hooky

@ Plaifender: did you mean incorrect mineral crystal or 'incorrect sapphire crystal'?

Nice comparison btw!

those reps you are showing in the pictures are all reps that are available for around 3-4 years now. The last 1-2 years the reps have become a lot better in terms of finish and quality and also in accurateness to the genuine article. So I myself would not go there with those older models.

I would not recommend gold plating on a rep. Most often the plating is very thin and fades within 0.5-2 years. Also the color will change sometimes over time and also the color is not always the same as on the genuine gold watches.

The Patek steel color watches are quite nice though, from the pics above. I cannot comment on being 1:1 to genuine. And it is true, the ST19 movement is a very reliable movement and it winds extremely smooth.

Another tip, the brown rep streps on these scream being fake. Better take a black one or a custom made one from guys like for example Orloff straps.

Cheers!

Ok, then lume it.

But for rep resale value... better get replacement small hands from your rep dealer when you buy your next rep watch.

And let us here enjoy the result!

Yes, Harold from Yobokies (Seikoboy ;-)) is the way to go.

I recently bought a Seiko SKA427 and am waiting until he has the AR sapphire available for that model by beginning of March. So I would say: go for it!

Zig did the same job for my former Skyland Blacksteel. I also had the crystal AR-ed by Chieftang and added a gen buckle.

To answer your question, I would like to ask you a question. You have only one rep and it seems that you own several genuine high end watches. And you also decided to buy V2, so I am assuming that it is very important that you could pass a rep off as a gen. Right?

So... would you also consider to lume the hands if it was a genuine Breitling Blacksteel?

If so.. go for it. If not, leave it!

There is never a stupid question buddy, for sure not when it is your first post. Welcome to the forum!!

Quartz is almost never any problem. And the chrono works.

BUT... I can never understand why people want to have a replica which is so far off from the genuine article it terms of looks and also in terms of functioning. With this movement the pushers of the chrono might be in a different position on the case and also the subdial spacings will be different. In my honest opinion, it should replicate to almost being 1:1 and if it doesn't why bother. Then there are countless other nice gen watches available in the same price category as the rep, which will be quality wise a lot better.

If you still want IWC, I can recommend the pilot chrono, but also the Portofino Chronograph which is a very good replica.

just my 2 cents...

maybe for further reading:

http://www.rwgforum.com/topic/77690-movement-review-asian-7750-with-running-seconds-at-6/

http://www.rwgforum.com/forum/210-movement-reviews/

http://www.rwgforum.com/topic/94466-servicing-and-teardown-analysis-of-a-4-year-old-a7750/

Some reading stuff. Hope this helps. It takes some time to read the movement reviews, but you will learn a lot about the things you need to know about reps.

The what? Unruh?? Ich verstehe Sie nicht...

Hmm, nice first post

Best 024A and 025 are only supplied by dealer Davidsen (also referred to as DSN). DSN his models have very good lume. They are very good models, but the crown is not perfect.

The 243 and 305 do not have good lume.

The 243 is a nice watch but far from being 1:1 due to cyclops, date wheel, wrong bezel, too big bezel markers, brushed bezel markers instead of polished bezel markers.

I don't know if there are presently good versions of the 243 available. Some time ago they made models without the HE words on the He valve and also with a bad dial.

AFAIK there is no good version of a 305.

Good luck and the search function of the forum is your best friend!

edit: also remember that Ti models scratch more easily, because Ti is a softer material compared to steel.

I f I had a pam000 I would not have it modded this very moment.

From a member I heard that after CNY the new PAM000 will come out, and as we know now, those will be superlumed and with better finish and more 1:1 than the older versions.

That member heard it straight from his Chinese rep dealer.

just sayin..

TX, this is one of the nicest collections I have ever seen. Great taste. I count many Panerai models, so for not yet a Panerai vintage (brandless hommage) yet?

