Victoria

Now that the server is back up, maybe temporarily!, I can say: THANK YOU STEPHANE (awesome AP, by the way, I showed this to my mother, alongside Puggy's, and those were her favourites), SCOOBS, WARBODY, NAVI, BY-TOR, TWP (rrr, love the cardy!), BAZZ (ditto on AP!), TEEJAY, TOM, DLUDDY (Happy belated Birthday, fellow Leo!), FxrANDY (Du, Bayer!), SSABRIPO (Hope you didn't get caught up in the maelstorm today...), ROBERTK (Nice Lion Purdey!), and V! And to all who privately message me too! To make this post a little relevant, here is a shot I will cross-post in that other thread, about what we are carrying on our persons, noting the watch I used at that moment (couldn't wear grandmama's watch to such a place!) -- the just-arrived Andrew 113. Didn't think I would like a white dial PAM, but I love it! Shot this outside of the Western Union place, just as I was about to pay for my DAVIDSEN FIDDY, woohoo!

I was just sad I couldn't reply to all the kind messages for my birthday! Thanks for your hard work, Admin.

No, it's not common. He usually emails back within 2-3 days. Note, apparently unlike Joshua and Andrew, he doesn't work on Sundays, so factor that in too. However, and I don't mean to sound like a broken record, but I am one of those RWG'ers who has a beef with a collector, and will constantly bring this up whenever a question about their quality is brought up. I feel it is my duty to share this with others, with the caveat that what happened to me, doesn't necessarily follow will happen to anyone else. Having said that, I wouldn't buy from Paul again if you paid me to. He's awful at quality control (especially with PAMs), and it's like pulling teeth to get him to answer emails or get one's problem solved, once you have received the item. I wish you only good luck, but mine has been atrocious with this collector. EDIT, 8 August 1:30 AM EDT: I gave him an ultimatum on Monday, to fix my current problem, or I would leave a detailed account of his shoddy professionalism and lack of quality control on each of the forums I am in. This is after innumerable emails to him since receiving the PAM 199 with missing marker, rusted out CG, and worn out screw-threads in the lug holes. In essence, a completely awful watch. If he doesn't email me within a week, I will make good on my promise and that'll be the end of that forever. Amazing. He lost a customer worth thousands to him, potentially.

Okay, why not! Even though I was saving these for various weekly wristies. Sneak peak at the Repgeeks thread I will post on Tuesday. The PAM Purdey Lion (PAM 154) on Maniffature Firenze Bufalo strap. Mmm, mega soft strap. Then, the base Radiomir PAM 210, on a great black NATO strap bought on the *Bay from "watchesu571": (Thanks to Chubbchubb for the heads up about that super-fast, affordable Hong Kong seller, on another thread) Finally, my Trusty PAM 111h, on a sexilicious PAV 91 strap! P.S.: Could someone PM me with a good leather conditioner for straps, which won't darken them, and preferrably isn't for waterproofing straps? THANK YOU!

Only child, capiche? And my boyfriend spoils me just as much...but I repay them by being a good girl (most times). *g* (Ooh, it's the postman again!) Nope. He knows I have them, sure, and both my mother and I have worn him down, buying him a few reps between us. But frankly, no interest at all. My boyfriend even less...so basically it's just my mother and I with the watch obsessions. My friends think I'm nuts, obviously.

MONDAY Quelle ironie se trouve dans ce sujet! Right, Stephane? The irony here is a Black Seal Radiomir Panerai honouring the "maiale" torpedo sailors of WWII, next to a "No Diving!" sign. This is my newest Radio on an OF Mario Paci cognac strap (note, waterproofed, so hah). TUESDAY Guys, sometimes we have to put away our beloved reps, no matter how modded, and babied over, to take out the real bling for special occasions, like today, my birthday, woo! A close-up of my heirloom solid gold Omega ladies watch...which belonged to my late maternal grannie, whom I adored. Thanks, Omi!

