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You'll need some hand remover and setting tools very very soon..

The newer asian 7750 28,800 version has different hand sizes to the genuine 7750 and the older 21k asian. I forget the measurements but they are on the board here somewhere. So genuine hands won't fit without some modifications

It is my understanding that this movement needs some kind of factory jig to hold parts in place during re-assembly. This is probably a great reason to avoid any watch with this movement. Quite why ETA designed it this way is a mystery, especially given that the 7750 has set the standard for reliability and ease of service for years. I've read that Rolex went the opposite way with the 413x movement and made it especially easy to work on.

Actually removing then replacing the bracelets on reps can be a huge pain in the a**.. often the spring bar holes are not where they should be and the spring bar has to be bent or forced into place. I had a real battle with a Planet Ocean recently. Before you remove the bracelet look at the spring bars.. if the end link is tightly in place and the bars are distinctly bent then be careful. Also remember what every lube you use is going to get on and into your skin. Not all lubricants are safe for this. Most mineral oils, WD40 and many bike chain lubes are specifically not safe for long term skin contact.

It's all about profile.. we like to keep our hobby at least slightly below the radar, AD's have the most direct channel back to the manufacturer, and the manufacturer's and their lawyers are our hobbies biggest threat.

I'll bet in the long term this feels way better than another jet, yacht or house..

You can insure reps to.. seriously I discussed this with my broker a while back and we advised the insurance company what they were, how much they cost (justified with paypal details etc) and they covered them (for an extra premium of course).

I have two UPO's, one with and one without AR, the difference is huge, by far the biggest improvement you can make to any rep. There's only one problem.. every watch in the box without AR now looks crap.. I'll be sending a whole load more off for one of the next runs.

Sadly this rep looks like someone hand made the case with a file.. its all over the place. The RM05 rep is half way decent but I can't get excited about this version of the RM11. Its does mean though that Mille is on the radar so to speak.. and hopefully that means a better RM chrono in the future

Thats a huge improvement.. lets hope the other makers start using this part, On the Hublots especially this is a major giveaway.

Acetone and AR crystal coatings don't mix btw..

Raymond Weil sued someone a few years back for wearing other brands in public while under a paid endorsement deal. I forget who, one of the hollywood actress/model types at the time

Mine arrived safe and well from Hont, happily none of the problems listed, the lume dots could be better but you need magnification to see that really. The movement probably needs an oil but I work on the basis that all asian movements need that so I'm not surprised or disappointed. Overall I'm very very impressed with the build quality, I really struggle to see the difference between this and my genuine Chrono Avenger titanium without using the loupe. My only gripe is the strap is slightly too thick for the buckle. Is that a common problem? I'm guessing the genuine is softer rubber.

JB Weld is a very high strength 2 part epoxy with metal powder mixed in for stiffness, strength and hardness. There is a fast and slow set variety. Its pretty easy to work with, and cleans up easily while its still soft. It is gap filling and doesn't shrink while drying like some rubber cements do. A toothpick would be ldeal for applying it. I wouldn't use an oiler unless you never plan to oil with it. You could contaminate the oils if any adhesive if left on it

Rolex is owned by a charitable trust.. they do not distribute profits to shareholders. In accounting terms that makes them "non profit" although they clearly do make substantial gains from their operations.

My black steel arrived today and sure enough.. loose screws. I definitely owe you a huge thanks for the heads up on this. The JB Weld will be coming out tonight.

I do like hte rubber strap for the Bentleys.. I've owned a 30 seconds and still have a GT.. and never wear either as it just to much with the size and the polished bracelet. Hopefully they will make the rubber strap in the GT size... oh and hopefully our chinese friends replicate it of course !!

The Montoya has the display back though.. pretty tough to make that any good

There no coating that lasts forever.. especially on a watch as you can hit some pretty hard stuff. The coating is only a tough as the metal underneath too, so if the steel under the coating deforms then the coating will deform too. Its even worse on reps as the steel if often not the best. I can imagine a breitling or similar looking quite good with a few marks but I wonder how something high end like the Richard Mille's will fair?

There are bezel removal tools.. but due to the way rep bezels mostly fit it can be very hard to do. Also remember the genuine one might not fit. its far from guaranteed.

Its either the hour hand hitting something on the dial, or the hour wheel has some dirt of grit in one of the teeth. It'll be a fairly easy fix.. but one that does require at least a partial movement strip.

I use JB Weld for this kind of job.. its incredibly strong and fills gaps well so the joint doesn't need to be accurate. Its fairly clean to use and set slow enough to be easy to position parts

You have to wonder how all these PVD and DLC watches will look in a few years, especially the ones that get worn every day. It appears even the genuine coatings are far from scratch proof.

WOOF !!

Just a thought.. will the manual wind parts in the 7750 be tough enough for daily use? I was under the impression that regular manual winding was not a great thing on 7750's..