Watchmeister

Absolutely beautiful work. Wear it well. The only problem with that beautiful polishing job is that it is now a work of art and you can never wear it. I would swear that gens don't look that good after returning from AD service. Seriously, world class piece so enjoy it.

Wow, you have to respect the guy for mixing lower end items with $100k watches and keeping them all in a portable watch suitcase. That ain't no fancy watch box. Can you imagine the look on the customs guy's face. Something like the Matrix meets Horologie.

Very nice combo. I gave in and finally bought one of the older gen cashmere straps (they keep revising them) and I can't seem to get it off the watch. I have always really liked the black croc though. It really dresses up the watch. Wear it well and belated Happy Birthday!

Great to see you back.

Welcome.When your eyes are strained from too much reading here there is only one way to solve the reading problem. Pick yourself up a Fiddy. And now you can search on "Fiddy" and you will know exactly what I am talking about.

Welcome and enjoy the read. I will be curious to see whether your first purchase is rep or gen.

Welcome aboard. Enjoy the ride.

Congrats. I picked up the same one. I do think it is the best version but it does seem like steps forward on the dial and bezel but step back on the he valve. I am enjoying mine. Still gonna take a shot at upgrading the date window in the next few weeks. They finally put in modest rounded bevel and am hopeful the "ledges" can be sharpened up. Even picked up a spare dial in case my beveling turns into dial annihilation. Most importantly, nice watch and wear it well.

Welcome and enjoy the ride. You have come to the right place - plenty of reviews on specific watches and dealers. The forum works as a community to identify and maintain a good group of dealers so that you can focus on what watch you want and not worry about whether a dealer is ripping you off. As the folks have said above - decide what watch you want. peruse the forum, ask any specific questions about the watch or dealer once you have done a little reading and folks will pile in to help. That is what makes this place great. Most importantly, welcome to the community - and a community it is.

I know I have those flat top's somewhere. And unlike all you wealthy cognoscenti I have Ubi and Arch to thank.

Tourneau is eager to sell but as an AD they are typically limited as to how much they can discount by the rules of their dealer agreement. I would guess maximum discount on new JLC would be 15-20%. But if you either buy a second hand one from them or even better trade in something at artificially high value you will get an even better deal. In the current environment they seem to be way overvaluing a gen you trade in to finesse a discount well above what they are "allowed" to give as an AD on a new watch.

Congrats - I am a fan of the Bases as well. I have an older version and I would say that it gets the most wrist time of my PAM's. Wear it well.

He was offering a limited edition sailing jacket from the PAM Yacht Challenge Series for $1400 last year. At the same time I bought one from a Risti in Italy for $149.00.

I picked up a new version of the DSSD (v.4.???) from an off-board dealer which comes from a different factory (or so I am told). In truth the dealer is sold out but I suspect that our dealers will pick it up or come out with their own improved version. I am really most curious to see what people think of this version. I am not a Rolex expert and have not seen the gen more than once or twice. I was wearing the v3 for a while though. Here are some pics and primitive observations as I am not a Rolex expert. [Apologies for the smudgy pics but I wanted to get it done while I had some down time] You can see thicker bezel engraving and more reasonably sized bezel pearl. Date window is nowhere near gen but does at least show some bevel and the date although I have no idea whether it is correct font is centered on all numbers. Dial has crisp lettering but my sense is that it is too shiny and probably needs a matte clear coat but someone with the gen can comment. Crystal appears better and does have the small crown on it but is still somewhat lacking in the rise above the bezel insert. That may be fixable by removing some metal from the bezel though. Crown and cg area are similar to prior versions. I initially thought the He valve was too recessed but now I think it is about right. Bezel mechanism is built like a tank and I think the overall bezel shape is improved: Bracelet and clasp seems as good as prior versions (and frankly you can fault the engraving but the overall bracelet is sturdier than a lot of my gen bracelets). And lume is blue but could still use a relume. The funny thing is the pearl and the hands glow brighter blue and longer What do you think?

Actually v4 has come and gone.

I just can't believe you attempted a second one. What were you thinking? And I must confess, I was waiting for you to weigh in here.