I lucked out, TMG! Especially the GPF buckle. You're the best! @Deltatahoe: Hmm, Wash Mutual. Every option is worth exploring to save my old man some money (he works like a horse for mum and me...), so thanks! And yeah, *g*, you can tell I'm a veteran of lo-res sites with that.

@Deltatahoe: THANK YOU! I am stoked! As for the *g* that stands for "grin". Some variations are *bg* and *vbg* (big grin/very big grin) but for those I just keep on adding the g's, as you might've seen. EDIT UPDATE: Holy cow. From the WU site: Selected Service "Money In Minutes" Sending to Hong Kong Sending from FL, United States Amount to send $ 390.00 Money transfer fee* $ 42.00 Total estimated amount $ 432.00 That's online! PMed David asking for more info. (LOL! I was tinkering with the options, and thought I had lucked out with "Quick Collect". Turns out that's for inmates in prison, only. God hoping that won't be the case for anyone here!)

You know curry has revolutionised our palates in Britain. Before we were into bland puddings and mushy peas (which however, I both adore), now we love CURRY! Except me, of course... Just tell your gf to make you some jerk chicken and peas and rice next time, unless she is like me, and can't cook -- hence the repetitive cuisine offered by her.

Ahh, well, you see. We were factoring in the lovely weather you would be getting. And the food.

Great info, thanks, George. It sounds British, and if that's the case, we ARE fairer. Just look at Will Hill's odds. *g*

THANKS! Of course I will. God, you won't get me to shut up about it for weeks. As I was PMing another member, I think I'm set now with the Fiddy. Getting another 111h, plus 113, and 177h from Andrew, and a modded 005 from TWP. That's it, guys. I got no money even for straps, after all that. I can't even get a bag from Ken until Christmas! That really sucks, given my equal passion for handbags...

Ooh, I didn't realise that. Heard it was closer to $40. THANK YOU, TMG! I forget if your straps are 24 or 26, but I'll wear them just the same.

THANKS, VLYDOG! The only problem is that my parents are very wary of all this rep watch business, and don't want to have their names used in any way. I'm guessing one doesn't have to show ID or anything when buying a Western Union moneygramme, so perhaps it's best to stick to that -- they'd freak if the Feds traced this back to my dad... (In dad's profession one is always getting auditted, alas)

For my first Davidsen model...the FIDDY! I managed to scrape up a few dollars, since well, okay, August 7th is my birthday. I asked for and am being given the funds to get a DSN earlier than expected, woot! But a few questions: - The straps he gives one, are they any good? They look like (rep) OEMs, but decent ones. - What colours did you get from him for your own Fiddy straps? - Is there ANYTHING you advise I ask him to do, before sending the Fiddy out to me? - And I've never bought a Western Union moneygramme. Any dos/don'ts or is it idiot-proof for the likes of me? Thanks, guys, in advance! I can't wait!

THE DOLOMITES WITHOUT SNOW, love it! Been there skiing, and it was fantastic. And you are proof positive I want my children to be in the Italian gene pool. Che uomo!

(Personal faves) SWEEEEEET. Another crazy rep watch collector like me! High five, Predfan2001!

My favourite Fiddy shot is on the other board. Great manicure. Just like my dad with the same profession.

