PAMman

OOOPS, I think we may have hijacked a thread here......sorry. I should have copyrighted that phrase before I exposed to rep scoundrels. Did you compare a cartel rep to the 201A in the 'Risti link? Just add the proper screws and you're there.

I am not saying that all of his parts are crap. Some of DSN's parts are very good - for example his latest sprung crown and tube is very close to the gen and definitely the best so far. Some of his dials have been great but unfortunately he then changes them, for example his first generation 010 dial was a gem but it's not available now. I have recommended that people buy the best of his bits and build project watches themselves but it is his complete watches that are the worst. I have already pointed out what is wrong with his latest preV case and I haven't even mentioned the oversize and ridiculous looking lug screws. Anything that uses this case will just be completly wrong and will also suffer from his woeful build quality. I have a 5218/201A project with The Zigmeister at the moment, using DSN's 201A dial which isn't as good as it could have been, but still one of his better offerings - unfortunately he snatched failure from the jaws of victory, largely due to praise being heaped upon him too soon before he had finally got it right. I'm using a standard rep case which I will fit with the correct 3-piece lug-screws. I'll post a couple of photos when I get it back and then you should be able to see how close DSN could be by using standard off-the-shelf components instead of his own crazy nonsense. Very simply, DSN is following a path that is leading further and further away from accuracy and into the realms of fantasy with damnable build quality thrown in for good measure.

There was a genuine 3 dial and handset on Ebay a couple of weeks ago starting at $1000 USD. I have a genuine NOS 003 tritium dial and tritium hands which I'll let you have for the same price if that's what you really want.

I assume that you are referring to reps when you refer to the Lemania movement and the positive feedback. Firstly the 'Lemania' movement in reps isn't a Lemania at all - it hasn't got anything at all to do with Lemania. This so-called 'Lemania' movement is actually a handwind Seagull two-register chronograph movement which is a Chinese copy of an old, Swiss Venus movement. The modern Seagull is rightly well regarded and is a very good movement. This Asian copy thing is a similar set-up to the Poljot 3133 which is a Russian copy of the original Swiss Valjoux 7134 - again a very good handwind chrono. In a rep, the Seagull (Lemania) is considered a better buy than an Asian 7750 automatic chrono (copy of a Valjoux/ETA 7750) modified from its normal three-register 6, 9, 12 layout to give a register at 3. However the latest Asian 7750 auto is a very reliable movemnet in an unmodified form. If it's a non-chrono dress watch that you want, forget about chrono movements and go for a genuine ETA automatic movement. The Lemania is only considered a 'best buy' in specific circumstances where the alternative is a bastardised Asian 7750.

The only time that I ever had any problem with customs was through FedEx. The only watch that ever disappeared without trace was coming to me from Netherlands but that had nothing to do with customs. Regular Air Mail is certainly the best option.

My opinion too. Certainly buy bits if they're significantly better than the regular rep stuff or no longer obtainable etc (e.g. Jimmy Fu bits, Ti cases, painted base dials) but don't buy regular production stuff as spare parts. It simply doesn't make any economic sense and the end product will only ever be as good as a regular rep which could be bought off-the-shelf.

I'm sure that you will be happy with your strap - the DSN 111H is likely to be another matter entirely.

You are correct. Pre-A dials did use the 'fat', engraved markings like the Pre-V but had the "T-Swiss-T" below the six (see my post above). DSN's preV (201A etc) dial is engraved with slightly too fat markers and the wrong shape 6 & 9. It's hard to tell from these photos if this preA dial is using the engraved base or DSN's earlier sandwich construction. However, I think that it is the sandwich because his engraved base has all markers slightly too thick and this one looks OK as far as thickness is concerned. The preV and preA dials had 'fat' markers but not as fat as Davidsen made his. @peepshow - "Unfortunately the fact that he *is* the only game in town is one of the things that is enabling him to NOT step up his game" The main thing that allows him to persist in not upping his game is the continued support of members who post along the lines of; "Look at my great watch from Davidsen - Thanks for the great service and the pics that you sent first (not my watch unfortunately but he must have got mixed up) - just a few niggles which I'm sure he'll sort out (ruddy big hole in the case, stem too high, crownguard is poorly finished, smudge inside the crystal, blah, blah, blah). Overall I am very well pleased and I'm confident that it will be sorted. Davidsen's a hero. Thanks again." This is the sort of bloody nonsense that allows him to screw us all with impunity. For some inexplicable reason DSN is a protected species

You can see for yourself that the PANERAI font is totally wrong while the LUMINOR is OK. The 6 & 9 should be the quirky preV / preA shape but aren't - the PANERAI bit would bug me most. The caseack has the correct numbers for a preA but the whole of the engraving is just too big - however the most annoying thing is that his casebacks are thin and tinny compared to the regular rep which is the same as the gen. The regular rep caseback is comaprable to a gen in terms of weight and pattern of engraving but a preA version isn't available. DSN's CGs are not the correct shape for a preA which should be the smaller, thinner style, like a regular rep. If you can persuade DSN to use a regular cartel type case and CG, add his own latest sprung crown and tube and get that PVD'd before fitting his dial / movement and caseback you will have the best package. His recent cases are tripe. Good luck - you will need lots of it. Best option is buy the preA bits from him (dial & caseback) together with his crown & tube and get The Zigmeister to build you a preA using a Swiss cartel as a donor. Then you will have a proper watch and will have some bits to sell.