My suggestion Harm is, if you don't have the tools, don't have the experience (yet), is not to start messing with your grail yourself. Practice a bit first on a older or cheaper model. Before you know it you have the dial and/or hand scratched if you never did this stuff before and also not with the proper tools.

You'll be needing a special tool for removing the hands. Also need paper or special bergeon paper to protect the dial while doing so. And don't work near thick carpet, because you will never find stuff again if something falls of the table or jumps away. And you will be needing a blower to blow dust and other small parts away before you install the movement back in.

You could read these threads to learn and see what you will need.

http://www.rwgforum.com/forum/210-movement-reviews/

Cheers,

a fellow Dutchy

Those reps are never going to be 1:1 to the genuine. And besides that, it would be quite difficult to pass it off as genuine considering the value of the gen.

And reps will always be reps, meaning quality control lacks and also the quality of the watch itself is not always superb. For the money of 500usd and above for a tourbillon, I would rather recommend to get a non-rep tourbillon watch. Those are far better value for the money and look awesome as well.

And besides, it is a close case back. If not I would consider it.

I have it, and to-date I have only been able to use it successfully with loud ticking Pocket Watches!

To use it with modern watches you will really need to research and seek out an appropriate microphone. Problem is most of the phone microphones have some sort of noise cancelling which defeats it.

yeah, I think at least the case back has to be removed with modern watches.

And I have been looking for an external microphone, but I have no idea which one is most suitable. Maybe someone else has some ideas?

When I was around 16y I bought a set with Denon and Mission speakers.

Then later switched to Marantz for some years. 2 years ago I spent several thousands on a set from Arcam (AVR350 and DV139) and a 5.1 loudspeakers from Tannoy.

Last month I sold some of the new Arcam stuff, sold my Tannoy front speakers and went for second hand, a heavy weight Denon AV amplifier and a German brand speakers.

So back to Denon. Saved me lots of money and the funny thing is, the set that I have now sounds a lot better.

Most often you will have problems with the size. This summer I bought 2 rep shoes. Both with EU size 43, which I have for all my other shoes. One was way to small and I gave it to friend. The other was far to big. And all said size 43 on the inside.

I would like to try KELLO, which is a app for regulating your watch's movement. I believe just using it with your iPhone's headset is not good enough, so it needs a better microphone plug. Might try it with that over the weekend.

http://www.realwatchreview.com/main/kello-mechanical-watch-analyzer-iphone-app-first-review.html

Looking GooD!! Very nice straps!! Wear them well.

@ OP: I find it a bit strange that this watch smith is already being recommended by you to the forum members here, since he did not even perform the service of cleaning and regulating the movement yet. From your post I understand that that still has to be done. So how is it possible to already know if he will give the movement a good service?

Moreover, from my experience, it takes some time to see if all goes well. After the service, the movement should at least perform in a exceptional manner to be able to say that the cleaning/servicing has been a very good job.

To continue, there are many watch smith that have 25 years of experience. The amount of years does not say so much about quality. If I mention the name Rocketeer, the old timers here will know enough about bad watch making skills. Also experience with replica movements is very important, since they are a breed of their own, with their own specific problems. Specially the A7750 which is in your Skyland Avenger.

One of the best modders on this forum, or maybe the best, is The Zigmeister. Actually he is based in Canada as well.

Is there also still working lume in the dial?

Yep.. all of that above. The reasons why I would not own a manual wind ti rep anymore. Servicing did make it a bit more quiet on my former 177 though.

Tightening the screw has nothing to do with the loudness of the rotor. Be careful as well to not to screw it too tight and hard, because it might break off.

I never use just normal oil.

For many years I have been successfully using Bergeon KT22 grease on the ball bearings of rotors. It helps a lot.

I lost all words on this. Oh my.. what an awesome watch and even prettier dial. I wonder when this will become available to us to buy and what the price will be...

Well a buddy of mine, his was sent also around that time and just received his EMS parcel 2 days ago.

So the thing is, EMS is still not really back on track and is still catching up. Could still show up. But I agree it takes very very long and chances are getting smaller indeed...