like to be told that you're "doing them a favor" by selling to them. All the arguments for and against raising prices have been covered on RWI, and it's open for everyone to read and respond to. Your request for a "Q&A session" seems disengenuous, as it always seems to end up with you berating anyone that doesn't share your point of view. Forgive me if I don't want to continue that pattern at this or other sites.

I didn't really intend to re-start that 14+ page discussion on this site. I just thought people would be interested in reading it over at RWI, and joining in if they feel the need.

Pugwash, let me first say that I have great respect for the posts I have read from you in the past, but in all fairness, Neil initiated the bashing and continued it with more vehemence than was really justified. I do think it was not as one-sided as you seem to imply.