This is one of the most inaccurate, misinformed statements that I have ever read on the subject of DSN's watches. His preV cases are a caricature of what a preV really looks like. In contrast the regular rep case is very close to the true preV case. Before you flame me please check out this link; http://www.paneristi.com/archives/casedifferences/index.html If you compare the preV case to a regular rep you will find that they are very close in shape. Then compare DSN's latest preV 5218/201A. His has the crown and stem positioned far too high in the case, with the crown barely appearing below the grossly misshapen CG. Because the stem is too high so is the movement and dial. DSN attempts to disguise this by adding a ridiculously tall bezel to achieve a normal rehaut. Compare the gen - it actually has a shallower bezel than the later watches but DSN has gone in the opposite direction. The net result is that his preV case looks nothing like a genuine preV and there is no excuse because the regular rep is almost 100% correct to begin with. If you are really honest and examine the 201A photographed for the

Your sabbatical must have covered the 'rise and fall' of Davidsen if he is unknown to you. He has a really good sprung crown which is available complete with a matching tube that has an OEM-type internal seal. IMO this is the best non-original crown available. However, complete watches from DSN are a complete pile of cr*p so do yourself a big favour by buying the crown & tube only, as an upgrade for a regular rep. Good luck and don't say that you haven't been warned - there are plenty of posts on the subject, complete with photos of unimaginable horrors.

Why would anybody go through all this hassle in order to ensure that the build quality of an inaccurate, dimensionally incorrect watch would be dragged up above DSN's usual standards of cr*p? Even if you get it all put together with more care than usual the components are tripe. The crown and stem position is far too high, the CG is the wrong shape entirely, the Ti caseback is thin and sounds tinny with only laser engraving etc etc.

Looks good to me, but without box and papers its true value is well below a 'complete pacakge'. It may look like a bargain but your resale value will be similarly reduced, unless you pick up a geuine box, straps, screwdriver, warranty card, warranty booklet & Storci - the base models shouldn't have a COSC and blank warranty cards are commonplace. Even when you get it all together the white dial models are worth less than the equivalent black version so unless it's really cheap you should do your sums very carefully indeed. You are effectively buying a C10 head only with no provinence - it's optimum value is probably the sum of its parts (gen case + gen crown + gen crystal + gen CG + gen caseback + gen movement + gen dial + gen hands etc).

It's not the first time. I recall that, a few months ago, someone lost their Fiddy at a GTG (in USA I think). As far as I can remember it was included in a table shot then wasn't seen again. That guy posted a request that if someone gathered it up by mistake to get in touch with him. If I had a $20,000 watch on the table I think that it would have my undivided attention.

I think that I was the first person to really stand up and say that his stuff is utter cr*p. Before I ever said anything on any of the boards I had bought from Davidsen and then offered to assist in improving his product but he wasn't interested. I've said for ages that his stuff is rubbish and it seems to be getting worse.

Good question UJ. If you're not a purist why do you buy Davidsen's tripe when you have loads of stuff to build your own frankens, instead of becoming another of DSN's victims? I am also puzzled by the total absence of any reaction from the rabid 'rep bashers' at Paneristi when thier ex-moderator has suddenly become a rep enthusiast. How come you are still welcomed over there when the rest of us would get tarred and feathered?

That's what my white SOSF is wearing too. Not expensive at all and complete with a brushed buckle. The genuine strap really makes this watch feel genuine as the watch head is just soooo good. Stick a gen strap on one of these reps and there's really no justification for buying a gen - it really is that good. IMO the Swiss SOSF is probably the best rep of all time, bar none - there is nothing that needs to be done at all.

Yes, it's gen - you can get one at an AD near you.

The hands certainly look like tritium and judging by the apparent length I am reasonably sure that they are - don't forget that the A series T dial had shorter hands than the later B series L dial watches. This means that they really aren't any use to anyone without a genuine 023 or 029 as the reps are all L dials (I think).

Exactly. Listen up everyone!!! DSN builds only crap. His build quality is absolutely dire and his components are less accurate than mainstream reps. Even if his QC was 100% you will still get a less accurate watch than from most other sources. The only thing that matches the quality of his product is his manners.

When did anyone with, an eye for detail, last get a good quality product from DSN? I know that you say that the CG lever is floppy and a bit iffy in its slot but can you show us what the CG lever looks like in the open position? In other words, how well finished is the part of the lever that's hidden when it's shut but you can see when it's open? Any chance of a macro shot?

You are concentrating on the distance between the case and crown and seem to be ignoring the position of the crown in the case which is a far more fundamental problem. Look at the rear view of your last post - the crown barely comes out of the bottom of the CG at all. For the G series onwards it should show almost equal portions above and below the CG. Do yourself a favour and give DSN a wide berth. Check out the posts on the subject of his QC (none) and accuracy (far worse than regular reps).

I haven't ever seen any evidence that DSN is capable of getting anything right but I do totally agree that he isn't interested in raising his game at all. However, that's no entirely his fault as I blame the memebers of the rep boards who heap praise on him for 'hand building' their watches and then post pics of some awful workmanship and highly inaccurate details that can only be described as different-but-worse than the regular mainstream reps. His Panerai cases are an example of this - the regular reps cases are far more accurate than his. Why produce a bespoke article unless it's better?

I think that the concern is that while our members are putting a lot of time, effort and funds into this project some of the Asia-based dealers may use the detail to produce their own upgraded crowns and the community members would be left with a bunch of crowns that no-one wanted anymore. This is really a sensible precaution to protect the initial investment and ensure that there is still a demand whenever they become available.

Davidsen has so many fundamental things wrong with his cases that I'm surprised anyone buys complete watches from him at all. The crown/stem positions are all too high in the cases but this one seems extreme even for him. It would appear that this particular c*ck-up happened prior to the PVD process so should have been rejected at that stage, unless he has touched it up with paint afterwards, which wouldn't surprise me with his sloppy workmanship. These boards were originally set up to help people avoid being ripped off and we now have someone who rips members off 'big-time' and still so many people think he's great. WHY? Sorry, but he just produces tripe and creates nothing but hassle.