Thanks for the friend thingie. You're my first, and as they say, you never forget your first. Nooo. I really really don't. That's just your kind chivalric nature talking. There are loads more people here that know A LOT more than I do. I just know how to buy straps. LOL. Here is what I've heard one has to do: - Super-Luminova (the lume seems to be the single-most needed mod, since it's a dead give-away it's a rep with a low dial luminosity) - Cannon pinion adjustment (Second dead-giveaway. The Cannon pin is what holds your watch hands, which looks down or more properly termed, "recessed", in rep Panerais. I believe this is actually more important to the authenticity of your PAM than the Super-Lume, but having a deep lume is dead sexy) - Improved Palp(atine) crown (needs to be fatter, and often shinier than rep ones) - Anti-Reflective coating (at least one side, if not two. Note, in gens there is a yellow tint to their AR PAMs. Reps are more bluey...) - Swan neck regulator and dagger replacement (Hard to explain, so check this out) I believe the following are important, but less mandatory: - ETA swap if you have the Asian movement - Changing the font of the "L Swiss (Made) L" trademark which is usually too close to the 6 - Cyclops adjustment, in case your PAM has a datewheel - Crown Guard lever fix, though I'm uncertain if this is done when the CG is replaced (see above) - Dial change or Dial Painting (for greater accuracy in looks) - Many other mods, possibly important ones which I've forgotten. Guys? Input? This is a good example of what a finished Panerai watch would look like: http://www.rwg.cc/members/index.php?showto...&hl=modding http://www.rwg.cc/members/index.php?showto...1&hl=dagger http://www.rwg.cc/members/index.php?s=&amp...st&p=257075 http://www.rwg.cc/members/index.php?showto...1&hl=dagger Note: The modders have different prices. I've been given some insider tips as to how much a person should pay for this or that service, though. Not knowing this is the equivalent of being a woman with a car problem going to the mechanics. Rip-off city if you don't know what's what. I know this very well. *gg*

Best of luck, Admin. Should we stay off the site today, so as not to overload the server?

Hehe. Thanks, sssurfer. You have one thing going for you that I love in a man -- you're Eyetalian. Right now, I'm actually rather smitten with one of your paesan, and I have the great fortune that he's possibly even more smitten with me....so as you know, one of God's greatest blessings is to be in love with a good, decent person. And to own a Panerai!

YES!!! . . . . . . . . . . . . . Boy that VIP upgrade really paid off!!

I disagree! I believe in the universality of human angst, and particularly the self-involved pity party thrown by every teen for themselves. And I think Hughes captured that brilliantly. His teen flicks were the first that didn't talk down to adolescents, or glorify them as RWAC did, with that cutesy twink, James Dean. Yes, Sheedy was a fakey goth chick, but let me tell you something. How many grown up goth chicks do you know now? Not too many, unless you are part of the biker world or hang around metal tour groupies. Most goth chicks really do just want to be pretty, and have nice appearances, but their teenage cynicism is too strong, or their undeveloped personalities too weak to do so. Remember that they talked about that in TBC! "What will happen on Monday, will we ignore each other same as before?", asked Anthony Michael Hall. That I found refreshing, and something that would've happened in real life. It wasn't no sitcom where all woes are solved in 24 minutes flat. Now that I have no answer for! Didn't Molly drive a pink Karman ghia? What is vintage now could perhaps have just been clunky back then, rather like driving a Ford Pinto in 1985...not that anyone should have driven a Ford Pinto EVER. (shiver) Notice that Judd Nelson wore a Bund strap on his rather nice aviator watch during TBC. Seiko, I wonder? Oh, Pugwash. You sounded like Dirty Harry just then.

Armin, check this similar thread out, which is just two days old. http://www.rwg.cc/members/index.php?showtopic=42697&hl= The general consensus from our resident Paneristi is that you should go either with the very repped 111h, or even better, the 112h, the so-called "base" of the series. That link gives you a lot of very good advice, so check it out and profit by it! The older Pre-Vendome models are in that range, easily. Slytechs must cost a small fortune, though they are newer than the Flottiglia XaMas ones, obviously. There is this Risti link about prices: http://www.paneristi.com/reference/priceli...prices2007.html Unless my poor eyes fail me, I think their top listing is the 253 at 40k U$. But of course, that's the CURRENT or more available models. By the way, I got a 2006 Panerai catalogue on eBay. Mmm. EYECANDY-city!

Whatever happens, please don't leave, TeeJay. Wouldn't be the same without you...let's all have a nice coffee, and laugh about this in the morning!