Great watches. And on that particular watch I would choose the white dial as well. The white baton gen dial makes the watch scream gen. I also suspect you have numerous black dial watches. The white background causes the batons and logo to leap off the dial. And as far as I know I am not gay. Wear them both well.

As most folks know the vast majority of better brands other than Rolex, Audemars Piguet and Patek are owned by larger luxury good conglomerates. Some were sold so that families could cash out but more were sold in times of distress. A name like Rolex does not disappear. But they are obviously taking it in the chin with sales down 30-40%. In theory as long as they didn't use too much debt to fund their expansion they likely survive. And if they do get into financial distress one of the luxury product conglomerates will add it to their stable. I also think in my hear of hearts that Rolex is a Swiss institution on par with the major Swiss banks so either the banks or the gov't itself will find a way to keep it afloat if it does get into trouble.

Unfortunately they made the best. They made a grand total of less than a 100 of the very first version. It had far better aesthetics but the first gen 21600 A7750 movement. They sold for $800 outside of Japan when they came out and didn't sell well. The next version was no better then everyone else's and sold for $300. If you are looking for a first generation Honpo all you can do is put out a want to buy.

Demsey - I will defer to you but all the planes are older prop planes. It is one of those airstrips which I guess is not enough long for bigger traditional commuter planes to land. I think the largest planes holds 10-12 people. Kind of an equalizer because even the very rich guys with their own planes ultimately have to ditch them on a larger island nearby and take one of these. And I gotta say that I agree with you and Ken. Before RWG it was typically all kid pics. Now I have the kids helping me collect tortoises for watch pictures. But my wife gets the credit for that. In spite of the fact she thinks we are nuts she still helps out.

And I definitely don't own my own plane. You know what they say - "if it flys, floats or f_cks - rent don't buy." Not that a plane is even vaguely in the budget.

Thanks for the kind words. And I guess I made the post misleading. I am in no way shape or form a pilot. I love the landing strip because you fly through a small mountain pass to land and take off over a public beach. I have been going to this particular island for years and have a wonderful landlord there who hasn't raised the rent in years so it is still vaguely affordable. At least the dollar has strengthened somewhat against the Euro. This is my 2nd or third year posting pics with whatever watches I bring. I always bring 3 everywhere I go and that is half the fun - picking the watches for any particular trip. I have a nicely worn watch carrier and so the few times customs ever open my bags I only get compliments rather than accused of smuggling in watches. The tortoise escapade provided lots of fun for the kids. They have been there longer than the house. The one I wanted to use for the pics is so big that we couldn't pick him up. Now I am back and have to start working on next year's watches. Actually, I must admit that I already have three projects in mind for next year's trip.

I head down to the Carribean every year and the biggest question is "which three this year". Here are a few pics of the trip and the watches: Coming into Paradise: That runway is looking relatively short: Hey, That's one way to get to the beach quick: Luckily, I had my latest aviator watch on for the trip: Off to the pool: And of course the appropriate pool side accoutrement (do you really think I am going to take a gen t dial Rolex to the beach): Would you guess the pic above was taken in the pool (notice the air bubble) But the best laid plans... Guess I forgot to send it off to Ziggy for proper sealing. This is one way to further vintagize a vintage dial And then off to the beach: Couldn't resist one nice pic of the watch: And finally, a big thanks to my watch bearers: The watch bearers in training - rather messy - minor accidents along the way: And much thanks to the cast: The watch couriers - Local tortoises who share the property with us Breitling Black Steel - V2 with swiss movement, Ziggy relume and repainting of the hands Rolex 5512 - MBW with gen dial, insert, crown, crystal and slow beat Panerai 170 - All the trimmings Hope this wasn't too painful for you. It was fun for me to put together. And a big thanks to my lovely wife and children for collecting the "watch bearers" for me. This year I left out all the naked women. Maybe next year I will add them and post in the GGG section.

Didn't Casio invent the black watch. Seriously, I wouldn't want my only watch to be a black watch but as someone said earlier the beauty of black watches is that they come in shades of grey and in some sense are the ultimate tool watch. Don't we all want to pretend we are "black-ops" guys - it's a natural extension of all of our deep sea diving and piloting skills.

They have also been doing 1/4 and 1/2 page ads for the 233 and others in the WSJ.