Toadtorrent

You can either order a rep strep from any of the dealers and toss the strap...or find a gen one on the Bay for around $50 I think...

Actually C$130 is about

That is an interesting question. It would be great if they came clean and lubricated. Any one know?

I've picked them up at Somal Canada on sale for $100 CDN...and $130 CDN regular price...I think that's about £20 GBP converted?

The Zigmeister's experience on working on tonnes of these has been that generally they are not clean nor properly lubed. His experience working on my reps is that they have generally been dirty.

As Andy says, the movements bought from more reputable sources however, may be better than what we get straight from the rep factories, being better oiled and serviced.

To rip and replace when dead or service...the perpetual question. It depends. If you can do datewheel swaps, it's definitely cost beneficial to do the rip and replace at $130 for the movement...and screw servicing.

If you can't do the datewheel swap (which has the requisite skills to do a movement swap)...then it's a different matter as the cost of a new A7750 + labour for a swap works out to the cost of a servicing...so the question becomes whether or not the "new" likely dirty and unlubed movement will last long enough for the swapping labour to be cost effective vs. the servicing.

If you want to have a few around that are RELIABLE and smooth running...then servicing is the route to go.

Somal Canada has them much less if you're in North America. Overseas shipping shouldn't be too bad.

Very nice post. This is a looker...just hard to rationalize the upgrade from the high value DG2813 El Cheapo version. This is definitely an improvement though...

Read the review in my signature. I'm from Toronto...so hopefully we can mirror the same experiences.

Welcome aboard.

Read the Noob Guide linked in my signature as well...it will help introduce you to the rep world. My unserviced Skyland is still going strong...

I love mechanical depth sensor. Very nice.

Very nice!!

That's a drag. The ETA movements are supposed to make reliability a little better than the cheap Asians...but these stories always pop up making those with long-running Asian's laugh to the bank.

The good news is, any watch repair person who can work on a basic ETA movement can look at and fix the problem. These watchmakers are generally plentiful. The ones that can work on mechanical chronos are rarer...and ones who can work on Asian mechanical chronos rarer still.

Tracking

Hah hah...nice watch BTW...

There's also some Pro-Hunter series watches, some really interesting Comex and SD's (record holders)...Rolex Panerai Dial, Ref. 3646, (SWEEET!)...

Antiquorum Auction

Excellent...an annual tradition!!

I wonder if the pushers site lower because of the mod to make the tricompax layout adding thickness to the top.

Either way...I like it a lot.

Funny that you should post this shortly after having the Seinfeld spotting...

I like the OR strap by default too. I have enough leather straps kicking around I can swap in...but no OR. This would be great...especially if it's in the 22mm size so it can fit the other Breitlings rather than the large lug ones only.

There are lots of places globally to get replica goods. The issue is, there are fewer factories and sources that carry the higher end products. You can get cheaper elsewhere, but what is sold by dealers like Kenberg here, or the rep watch dealers recommended by the site are the best quality reps at prices that are reasonable...as opposed to the best products at prices that are silly.

You got it...the best rep is the one that supports the forum!!

According to the Lume-Tec site...they use a "6 layer application of Superluminova applied over a chemical coated white base."

Zig uses the same material as Lume-Tec...the blue being the RC Tritec BGW9 Superluminova product...and the same product used on most high end sport watches ...SL that is...not BGW9 specifically (Seiko being the exception who have their own product which is by all accounts outstanding as well).

The only issue is, that Lume-Tec having their own brand, are not doing after-purchase lume application so are prepping dials and indices from the start and applying the lume on top.

Zig is after purchase lume...applying the lume on top of whatever else is there. He can apply a white base where possible depending on the base colour of the lume and what the desired result is.

Strength of glow will depend on the base (ie. it will be brighter with a white base on an indices vs. a black base)...but the product Zig uses is the best available...and his application of course speaks for itself in the posts on this site.

Cool!!

Big congrats on the 2...wow...great luck. 2 fantastic pieces. Thanks for posting this...and putting back to the community!!

Every watch has a flaw. Whether or not one flaw is considered greater than another is a matter of personal choice. You need to find what watches you're interested in...look for write-ups, reviews, topics, etc on that watch to see what people say about it...and see if the pros outweigh the cons IN YOUR MIND!!

The $180 Ulysse Nardin MMD are extremely accurate watches too...and good value...but a lesser known movement with a good track record so far...but maybe you want ETA...maybe you don't...maybe you want a chrono...maybe you don't care.

ETA 2893-2 movements on Ebay are around 300.00 USD. I bid on a Steinhart GMT to use as a donor for a 2893-2 movement yesterday. the watch went for 320.00 which was more than I wanted to pay for it. So as you can see, you are going to invest around 300+ dollars in a movement that may not work. OF course if it didn't work out, you could either resell it on Ebay, or get an older PAM GMT and stick it in it. I know they will work, because i had two PAM GMT's a couple of years ago and both had 2893-2 movements.

Arthur

Great summary Arthur...thanks.

I like my 239:

Click the pic to read the write-up. I wouldn't say it's fully modded...but it's modded...

Read the Noob Guide linked in my signature to get started quickly. There are lots of factors to consider...most of your questions will be answered there.

The issue of what is the best Rolex is something that's asked again and again. It really depends on a number of factors including how much you are willing to spend and where you are located.

The best are heavily modded franken watches that use a lot of genuine parts. These will be in the $1000+ mark per piece depending on the parts used.

The next are the heavily modded watches using good quality aftermarket parts...these will be in the $400+ mark.

There are excellent pieces in the $100 range that are considered best value...but not the "best" visually.

So...you have to decide what your priorities are and go from there to find which is best for you. Places to start if you are new to Rolex are Josh and Andrew and looking at their GMTIIc with the new Rolex copy movement, The DSSD with the Asian movement for good value, the Milgauss with the new Rolex copy movement and one of the SS Datejusts.

Search in the Rolex section for pics and comments about the various watches...

Welcome aboard to RWG and if you are new to the forum and reps...please read the Noob Guide linked in my signature.

There is a big difference between a Daytona rep and a PAM253... screw-down pushers

Screw down pusher do nothing for water-resistance though...only to prevent accidental tripping of the chrono functions...so they are still a potential point of egress.